Royal BC Museum in Victoria

One of the highlights of any Victoria trip for me is always the Royal BC Museum. They have seasonal exhibits combined with traditional displays and the IMAX which make it enjoyable for all ages, any time of year.

We were on a mission to explore “Treasures: The World’s Cultures of the British Museum” that is in Victoria until September of this year and spent the better part of an hour perusing all of the dazzling ancient artifacts.

The self-guided tour leads you through displays starting with Africa, moving on to the Middle East, Europe, Asia, Oceania, America and the Modern World. You’ll see everything from a mummy, to the Rosetta Stone, busts of Marcus Aurelius, a Rembrandt sketch, ancient carved Buddha statues, and gold masks from Columbia.

Photo credit: (c) The Trustees of the British Museum – Deir elBahri, Thebes, Egypt , Early 22nd Dynasty, ca 930 BC, Papyrus

Photo credit: (c) The Trustees of the British Museum – Found at Olympia, Greece ca 460 BC, Bronze

The features at the Royal BC Museum always draw a crowd and they saw the highest attendance of almost a half a million visitors during their 2007 Titanic exhibit.

On any given day you can explore the National History Gallery (home of that famous Wolly Mammoth), and the Human History Gallery that features everything from First Nations history to a Modern History Gallery. John said thanks to these exhibits he’s been able to learn more about the province and our nation – they’re personal favourites of mine as well. They’ve also included a permanent Climate Change feature that features everything from the Pine Beetle to exploring weather patterns at interactive computer stations.

You are welcome to take photographs (without flash) throughout the museum, except in the special exhibit halls or where otherwise noted. If you regularly frequent the museum (more than once a year) it would be worth looking into an annual pass, which is only $45 for adults. Many other attractions over in the Vancouver area offer annual or family passes for locals and I think they’re tremendous deals e.g. the Vancouver Aquarium.

Outside the Royal BC Museum you’ll spot the Netherlands Carillon bell tower, thunderbird park, the BC archives, a native plant garden, sculptures, and monuments. Of course the museum is also across the street from the legendary Empress Hotel as well as the BC Legislature building.

I’ve visited the museum every time I’ve ever been to Victoria and when you combine the traditional galleries with the traveling exhibits it just adds that much more value to your trip.

This stop was during our Coast Hotels ‘New Victoria for New Media’ tour – view my Flickr set for more images.