Fairmont Empress

Though its rooms feel slightly outdated, Fairmont is still the top hotel in Victoria.

• Afternoon tea, a tradition since the hotel opened in 1908
• The location right on Victoria’s inner harbor

As much a city icon as it is a hotel, the Fairmont Empress has been one of the most famous hotels in Victoria since opening in 1908. Over the years, the property, which is a National Historic Site of Canada, has played host to kings, queens and movie stars, including Queen Elizabeth II in 1939 and Rudyard Kipling, who was a regular visitor. The property is Victoria’s grand dame—a towering, turreted creation with Edwardian-inspired interiors and spectacular views of the city’s Inner Harbor.

While the grandeur of the property is unmistakable, the hotel’s 477 rooms today lack the polish they once had. Purchased by new owners in 2014, the Empress will undergo renovations in the coming years, but for now, the accommodations are dated and a bit tired (dull drapery and worn-in furnishings). The rest of the hotel, however, transports guests to an older, more sophisticated time. A steady stream of guests arrives for afternoon tea in the hotel’s famously ornate, pink confection of a tearoom. Those who aren’t in the mood for Darjeeling and towers of scones can escape to the serene pools and soothing treatments at the hotel’s Willow Stream Spa. The two-hour Island Senses body treatment (a sea-salt body scrub, pine hydrotherapy bath, mud wrap and lavender oil massage) is divine.

Travelers who appreciate a sense of history but are less concerned with modern furnishings and exquisite rooms.