The Royal Scot Hotel & Suites was chosen as a Best Family Hotel by TripAdvisor® in its 2010 Travelers’ Choice® awards.

Now in its eighth year, the annual TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice awards honor the world’s best hotels, earning their distinction from those who know them best – real travelers.

 Unlike any other hotel awards programs in the world, TripAdvisor® Travelers’ Choice® winners are based on the millions of real and unbiased reviews and opinions about hotels on tripadvisor.com™ and content from across the web.

 “Inspired by the millions of trusted traveler reviews and opinions on TripAdvisor.com, the Travelers’ Choice awards have once again highlighted the finest hotels in the world,” said Christine Petersen, chief marketing officer for TripAdvisor. “From remarkable bargains to the trendiest hotels, travelers worldwide are recognizing more than 700 hotels for their outstanding service, value and quality.”

Click here to read reviews or add your own experience.

 For the complete 2010 Travelers’ Choice list, click here.

What are you doing to celebrate?

There are many ways to rember & celebrate the life of the late poet in Victoria.

Did you know there is a statue of Robert Burns in Beacon Hill Park?  It’s near the petting zoo!  On Saturday, Jan. 31 a ceremony with bagpipes will be held at 2 p.m. at the statue to celebrate Burns’ birthday.  A tea and concert follow at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian church hall, 680 Courtney St. at 2:30 p.m. The concert will include Scottish country and highland dancing and the Victoria Gaelic Choir. Admission is by donation.

Two other celebrations have been held to mark Robert Burns’ birthday, but there are additional opportunities to raise a glass to the Scottish poet are available in the coming days.

Craigdarroch Castle features its 13th annual Burns tribute on Saturday (Jan. 23). Open for self-guided tours from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., the castle features a musical quartet and the piping in of the haggis at noon.  For more details on this event click here.

Esquimalt Legion will host a Robbie Burns Day on Sunday (Jan. 24, 2 p.m.) featuring the Bonaccord Highland Dancers, ukulele musicians and the Canadian Scottish Regiment Pipes and Drums.  Admission to Esquimalt Legion’s celebration is $12.

Over at the Penny Farthing Pub on Oak Bay Avenue, the haggis will be piped in at 6 p.m. Monday (Jan. 25).

For 6 magical weeks this Winter, you will have the chance to enjoy a much loved Canadian tradition in Victoria…… outdoor ice skating!

A large 80′x40′ ice rink will be set up on the rooftop of Mayfair Shopping Centre. The ice is synthetic and offers a much more environmentally friendly alternative to real ice, and permits outdoor skating in all kinds of weather.   Music to skate by will be provided courtesy 100.3 The Q! and The Zone 93.1 FM. Entry is via the stairs at the Gap entrance to the Centre.
The capacity of the rink is 40 skaters per hour and hourly skating passes will be available at the Mayfair Concierge Desk.

Skating is free for everyone and their will be lots of prizes to give away!

If you don’t own skates, rentals will be available on site for $5.00 a pair and all rental funds are in support of The Land Conservancy (TLC) and the Victoria SPCA . Children under 15 are required to bring and wear their own helmets.   Themed skating events will be announced on The Q and The Zone FM radio stations. These include a Date Skate for Valentine’s Day and a Family Skate with the Victoria Salmon Kings.

Come out and show your support and raise awareness for the TLC and Victoria’s SPCA!

Hours of operation are:
Wednesday to Friday: 4:00pm to 8:00pm
Sat and Sun: Noon to 4:00pm
Closed Monday and Tuesday

from the Royal Scot Hotel & Suites!

December is here and Christmas is in the air! 

There’s lots to see and do around the city click here for more details.

The Magic of Christmas is at Butchart Gardens 

December 1st, 2009 marks the start of the 23rd season of festive Christmas displays.

 Tens of thousands of coloured lights combine with evergreen swags and wreaths of holly and winter berries to line walkways and festoon lamp posts. The ever-popular Twelve Days of Christmas displays are tucked away about The Gardens.

From 5 pm to 9 pm in the Piazza you will find lively performances featuring traditional caroling and music.  Enjoy some recreational ice skating on the outdoor rink. No need to worry about hockey sticks flying about, or figure skaters making you look bad.

 Victoria Carriage Tours

45 minute Christmas Horse Drawn Trolley Tours of Downtown Victoria in December.

Tours will be fully narrated and will give passengers an historical account of what Christmas was like many years ago.

Space is limited so book your tickets today and come and experience this wonderful tour aboard one of our covered horse drawn trolleys!

Warm blankets are provided.

 Craigdarroch Castle

Discover the Past – Walking Tours

Ghosts of Christmas Past

90 minute tour specifically designed to focus on ghost stories and the super natural at Christmas in Victoria.  Tours run on December 4, 5, 11, 12, 18, 19, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31

Christmas in Old Town Walking Tour

A 90 minute tour based on true accounts of how Christmas was celebrated in the days of Fort Victoria and the gold-rush era.

Victoria boasts an amazing selection of Craft Fairs.

From homemade crafts to specialty art pieces the craft fairs in and around Victoria have it all.  What a great place to start your Christmas shopping or just treat yourself!  It’s the perfect way to get in the spirit of the season.

Click Here for a detailed list of what’s coming up over the next couple of months. 

The Olympic flame arrives in Victoria directly from Athens, Greece and will begin its journey across Canada on Friday, October 30, 2009 at 10:40 am just steps from the Royal Scot Hotel & Suites.

The flame will travel more than 45,000 km before arriving back in Vancouver on Feb. 12, 2010 signaling the start of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games at B.C Place Stadium.  The Vancouver 2010 Olympic Torch Relay route will be the longest domestic torch relay route in Olympic history.

