Paid
Children allowed

Facilities

Fitness facilities
WiFi available
Free WiFi
Parking
Non-smoking rooms
Air conditioning
Fitness center
Swimming pool
24-hour front desk
Restaurant
See all facilities

Review Highlights

Pros:
Friendly staff
Great location
Beautiful grounds
Cons:
Plumbing issues
Insects in bathroom
Confusing elevator system

Categories

Cleanliness
8.11
Concern about silverfish insects found in the bathroom and plumbing issues in the shower.
Service
9.58
Friendly staff and exceptional customer service, particularly regarding special occasions.
Location
9.62
Great location with easy access to restaurants, shopping, and nightlife.
Room Quality
8.57
Some issues with the bathroom faucet and initial room size; however, the upgraded room was better.
Amenities
8.6
Beautiful grounds and pool, but confusion with the elevator system and breakfast line.
Value for Money
8.56
Mixed feelings on value; initial room felt overpriced compared to expectations.
Food and Beverage
9.11
Quality food offered, though there was a desire for more menu options for room service.
Overall Experience
9.08
Many enjoyable aspects but marred by a few significant issues.
* This sentiment is summarized by AI based on user reviews.
Updated at: 2026-01-08 11:48

Property Description

Luxury Overlooking Victoria’s Inner Harbour

Historic Elegance: The Fairmont Empress Hotel offers elegantly decorated rooms with plush seating areas and picturesque windows.

Relaxation and Dining: Enjoy extensive spa treatments at Willow Stream Spa and indulge in traditional afternoon tea with a view of the harbour.

Convenient Amenities: Swim in the indoor pool, admire the Victorian architecture, and explore nearby attractions like the Royal British Columbia Museum and the Maritime Museum of BC.

Book now to experience the charm and luxury of The Fairmont Empress Hotel!

Important information:

Guests are required to show a photo ID and credit card upon check-in. Please note that all Special Requests are subject to availability and additional charges may apply.
Please inform of your expected arrival time in advance. You can use the Special Requests box when booking, or contact the property directly using the contact details in your confirmation.
Guests under the age of 18 can only check in with a parent or official guardian.
A deposit may be required at the property.

Check-in and check-out hours:
Check-out: 11:00 AM
Airport code: YYJ

Location

Property Video

Guest Reviews

8.9
Based on 2126 reviews
Cleanliness: 8.11
Service: 9.58
Location: 9.62
Room Quality: 8.57
Amenities: 8.6
Value for Money: 8.56
Food and Beverage: 9.11
Overall Experience: 9.08
A
Alan • couple • fr
9
A truly excellent experience
Pros:

Ambience, location, staff all superb

Cons:

The vegan choices for breakfast and evening snacks were quite limited if you wanted a hot breakfast. Most hotels have more than just potatoes and toast…..and the hot tap in the bathroom didn’t work and TV channels don’t match the tv guide.

2026-08-29 • via Nuitee
R
Regina and Pierre • couple • us
10
2026-08-28 • via Nuitee
N
nicmaree • Family • Sydney, New South Wales
8
Nice hotel but watch the shower in bath combo
Pros:

Travelling from Australia this was a splurge. Room rate expensive but this is a destination hotel. Perfect tea and milk available in you room. As Accor members this is a standard we expect. Great little additions in room such as cotton buds and make up removal pads. Beds and pillows to a standard. The only disappointment was the shower. It was small and was over bath and slippery with no bath mat provided. Travelling with my mum stepping into the bath was difficult for her after knees surgey. Overall a nice stay. Parking expensive but needed as we had a rental car. We had two rooms and only one room received a turn down service. Good location close to Resturants and Coffee shops in house dining very expensive

2026-08-27 • via Tripadvisor
L
londub77 • Family
8
Good hotel with the potential to be great.
Pros:

Lovely room, very small bathrooms.

Like other reviews, there were a number of irritating service niggles over our two night stay, but when I raised them, the response was good, and a couple of charges comped.

I would love to give this a five star, and the problems were apologised for, but for an allegedly luxury hotel, they need to up their game a bit.

2026-08-24 • via Tripadvisor
M
Mario • couple • mx
10
2026-08-24 • via Nuitee
T
TAKASHI • extended_group • jp
9
ゴージャスandハッピー
Pros:

フェアモントゴールドでの宿泊でしたのでラウンジが使えたので食事に困らない旅でした
またラウンジに日本の方がスタッフに居られて英語で困った時に色々と助けてくださり助かりました　ラウンジに行くたびに何かお困り事はございませんか？と優しく対応をして下さいました
ラウンジスタッフからは(nori)としたわれている様で私達もラウンジで見かけた時はnoriさーん
とお声をかけてさせて頂きました
とても素敵な方でした

Cons:

特にないです

2026-08-23 • via Nuitee
K
Katya • family_with_children • je
10
2026-08-23 • via Nuitee
K
Katherine • couple • us
5
The Empress Hotel was a disappointment especially as we were celebrating our 60th Wedding Anniversary. Would not stay ag
Pros:

Location location location
Beautiful grounds. Flowers and lawns
Beautiful high ceilings in dining areas, lounges etc
Seating areas in halls
Good easy parking garage under hotel
Liked having tea making with actual electric tea kettle.
Liked Nespresso machine in room
Liked the Afternoon Tea. Special

Cons:

Bathroom TINY. of course due to age of hotel but two people could not go in the room together. Shower in bathtub. No anti slip mat. No grab bars. V
We had happy dog in room next to ours. I was shocked to see big dogs staying in 5 star hotel. A turn off for me.
We could not get a seat for breakfast for 40 minutes. Not good. We left hotel our first morning to find breakfast elsewhere.
Next morning we had made reservation for breakfast but breakfast was poor. Pork sausages looked like uncooked hot dogs and I couldn’t eat. Toast served balanced on plate. No side plate. Husbands oatmeal was like glue and he left half of it.

