Here’s a sample of some of recent awards and accolades of Victoria as a destination::
2020
20 Best Places to Visit in 2020: Vancouver Island - CNN Travel List
2019
#4 Top Five Cities in Canada - Travel & Leisure World's Best Awards
2018
Top 10 Friendliest Cities in the World - Condé Nast Traveler Readers' Choice Survey
2017
#2 Top 20 Best Small Cities in the World - Condé Nast Traveler Readers' Choice Survey
2016
#6 Best Islands in the World - Condé Nast Traveler Readers' Choice Survey
#7 Top 25 Best Cities in the World - Condé Nast Traveler Readers' Choice Survey

As summarized in the NYT's 36 Hours in Victoria, BC: "This compact, eminently walkable city, set amid the breathtaking beauty and bounty of Vancouver Island, is lauded as one of the world’s top small urban destinations. Beyond the picture-perfect downtown waterfront, British Columbia’s capital is an exhilarating blend of cultures, from Canadian and First Nations to Chinese and European (especially British). There are three universities, thriving arts and cultural institutions, significant historic preservation, a celebrated local food scene and Canada’s mildest climate: That means year-round forest visits, biking and golf; gardens galore (daffodils in February); even beehives downtown (at the Fairmont Empress hotel; atop the Harbour Air floating terminal). There is wildness too:..towering ancient trees, log-strewn beaches and distant snowy peaks".https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/12/travel/36-hours-in-victoria-british-columbia.html

As summarized in Scout online magazine (the best of Vancouver food and culture) : "Victoria is the capital of the province of British Columbia. It is located at the southern tip of Vancouver Island and is typically accessed from Vancouver by ferry (BC Ferries, disembarking from Tsawwassen). The town proper has a population of 85,000 people but when its surrounding satellite communities are taken into account it is home to almost 400,000. Founded in the middle of the 19th century at the height of the British Empire’s colonial reach, Victoria (after the Queen of the same name) still retains a patina of that bygone imperial age through its architecture, its Anglocentric high streets, and the way in which it marketed itself – for the entirety of its incorporated existence – as a beautiful, Eden-like last bastion of Britishism; a place where cable knit sweaters and convertible MGs went together like peanut butter and jam for retirees who prefer Earl Grey and crustless cucumber sandwiches. It has largely – oh so thankfully – evolved beyond this constructed image to become a far more interesting place to both live and visit. The one thing that hasn’t changed in recent years is the weather: Victoria gets less than one third as much rain as Vancouver does between March and September, so its Springs and Summers are downright glorious."https://scoutmagazine.ca/travel/victoria/