Parkside Victoria Travel Blog

The online social network of environmentally-sustainable travel, iStayGreen.org, has awarded Parkside Victoria Resort & Spa and 13 other Victoria hotels with the Prestigious Green-Eco Leaf Rating, based on a comprehensive 70-point eco-audit survey by the website.  

An insulating roof top garden, parking stalls with charging stations for electric vehicles, and an edible outdoor garden on the first floor are just a few of the many eco-initiatives at Parkside.

Professional triathlete, vegan and bestselling author of The Thrive Diet and Thrive Fitness Brendan Brazier will be in Victoria and Colwood next week, June 2 and 3, 2010, to discuss how to live healthy on a whole-food, plant-based diet. 

Not only is plant-based nutrition better for your body, but it's also better for the environment.  

Brendan, who developed the popular Vancouver-based nutritional product Vega, will be discussing principles from his two books during a seminar on Wednesday, June 2 from 7:30 pm to 9 pm in Salon B at the Harbour Towers Hotel and Suites in downtown Victoria.

Let the summer cycling fun begin! Join the Aviawest Cycling Society this weekend for the 2010 Robert W. Cameron Law Corporation Cycling Series, running from May 28 to 30.

The series will start on Friday with the Pro City Racing Bear Mountain Hill Climb, a grueling 3-kilometre time-trial that takes riders to the top of Bear Mountain. 

On Saturday, riders will test their endurance and battle for the title of the BC Road Race Champion at the Russ Hay's Sooke Classic Road Race, a 45-, 95- or 140-kilometre journey along West Coast Road towards Port Renfrew. 

Feel like cheering with a large, rowdy crowd just inches from the action? Then come down to watch the La-Z-y Boy Bastion Square Grand Prix on Sunday, an adrenaline-pumping race that has been a staple in BC's cycling history for 17 years.

Be sure to stick around after the main event to watch the Tim Hortons Timbits Challenge and the Intact Insurance High School Races, a kid- and teen-sized version of the Bastion Square Grand Prix!

Start times and locations:

• Bear Mountain Hill Climb - 4:30 pm to 5:30 pm on Friday, May 28, 2010
• Sooke Classic Road Race - Start/finish at John Muir Elementary School. The first race starts at 9 am on Saturday, May 29, 2010
• Bastion Square Grand Prix - Start/finish at Fort and Langley Streets. The first of seven races starts 8:30 am on Sunday, May 30, 2010
• Timbits Challenge - Start/finish at Fort and Langley Streets at 11 am on Sunday, May 30, 2010
• High School Races - Start/Finish at Fort and Langley Streets at 11:30 am on Sunday, May 30, 2010

Proceeds from the revenue of the cycling series will go towards the Aviawest Cycling Society, a not-for-profit group of master cycling and fitness enthusiasts who provide coaching support and develop projects and programs for young competitive cyclists.

For more details regarding start times and locations, please visit the event website.

Parkside Victoria Resort & Spa is very excited to announce its recent partnership with local specialty coffee operator Caffe Fantastico!

Victoria's much-loved coffee shop culture will become even more robust with the addition of Caffe Fantastico, a cornerstone of the capital city's java community to its portfolio of world-class resort amenities.