2026-08-22 • via Nuitee
T
Tracy Leinhaupel • couple • us
10
Pros:

Easy walking, great location

2026-08-21 • via Nuitee
J
John • couple • us
10
2026-08-20 • via Nuitee
P
Paolo • couple • it
10
Sono 56 anni che viaggio per il mondo e questo e' il miglior hotel ove io abbia soggiornato
Pros:

Che dire: ho apprezzato TUTTO in quanto TUTTO e' stato perfetto. Il miglior hotel ove io abbia soggiornato in 56 anni di viaggi!

Cons:

Niente

2026-08-19 • via Nuitee
J
Julia • family_with_children • br
9
Estadia de princesa.
Pros:

Hotel maravilhoso. Luxuoso. Excelentes instalações. Restaurantes ótimos. Chá da tarde incrível.

Cons:

O café da manhã poderia ser buffet. Embora os garçons sejam educados e simpáticos, o serviço é mais lento que o normal. Cada item que pedíamos, como uma omelete ou uma wafle, demorava demais para chegar.

2026-08-18 • via Nuitee
P
Paul • couple • us
8
Good stay
Pros:

Location and Location

Cons:

Construction noise before 8am
Wasn’t helpful in sleeping in

2026-08-17 • via Nuitee
M
Margot • couple • au
5
Not as fabulous as you should expect.
Pros:

I was excited to stay at this famous hotel for my third visit to Vancouver Island. The gardens and location are very special.

Cons:

This stay was intended as a special gift for my friend at the start of our four weeks in Canada. The room was hugely disappointing especially when it cost close to Aus$1000 per night. Tiny old room, tiny bathroom, over the bath shower. I felt very let down.

2026-08-16 • via Nuitee
T
Theo • solo_traveller • us
10
2026-08-16 • via Nuitee
R
RJG75 • Family • Glasgow, Scotland
10
Best option in downtown Victoria by far
Pros:

Given the somewhat mixed reviews, we were not quite sure what to expect when we arrived at the Fairmont Empress. Fortunately, it generally exceeded our expectations.

We were staying in the two bedroom Gold-level suite and the Gold floor had been renovated just a few years ago. I cannot comment on the rooms on the other floors but ours was very tastefully decorated and well appointed. The old building does mean that the layout is slightly unusual but this is certainly part of the charm.
Check-in at the Gold reception was very swift and efficient and I think it's fair to say that the Gold Lounge is undoubtedly a highlight of this hotel. We stayed in a number of different Fairmont hotels during our trip and we got to experience the different lounges - which do all have slightly different amenities - and the one in the Fairmont Empress without a doubt has the finest location and ambience with a lovely terrace overlooking the harbour. It was very pleasant to sit on the terrace with a pre-dinner drink. The drink selection was decent if not quite at the same level as the Fairmont Pacific Rim lounge in Vancouver.
Breakfast in the lounge was decent although not the best we had - there was no option to have any eggs freshly prepared and everything was self-service from the buffet.
I thought our room represented excellent value for money given what was included and the service was always first class. We didn't see any other hotels in downtown Victoria that were really on the same level as the Fairmont and I would be happy to recommend it.

2026-08-15 • via Tripadvisor
S
stockmom123 • Family
4
Worst room I’ve had in a while based on the description.
Pros:

‘City view’ room was looking out a frosted window.

2026-08-15 • via Tripadvisor
H
HARPREET • solo_traveller • ca
10
2026-08-15 • via Nuitee
S
Shota • couple • jp
10
2026-08-14 • via Nuitee
F
Foodandphotos • Couples • Seattle, Washington
8
Solid hotel at a fantastic location but subpar service.
Pros:

We spent 3 nights at the Fairmont and it was an overall positive experience. The location is fabulous and easily walkable to many attractions, and the Fairmont's courtesy car was also great. We arrived by seaplane and it was amazing just walking into our hotel 10 minutes later. Although the spa was rather small and few in amenities the massage therapist (Tasha) was extremely good and I would say one of the best massages I have had anywhere in the world. The room (Deluxe City View) was fine; I would say due to age and lack of light, size of the bathroom, it was more of a 4-star room compared to other luxury hotels or Fairmonts we have stayed at.

The biggest downside was the service. The staff would often present contradicting information and conveyed a sense of lack of training; for example, we had breakfast credits with our reservation and was told by the Bengals restaurant (where breakfast is served) we could use this for room service, but the front desk insisted this was not allowed (it was). Another staff member at the Afternoon Tea service offered me a different tea "especially since it is your anniversary" but then our server said this is not allowed and "we are not a tea tasting." Marleen(sp?) at the tea service was especially rude and seemed annoyed at us asking her questions about the menu and walked off after maybe 20 seconds?

Come on. Your clientele would gladly pay more zeros on the bill for good service. But the service was not even at a Marriott or Hilton level, not even comparable to other Fairmonts we have stayed at around the world, and is definitely not appropriate for a hotel named 'Empress.' Maybe it should be called Princess instead.

2026-08-13 • via Tripadvisor