Gazebo Bed & Breakfast

Victoria bed and breakfast summary

2009-12-04T18:55:00.000-08:00

Gardens in Victoria

2009-11-16T11:37:00.000-08:00

Gardens in Victoria are popular attractions for our bed and breakfast guests and are a significant element of life here in Victoria BC. One can account partly for this by the climate whose mild winters, warm and damp spring and autumn, and pleasantly hot summers makes for ideal growing conditions.

Several gardens in Victoria are open for viewing. You can find them on the Gardens page of our website including the Butchart Gardens and Glendale Gardens. Do look at the gardens webpages to see the different displays you might expect according to the season of your visit.

Further, when driving around the Saanich Peninsula (the part of southern Vancouver Island on which our B&B and the city of Victoria are situated) you soon become aware that gardening is a popular and natural way of life for many. The higher percentage of retirees here also accounts for this.

Our own bed and breakfast gardens are typical of these, featuring native and suitable imported trees, shrubs, plants and flowers to create a lovely year-round setting. You can see some in this collage of images taken within our acre. The gardens were first established nearly 40 years ago so there is a good mix of mature and new growth. We hope you will be able to enjoy them and the other gardens in Victoria when you next visit Vancouver Island.

Victoria tourism 2009

2009-10-16T10:56:00.000-07:00

Victoria tourism in 2009 not surprisingly suffered from the recession, new USA passport requirements and the dollar exchange rate. Our spring was good but then July and August were significantly down.

Since this theoretically afforded us some spare time I took four partial days off to enjoy some aspects of tourism in Victoria. The highlight was three hours sailing in Victoria with two family members - do read about it. Here you see us on the bowsprit of the tall ship Thane. It was wonderful and something to do again next year.

The other days deserve a post apiece but should be mentioned briefly as further recommendations for your planning of a visit here.

A) Flying through the upper canopy of a forest may not appeal to everyone but ziplining is fabulous. Ten of us from Victoria hotels and bed and breakfasts went west towards Sooke for an exhilarating afternoon.

B) Down to earth, the other two trips were to local regional parks to enjoy superb hiking. Gowlland Tod and East Sooke parks both offer a variety of terrain with paths for a casual stroll through to a stiff climb. The hiking part of our website has to be developped so more will follow in the future. When here do ask for recommendations and we will suggest routes meeting your requirements.

Clearly we hope that Victoria tourism will bounce back in 2010. We will take a break for some of the winter and re-open before the Winter Olympics. We hope to see you next year!

Martin and Linda.

The Gazebo

2009-08-07T14:03:00.000-07:00

The Gazebo Bed and Breakfast was an obvious name for our B and B in Victoria when we opened way back in the last century (it seems like that, as indeed it was). The house had been used as a tearoom for the previous 19 years, named The Gazebo Tearoom. We remember bringing friends here for lunch naturally not realising its future role in our lives. At that time there was an octagonal wooden gazebo in the gardens housing a large bird cage.

This gazebo was probably built no later than 1979 so after 30 years exposure to the elements it was well past its prime. With some reluctance, we tore it down this spring though not until we had purchased a satisfactory replacement which fitted the concrete foundation very nicely. We wanted something open and welcoming. Two chairs and a small table are inside along with plant containers giving a splash of colour. Its metal frame is still a little stark but two clematis are climbing up it and a new flower bed next to the gazebo will soon mature. It will be a nice spot to enjoy an evening glass of wine or a good book.

After all, the Gazebo Bed and Breakfast could not exist without a gazebo!

The Butchart Gardens

2009-07-06T14:00:00.000-07:00

The Butchart Gardens are clearly the leading attraction to visitors to Victoria, British Columbia. We are fortunate in being located so near the Gardens so nearly all our guests visit them during their stay.

To help visitors plan their time their we have recently added new Butchart Gardens pages to our website. These include three pages devoted solely to certain areas:

There is the famed Sunken Garden whose carefully staged entrance always creates oohs and aaahs with its dramatic view over the former limestone quarry.

