Fairmont Empress Hotel

Hotel

Outstanding staff. So genuine, friendly and empathetic. Accommodating at a moment’s notice.

Such a great experience in a lovely hotel.

Had a wonderful time! Would highly recommend to do this when visiting Victoria!

Lovely hotel with wonderful helpful staff. Prime location in downtown Victoria, gorgeous views. Just a great experience.

This iconic hotel knows how to look after guests. Exceptional service, wonderful and professional staff, and beautifully renovated suites. That’s only the beginning. Somehow this Grand Dame — one that has hosted Royalty, world dignitaries, and the wealthy — still retains its rich history and charm that we all love A landmark in the heart of the inner harbour of Victoria, the Empress oozes elegance and grace. Don’t even get me started on the culinary mastery here! That’s for another posting. Stay tuned to my article.

Friendly staff, lovely rooms. Amazing food.

We love the Fairmont Empress, it’s our home-away-from-home, now that our daughter moved to Victoria…and it is the BEST dog hotel ever! They are so welcoming and friendly, everyone loves dogs and our dog Miss Luna always feel RIGHT at home! The staff has always been so friendly and first class, they want you to be happy. Food & bar always exceptional, especially their legendary Empress (purple) Gin cocktail at the bar.

We went for "High Tea" today for my birthday. It was incredible! The petit fours and desserts were delicious! And of course, the tea was perfect! This was such a treat! We loved every moment! ❤️

Very friendly, staff went above & beyond, nothing was any Hassel.

Fun afternoon tea. Beautiful location. Magical lighting of the Xmas tree.

Was the most amazing experience anyone could ever ask for. Fairmont Gold and Doug made everything just to the highest level of service.

Amazing historic hotel dating back to 1908. The gold on level 1 is excellent if you can afford it with a designated lounge and beautiful rooms. Evenings have hors d'oeuvre and full breakfast buffet in the morning that can be taken back to your room. and yes… they are dog friendly!

Beautiful building good food great service.

The Fairmont Empress was the best hotel I’ve ever stayed at and would highly recommend it! The food was absolutely delicious, the rooms were comfy and quiet. All the staff were so helpful and super friendly! I really look forward to my next stay at this wonderful beautiful historic hotel 😊😊

Extraordinary service even though short staffed due to city wide hospitality staffing shortages. Great food, epic tea and spa. Great pool for families and dog friendly. Love it.

Try the high tea. Friendly staff at every place.

Amazing place with wonderful people.

Outstanding service, the whole place is literally breathtaking. Truly one of a kind.

Such a beautiful hotel and a perfect choice to celebrate our wedding anniversary ♥️ Amazing customer service, friendly and professional staff, spacious room with a magical view and a personal touch from management. We will be back ❣️

Awesome experience! the people working there is great! The Fairmont empress is lucky to have them!

Absolutely breathtaking views and gardens!

Dinner (twice) on the Verandah was wonderful. We enjoyed the best gluten free fish & chips EVER. Then we had the steak frites. Delicious.

Very beautiful hotel and very friendly staff wonderful service.

The summer picnic on the lawn was superb. An creative, favourable assortment of salad, chicken and desserts with the lovely bonus of chilled wine on wonderful setting. Highly Recommended!

Stay was wonderful, staff was friendly and attentive.

Great atmosphere. Wish they would promote more on the empress gin. Service was great, but should promote the product more.

Fabulous location with bay views and short walk to some bars and restaurants!

Beautiful room, amazing view & exceptional service!

It is nice to be back. When I checked in, they have all my preference from my last stay. I am impressed. Thank you for being so thoughtful. Love to be back to this lovely hotel.

What an experience! Great food and people. Love the ambiance.

Beautiful view of the harbour, amazing staff, elegant.

Great service, good food and friendly people. Love it! ❤️❤️❤️

Wonderful place, helpful staff, beautiful landscape.

Amazing hotel. Helpful staff and really beautiful older part to the hotel. Incredible views.

Pictures will say it all! Extremely dirty and old. Paid about $500/night hoping that we will get what they advertise in the pictures! what a waste! A motel would have been better! Very dissapointed, it ruined our mood and our vacation.

Fabulous! Absolutely! Great food, fabulous atmosphere we just love staying at Fairmont Hotels.

