Our stay here was an absolute terrible experience. The hotel looked beautiful from the outside and the receptionist was lovely, eventhough it did take us a while to find it. We went to our room, which was also lovely and spacious, maybe a bit dark, but we were only staying 1 night. On the hotel's recommendation we dined in their restaurant Wild Safron. Service was very good, but the food was a bit pretentious, trying to put too many different flavours into the one dish and as a result ruining it. At about 6am the following morning, we were awoken by a rustling followed by something jumping from the window sill. At first we thought we were imagining it, but searched the rooms anyway. When we pulled out the sofa, we found large metal contraption which appeared to be a mouse trap.We looked on the window ledge to find mouse droppings which confirmed our suspicions. This totally freaked us out. We eventually saw the creature come out from under the sofa and go back again which was enough for us to pack our bags and call the receptionist. He came up and when we asked him if he was aware of the problem, he said he was only there for 3 months but had heard there was a mouse problem back then, but thought it was gone. God knows how long they have had this problem. We asked to speak to a manager and the receptionist said they were only on call and that he would ring them. As expected, the manager never turned up and when we came in later to see her, she was in a so called "meeting". We refused to pay the room bill which they agreed to, but did not fall over themselves to apologise. This place should be closed down until it is clear of rodents. It is totally unacceptable for anyone to put up with.
On other matters, there is no car park and you have to use a public open space car park which is across from a homeless and drug centre. We were told not to leave anything valuable in the car which was not exactly an endorsement.

Staying at this hotel was a big mistake and completely ruined our first visit to Victoria. We got very little sleep during the 3 nights we stayed there. 1. Our room was on the first floor so there was constant traffic noise..2 We were just above the bar, and drunken people emerged on to the sidewalk just below our window. 3. on Saturday nights the band plays in the bar until 1.00 AM. 4. One night there was a fight in the corridor outside our room at 2.00 AM. 5. The walls must be thin because we could also hear a TV blaring in the next room. We shut the window to try to reduce the noise but the room became unbearably hot and stuffy, with only a ceiling fan for ventilation and no air conditioning.

Directly opposite the hotel is a favorite haunt for drug addicts and the homeless. There were groups congregated there all the time. The view from our window was of a derelict building, next to where the homeless kids used to congregate.

The hotel has no car parking. You can park your car in a public car park a few blocks away, for which you pay extra.

The reception area is so small we had trouble finding it and walked through the restaurant before we located it. We had lunch in the restaurant the day we arrived and the food was unbelievably mediocre.

This miserable place wasn't even cheap! There must be many better places to stay in Victoria.

The Swan is in one of the prettiest buildings in Victoria in a great location a little away from the noise and main tourist attractions but easy walk everywhere. it is right opposite the Market which is fun. However our loft suite was quite dark and both rooms were upstairs while the small bathroom was downstairs which wasn't very convenient. The living room was comfortable with huge sofas and unusual interior decoration. our room had a hatch on the ceiling instead of a window and the other room was also practically windowless. However they were large, spacious rooms so you didn't feel too cramped. The rest of the hotel, bar, lobby, restaurant is very pleasant with a good atmosphere. The Saffron Bistro is a little pretentious with complicated but tasteless dishes though good value. Probably better to eat in the pub. I have had better beers.
having said all this I didn't see anywhere else in Victoria (except possibly the Empress) where I would have preferred to stay. So i would still recommend the Swan.

We stated there 2 nights in August with our 2 kids . Main objective was to take in the Titanic Exhibition at the BC Museum (which was sensational).

Firstly the hotel inself is architecturally beautiful and has been restored superbly. The rooms also are large and well appointed. We had a loft room which was great but a bit of a pain to hoof downstairs to use the toilet during the night.

The location of the hotel is great in that it is not right downtown but on the edge of Chinatown and is within walking distance to most things. The downside is that there is certainly a large drifter/drug population in the vicinity (which according to staff has gotten worse since the Salvation Army house opened just across/down the street). Not a huge deal but certainly something to be aware of. The hotel uses a parking lot directly across from the Salvation Army house - do not leave valuables in your car as we saw car windows broken.

We also had to change our rooms due to overnight repairs on the restaurant venting which was right above our room. No big deal - not a showstopper. However are first room was a bit noisy with the venting.

We had dinner the first night in the Wild Saffron Bistro which was adequate but nothing special which was disappointing as we read great things about it.

The biggest complaint we had was with the service in the hotel for breakfast. Breakfast is served in the glass enclosed patio and was very very slow. We also were disappointed with the attitude of our server when 2 of our breakfast orders came out, 2 more couple minutes later, and then when I had to ask for the maple syrup was told sarcastically "don't worry".

After spending the Sunday morning/early afternoon walking and at the Museum we came back for a mid afternoon snack/drink and once again the service was super slow for only a couple of appies/drinks.

However on Monday morning the service was much faster mainly due to the fact that the weekend traffic had passed.

Overall we found the property adequate, staff (aside from one) were pleasant enough, location was hit/miss and food was ok. Would we stay here again? Don't think so.