Our favourite is the Japanese Garden, especially in the late summer evenings when it is illuminated. After over one hundred years it is both mature and fresh. If you enjoy Japanese Gardens then also visit the very different Takata Garden at nearby Glendale Gardens.

Then there is a page combining two areas, the Rose Garden and the Italian Garden with the nearby Star Pond.

You will see why a lengthy visit is necessary, especially if you plan to enjoy afternoon tea there - the Butchart Gardens is one of the best two venues for a Victoria high tea in our view (along with the White Heather Tea Room in Oak Bay).

During the summer months you really should see the gardens lit at night after listening to the concert on the lawns. (Fireworks are only on summer Saturday nights). So there's much to do there.

Incidentally, and we think this is very important, please do not visit Victoria for just one night in order to only visit the Butchart Gardens. There is SO much more to do: see itineraries suggestions.

Bed and breakfast gardens

2009-06-07T16:27:00.001-07:00

Our bed and breakfast gardens have been getting a lot of attention recently. After a chilly Spring the air suddenly warmed in mid-May. Plants were about three weeks behind their usual state of growth but they've been catching up fast.

With the help of Linda's sister Pam and her husband George much has been accomplished. Guests' comments have been just part of the reward.

The pavers laid two years ago have been cleaned and sealed in the main areas. That sentence does not do justice to the task since we laid 15,00 - 18,000 of them. Container pots have new annuals so that the bed and breakfast gardens have lovely little displays. Moss has been cleaned off four roofs and weeds are in the constant process of being removed in that constant battle.

Another big project was to take up all of a moss-grown lawn which never received enough sun for the grass, dig up the sprinkler system (you wouldn't believe the directions the pipes took underground: a baffling invisible maze) and replace it with an environmental drip system. Then 12 yards of soil was moved into place before planting could begin for what promises to be a charming garden through which a bark mulch path winds. Ah, yes, and then there were the other paths which needed bark mulch, 12 yards of it. Finally, a leaning retaining wall was taken up and re-built vertically.

Phew, that's exhausting just to write about! Come and see our Victoria gardens if you can. Everything is bursting into bloom. The photo above shows the pristine path under the wisteria looking towards the front entrance.

Royal BC Museum exhibit

2009-05-04T17:17:00.000-07:00

The Royal BC Museum exhibit "Treasures: The World's Cultures from the British Museum" has just opened in Victoria. It runs until 30th September 2009. Accompanying it is an IMAX film "Journey to Mecca". We have had the opportunity to preview both and heartily recommend them to you.

The exhibit is one of the best at the RBCM for several years. Its 300 artifacts present over a million years of history. Like all exhibits at the museum it is very well presented. You can buy tickets online or at the museum.

The IMAX cinema always has several films being played over the summer with one having top billing: "Journey to Mecca". Ibn Battuta has been described as "the traveller not of an age but of Islam", having travelled 75,00 miles! He began these in 1325 with the journey to Mecca shown in the film and then kept going, on and on.

Do visit them both. (By the way, the mammoth above is part of one of the Royal BC Museum's permanent exhibits which range from the Ice Age to pioneer days in Victoria).

Easter in Victoria

2009-04-06T17:17:00.000-07:00

Easter in Victoria looks like being beautiful after our unusually long winter. I suppose any journalist with a regular feature to write runs dry of ideas. This was true for this blog post until the day dawned with wonderfully warming sunsine. At last Spring can begin. Our tulips are barely buds but that may change by Easter.

Victoria in the Spring is delightful. As well as floral beauty there are charming walks (four guests went for a hike on Whiffen Spit today and loved it). There are easter church services, a chess festival, easter egg hunts, a performing arts festival, an exhibit about the Vikings, live jazz as well as all the usual places to explore: see the Victoria Attractions page on our website.