Fabulous service! We will definitely be back. The hotel is gorgeous and optimally located. Wonderful all around…

Me and my husband had an amazing massage. Cornelia did a wonderful job on massaging my tense muscle areas. I felt so relaxed. My husband had Devin give him his massage and said he did a great job. Also the pool, hot tub and other facilities were amazing. We were allowed to use them. The changing rooms and shower rooms were all stocked with neccessities. Would recommend to everyone.

Loved our private midnight tour by the staff! they took great pride in where they worked, the history, and even got a few ghost stories!
Breakfast was phenomenal as was our server! Excellent 5/5!

They serve WARM olives! worth every penny. Beautiful atmosphere and pleasant staff!

Amazing menu options, lovely setting, great service!

Staff is great, the. Views are amazing, so great to be in the heart of Victoria as well.

The staff are all very friendly. The rooms are clean and spacious.

Great service from the minute we stepped out the car. Loved the attention to detail and consistent friendliness and helpfulness from staff at every level. We will definitely come back!

We had drinks in the bar where we were introduced to the Fairmont gin which was a beautiful blue, tried handmade hot chocolate with chartreuse, so delicious, prime rib stuffed Yorkshire Pudding, then a delightful tea. An amazing experience.

Beautiful storied hotel on the Victoria waterfront. A tourist attraction in its own right. Gorgeous grounds. Attended a conference there so had preferred rates. Expect to pay dearly at peak season. We had one of the smaller rooms / perfectly functional and comfortable — very quiet at night, and the AC was quiet! Bonus on that. Wifi was mediocre to unusable, unfortunately, but we were really only there in room to sleep. Well run and well appointed bar — gin and tonics are your go-to here. Great property.

The rooms are the equivalent of buying a pale of Vanilla ice cream. It will do but it sure isn't that exciting. Also be ready to spend mega bucks on tiny rooms mostly. Unless you spend mega mega bucks on a bigger room. The building and garden are beautiful I will give it that. Finally you will enjoy a rain shower that will have you hugging one wall and potentially ending with the faucet in the back of your calf. You will know what I mean if you stay here.

I find it rare a hotel lives up to expectations and price. Fairmont Empress does both, in fact I'm not sure I expected it to be as quality as it is. Stunning location on the harbour with the most amazing sunsets, the hotel has recently been renovated and they've done a great job linking the history of the place with what a modern hotel needs. Rooms are large and comfortable, service is outstanding from everyone, the bar has a good vibe and the bartenders are very helpful. The blue Empress gin has to be tried! The pool area is also large and modern, more if a swimming pool than a leisure pool. Only downsides were they didn't give us inter-connecting rooms despite requesting many months ago, and the gym is a little small. But these are minor gripes. Victoria is a beautiful city and staying here makes it more special.

Great service. Very inviting and attentive staff. Room was a bit small but tastefully renovated to retain the Empress's classic look. Great location and very walkable to nice restaurants. Nice pool and gym. Hot tub very hot.

A beautiful, historic building, nicely renovated. Many pleasant young people in customer service. Hoped for some West Coast fare on the Veranda patio restaurant, sadly disappointed: enticing meal descriptions were actually very 'regular' meals found anywhere, but with much higher prices and slow service (no one came to check on us, we had to ask several times for water, etc. We didn't see any wait help until it was time to take away the plates, after we asked a hostess for the bill). A few plumbing problems in the washrooms. Still, nice surroundings and locale.

What a beautiful hotel! Accommodations are expensive, but it is truly a wonderful place to stay. The rooms are clean, the staff meticulous with details like turn down service: music on, beds turned down on the side they noticed you slept on, water bottles by the bed with a glass, etc. They even folded my daughters blankets in her pack n play. The hotel has beautiful views, is centrally located in the heart of Victoria, serves high tea, and is fun to walk around. If you need to park your car, parking is available for a daily fee. Definitely would love to stay here again.

Very nice hotel room and very helpful staff. Great location and views. Parking is plentiful and accessible. Hotel is within walking distance of plenty of resturants and businesses. The only negative I can think of is being woken up at 7:30 am to the sound of a saw cutting a board. It was quick and to be fair the hotel did appear to be undergoing some roof repairs.

