Skip to content
BusinessesGrow
MuseumsHistoricIconicRainy-Day Pick

Craigdarroch Castle

1050 Joan Crescent · Victoria, BC

Why you should go…

Craigdarroch Castle is the Rockland-neighbourhood mansion built for coal magnate Robert Dunsmuir and his family in the late 1880s, now a National Historic Site run as a historical museum. Visitors take a self-guided tour of about 90 minutes through restored rooms filled with period furnishings, stained glass and Dunsmuir family stories, climbing 87 stairs to the tower. There is no elevator or ramp inside. Open Wednesday through Sunday; closed Mondays, Tuesdays, December 25-26 and January 1.

  • #castle
  • #historic house
  • #museum
  • #victoria
  • #dunsmuir

Good to know

General museums guidance

Habits that pay off across this whole category, not rules for this one venue. Always check the official site for the specifics.

  • Check the special exhibition separately

    Touring shows usually carry their own ticket and their own opening hours, listed apart from general admission.

  • Look for the free window

    Many museums run community days, member evenings, or discounted late openings. It is worth a look before you pay full price.

  • Travel light through the door

    Large bags and backpacks often have to go to a coat check, and lines for it move slowly at opening.

  • Weekday mornings beat weekend afternoons

    School groups clear out by early afternoon midweek, while weekends stay busy from late morning on.

What's around here?

The closest stops to Craigdarroch Castle, ordered by straight-line distance. A few more like it, plus some different kinds of fun so you can build a full day.

  • Sightseeing
    Free Entry

    Oak Bay Tourism

    Free

    Non-profit destination office for Oak Bay, Victoria's seaside neighbourhood of village shops, beaches, golf, kayaking and whale watching, 3 km from downtown.

    0.6 mi awaySwitch it up: Sightseeing

  • Sightseeing
    Outdoor Adventure

    Saanich Municipal Hall

    Free

    Municipal hall of Saanich, Greater Victoria's most populous district, home to Mount Douglas (PKOLS), Mount Tolmie and the beaches of Cadboro and Cordova Bay.

    1.0 mi awaySwitch it up: Sightseeing

  • Attractions
    Family Favorite

    Miniature World

    Under $25

    More than 85 miniature dioramas and model railways inside the Fairmont Empress on Victoria's Inner Harbour, from 1880s dollhouses to space scenes.

    1.1 mi awaySwitch it up: Attractions

  • Museums
    Iconic

    Royal BC Museum

    $25–$50

    Victoria's flagship museum showcasing British Columbia's natural and human history.

    1.1 mi awayMore like this

  • Museums
    Family Favorite

    BC Forest Discovery Centre

    Under $25

    A 100-acre open-air forestry museum in Duncan with narrow-gauge train rides, 1930s logging-camp buildings, a Ranger Station and forest and marsh trails.

    30 mi awayMore like this

  • Museums
    Family Favorite

    Hand of Man Museum

    Under $25

    Donation-based natural history and cultural arts museum in a former Maple Bay school, with a woolly mammoth skeleton and artifacts from around the world.

    30 mi awayMore like this