Canada Guide
Vancouver Island
Point Ellice
Opening time: Guided tours May– Sept daily 10am–4pm
Price: $5.35
Telephone: 250/380-6506
Website: www.pointellicehouse.ca
Address: 2616 Pleasant St
The 1861 Victorian-Italianate Point Ellice House and Gardens is magnificently re-created but less enticing than Craigdarroch Castle because of its slightly shabby surroundings. These can be overlooked, however, if you make a point of arriving by sea, taking one of the little Harbour Ferry services to the house (10min) from the Inner Harbour. The restored Victorian-style gardens here are a delight on a summer afternoon. The interior – one of the best of its kind in western Canada – retains its largely Victorian appearance thanks partly to the reduced circumstances of the O'Reilly family, whose genteel slide into relative poverty over several generations (they lived here from 1861 to 1974) meant that many furnishings were simply not replaced. Tea is served on the lawns in the summer; it's a good idea to book ahead. Bus #14-University will get you here from downtown if you don't fancy the approach by water.