Though we did not have a "view" from our window, the room was pleasant and adequate to our needs. The staff were very professional and capable, especially the doormen who were able to answer almost any question we had. High tea was really very nice, but we missed the formality of the past. The newer more relaxed atmosphere was still very enjoyable. The large Madrona tree died and was removed and all the ivy has also been removed too, so the visual "atmosphere" is a little different. We loved the bee hives and enjoyed the bee keepers, and the gardens are as wonderful as always. While our schedule did not allow for dining at the hotel, our brief passages through the dining area showed many guests, all apparently very happy with their meals. The concierge counter was very helpful.

We had a wonderful time staying at Fairmont Empress. All Staff are amazing. The lady who works in the housekeeping ‘ I think her name is Maria (white lady) she is so friendly and welcoming. We were greeted with a smile and she took a time to assist us all the way down to the Lounge coz we don’t know at first where the Lounge is. Thumbs up Maria! The lady who served us in the Lounge for high tea she’s very friendly and accommodating. And we had a good experienced too in the lounge when we had our dinner. The lady server’ I forgot her name’ she’s excellent! Service is spectacular and Food was so good!

Very beautiful hotel, and very accommodating. The interior is a bit older in the rooms, but the amenities are very modern. Nice that they included some of their signature teas in the room. Also shortly after we checked in and left for dinner we noticed that someone had come into the room to supply us with new cups and cream for the tea. Very nice touch. There is also complimentary valet and lots of explore just in the hotel.

I can't write enough about The Empress. The jewel in the Fairmont crown. We enjoyed our honeymoon here in beautiful Victoria, and plan to return for our anniversary every year. The Fairmont Gold Concierge service is nothing short of superlative. You cannot go wrong in choosing this property. Be sure to visit Roger the Marmot in the honeybee garden and bring him some apple slices. He will appreciate it.

Beautiful building in the heart of Victoria, right across from the Inner Harbor. Recently renovated rooms with AC. Great High Tea that you must try for the experience. New Q Restaurant opened inside as well with live music and great food. Walking the hallways you really feel the history of the building with old photos and art. Really great to visit for the shops inside, or to stay overnight. You can't go wrong at the Empress!

The facilities are beautiful and the staff are friendly and well trained. It wasn't pretentious like some higher end places can be, they were very welcoming. When I arrived it was quiet and peaceful but before leaving it was busier and felt a bit cramped for how many people were waiting for treatments. The massage I had was good, but not very "flowy" and not really what I was expecting. Still, it was a relaxing experience and they made sure we were comfortable in all aspects — temperature, volume of the music, etc. I love "to spa" and this is one of the few places that I feel is worth what they're charging. Would definitely come back.

Great staff — friendly and courteous. From the “Hello, welcome to the Empress” to the “goodbye, thank you for staying with us”, My Only complaint was that my breakfast was sub par as the eggs were super runny, the bacon over cooked and the potatoes quite tasteless. I ordered a hot chocolate but I was disappointed in the taste and temperature. However, the hotel stay in general was fantastic and the room was clean and comfy!

Prestigious and beautiful establishment.

We stayed here as part of my buddy's stag. The hotel is beautiful, and location wise, couldn't have been more perfect. It's right by the harbour, and everything downtown is in walking distance. The hotel is clean and the staff are friendly. We enjoyed the pool and hot tub quite a bit. The hours for the pool go till quite late which was very nice for us to hang and relax there. Would recommend it for sure, and will probably be returning to this hotel when I return.

Spectacular place, definitely a must stop for those who visit Vancouver Island.

Gorgeous hotel, incredible views. We were a bit early in the season to get the full effect of the flower gardens but my partner enjoyed them very much regardless. Staff is extremely friendly and helpful. Beds are comfy, pillows leave a little to be desired. Water pressure was not great and the hairdryer in the bathroom was semi-broken. If this was a cheaper hotel room all of that could have been looked past and received a 5 star, but for the cost I expected a little bit more. Overall fantastic experience and highly recommend!

I visited the empress for high tea with my mother and sister. Ambience wise, you are in a large room, the table settings, etc. Are very nice. Food was tasty. My favorite dessert was a strawberry tart reminiscent of a jammy dodger. We had a severe nut allergy at our table and they were very accommodating. Service was not great. After being served our tea, we were told not to remove our tea bags. However, our server did not return until we were done. We sat for awhile longer, mostly because we could not find our server to get our bill. We neeed to find another server to leave. To be fair, this did not seem typically of the service as other tables did not seem to be similarly abandoned. All that being said, high season rate is $75. If you can, I think the off season rate is more appropriate for the service. I'm glad I did it. I don't need to do it again.

