Victoria
Seaplane 35 minLast home 9:00 pm
A day in Victoria from Vancouver suits travellers who book the Harbour Air seaplane, because the 35-minute flight runs from Coal Harbour straight into Victoria Harbour. The trade-off is cost and short winter days, since fares start at $99 one way booked 45 days ahead and the January 2026 weekday flights stopped at 3:30 pm. By ferry and bus each way takes about four hours.
Photo by Armon Arani on Unsplash and others, credited in the gallery
Field card · Day trip · No. 009 · checked 16 Oct 2026
On the seaplane, only seat-pocket items stay with you.
Catch the last way home
The last ferry home leaves at 9:00 pm from Swartz Bay ferry terminal, north of Victoria. It reaches Tsawwassen ferry terminal, Delta at 10:35 pm.
BC Ferries seasonal schedules read on 16 October 2026: the 9:00 pm runs daily from 14 October to 11 November 2026 and from 31 December 2026 to 10 February 2027, and from 12 November to 16 December a 10:00 pm sailing adds on Fridays and Sundays. Checked Oct 16, 2026 from the published timetable. Timetable
Choose how you get there
| Way | Time | Cost | With |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seaplane | 35 min | $99 per person (2026) | Harbour Air Flights leave the Vancouver Harbour Flight Centre at 1055 Canada Place and land in Victoria Harbour. The January 2026 timetable flew 14 departures each way on a weekday between 7:45 am and 3:30 pm, and the posted timetables ended on 30 September 2026. |
| Ferry | 1 h 35 min | $22.05 per adult (2026) | BC Ferries The crossing from Tsawwassen to Swartz Bay takes 1 hour 35 minutes, and the first sailing leaves Tsawwassen at 7:00 am daily on the schedule from 14 October to 11 November 2026. |
| Coach | 4 h | Not published | BC Ferries Connector (Wilson's Group) From 1 October 2026 to 13 May 2027 the coach leaves the Vancouver bus terminal at Pacific Central Station at 9:30 am daily and reaches Crystal Garden on Douglas Street in Victoria at 1:30 pm, riding the ferry on the way. The last coach back leaves Crystal Garden at 5:45 pm and reaches Vancouver at 10:00 pm. The Connector's site posts no fares outside its booking page. |
| Transit | 3 h 27 min | $30.15 per adult (2026) | TransLink, BC Ferries and BC Transit Our sum of the timetable legs: 20 minutes on the Canada Line to Bridgeport, 35 minutes on the 620 to Tsawwassen, the 95-minute crossing and 57 minutes on BC Transit's 70 from Swartz Bay to downtown Victoria. The waits between them stretch the trip to about 4 hours 20 minutes each way. |
| Car | 2 h 56 min | $115.50 per group (2026) | BC Ferries Our sum of 45 minutes by the routing engine from Waterfront Station to the Tsawwassen terminal, the 95-minute crossing and 36 minutes from Swartz Bay to downtown Victoria, before any wait at the terminal. |
Getting there
From Vancouver Harbour Flight Centre, Coal Harbour to Victoria
Harbour Air flies from the Vancouver Harbour Flight Centre to Victoria Harbour in 35 minutes. The ferry route runs from the Tsawwassen terminal in Delta to Swartz Bay north of Victoria, and the BC Ferries Connector coach and the transit buses both meet it.
Door to door
35 min
from Vancouver Harbour Flight Centre, Coal Harbour
One way from
$30.15
adult fare
Book ahead
Advised
Day trip
Yes
Harbour Air seaplane
35 min · $99 one way
Vancouver Harbour Flight Centre, 1055 Canada Place
Flight135 min · $99Book through Harbour Air's booking search for winter 2026/27 times, since its posted timetables ended on 30 September 2026.Victoria Harbour
How often · Up to 24 flights a day, by Harbour Air's fare page.
Canada Line, bus 620, ferry and BC Transit 70
3 h 27 min · $30.15
Waterfront Station
Train120 minTransLink's station table gives 20 minutes.Bridgeport Station
Bus235 minThe first 620 leaves Bridgeport at 5:58 am and reaches the terminal at 6:33 am, in time for the 7:00 am sailing.Tsawwassen ferry terminal
Ferry1 h 35 min · $22.05Swartz Bay
Bus357 min · $3On a weekday the 8:55 am from Swartz Bay reaches Legislature Exchange at 9:52 am.Legislature Exchange, downtown Victoria
Drive onto the ferry
2 h 56 min
Waterfront Station
Car145 minThe routing engine gives 36.5 km in free-flowing traffic.Swartz Bay
Car336 minThe routing engine gives 32.4 km in free-flowing traffic.Downtown Victoria
Booking. Book the seaplane 45 days ahead for the $99 fare. Drivers can pay at the Tsawwassen booth without a booking, and a Saver fare or a $20 reservation holds a place on a chosen sailing.
As a day trip. Victoria works as a day by seaplane, and by transit and ferry it leaves roughly ten hours in town between a 9:52 am arrival and a 7:39 pm bus back to Swartz Bay on a weekday.
Weather. BC Ferries posts delays and cancellations on its current conditions page and on 1-888-223-3779.
Sources: harbourair.com, harbourair.com, bcferries.com, infomaps.translink.ca, bctransit.com, bctransit.com, translink.ca, routing.openstreetmap.de, routing.openstreetmap.de · checked 2026-10-16
Is it for you?
