Ashton Armoury Museum and more: what to see in Saanich
Most of what there is to see is museums or galleries: 37 of 54. There are 4 places to visit inside Saanich’s municipal boundary, and 50 more within 5 km of its edge. Visitors to Royal British Columbia Museum numbered 350K in 2012. The big name further out is Gulf Islands National Park Reserve, 28 km from the centre.
First stops in Saanich
MuseumRoyal British Columbia Museum3.1 km outside town, to the southwest · 350K visitors a year (2012)
MuseumCraigdarroch1.6 km outside town, to the south · 150K visitors a yearEach has a page of its own: what it is, who runs it, the weather month by month and what else is near it.
Mapped
To the southwest is where most of the 50 lie.
The dashed line is Saanich’s municipal boundary; orange marks its middle (where most people live). Numbers match the list below. © OpenStreetMap contributors · Statistics Canada 2021 outline
The list by type
Count 37 museums or galleries and 6 forts or historic sites.
Green: inside Saanich. Grey: within 5 km of its edge.
All of them, one by one
Royal British Columbia Museum
Museum in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.
Craigdarroch
Historic house museum (victorian era) in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.
7St. Andrew's Roman Catholic Cathedral
Church building in British Columbia, Canada.
8Fort Rodd Hill
National historic Site of Canada located in British Columbia.
9Christ Church Cathedral
Cathedral church in Victoria, British Columbia.
10University of Victoria Legacy Art Galleries
At Legacy Art Galleries art activates research and learning through university and community collaborations. Their exhibitions and programs promote dialogue around issues that matter..
11Art Gallery of Greater Victoria
Museum in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.
12Helmcken House
House museum in Victoria, British Columbia.
14Pacific Undersea Gardens
Aquarium in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.
Maritime Museum of BC
Maritime museum in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.
Sealand of the Pacific
Aquarium in South Oak Bay, British Columbia, Canada.
17
18Saanich Pioneer Museum
Museum dedicated to the history of the Saanich Peninsula in Canada.
20Beacon Hill Children's Farm
Educational farm in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.
The 4 inside Saanich come first, best known first; then the places within 5 km, close and well known first. Provincial and city parks are on the Outdoors page instead.
Historic places in Saanich → · Parks, footpaths and green space in Saanich →
Day trips from Saanich
Places well known beyond Saanich (Wikipedia articles in several languages, published visitor counts, or a Parks Canada property), close and famous first. Distances are straight lines from the middle of the town.
Places to visit in Saanich: questions
What are the main attractions in Saanich?
The names to know inside Saanich’s municipal boundary: Centre of the Universe, Craigflower Schoolhouse and Dodd House.
Does Saanich have a museum?
In or within 5 km of Saanich: Craigdarroch, Fort Rodd Hill and University of Victoria Legacy Art Galleries.
Is there a Parks Canada property near Saanich?
Not within 5 km. The closest Parks Canada property on our list is the one named above, 28 km northeast.
How is this list made?
The list joins OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, ODCAF and the heritage registers, one entry per site: museums, galleries, historic sites, forts, lighthouses, gardens, parks, waterfalls, ski hills, zoos and theme parks. Forts, houses and churches need something that shows they welcome visitors, and hotels, restaurants and tours are never included. What lies inside the town’s 2021 outline, or within 5 km of it, is listed.
Places to visit: Canada publishes no open tourism list, so this one is assembled from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), Wikidata (CC0), Statistics Canada’s ODCAF museums and galleries (2020, Open Government Licence – Canada), the federal and Québec heritage registers and CPCAD’s national parks, and it reflects what mappers and editors have recorded. Forts, houses, lighthouses and churches count only with a sign that visitors are welcome. Places sit in each town’s 2021 census outline; visitor counts are Wikidata’s latest, with their year.
Photos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (15)
- Royal British Columbia Museum: Michal Klajban, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Craigdarroch: Michal Klajban, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- St. Andrew's Roman Catholic Cathedral: Original uploader was Drhaggis at en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Fort Rodd Hill: Storeswallah at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Christ Church Cathedral: This photo was taken by Ryan Bushby( HighInBC ) with his Canon PowerShot S3 IS . To see more of his photos see his galle, CC BY 2.5, Wikimedia Commons
- University of Victoria Legacy Art Galleries: Heather Stone, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Art Gallery of Greater Victoria: Joe Mabel (on Flickr as Joe Mabel from Seattle, US), CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Helmcken House: Hans-Jürgen Hübner / Hans-Jürgen Hübner, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Pacific Undersea Gardens: H at English Wikipedia, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Abkhazi Garden: Grnpolk, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Pemberton Memorial Operating Room: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Fort Victoria: Stevecudmore, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Craigflower Manor House: euxneks, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Emily Carr House: Mattlapointe, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Gulf Islands National Park Reserve: Paul Gierszewski, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).