The Celebration

Set against the backdrop of the historic Legislative buildings, the Fairmont Empress and Victoria’s stunning Inner Harbour, the Olympic Torch Celebration will feature a kaleidoscope of colour, energy and light in a multicultural, multidisciplinary spectacle.

 The Main Stage will feature many of Victoria’s home-grown, yet widely recognized musicians, an ensemble performance of commissioned work performed by a mass choir and orchestra, as well as involvement by local luminaries, athletes and celebrities.

 There will be a multimedia mega-projection and video wall, exciting street-level animation featuring giant puppets, interactive characters and lanterns, and a choreographed aerial sculpture which features audience inclusion and interaction.

 Thousands of handheld torchieres, state-of-the-art glow products and a thrilling fireworks finale will mirror the symbolism of the flame, while adding to the beauty and spectacle of this momentous event.

Follow the flame’s 106-day journey across Canada on an interactive map featuring daily coverage, profiles, photos and videos.

More concerts coming to the Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre!

Three Days Grace w/ Special Guests The Used & Default

Monday, November 16, 2009
Doors: 6:00 pm
Show: 7:00 pm

Platinum-selling artist Three Days Grace have just announced their 20 city national tour with special guests The Used and Default.  Tickets go on sale on Saturday, October 3rd.  For more details visit www.livenation.com or www.threedaysgrace.com. 

Three Days Grace released their third album Life Starts Now on September 22. The album was recorded in Vancouver, BC, Canada, and reunites the band with producer by Howard Benson.

Blue Rodeo w/ Special Guests The Sky Diggers

Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Doors: 6:30 pm
Show: 7:30 pm

The definition of a rebel is someone who goes against the grain.  Damn the torpedoes!  Full speed ahead!  For nearly thirty years, Blue Rodeo has taken the road less traveled – and succeeded far beyond anyone’s expectations.  The band emerged in the early 80’s as a countrified rock band in the era of hair metal and glossy pop.  Despite sticking out like a sore thumb (or maybe because of it), their single “Try” became omnipresent on radio across Canada and set in motion a three decade long career of headlining every club, theatre and hockey arena in Canada.  In 1993, when grunge rock was squeezing commercial rock off the radio, they recorded their quietest album, Five Days In July, and scored their biggest hit selling over a half million copies of that one record alone.  And now, in the digital age, while everyone else is think of ways to sell single songs through the internet or snippets of songs on cell phones, Blue Rodeo has recorded a double album designed specifically to be enjoyed on vinyl.  Due for release on November 10, The Things We Left Behind, is the real deal.  Double gate-fold sleeve, 12 x 12 cover and two records, four distinct sides programmed to take the listener on a trip.

Blue Rodeo has delivered summer anthems and highway tunes, wedding songs and prom themes.  They’ve represented Canada musically at World Fairs and the Olympics, on late-night talk shows and in big Hollywood pictures.  You’ve heard them at hockey games and playing at the cottage down by the lake and yet, for all their success, for each listener they are confidantes. Close friends who tell important truths. Good buddies who get you smiling again.

Click here for concert tickets & information

Click here for special hotel deals!

Check out the upcoming concerts coming to the Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre!

Blue Man Group

Friday, October 2nd, 2009
Doors: 7:00 pm
Show: 8:00 pm

Blue Man Group is a creative organization dedicated to creating exciting and innovative work in a wide variety of media.Blue Man Group is best known for their wildly popular theatrical shows and concerts which combine music, comedy and multimedia theatrics to produce a totally unique form of entertainment. The blissful party atmosphere created at their live events has become the trademark of a Blue Man Group experience.

Stone Temple Pilots w/ Special Guests

Saturday, November 7th, 2009
Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre, Victoria
Doors: 600 pm
Show: 700 pm

Since the moment they appeared on the scene in the early 1990’s, Stone Temple Pilots dominated the decade from start to finish, racking up 15 singles on the Billboard Top Ten, winning a “Best Hard Rock Performance” Grammy Award in 1994 for “Plush,” and having their five albums sell more than 35 million copies worldwide.

Of all their peers, Stone Temple Pilots alone had sustained commercial success, earning greater critical acclaim with each release, building a body of work that remains popular and its enduring acclaim has only highlighted the absence of the band, who quietly went their separate ways after the turn-of the millennium release of Shangri-La Dee Da. Despite the presence of the greatest hits album Thank You in 2003, there has been a generation that has never witnessed the live power of the vocalist Scott Weiland, guitarist Dean DeLeo, bassist Robert DeLeo and drummer Eric Kretz live in concert, a situation that will be remedied this summer when the band reunites for a long-awaited and highly anticipated tour.

Kelly Clarkson with Special Guests Eric Hutchinson & Parachute

Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Doors 6:30 PM
Show 7:30PM

The high-energy tour kicks off in Portland, Maine on October 4th and concludes in New Orleans on December 13th, covering 26 total U.S. and Canadian markets.  Steve Moore of MEG/AEG LIVE Nashville will promote the tour.

Clarkson has sold more than 20 million albums since her 2002 debut.  Her current All I Ever Wanted release shattered Billboard records, when My Life Would Suck Without You jumped from #97 to #1 in its first week of release.  Concert attendees can expect to hear these latest hits including I Do Not Hook Up from the tour’s namesake album, along with her signature pop anthems.

Click here for concert tickets & information

Click here for special hotel deals!

It may be the last day of summer, but there is plenty to look forward to this fall! 

Especially the changing of the leaves at Butchart Gardens.

Glory in the crowning beauty of Autumn when the Japanese Garden comes to center stage. A stunning parade of red, russet and golden maples is joined by magnificent arbutus and copper beech trees along with dozens of varieties of chrysanthemums.

Check it out!

Ask about adding Butchart Gardens tickets to your stay at time of booking.