This is a wonderful historical hotel with beyond amazing customer service. They truly go above and beyond. My son, Eben has had Papa Bear for nearly four years. Papa Bear is very special. My dad gave him to Eben right before he died. Somehow Papa Bear got caught up in the covers at the Empress and was left behind. That night when we got to Whistler, BC and Eben was getting ready for bed, he realized he didn't have Papa Bear. He was very upset and crying : — (I immediately called the Empress, and Vladka went to work securing a flight to get Papa Bear to Vancouver to meet us at the end of our trip. They also made sure Papa Bear had an adventure and made Eben a wonderful book, so he could share it and texted us a picture of Papa Bear tucked in bed. We are so thankful to the staff at the Empress for taking care of Papa Bear and making sure he had fun and making the wonderful book. We are thankful to Harbour Air for flying Papa Bear to Vancouver. And finally we are thankful to the Bellman at the Fairmont Waterfront for going to Harbour Air and picking up Papa Bear and bringing him to us. There are wonderful people still in this world!

(Review of Tea, not the hotel rooms) Decided to go for the real deal with tea time while in Victoria and the Empress definitely delivered. Sure the pricing is super expensive ($75 CAD/person plus tax/tip) but I honestly couldn't find anything that made it not worth the money. The food all appeared (or at least tasted) homemade with soft fluffy pastries and sweets that weren't overly sweet. The server was very attentive to our food allergies and never let our tea cup go empty. All in all a very special experience. Thank you!

Epic landmark hotel that typifies the city of Victoria. Can you imagine not having "tea at the Empress" when strolling through downtown Victoria? The architecture and spacious setting is marvelous is overwhelming in this majestic hotel, probably the top places to stay in Canada. The staff are all very polite and helpful, and professionalism exudes. The surrounding gardens and convention centre are all part of this extravagant display of grandeur. Even if you are not staying here, you are able to stroll through the elegance and history of this magnificent building. Most enjoyable and a must see for anyone visiting Victoria.

Amazing customer service. I've never been treated so great at a hotel in my life. The rooms are a bit small and aren't cheap, but you can get some amazing views of the harbour. I wouldn't order room service again, it's really pricey and not that great. Small quantities too. Cool place to stay.

In regards to the Princess Afternoon Tea… Great service with a smile. Excellent with children. Pianist played a birthday song for my 4 years old. Highly recommend for a special occasion and the Q Lounge for any business or casual lunch. The Q in 60 (minutes) has a buffet appetizer, sumptuous main and decadent dessert. Worth a visit.

Beautiful historical hotel. Had a lovely view of the water. Stopped in for drinks. Drinks were yummy. Service friendly and prompt. Hotel was gorgeous. Would love to return again for an overnight stay.

The bar and restaurant have no toilet on the same floor.

Lovely, historical hotel with a view of the harbor. The tea and crumpets were tasty. The rooms were a little small, but it was worth it I think. It is right in the center of everything. There was a group of people singing and playing musical instruments and dancing in the city center. Excellent place to people watch!

Built in 1908, Dili Castle Hotel has a history of more than a century, the hotel is the Queen Elizabeth visit Vancouver Island, the place designated accommodation. The walls of the hotel can be seen in the photos of Queen Elizabeth and her husband, Prince Philip, when they visited Canada from a young age to the current age of old, the wall also hangs a lot of heads of state and political figures to visit the photos. And the hotel rooms on both sides of the aisle also hangs many unknown portrait paintings walking in which there seems to be a peep in general, room inside spacious comfortable bed with more than eight pillows is really exaggerated. The hotel's exterior is covered with green vines. The landscape is beautiful, and the front is Victoria Harbour. Many boats and yachts and water ✈ aircraft were moored at the port. At the front left of the hotel you can see that the provincial council building is also a British style, and it is also a great honor to have the opportunity to live in a hotel that has a long history and celebrity share.

Very polite and with one of the best restaurants in all of Victoria to Sidney! Just next to the Parliament and super view over a lake!
However, there was no heating in the bathroom in our room! There is only one heating, which was in front of a window. It was sometimes very cold and the heating could only be heated to 23.5 °c.

This very nice and I liked it very much.

