"The 21st annual Readers' Choice Awards is not only an award for the destinations, lodgings, and modes of transportation that exceed expectations, it is also a credit to the worldly expertise of Condé Nast Traveler readers."

Our little white inn by the sea was recently honoured by the readers of Condé Nast Traveler as the #3 hotel in Canada with an aggregate score of 90.4, judged on 5 categories: Food/Dining, Location, Overall Design, Rooms, and Service.

It is very exciting for our 28 room inn to be considered worthy of the company of Oberoi, Four Seasons, and Rosewood hotels not to mention heralded unique boutique spots like the Inn at Little Washington while stilling holding on to our authentic taste of Vancouver Island.

Whether you come to visit our amazing chefs (who ensure you can stay ten nights and not eat the same meal twice), or to enjoy the majestic view across the Juan de Fuca strait and the Olympic mountains of Washington State, or to explore our expansive art gallery that exclusively features the museum quality works of local artists, or to soak by the fireplace in your lavishly appointed room (none of which are the same; we offer 28 reasons to visit us again and again), you can finally be assured that you will be taken care of by Vancouver Island's finest staff from our knowledgeable sommeliers to our courteous and empathetic front desk and concierge staff and of course our hardest working colleagues in the housekeeping department who would love to surprise your significant other by sneaking in to your guest room during dinner to perform our Romantic Turndown service. Naturally, nothing sets the mood for your special occasion better than silken-rose petals, lit Sooke Harbour House aromatic candles, and bubbles on ice, especially when taken as a surprise.

We really do look forward to welcoming you to our little white inn by the sea as a member of our own family.

Do you recommend any local kennels for our dog(s)?

No! All 28 guest rooms at the Sooke Harbour House are pet friendly for a nominal fee. Your furry and four-legged friends deserve a vacation too, you know. Why not share the gardens, trails, and fresh sea breeze of Southwestern Vancouver Island with all of the beloved members of your family?

For $40.00 per night we furnish your best friend with a basket containing:
Doggy Blankets and Towels,
Doggy Beds,
Organic treats made by our chefs,
Food and Water bowls,
Guide Books for Southwest Vancouver Island's best Dog-Walking Trails,
and some plastic bags for, well, you know.

Of course the rooms on the ground floor with garden access are just about perfect for our furry friends.

We think you'll find this a much nicer option than a dog prison. Sorry! I meant to say kennel.

We are certified by Pets Can Stay, who you can visit at http://www.petscanstay.com/.

(Our only caveat is an 11:00am check-out. This allows our housekeepers the additional time they need to perform a stringent cleaning protocol to prepare for our guests in the future that might suffer from allergies.)

As seen from the dining room at the Sooke Harbour House on Tuesday, September the 2nd, 2008.

The connotation of art in today’s society is far from my definition of the term. For too many people, art comes in a frame or on a pedestal. People buy art after they have met their many other wants and needs; art is what they can afford when there is money left over. To my mind, that is a narrow vision, and looks only at a fraction of the art that surrounds us everyday, everywhere.

I always try to find simple places where the owners, chefs and cooks have a passion for what they do and a great respect in their use of local and seasonal ingredients.

Amongst the many visitors to the hotel are the creatures of the sea and harbour that frequently entertain themselves and our guests. This mercurial creature was captured by one of our guests in August, 2008.

Photo by Erin Kelly.

 

At the Sooke Harbour House, a small boutique hotel, romantic by essence, on the edge of the pacific, you can put a hold on time and luxuriate.

A gourmet breakfast is served in the privacy of your room, on your private patio or balcony and while you are savouring plump croissants, rich coffee, you also can have the live entertainment brilliantly executed by the whales, otters, seals, bald eagles and blue herons playing in front of your room.