Royal Bc Museum Admission Ticket

Interesting museum with nice diorama of animals. Worth a visit. We also saw the IMAX feature on the Amazon and Bates. Interesting and not too long (45 min).

Spent a couple of hours there. Lots of information on reading panels but a bit light on actual physical artifacts. One to visit after the main attractions.

Big plus - the section on ice age and geologic periods how British Columbia looked and developed up to present day. Big negative, recreation of an old town, ostensibly a BC town (or even Victoria?) could have been any town almost anywhere. The standard shops and construction, but I was not aware of what set this apart from any other recreation (Although it was very well done.) There was (is?) a First Nation exhibit but signs indicated some change and there was no direction. Four IMAX films that you pay extra for. There is an onsite cafeteria, and the museum is located in the hob of the city making it easy to get to and easy to combine with other activities or meals.

We enjoyed this museum - from the Egypt room to natural history and the old west reconstruction, we spent the whole afternoon.

The Egyptian artefacts were well displayed with excellent videos giving a clear explanation of their culture

I hate to say it but I agree with many other reviewers who have indicated this museum, unfortunately, is one you could skip. Although we’re retired, and have seen numerous natural history museums over our lifetime, we thought we’d go anyway as a new Egypt wing was open, and while it was nice, because we were in Victoria to soak up both the history, culture, inner harbor, and restaurants….in retrospect it just did fit in.

Beautiful and immersive! One of my favourite activities in all of Canada. I’ve been multiple times. The “Old Town” section is like nothing else out there.

I went to the Royal BC Museum on a Saturday morning at about 11:30, expecting a worthwhile museum experience, particularly with the Egyptian exhibition. Unfortunately, the visit was a complete disappointment compared with what I expected from an institution carrying the “Royal” designation and representing the history of British Columbia. The problems started before we even got inside. Only two cashiers were open and a substantial line had formed. A third staff member was sitting at a computer directly in front of everyone waiting, but her station remained closed. Eventually, she removed the sign from her counter and began accepting visitors. It was frustrating to watch a line continue to build while an apparently available station sat closed. Something else struck me immediately at the entrance. For an institution that speaks so much about reconciliation and Indigenous representation, there was next to zero sincere recognition of the traditional territories on which the museum operates, beyond a small, generic-looking acknowledgement above the cashiers. It felt perfunctory rather than meaningful. That does a particular disservice to the Songhees and Esquimalt Nations. These are the Nations whose traditional territories are directly connected to where this museum stands, yet outside of a small language exhibit, I saw remarkably little meaningful representation of either Nation throughout the museum. If reconciliation and Indigenous representation are genuinely priorities for the Royal BC Museum, surely the local Nations should be substantially and visibly represented rather than effectively reduced to an acknowledgement above the admissions counter and a limited language display. The Egyptian exhibition was the biggest disappointment. I expected a museum exhibit with a meaningful collection of genuine artifacts and objects that would bring ancient Egypt to life. Instead, much of the experience consisted of reading posters, looking at information panels and using computer screens. There were some original artifacts, but a surprising amount of what was on display consisted of 3-D printed replicas. There is nothing inherently wrong with using replicas to supplement an exhibition, but when they become such a prominent part of an exhibit people are paying specifically to see, it starts feeling more like an educational display than the major museum exhibition I was expecting. The remainder of the museum was equally disappointing. A number of the original exhibits and displays that made the Royal BC Museum memorable have been closed or removed. The First Nations exhibits that once formed such a significant part of the museum experience have been completely removed. Whatever justification leadership has for that decision, the result for the paying visitor is the same: an enormous part of British Columbia’s history and culture is simply no longer there to experience. Ironically, removing these exhibits also means removing opportunities for visitors to actually see, engage with and learn about Indigenous history. They have also removed the old museum areas that displayed artifacts and everyday objects from different decades. Those exhibits were one of the things that made the museum interesting. You could actually walk through displays, see physical objects from different periods and get a sense of how people lived. Those tangible connections to the past are exactly what I go to a museum to see. Removing them and replacing so much of the experience with interpretation, signage and screens takes away much of what made this museum special. What bothers me most is the philosophy that appears to be driving these decisions. Museums should preserve history and present it honestly, including the parts of history that are uncomfortable, offensive by today’s standards, or difficult to reconcile with modern values. History does not need to be endorsed in order to be displayed. It needs to be preserved, explained and put into context. I understand that perspectives change and that museums have a responsibility to include voices and experiences that may previously have been overlooked. I support adding that context. What I do not support is removing or sanitizing historical representations because a board or leadership considers them inconsistent with today’s ideological standards. Add the Indigenous perspective. Add previously excluded perspectives. Explain what was wrong. Explain how attitudes changed. Put competing perspectives beside one another and let visitors learn from them. But don’t erase what was there. This is exactly where woke leadership and ideological museum governance become a problem. When today’s political and social agenda becomes the filter through which yesterday’s history is allowed to be displayed, the inevitable result is sanitization and exclusion. Museums are supposed to record and display history, not rewrite it to satisfy a woke board, leadership group or current agenda. The job of a museum is not to protect visitors from the past. It is to preserve the evidence of the past and give visitors enough context to understand it for themselves. And there is a contradiction here that is difficult to ignore. In the apparent effort to rethink how Indigenous history is presented, the museum has removed major First Nations exhibits while providing, in my experience, remarkably little substantive representation of the Songhees and Esquimalt Nations whose traditional territories are directly relevant to the museum itself. That is not meaningful inclusion. If anything, the result feels like less Indigenous history being available to the public, not more. We don’t expect a human rights museum discussing Auschwitz to sanitize what happened because the reality is disturbing or incompatible with modern values. The entire point of preserving difficult history is that future generations need to see and understand what actually happened. I don’t understand why British Columbia’s provincial museum, particularly one carrying the Royal designation, should operate according to a different principle. There is an important distinction between expanding history and rewriting it. If previous exhibits failed to tell the whole story, then tell more of the story. If an exhibit lacked an Indigenous perspective, add it. If an interpretation was inaccurate, explain why. More history is the answer to incomplete history. Less history is not. The Royal BC Museum used to feel like a place where you could walk into another time and experience British Columbia’s history. On this visit, too much of that experience was gone. What remains increasingly feels like interpretation replacing preservation, with today’s ideology determining which pieces of yesterday are considered acceptable enough to remain on display. Then, after walking through a museum where so much British Columbia and First Nations history and culture has been removed, you arrive at the gift shop. It is extremely expensive, and during our visit it was playing loud, annoying Mexican music. It seemed completely disconnected from everything we had just seen. It had nothing to do with the Egyptian exhibition, nothing to do with British Columbia history and nothing that I could see connecting it to any culture or exhibit represented in the museum. After everything else that had been removed or changed, it was a bizarre final note to the experience. Between the poor experience getting through admissions, the almost token recognition of the traditional territories at the entrance, the lack of meaningful Songhees and Esquimalt representation beyond a small language exhibit, an Egyptian exhibition dominated by reading material, screens and replicas, the complete removal of the former First Nations exhibits, the disappearance of the old displays showing artifacts from different decades, the broader sanitizing of history and culture, and finally ending up in an overpriced gift shop with loud music completely unrelated to the museum, I left extremely disappointed. For the admission price and the reputation of the Royal BC Museum, I expected considerably more. A museum should not be an institution where each new board or leadership group gets to decide which pieces of history survive according to the ideology of the day. Preserve it. Display it. Explain it. Challenge it where necessary. Add perspectives that were previously missing. Give the local Nations meaningful space to tell their histories and cultures. But stop rewriting and removing history to make it conform to a woke agenda. History belongs to the public, not to the ideology of whichever board happens to be governing the museum today.

