Canada – September 2014
I recently travelled to Canada with a friend and visited Alberta and Bristish Columbia located on the West Coast.
Alberta was the first destination on our itinerary and is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. Situated in the heart of western Canada, Alberta is bordered on the west by the majestic Canadian Rocky Mountains.
We flew into Vancouver on Air Canada on a direct flight from Sydney for our overnight breather then the following day were on a flight to Edmonton, Alberta where we picked up our hire car for our 5 hour scenic drive to Jasper. We checked in at the very peaceful Fairmont Jasper Park lodge for 2 nights, a 700 acre year-round luxury mountain resort which wraps around the shores of pristine Lac Beauvert. Guests can enjoy a wide variety of outdoor recreational activities at the resort including golf, hiking, canoeing, kayaking, horseback riding and mountain biking in the summer and ice skating, snowshoeing and skiing in the winter.
We spent most of our time simply relaxing by the lake or on our lodge terrace enjoying a beverage and the fresh mountain air and walking around the lake. It is only a short drive from the Fairmont into the town of Jasper where you will find an endless amount of ski and mountain gear stores, a tourist office offering loads of adventure tours and activities and nice little cafes and restaurants including the Jasper Brewery where you can sample some of Albertas fine ales.
After checking out we were collected by Brewsters Canada for our transfer to Lake Louise . The drive is approximately 3 hours from Jasper however there is plenty of amazing places to see and do along the way. We had stops at the picture perfect Lake Peyto, and Athabascar Falls before making our way to the Columbian Icefields for our Ice Explorer ride to a Glacier where we spent some time “playing” in the snow - a first time encounter for my friend who I was travelling with.
After lunch we headed to the engineering masterpiece of the Glacier Skywalk which opened in May 2014, an awesome glass-floored observation cliff edge walkway and platform 280 metres (918 feet) over the Sunwapta Valley.It was a little daunting and most people were fairly reluctant to step out on to the glass flooring but once we had walked the loop once we headed around for another few laps!
We finally made our way to a place I had been longing to see for some time - the magnificent Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise. Our first hour involved sipping on cocktails overlooking this magnificent glacial lake and the snow- capped Victoria Glacier. We were lucky enough to be upgraded to a Lake View room with the most beautiful view I had ever seen. We enjoyed about a 7km return walk to the other side of the lake where you will find a secluded beach looking back at the Chateau.. You can also hire a kayak or canoe to explore the area.We also had a dinner at the Walister Stube famous for its fondues!
It was sad to leave Lake Louise but after 2 nights we were on our way for our short drive to Banff. Located in the heart of Banff National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the world famous Fairmont Banff Springs hotel stands as a landmark in the picturesque alpine town of Banff, Alberta. Canada's "Castle in the Rockies". Only a short stroll from the hotel you can explore the charming town of Banff, Alberta. Discover local galleries and museums, upscale shopping and restaurants. One of the best things you can do is head to the Banff Gondola, where you'll see more mountains in a moment than most see in a lifetime. We rode to the top of Sulphur Mountain luckily enough on a cloudless day and experienced a stunning bird's eye view with breathtaking views in every direction! Bow river in Banff is also worth while visiting which is the place where Marilyn Munroe starred in the movie “River of no return”.
One of the other highlights of our trip was our Rocky Mountaineer 2 day rail journey from Banff back to Vancouver B.C – First passage to the West.
You see sights you could never see from a car and can truly experience the beauty and wilderness of this amazing country. We were fortunate enough to be in Gold Leaf class so were seated high above the tree line in our rail car. The upper seating area includes domed glass windows that provide the best views throughout the trip. The outdoor viewing platform is a must where the air is clean and the view is spectacular and you can take snaps of the unbelievable scenery.
I would highly recommend the Gold Leaf Service to give you the ultimate experience. Gold Leaf includes drinks and snacks at your seat, plus two seatings for breakfast and lunch in the dining area below. Gold Leaf passengers were constantly offered snacks and beverages, including beer and cocktails. When one set of passengers is dining, the others are offered scones (breakfast) or a cheese plate (lunch) to tie you over. Rocky Mountaineer provided a seamless transfer to our hotel for our overnight stopover in Kamloops (in the middle of the desert) where your suitcases are waiting for you in your room. There is also a huge variety of restaurants and bars in Kamloops to spend your night before boarding the train the next day. The day you checkout of your hotel you simply leave your suitcases in your room as they are transferred through all the way to Vancouver.
VANCOUVER is a fantastic city full of great bars restaurants and great shopping along Robson Street. There is so much to do in this bustling city. Visit Stanley Park, Canada Place,Grouse Mountain (home of a couple of Grizzly bears), Capilano Suspension Bridge, the markets and stores in Granville Island or you can even take in a game of Ice Hockey during the season. We spent 2 nights at the lovely and well located Fairmont Hotel Vancouver before heading to Whistler.
We collected another hire car for our very scenic Sea to sky drive to Whistler.This drive is really only adviseable in the summer months as the roads can be a little dangerous in winter if you dont have the right vehicle, tyres, chains and experience with icey roads.
It only takes around 2 hours from Vancouver and there a few attractions on the way including the Sea to Sky Gondola. We found ourselves falling in love with another town. Whistler Village was a very short stroll from our fantastic home for the next 2 nights at Fairmont Chateau Whistler. There are numerous places to eat and the prices were very reasonable as we there in the off peak season. It was fantastic just to be able to stroll through the quiet paved streets of this Village and explore the shops or rekax with an afternoon snack and a drink and people watch with the beautiful backdrop of Blackcomb Mountain. There is an endless amount of things to do in Whistler depending on the time of year. You can of course ski/snowboard on the huge amount of ski runs, zipline, bungee jump, take a gondola ride, mountain bike down the runs in the warmer months and so much more. We took a private 4WD safari tour up Blackcomb Mountain 7500 feet above sea level. We reached what felt like the top of the world with unbelievable views over Whistler above the clouds. We could have heard a pin drop up there it was so peaceful. The trip down the mountain tested our jeep with some serious 4WD driving which was heaps of fun!
At the end of the day we would sit by the fire at the Fairmont and enjoy tapas and our new favourite ales.
On our final day we drove back to Vancouver where we made the most of it exploring the attractions of this great city. We chose to head to Canada Place for our finale and take a ride on the new Fly Over Canada, a virtual 4D flight from East to West Canada. I thoroughly recommend to anyone heading to Vancouver to take this ride as it was amazing and felt like you were literally gliding over this beautiful country. We could even experience the feeling of the crisp air rain and snow in our face as we flew over Mountain Alps with choppers hovering, cowboys on horseback waving from below and the Rocky Mountaineer making its way through the Rockies.
What can I say - there are no words to describe this country and I haven’t even explored the East Coast yet (apart from my virtual flight!).
Canada is the closest to a slice of heaven on Earth I have ever seen and if i will definitely be back!!.
If you have not visited this part of the world I highly recommend you put this straight to the top of your travel wish list - I can guarantee that you will not be disappointed!
Please feel free to call me on 0403 025 000 if you want to know more!