Canadian Rockies Elements from Calgary

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VACATION FEATURES:

Accommodations
- 6 nights hotel accommodation

Meals
- 1 Breakfast in Kelowna
- 2 Lunches in Revelstoke and Minter Gardens

Sightseeing Excursions and Tours
- Discover Banff Tour
- Banff Lake Cruise *
- Rockies Discovery & Columbia Icefield from Banff to Jasper
- Discover Jasper Tour
- 2 Day Journey from Lake Louise to Vancouver
- Winery Tour and Tasting in Kelowna

Admissions
- Minter Gardens with guided Walking Tour
- Columbia Icefield Glacier Adventure
- Banff Gondola Ride

Documentation
- Itinerary, brochures, maps and vouchers
- National Park entrance fees
- Hotel luggage handling

ITINERARY:

DAY 1 - Calgary to Banff

Today, travel through the foothills of the Rockies to the resort town of Banff, in Canada’s first National Park. Upon arrival, enjoy a sightseeing excursion with highlights including a visit to the hoodoos, shaped by centuries of wind; Surprise Corner and Tunnel Mountain Drive, which overlooks Bow Falls. Also, take a ride (included) on a gondola car to the top of Sulphur Mountain. After the excursion, you will be dropped off at your hotel.

DAY 2 - Exploring Banff

This morning is free to explore Banff. This afternoon, take a short excursion to Lake Minnewanka, one of Alberta’s largest bodies of water, for your boat cruise. Cruise for approximately 1.5 hours, travelling beneath the jagged peaks of Mount Aylmer and Mount Inglismaldie, the hoodoo clusters and into Devil’s Gap. Big Horn sheep, deer, bears and eagles are frequently seen at the water’s edge. Return to Banff via picturesque Two Jack Lake and majestic Mount Rundle.

DAY 3 - Banff to Jasper Sightseeing

Today your journey will take you north along the Icefields Parkway. After a stop at the Athabasca Glacier to ride on a Brewster Ice Explorer you will continue on to Jasper for your next two nights accommodation.

DAY 4 - Exploring Jasper

Experience Jasper National Park through the travels of the early explorers and view the unspoiled grandeur! A morning excursion will begin along the mighty Athabasca Canadian Heritage River, learning about David Thompson and the valley ecosystem. Travel above Maligne Canyon, with its narrow gorge and limestone walls created by 10,000 years of water flow. Visit a place of mystery and Indian legend as you continue to Medicine Lake, where sometimes it actually disappears! On your adventure, you are sure to see a variety of mountain wildlife. Return to Jasper to spend the remainder of your day at leisure.

DAY 5 - Jasper to Lake Louise

Enjoy a free morning to explore Jasper. In the afternoon, retrace your route along the Icefield Parkway to Lake Louise.

DAY 6 - Lake Louise to Kelowna

After a morning departure from Lake Louise, ascending Roger’s Pass, the summit of Glacier National Park. This route follows the Canadian Pacific rail line all along the way. One of the highlights of the trip is a stop at the Spiral Tunnels. This unique feature is an engineering marvel that loops into the heart of Mount Stephen. This was created in 1909 in order to reduce the steep grade of the rail line, a hazard of early travel that caused the concern for runaway cars due to the 4.5% grade (2.2% is the desired grade). A lunch break (included) is made in the alpine town of Revelstoke, founded in 1880 when the CP Railroad was built through the area. Today, it’s a growing favorite destination among outdoor enthusiasts for golf, hiking, canoeing, whitewater rafting, skiing and heli-skiing.

Driving further south, the Trans Canada Highway travels past Craigellachie, the site of the last spike of the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1885. This railway system connects Canada from coast to coast. Then the road winds its way out of the Monashee Mountains and you’ll make a quick stop in Sicamous, the “Houseboat Capital of Canada”. The last a stop today is in the small town of Armstrong before continuing on your journey south into the famed wine region of the Okanagan Valley, through the town of Vernon, home of Silver Star ski area.

Kelowna is the overnight destination and is the cosmopolitan and cultural centre of the Okanagan Valley, including five pristine golf courses, white sand beaches, orchards and Big White ski area, in addition to over a dozen local wineries. An evening arrival at your selected Kelowna hotel allows time for dinner (meal not included) and exploration of the lakefront.

DAY 7 - Kelowna to Vancouver

After a hearty breakfast (included), the first stop of the day is at a local winery for an exclusive tour and educational wine tasting. Sample a variety of hand-crafted Okanagan wines in this unique and authentic setting, surrounded by the actual vineyards where the fruit is produced on site.

Depart the Okanagan Valley on the Coquihalla highway which travels through the interior to the town of Merritt. There, time is allowed at the Visitor Centre to stretch and learn about this historic territory, one of the premier ranching settlements in British Columbia from 1880. Then continue your trek on the Coquihalla Highway through the heart of ranching country and back into mountainous territory. Later in the day, a two hour stop at Minter Gardens will feed your body and soothe your senses with a delectable lunch (included) and guided walk through the exquisite gardens.

Following lunch, connect with the mighty Fraser River (named after Simon Fraser, a fur trader who explored the area in 1808), a major salmon spawning route. Up to 10 million fish a year travel up to this waterway each fall to the exact stream bed of their birth where they will complete their life cycle by spawning and dying. This act, in turn, will attract and feed many predators such as eagles and bears who depend on this yearly feast to build body fat that will sustain them during the lean winter months ahead. On the last leg of your journey, you’ll find yourself travelling through the lush Fraser delta region and then into downtown Vancouver, for a late afternoon arrival.


*When day tours or attractions are not operational in the off-season, the price will be adjusted or there will an alternative excursion/attraction made available.

Canadian Rockies Elements is also available from Vancouver, British Columbia.