I was expecting more Canadian art. Enjoyed the House Poles. The Ancient Egyptian display was interesting,

Disappointed in much of the museum. They had alot of sessions where you could use headphones to listen to facts and history. Which I find unsanitary. Some parts were under construction. It definitely did not feel the worth. They charged unfair prices at the Imax theater. Which was in the same building, for a 45 minute program that you could’ve watched on YouTube, but because it was iMax felt necessary to charge phenomenal prices. I remember visiting the museum many many years ago and it was so much better. I hope they can make it a lot better in the future.

This was an amazing museum. There was a lot to see, and the Egypt exhibit was a nice addition. We spent about 1.5 hours but we were on a tight schedule. Our 3 teenagers were not excited to go to a museum, but ended up loving it so we stayed longer than expected. If your short on time start with level 3.

The dioramas are exceptionally done. The road to the old world was amazing. We only had about 2 hours and we were able to see and read about all the exhibits.

Loved the Egypt Exhibit. Very interesting and interactive. Like the other exhibits less. Kids loved the Wooly Mammoth.

Very cool museum. Central located in the inner harbor. Really enjoyed the Egyptian exhibit. Went back the next day for an imax movie

The exhibits here were were very educational and interesting not only for my children but also myself. We enjoyed the natural history section, but enjoyed the Egyptian exhibit the most. My children especially enjoyed the animated story that you can listen to at the beginning of the Egyptian exhibit.