If you want to be treated like Royalty, this is a must on your bucket list. Everything is high end. This place oozes class. Must try at least once in your life! The staff always go above & beyond. And the restaurant is magnificent! The seafood dish was amazing! I have yet to find/taste food this good! I cannot wait to go back. After a meal fit for a king, a soak in the hot tub was the perfect ending to a perfect night! Time to relax at the recently remodeled rooms! Great trip!

The staff here are absolutely incredible. We are staying in a gold room with a view of parliament and the harbour. Every time we come back to our room it seems there is some new goodie or present left for us. The food is incredible, the room is immaculate, and the walk-in shower is pretty awesome. The church bells with the Christmas carols are also a nice touch — though, like the snow, I don't think the Empress had much to do with that :)

Excellent hotel. Growing up in Victoria, everyone knew the Empress name and location. Our room had a partial harbour view and access to the Fairmont Gold lounge, which we used extensively to relax and recharge. Rooms are small but very well appointed. Staff and service is top notch, as you would expect from a hotel of this calibre.

This hotel delivered in every way. The building itself is spectacular and full of character, yet comfortable clean and equipped with modern conveniences. The staff was helpful and professional. The one restaurant I visited was very good and my breakfast was perfect. If you're visiting downtown Victoria, the location is amazing. Would highly recommend the Empress.

Beautiful hotel and grounds. Wonderful staff! Great location! My main two complaints are that when we went they didn't have air conditioning installed yet, and it was unbearable. I did hear that they have air conditioning now. Second, their afternoon tea was loud and the wait staff didn't seem to be as attentive and trained as I was accustomed to.

Review of Hotel: Service — exceptional on the Gold Floor. Very accommodating of our daughters food allergy. Food — Gold floor food — less selection then Hotel Vancouver, Whistler Fairmont, or Waterfront Fairmont but still very tasty. Spa — Surprisingly exceeded my expectation. Nice decor. Men's room had everything for grooming. Decor — glad they kept the South side of the building "old", kept old armours from the rooms in the hallways as a touch, love the old historical menus on walls. 60 million dollar renovation has mad the rooms up to date. Features — one of the better pools in a hotel, gym is small but has what you need for a hotel gym Whoever came up with this decor mix of new and old is a genius!

Easily one of my top five hotels I've ever stayed at! The staff is very friendly and the rooms are very well kept. There is also a lot of history associated with this hotel, which makes for an even cooler experience. If you want to go the extra mile, go for high tea! It will not disappoint! Best tea time I've ever experienced! Love this hotel and everything about it! I will definitely be going back!

This hotel embodies the British Empire Perfectly. The style and staff put the visitor or guest back in the past, especially the 4 o'clock teatime with scones, so typically British. All BC reflects this again. If we emigrated, BC would be clearly the first choice. Vancouver is also worth Considering.

Gorgeous historic hotel that offers a poor first impression in the lobby. We weren't acknowledged as we stood expectantly with our luggage, meanwhile one desk clerk was on the phone and the other casually chatted at length with someone who may or may not have been a guest who seemed just be waiting there. It felt unwelcoming. After a while, it made us wonder whether we were in the wrong place. Once the first clerk got off the phone, she was friendly and helped us. Over the following days, the rest of the staff were friendly and helpful. Our suite was splendid, well-appointed, and clean. The hotel interiors and exterior are perfectly romantic, ornate, and full of history. Parking in the garage was conveniently accessible by elevator and out of the rain. Museums were easy walking distance. At times there's a vibe among the staff and other guests that we might not be fancy enough to stay there.

Have never stayed here overnight but absolutely love walking through and taking in the history. Around the holidays local businesses put up and decorate unique Christmas trees. It's a wonderful place to take any tourist who likes history!

The afternoon tea is exceptionally delightful! Professional service in a warm and polite manor, beautiful view of the harbour and gorgeous atmosphere. The food is incredible, you'll leave satisfied but wish there was some way to get more of everything. Altogether I feel justfies the cost, it is an experience that cannot be duplicated entirely anywhere else. This has been my second trip there and I cannot wait to go back!

5 star hotel of the Fairmont Group. Historically stylish Building. Tea Time Very British.

Never seen a hotel like this bevor!

I almost didn't recognize the outside, completely refined and so elegantly designed. The inside of the hotel still retain the royalty feeling and atmosphere. The gardens are as always beautifully arranged. Love to just sit on the bench and enjoy the surrounding areas.