By Easter Sunday we hope for a little resurrction of our own here. The old gazebo had to be dismantled and a new one will replace it. As our namesake, we really did have to ensure that it remained in one form or another. Maybe a photo of it will appear next time.

Until then, Happy Easter.
Linda and Martin.

New Victoria Spa Package

2009-03-18T16:55:00.000-07:00

The new Spa Package is the latest addition to our range of packages.

We see packages as a convenience for our guests who wish to have a selection of activities and goodies pre-arranged. This we are happy to do. Other people prefer to have just one or two elements of the packages and we can help them plan this. Then, others like to discuss possible options with us after they arrive. The choice is yours.

If a bed and breakfast spa package appeals, then you will enjoy two (one apiece) endless relaxation full-body massages (I can verify that they are wonderfully soothing), a fruit and cheese tray with sparkling wine or apple juice, local Victoria chocolates, fresh flowers and a selection of Silk Road spa products to take home. The total cost is Cdn$310 + 5% GST, in addition to your room rates. A two night minimum stay applies.

Others on our website include two romance packages, a gardens package and a whale-watching package.

If you prefer just to have a massage or other treatments then take a look at our Victoria massages page - there are two massages, body scrubs, facials, manicures and pedicures from qualified therapists. Please remember to book ahead so that we can arrange an appointment with them. If you take a massage we suggest you plan a relaxing couple of hours afterwards to savour the deep calming you will be enjoying.

Breakfast at a bed and breakfast

2009-03-05T19:54:00.000-08:00

Breakfast needs to be set up very soon in the Morning Room where our bed and breakfast guests will enjoy the break from their fast tomorrow morning. So before doing this I thought a quick breakfast blog entry was in order.

Attending a trade show last weekend I stayed in a hotel for its convenient proximity. Overnight parking cost $12 and the breakfast was over-priced. Oh to be in a bed and breakfast with free parking and a free full breakfast!

So before I load our dining table with all the accoutrements that make our breakfast table so elegant I thought a little background might be of interest.

The Morning Room (read Dining Room) receives the morning sun so, poetically, one might describe rays of morning sun glancing across the table but I will refrain from that. The furnishings are a blend of antique Canadian heirlooms and more contemporary items like botanical tapestries. Elegant glass and silver add sparkle. Flowers vay according to the seasons. All this is set up the previous evening and necessary preliminary kitchen preparations made.

In the morning Linda and I silently (always) enjoy our coffeee, toast and marmalade (what else for an Englishman?) before turning to the baking, blending, cooking etc. You can see a sample of typical results on the breakfast page of our B&B website. It is tasty and nutritious, "setting up" our guests for the days excursions. A few recipes are also on the website including our favoured Fruit Fool which also makes for a quick yummy dessert.

We hope you will be able to enjoy it soon too!

2009 - stay in a BnB

2009-02-19T08:39:00.000-08:00

To stay in a BnB affords extra value at a time when everyone is taking extra care with personal expenditures. We wrote about this in a recent blog and it was re-inforced by an advertisement being placed in the WestJet flight magazine by three Victoria bed and breakfast associations.

The advert speaks of the many complimentary services offered by bed and breakfasts rather than hotels but also rightly wrote that "personal service, comforts and extra efforts are always included".

We are reminded of this when we look through the comments written in our guest books last year and in the preceding ten years. It is a heart-warming experience to read of such appreciative comments. It's also an encouragement to realise that we have personally contributed to making their stay in Victoria a memorable one.

So as we approach the 2009 BnB season we do so with some apprehension, not expecting last year's record occupancy rates, yet with the knowledge that we will be providing our guests with a wonderful break from their daily lives. We look forward to meeting our 2009 guests!

Valentines's Day!

2009-02-05T17:09:00.000-08:00

Romantic bed and breakfasts in Victoria, or anywhere else, are ideal settings to bring or add a little romance into your life or, better still, someone else's.

