A Staycation in Victoria - Abigail's Hotel

I have been crossing Georgia Straight to Victoria since the mid 1970s when I was working for CMHC. In those days, it was a real treat to take the float plane to attend meetings with provincial housing officials. One of those trips changed the course of my career since I ended up sitting next to Keith Tapping, the then CMHC Assistant Regional Director who subsequently recommended that I be appointed the CMHC Special Coordinator for the redevelopment of the South Shore of False Creek. A project that is very much in the news these days. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/vancouver-false-creek-south-plan-1.6208873

Once the False Creek project got underway, Tapping was appointed CMHC's Regional Director for Ontario and he insisted that I move to Toronto to manage CMHC's involvement with the St. Lawrence Neighbourhood  https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/4ba1406bfd5940a09d152f7934b3eda9 

After a two years in Toronto, and a two-year assignment in Ottawa, I eventually returned to Vancouver in 1981. I only went to Victoria on holiday until I was selected to undertake two planning studies. Working with architect Jonathan Yardley, I prepared a report on how the city might encourage the redevelopment of the then vacant or underutilized upper floors of heritage buildings in the downtown. Fortunately, our recommendations were adopted and today many people are working and living in those buildings.

Chuck Brook and I also undertook a study for the Capital Regional District to encourage the redevelopment of two key properties in the Inner Harbour. The client didn't agree with our recommendations on what would be necessary to encourage redevelopment. Today,30 years later, the properties are still vacant.

In 1992 I was appointed to the Board of the British Columbia Buildings Corporation. I remained on the board for 6 years and travelled to Victoria almost every month. During this period I also served as the provincial government's project manager for the Vancouver Trade & Convention Centre Expansion which gave me another reason to travel to Victoria on a regular basis.

While I often travelled there, I wasn't really enamoured with the city. It struck me as a place for retirees, not a place for the rest of us. But Victoria has changed. Anyone who has been there recently knows the downtown is being redeveloped; high tech industries are attracting a lot of millennials and others well under retirement age, and there are lots of excellent restaurants and sites to see. Furthermore, housing prices in some neighbourhoods are catching up to what one must pay in Vancouver.

I now have another reason to visit Victoria. My daughter and granddaughter live there. This is what prompted a recent Thanksgiving weekend 'staycation'. While we often stay at the Oak Bay Beach Hotel or Magnolia Hotel when visiting, this time we chose Abigail's Hotel   https://www.abigailshotel.com/ where we stayed once before when considering a real estate venture with the gentleman who created it. If you haven't been, the description on the website is most apt: "it's a unique accommodation experience that blurs the lines between a small luxury hotel and a heritage bed and breakfast inn".

The hotel currently has 23 rooms in two different buildings. I say currently since an expansion is underway that will create another 12 rooms. Each of the rooms is different, with varying sizes, decorations, and bathroom layouts. The rooms are well-appointed with a focus on romantic luxury, rather than more mundane things like working. Our room had a giant four-poster canopy bed (with a small step to help shorter people get in and out) and two comfortable chairs facing a wood-burning fireplace. But it didn't have a desk. The marble-clad bathroom had a large jacuzzi tub and glass enclosure, but no separate shower stall, which we tend to prefer these days.

While I have a few minor complaints about the room, I have absolutely no complaints about the breakfast that is included in the room rate. It was a superb three course breakfast! (Check out more photos on the hotel website.) There are also late afternoon hors d'oevres included in the price that can be enjoyed in your room, or the downstairs library.While I enjoy the Oak Bay Beach Hotel for its high quality accommodation and pool and hot tubs and spa facilities overlooking the ocean; and the Magnolia Hotel for its downtown location and well-appointed facilities and restaurant; and Inn at Laurel Point for the ground level rooms in the Erickson Wing overlooking the gardens and ocean, Abigail's is a very good alternative to each of these excellent properties. 

I can highly recommend this property. It's well located, and a very attractive alternative to some of the more conventional hotel properties. But if you decide to book, check out the website where you can find an honest description of the features of the various rooms since they are five different classes and all a bit different. And until the new wing is built, with its elevator, if you book an upper floor room, be prepared to climb some stairs! 

at blurs the lines between a small luxury hotel