For personal assistance with planning your trip, call the Customer Information line at 250-382-6161, and press zero for a Customer Service Agent.

CFB Esquimalt Naval & Military Museum, Naden Way (off Admirals).

Located in a 19th century former hospital, the museum offers a compelling collection of exhibits and displays tracing Western Canadian military development including re-creations of a WWII shipboard mess deck, a communications room and a wheelhouse. It also includes photos, histories of vessels, biographies of naval personnel, archives and memorabilia.

Details at www.navalandmilitarymuseum.org/ or call 250-363-4312.

From downtown take the #24 or the #25 to Admirals Road and Naden Way, and then a short walk down Naden Way.

Maltwood Art Museum & Gallery, University Centre, University of Victoria.

Extensive collection of European Decorative Arts, Northwest Coast First Nations art, Western Canadian fine & Craft Arts, contemporary Western artists and Chinese artifacts. The Gallery stages up to 24 special exhibits each year.

Details at www.maltwood.uvic.ca or call 250-721-8298.

Take the #4, #7, #11, #12, #13, #14, #26, #39 or #51 UVic to the University of Victoria.

Maritime Museum of British Columbia, 28 Bastion Square. Follow View St Westbound.

This museum is located in the former Provincial Law Courts building constructed in 1889. Exquisite woodwork and the oldest working elevator in the country set the stage to showcase BC's maritime history. Displays focus on the explorations of Captain Cook through to highlights of BC Ferries.

Details at: www.mmbc.bc.ca or call 250-385-4222 ext. 104

The museum is within two to three blocks of all downtown buses.

Royal British Columbia Museum, 675 Belleville St.

The RBCM is one of North America's most acclaimed museums. Renowned for its exhibits' stunning impact, the museum explores the natural splendour and cultural diversity of British Columbia. It is a place of discovery, where one can travel back in time 10,000 years and come face to face with a giant Woolly Mammoth. Visitors can walk the cobbled streets of Old Town or sit among First Nations totem poles, learning stories of triumph, tragedy and survival. In addition to the permanent galleries, the museum also features major travelling exhibits of international standards.

Details at: www.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca, or call 250-356-7226 locally or toll free 1-888-447-7977.

Take the #3, #27/28, #30/31, #50, #61, #70, #71, #72 and #73.

Royal London Wax Museum. 470 Belleville Street.

Lifelike replications of British royalty, famous explorers and literary figures. The Chamber of Horrors illustrates the grisly methods of middle-ages interrogation. Children will enjoy Storybook Land where they can go "over the rainbow" with Dorothy.

Details at: www.waxworld.com, or call 250-388-4461.

Take the #5, #27/28, #30/31, #50, #61, #70, #71, #72 and #73..

Sidney Historical Museum, 2423 Beacon Avenue.

Housed in an old Ferry Customs building, this museum offers a look at the history of the Sidney and the Saanich Peninsula.

More information at: www.sidneymuseum.ca or call 250-656-1322.

Take the #70, #71, #72, #73, #77, #79, #81, #82 and #83 to Fifth & Beacon Avenue and walk east on Beacon..

Sidney Marine Museum, 9801 Seaport Place, Sidney.

Kids of all ages will enjoy interactive displays models and skeletons that trace the evolution of the whale. Life-size murals of the 70-foot Blue Whale and other species decorate the ceilings of the galleries. Photos and relics of the pioneer days.

Take the #70, #71, #72, #73, #77, #79, #81, #82 and #83 to Fifth & Beacon Avenue. Walk east on Beacon to Seaport Place Square.

Sooke Regional Museum and Visitors Centre, 2070 Phillips Road.

Walk a nature trail, visit a 1902 pioneer family cottage and learn how the West Coast temperate rainforest influence the aboriginal people who first settled here. See exhibits of logging, early farming and trapping. View the 30-minute film of All Sooke Day and enjoy the gallery featuring local artists.

Details at: www.sooke.museum.bc.ca/srm or call 250-642-6351.

Take the #61. Disembark at Sooke Road & Philips. (When you get on the bus, ask the driver to call your stop.)