;My favourite parts were the recreation of the 'old town' and the natural history exhibit; far from being 'just a load of stuffed animals' as these things can sometimes be, hre the various creatures were shown in diaromas to illustrate ice ages and modern ecosystems. I also watched te IMAX film about sea otters, which had some amazing photography, not just of the otters, but other wildlife and the changing seasons.

Extremely underwhelmed by this museum. It’s definitely not worth the price. The flow within exhibits is bad and we had to back track a lot. We were hoping to see the whales laser exhibit but apparently we had to put our names down for a time slot which we weren’t told about so missed out. We spent an hour and walked away very disappointed.

A waste of money and time. What was once a beautiful museum is now a mess. . The government tore out the inside and made it a colonial museum. Everyone in our group was terribly disappointed .

Great IMAX and very educational. Sea otters documentary was extraordinary. Beautiful downtown and Harbour.

We purchased tickets to the Royal BC Museum in advance from Viator, and were able to go straight in. The museum was a very nice natural history museum plus some great interactive spaces showcasing British Columbia's history. We definitely recommend visiting this musuem if you are in the area.

This museum needs a major overhaul. It seems to be locked in the 1970s using cardboard pictures as displays. I spent about 30 minutes in the museum, there was really nothing to see. I also felt the flow was off and I had to backtrack or not know where I was going next. The old town exhibit is a good idea to start, however, it’s really lacking something. Perhaps if it was expanded and made more interactive, I can see people perhaps having fun and taking interesting pictures of themselves doing things in the old town. There were a number of signs indicating either a new display was being made or something to that effect. Perhaps they should just shut the museum down altogether and renovate it properly.

For people who have been coming to this museum for years you will be disappointed, there is a lot of empty displays… A lot of signs saying it’s being redone? I understand changes had to be made but maybe just a bit at a time instead of big gaps everywhere.

I've been visiting this museum for about 45 years. Some things don't change, but others do. I loved the photography display! Nice to see the wooly mammoth still alive as well as the olden days cobble streets. I always visit when I go back home. This museum is a staple of Victoria.

This museum definitely needs work. The current music display is boring as boring can be. We left the exhibit within 5 minutes and headed out. The best part was the wooly mammoth but the remainder is very substandard and not much to it. Went up to the 3rd floor and went to the old town. Better lighting is required. So dark and dingy. Hard to see the displays. Also the ground is extremely uneven but even if they are trying to create ambiance, its dangerous. My husband and I both felt like we were stumbling in the dark. The website says that it takes 3-4 hours to go through...we were done the entire thing in 45 minutes. I consider my admission to be a donation.

A must-see when you are in Victoria. Lots of exhibitions to check out but IMAX is extra (which we didn't bother). The museum can get busy though, so I would go early to avoid the crowds.

The museum was a bit of a disappointment. It has two floors: the second floor displays geographic and natural history of BC over eons; and the third floor looks at BC history over the last couple hundred years, plus some rotating exhibitions. The third floor is the problem. It’s clear they’re trying hard to illustrate the damage of colonialism --- proper, even essential for a history museum. The problem is, they’ve gotten rid of nearly everything else. There’s no framework here, no sense of how the BC of the 1600’s evolved to the BC of today; to understand that you need to go elsewhere: Craigdarroch Castle, for example, or city walking tours. That history simply isn’t in the RBCM, and it’s a huge gap. Maybe it’s pendular: museums that previously ignored colonialism and pre-European times swinging hard to correct that, and over time will reach the right balance. It’s a laudable intent, but it makes it hard to recommend the RBCM in its current form. Even as a record of colonial oppression, it’s basically just anecdotes; the actual history of European mistreatment and discrimination is covered better and more holistically in the Victoria Chinatown Museum and even the Parliament tours. Three stars: two for the Natural History floor; and one for the South-Asia Painted Cotton temporary exhibit plus the Japanese-Canadian photography studio within the Old Town display.

Many interesting exhibits including _Beyond the Beat_(fantastic) on multiple floors. Elevators and escalators available. Lots of walking.

There was picketing going on out front. So it was a little weird going in. But once inside it was a beautiful experience.

I really enjoyed the museum and the natural history section which helped bring things to life. I would have liked to experience the accompanying IMAX theatre as there was a short film about elephants, but unfortunately my visit coincided with a strike and this meant the theatre had been closed. Overall, I spent a couple of hours here and enjoyed the exhibits, but I did find that there was a lack of flow/knowing which direction to go in.

A Labour strike was in effect, so the cost would have been by donation only, if I hadn't prepaid. The IMAX was closed, and I'd hoped to see it. I've been to the museum several times in the past, and was sad to see they have discontinued several excellent exhibits. The exhibit on Indian cottons was interesting, but the exhibit on music was quite boring. I spent only an hour this time, where in the past I've spent 3-5 hours.