There is no better place to rest than in one of the most iconic sites in Victoria.

Tasting of two excellent cakes at Q Bar. Popcorn to fall!

Excellent attention. Beautiful Hotel. Amazing rooms.

Went to visit family that happened to be staying there. It's a lovely view from the hotel looking over the harbour. The room was simple yet elegant with the service from everyone working there being amazing. Definitely will be staying there if I ever choose to move somewhere else and come visit.

Horrible treatment by staff upon entering the Empress Hotel in Victoria BC. I was told by two staff members that the hotel discourages people from entering through the front lobby if they do not have a room there. I was told to use two other doors that had stairs even though I have a leg injury and can't walk up stairs. I even informed the staff I was going to dine in the hotel and shop in their expensive gift shops. I was also going to book a room and high tea for a date in the near future. I informed the staff that they should put a sign in the front lobby informing visiters to not enter their lobby if they are shopping and dining there but not staying in a room. I have stayed at high class hotels all over the world, including the Fairmont Vancouver Hotel and was treated like gold upon entering the main lobby! People could spend just much buying gifts at the Empress as they would spend staying in a room there. So I don't get their problem! I was told a week ago that someone from the Empress would be contacting me regarding this unbelievable treatment, but not one person has!

Very smart. Excellent location on the waterfront and near the Parliament building. Great for shops, cafes etc too. Very helpful staff. Lamborghini parked outside, but wrong colour for me.

The hype is real! Beautifully prepared delicious meals in a quaint ambiance: high ceiling and portraits hanging on the walls and a live pianist at nighttime! Food is changing seasonally, but always gourmet. If you are visiting the city or planning a romantic evening for a special occasion, this is the place to go!

Reminder of the Château de Frontenac in Quebec City but in less class, we can still find luxury shops as well as the traditional tea break.

The kitchen is beautiful.

An amazing hotel / experience. The rooms are smaller than typical at many hotels, but the rooms themselves are gorgeous! The grounds and stories are amazing. Highly recommend the spa / massage (best we have every had) and Afternoon Tea (which you'll likely want to make a reservation for). Located at the southern end of downtown and an easy walk to all locations; including the ferry (if you like us are coming from the USA). Highly recommend.

The hotel wants to be chic and luxurious but it is not up to expectations. Loud and old-fashioned. Very expensive Parking.

We went for afternoon tea and it was fantastic! We have celiac disease, and dairy allergies and they were able to accommodate without any issues and make us feel so welcome! The food and tea were some of the best we have had dining out!

Very impressive from the outside. Unfortunately we could not look at the Interior.

The location was beautiful. The shops had plenty of wonderful things for sale. The conference center looked attractive. The afternoon tea looked very appealing.

Busy, iconic hotel serving very expensive high tea and an assortment of delicious baked treats and finger foods. Not worth the price but kind of the thing to do in Victoria with a close friend or someone you love. You pay for the experience. My lady and I had a grand time.

I have to assume the service we received with our tea for 2 was unusually poor and an unfortunate occurrence. It did not stand out in any way, I would have expected similar service in a mid priced chain restaurant, bland and unengaging. The empress tea itself was very nice but the sandwich, scone and sweet spread were nothing special. We received our tea after our food with a 4 minute wait still to allow the tea to brew and strengthen I found this unacceptable and noticed this was not the case for all tables in our general vicinity. The bread in 2 sandwiches had dried noticeably in the air prior to arriving at our table and as a whole the sandwiches were bland. The scones were nice although we had to start eating them without the accompanying tea or they would have surely gone cold. The desserts/sweets although nice seemed a bit unimaginative and trivial. The price matches the decor but the overall experience falls flat there. Would not recommend to anyone who wants anything more than to spend $75 to sit in a beautiful building for an hour or so. I did not make a formal complaint or comment in person, I needed a few hours to gather my thoughts.

I always wanted to stay at the Empress Hotel and finally I had the chance. The best service of any Hotel in my life! The Q Restarant was fantastic too. The staff was knowledgeable and extremely helpful. I liked texting to have my car ready at the front door when I was heading out and the valet service was great. Next trip to Victoria I will only stay at the Empress! 10/10

This is a Grand Hotel that brings the old days of the Empire to life. The rooms have been redone with modern high end bathrooms. Sadly the Bengal Lounge is now gone. I wish they had updated the menu and kept the ambience instead of closing it.