Wikipedia tells us that little is known about Saint Valentine except for his name and burial place. February 14th may not even be his feast day. As to how he became associated with love and romance is unclear; Chaucer may have had something to do with it. Anyway, who's complaining? It's a welcome break in the middle of dull winter.

The photo here is of the whirlpool bathtub the privale ensuite bathroom of our Regency Room. If you look hard enough you'll see bubble bath too. Although we are full on Saturday 14th and Sunday 15th our cottage (romantically secluded in the gardens) and rooms are vacant on all surrounding nights. All have the same lovely two-person whirlpool bath, a fireplace and a private entrance. So if it's not too late for your plans do check our availability calendar and get in touch. We'd love to make your getaway break a special one.

A hotel or a bed and breakfast?

2009-01-22T19:08:00.000-08:00

Hotels or bed and breakfasts? For once we chose a hotel on a recent trip to Toronto. It made sense, being on the airport strip close to the trade show exhibition centre we were attending, with a shuttle bus connecting them.

We selected a leading international chain and booked through their central reservation service; well, tried to. We had emails and telephone calls with numerous people, never the same twice, as they tried to accommodate the mere fact that our flight arrived after their check-in time. We could not call the individual hotel (do they have telephones?, just like a bank). Hmm! Anyway all was settled.

Toronto has always been a place of miserable, money-grabbing people in my jaded mind but this hotel proved me wrong. We were pleased and grateful to them.

But like all hotels they did have a lot of "extra" charges. When we returned to our bed and breakfast and cleared our mail I found a promotional flyer for Whistler, BC. A hotel there from a chain which considers itself Canada's best, though owned by a Saudi, informed me that "For the Ultimate Experience" I could have these complimentary: a private check-in, private concierge, an exclusive lounge, a deluxe continental breakfast and high speed internet.

In our B&B, guests only deal with one of two people who are at the end of a telephone or email. When here all these complimentary items are indeed free as well as parking (a big one hotel extra), movies, local calls etc. Now I know why I prefer a bed and breakfast!

Christmas in Victoria

2008-12-13T13:00:00.000-08:00

Although we are closed over Christmas and the New Year (for a welcome break!) Victoria has much to offer its visitors. We have made our annual trip to The Butchart Gardens to see their fabulous pretty Magic of Christmas lights. Features include a skating rink, carol singers and musicians and their Twelve Days of Christmas displays. Their gift shop is one of the best in town, even with a Santa Claus tapestry for sale.

On another evening we went downtown to the Inner Harbour for a parade of lit ships. In the background we enjoyed the 3,333 lights of the Parliament Buildings - I'll put up a photo of this on our website "sometime" soon.

A day-time trip of note in the weeks prior to Christmas is to wander alongside the creek at Goldstream Park. In the upper regions the salmon are spawning; a fascinating though smelly experience. Lower down a flood plain opens up to view eagles drawn by an easy supper.

Linda and I would like to take this opportunity to wish our past guests (and indeed future ones!) a very happy Christmas.

Autumn colours in Victoria

2008-12-02T13:42:00.000-08:00

Just over a year ago we replanted most of a large raised bed in front of our Victoria bed and breakfast. Our neighbour, a Master Gardener who lectures at Glendale Gardens, advised us about the four new trees which would be the focal points. Only last month did we realise just how good her advice was: their autumnal colours were magnificent, each different shades of burnt orange, yellow, red and plum. We have always enjoyed our Japanese maples and these add to our respect for them.

With December now here they are bare of leaves but one will retain rich red bark all winter. We try to make our gardens interesting all year round though the spring and summer are clearly of greatest delight in our Victoria climate. We have cleared most of the millions of leaves which fall each year (oh for just one cent for each one!) and enjoying less gardening for a change.

Welcome!

2008-11-10T13:22:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the Gazebo B&B Blog!

We have finally launched our blog for our Victoria bed and breakfast news. Updates will appear about twice a month.