Great museum, design was impressive and museum is attractive for all ages. Must do for Victoria to learn about the nature and culture. I am looking forward to visit again, museum deserves to be visited several times. Have at least half a day, it has a lot of surprises and a nice cafeteria.

Get your tickets ahead of time and not just a confirmation number as it was hard to find our tickets online.

Great experience. Very impressive how interactive the many displays are! Our 11 year old granddaughter gave it a 10 out of 10.

The Royal BC Museum was a highlight of our trip. We didn’t know much about BC’s history going in, but we left fascinated and inspired. The exhibits, especially the Indigenous galleries, were powerful and beautifully done. A great way to learn about the cultural and natural heritage of British Columbia—highly recommended!

I want to give this museum a 5/5. The natural history section certainly blew me away. Immersive, informational, and exceptional, it's worth the price alone. Unfortunately, the human history section is currently under renovation. There's a lot of unused space that they hopefully can make into something great, but that floor is currently a little underwhelming.

Good experience. Showed the ticket to the staff, and the staff stamped our hand and let us in. Very simple and easy to get in. The museum has many unique aspects of demonstration. I really like the demonstration of a forest, a shoreline, and the old Chinatown.

I recently stopped by this museum during my recent weekend visit to Victoria. This museum is full of dated, tired exhibits desperately in need of a major upgrade to 21st century standards for lighting, typography, interactivity, etc. As several others have noted, large portions of the galleries have been closed off to be redesigned. Unfortunately, what is left for the time being is awful. The museum management needs to look at California museums for examples of how to design engaging museum exhibits, such as the California Academy of Sciences and the Oakland Museum of California. American visitors already familiar with such museums and expecting to see similar exhibits about British Columbia will be deeply disappointed by this one.

An amazing museum. All the regular exhibits are outstanding, but the diorama was spectacular. The current music exhibition was extremely interesting and informative.

Having visited in 1970, 1986, 2008, and 2025, the exhibits have devolved into a highly curated and political mouthpiece for the culture of the day. What was once focused on natural history is now focused on mainstream ideology as befits the moment. Give it ten years and the museum placards will read completely differently based on the bias of the day. Don’t waste your time going. There are better things to do.

Founded in 1886, The Royal BC Museum includes three permanent galleries: Natural History, Becoming BC, and the First Peoples Gallery. The museum's collections comprise approximately 7 million objects, including natural history specimens, artifacts, and archival records. The natural history collections have 750,000 records of specimens almost exclusively from BC and neighboring states, provinces, or territories. FUN FACT: One of the most prized displays is John Lennon's psychedelic Rolls-Royce. It was purchased by Vancouver billionaire Jim Pattison and donated to the museum. NOTE: I went in August 2018 and was remiss in providing a review at that time. I believe the displays are changing, which kind of stinks because the history of Victoria, especially during the Gold Rush, was really cool to experience!

Always love visiting this museum. A great place to learn more about local history and some local natural history. A decent admission price.

Very cool place to go! Lots of history on the culture of Victoria and BC and I loved the wildlife exhibit, awesome descriptions, displays and even had a live rock pool to view.

A lot better since they reopened the Discovery ship area. Still seems like they could be doing a lot more. Perhaps a more interactive area would be useful for younger audiences.

This museum has been gutted from its former wonderful experience. It has become a very sterile place and the latest display on Stonehenge misses large parts of the story behind the people who built it. I won't waste my money coming again.

We primarily went to see the Stonehenge exhibit which was superb. We have been to the museum before and it is packed with other exhibits. The main exhibit changes every few months but is always worth the visit.

Excellent Museum with lots of insightful exhibits. Worth the visit in Victoria. Visit took 3hr plus.

We spent about a half day in the museum in November of 2024. It had a wide variety of activities and exhibits. There was a small tribute to Terry Fox, the inspirational Canadian runner, a Stonehenge exhibition, a “Modern Canadian “ exhibit of innovative products, an indigenous language experience and more. For younger audiences the “old town “ area could hold their interest and, maybe, the Stonehenge stuff but beyond that I think it’s the imax movies that would appeal. Our “Arctic “ movie was in 3-D (I think they all may be) and it was well worth the cost. The “City of the Future “ film looked like a “kid of all ages “ winner.

Lots of neat history! Wooley is a fascinating reminder of just how small a human really is in comparison to mighty beasts of the past.

a few years was told that the 'Old town' exhibit would be eliminated. I wrote a protest letter. Much to my delight much of it was still intact and fascinated my overseas relatives, including the recreation of the shores and it's animals, birds, etc. - extremely well done. My disappointment, however, centered around not being able to see the indigenous exhibit which was not open while there.