My husband and I were visiting Victoria for several days and had a couple chances to stroll the grounds at the Empress. They are beautifully maintained and are a lovely way to spend some time!

Customer service is on another level. They greet you at the door and even remember your last name when you visit. This is why I prefer to only stay here when I'm in Victoria. Excellent!

One stop for any age and taste. Super friendly staff. Beautifully decorated hotel. Occasionally I get my black tea from one of the stores here.

I was a contractor as part of a large-scale renovation at the Fairmont Empress. The hotel itself is a beautiful example of late 19th century architecture. The staff are extremely professional and courteous, as is to be expected from such a prestigious hotel. The hotel itself is located in downtown Victoria BC, across from the Royal BC Museum, the Victoria Inner Harbour and the British Columbia Provincial Legislature.

I just want to say that through out most of the Hotel the service was great at the Bengal lounge, (which I'm disappointed it's closing, it's very authentic), and house keeping was awesome! However, with my stay at the Empress being the 12th Fairmont I have visited in the last year I was disappointed with the staff at front desk. Check out today was at 11:00 am and I always ask for late check out until 12:00 pm. When I asked for a later check out the girl told me the hotel was fully booked for that night and we couldn't. When I checked and called later, it was pretty much wide open for availability. Ps keep Bengal lounge, or at least keep the old fashion fans!

The staff was excellent and the hotel is beautiful. We can't wait to see what it looks like when the renovations are complete.

Fantastic hotel. Absolutely beautiful with a great staff and lots of things to do near by.

The best hotel in Victoria, hands down. With the newest renovations underway I'm excited to see a nice blend of historic architecture with modern amenities. The view is right over the harbour for many rooms and it's quite an enjoyable experience. If you'd like to splurge a little, go here for tea and enjoy beautifully thought out courses in an absolutely grand dining hall.

Absolutely best hotel at Victoria! Elegant architecture and traditional English style. Also this hotel is famous for afternoon tea.

Absolutely the nicest and most beautiful hotel I've ever had the pleasure to stay in. Incredibly helpful and courteous staff, wonderful location, really a pleasure in every way I could imagine.

We enjoyed our tea at the Empress Hotel and it was a nice relaxing break. From the tea room to the tea cups, everything was just right. We have had tea in many places around the world and this still remains one of our all time favourites.

This building is a bit dated but filled with history. Some of the rooms definitely need an update. The room is very comfortable. However, the service is great and they are very helpful with questions. It was a very pleasant stay.

We love the Bengal Lounge! We have a small bed and breakfast nearby called the Gingerbread Cottage and we send all our guests to the Bengal Room because it is affordable and elegant.

Beautiful old world architecture in BC. Lovely hotel.

This place is beautiful! The high tea is such a cool experience!

Incredible architecture. Iconic building of the city. Walking through the hotel is a must, tons of places to explore inside it. Tea time might be a little expensive but definitely worth it.

Nat bosa is destroying this property one tree at a time. Stupid nasty "man".

A must see in Victoria. Even if you don't stay there walk through the hotel, it's worth it. Beautiful hotel in the center of everything.

It's always a pleasure to stay in this historic hotel, that now dates to over 105 years old! Can't beat the location, right at the heart of Victoria with short walking distance to the major attractions. The hotel is slated to undergo some major renovations soon, so look for a new, better experience. Bonus for this year, an ice rink right at the front! Of course, the tea time at the hotel is renown and if you can find the time, try it at least once.

My family and I stayed here for a week and had an absolutely marvelous time. Everything about the Empress was fantastic. Our room was spectacular and the service was over the top. I wouldn't hesitate to stay here again.

High quality service. Very comfortable rooms. I will go back again soon with family and friends. Victoria, BC is a wonderful city and The Empress is a majestic centerpiece representing it.

Exellent service, view, tea/food. It was an exellent experience and im sure we will be back soon.

Very nice room for 4 people. I Was hoping to get a bigger room with a view and closer to the entrance since my grandma have trouble walking. But overall it was Very nice. Great service. Will go back if another opportunity arises.

What can I say, a very decent hotel. You can relax and развлечься. Нам very much, possibly stopping there again. Thanks to the staff for service at highest level and human relations.