Victoria makes a day trip from Vancouver on the harbour-to-harbour seaplane, and by ferry and bus it fills the day with travel.
You’ll love Victoria if
- You want a downtown-to-downtown hop and can book the $99 seaplane fare 45 days ahead.
- You have a car and want to drive onto a Saver sailing from Tsawwassen.
Think twice if
- You want a car-free day with plenty of time in Victoria, since the ferry and bus legs take about four hours each way.
- You want to fly back after dark in winter, because Harbour Air's January 2026 weekday flights stopped at 3:30 pm.
Give it a night, or a long day by seaplane
Harbour Air's Vancouver Harbour Flight Centre stands on the water just west of the cruise terminal at 1055 Canada Place, and its seaplanes land in Victoria Harbour 35 minutes after take-off. Its fare page lists up to 24 flights a day, and the Everyday Low Fare starts at $99 one way for bookings made 45 days ahead, and that offer runs until 31 December 2026. In January 2026 the weekday timetable ran 14 departures each way between 7:45 am and 3:30 pm. The posted timetables ended on 30 September 2026, so search Harbour Air's booking tool for winter times. Every bag rides in the hold, and only something small enough for the seat-back pocket comes into the cabin.
The ferry route takes the whole day. The first 620 bus leaves Bridgeport Station at 5:58 am and reaches the Tsawwassen terminal at 6:33 am for the 7:00 am sailing. That boat docks at Swartz Bay at 8:35 am. On a weekday BC Transit's 70 leaves Swartz Bay at 8:55 am and reaches Legislature Exchange downtown at 9:52 am, and a single ride costs $3. Going home, the 7:39 pm bus from Legislature Exchange gets to Swartz Bay at 8:35 pm for the 9:00 pm sailing. That boat lands at Tsawwassen at 10:35 pm, and the 620 at 11:00 pm takes you to Bridgeport for the Canada Line.
The BC Ferries Connector puts the whole trip on one ticket. From 1 October 2026 to 13 May 2027 it leaves the Vancouver bus terminal at Pacific Central Station at 9:30 am, 11:30 am, 1:15 pm and 3:15 pm daily, and the first coach reaches Crystal Garden on Douglas Street at 1:30 pm. The last coach back leaves Crystal Garden at 5:45 pm and pulls into Vancouver at 10:00 pm. That leaves about four hours in town. Drivers pay $115.50 at the Tsawwassen booth for a standard car and its driver on the fares in effect from 16 June 2026, counting the 5% fuel surcharge, and Saver fares start at $51.45 for both.
The City of Victoria says it stands on the homelands of the Songhees Nation and the Xwsepsum Nation, and Destination Greater Victoria names them as Lekwungen-speaking peoples. The Victoria Visitor Centre sits at 812 Wharf Street on the Inner Harbour. The last sailing from Swartz Bay leaves at 9:00 pm every day of the schedules from 14 October to 11 November 2026 and from 31 December 2026 to 10 February 2027. From 12 November to 16 December a 10:00 pm sailing runs on Fridays and Sundays.
Worth knowing
- Keep in-flight items small enough for the seat-back pocket on Harbour Air, because every other bag travels in the cargo hold.
- Check the vehicle space on BC Ferries' current conditions page before a Friday evening sailing home, since evening boats on this route have loaded full.
- Base a late return in downtown Vancouver on a Sunday, because the last SeaBus to North Vancouver leaves Waterfront at 11:22 pm on Sundays and holidays.
Quick answers about Victoria
Can you do Victoria as a day trip from Vancouver?
Yes. The Harbour Air seaplane flies from Coal Harbour to Victoria Harbour in 35 minutes, from $99 one way when booked 45 days ahead. By ferry and transit the trip takes about four hours each way, and the last sailing from Swartz Bay leaves at 9:00 pm.
What is the fastest way from Vancouver to Victoria?
The Harbour Air seaplane is the fastest, at 35 minutes from the Vancouver Harbour Flight Centre to Victoria Harbour. The BC Ferries crossing alone takes 1 hour 35 minutes from Tsawwassen to Swartz Bay.
What time is the last ferry from Victoria to Vancouver?
The last BC Ferries sailing from Swartz Bay to Tsawwassen leaves at 9:00 pm daily and arrives at 10:35 pm, on the schedules from 14 October to 11 November 2026 and from 31 December 2026 to 10 February 2027. From 12 November to 16 December a 10:00 pm sailing adds on Fridays and Sundays.
Is there a bus from Vancouver to Victoria?
Yes. The BC Ferries Connector runs from the Vancouver bus terminal at Pacific Central Station to Crystal Garden in Victoria in 4 hours and rides the ferry on the way. It leaves four times a day from 1 October 2026 to 13 May 2027. The last coach back leaves Victoria at 5:45 pm.
What is the last way home from Victoria?
The last ferry home leaves at 9:00 pm from Swartz Bay ferry terminal, north of Victoria. It reaches Tsawwassen ferry terminal, Delta at 10:35 pm. That time comes from BC Ferries seasonal schedules read on 16 October 2026: the 9:00 pm runs daily from 14 October to 11 November 2026 and from 31 December 2026 to 10 February 2027, and from 12 November to 16 December a 10:00 pm sailing adds on Fridays and Sundays.
Can you do Victoria without a car?
Yes. The quickest way without a car is by seaplane, at about 35 minutes with Harbour Air.
