Discover Western Canada
Jul 22, 2020 · By Vacations By Rail
Western Canada’s important trains and most popular destinations, including its vibrant cities, coastal towns, and of, course, Canada’s Rocky Mountains.
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2025 Tour code: PR-ECRE-25
About the tour
Sometimes you just need to get away, even if only for a few days. This 5-day retreat into the Canadian Rockies is the perfect getaway, combining both sightseeing and relaxation, and of course spectacular scenery. Start your trip in Vancouver, where you'll have time to explore on your own. The next day, your train journey starts with a trip to Kamloops on the Rocky Mountaineer. You'll pass through the rushing waters of Hell's Gate in the Fraser Canyon, and ride along the winding path of the Thompson River on your way into the heart of British Columbia. Continue to the Canadian Rockies, traveling through tunnels and emerging into grand vistas as you make your way to Banff, one of the world's most famous resort towns. Here, you'll have time to enjoy the stunning views while on a tour of Bow Falls, Lake Minnewanka, and more. Your getaway ends with a transfer to Calgary.
This itinerary is also available from Calgary to Vancouver based on your travel preference.
Highlights
What’s included
Itinerary
Arrive in Vancouver and spend time exploring this scenic city on your own. Overnight in Vancouver.
Additional information
Train
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Upgrades
Reviews
4.2 / 5 · 22 reviews
CHANELLE S.
Submitted 11 Oct 2024
The Excursion to the Canadian Rockies package was a wonderful experience that everyone should add to their bucket list. You travel through areas that are inaccessible by car; the only means of transportation through some of these beautiful valleys or twisting tunnels is by rail. Our hosts in Car 13 were Tianna, Deirdre, Gillian, and Althea. All four were personable, helpful, knowledgeable and interesting. They made our trip so much better by telling us historical and geological stories about the areas we were passing and by serving us delicious meals and drinks. We highly recommend spending the extra money and going for the Gold Leaf service. You're up higher and can see above the treeline, plus you have the domed ceiling to really experience the outdoors from inside the car. I'm not a person who can sit for hours, either, and being able to walk down to the dining part of the car or out onto the platform in the open air was important for me. A spiral staircase between the two floors was somewhat challenging for some guests, but they managed with the two sturdy handrails to help them out. We loved the two day length and the order of our days, too. We thought Vancouver to Kamloops was lovely on Day 1, but then Day 2 was absolutely stunning in comparison! If we'd journeyed in the other direction, Kamloops to Vancouver might have seemed a let down. Bring a hat and sunglasses as the morning sun is strong, if you're fortunate enough to have a nice sunny day! The Fairmont Banff Springs is amazing, too, as part of the Gold Leaf service. Swim outdoors! The pool is 90ºF! Wonderful, even in 50ºF October weather. Vacations By Rail did a great job of adding a great day of touring Banff to the rail trip, too. We enjoyed our tour by Mike and Kieran who took us great places for photos and short walks, if we wanted to take them, and they gave us time in each place to spend as we wished. The lunch was delicious, too, and we felt like the two men really loved their community and enjoyed their jobs. Finally, Albert, our driver in Kamloops, was so friendly and welcoming as he drove us to our hotel. Nice folks all around, and a great vacation.
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RICHARD CHASE JR
Submitted 23 Sep 2024
Outstanding trip. Great service and exceptional food. Beautiful scenery.
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Phil Cordell
Submitted 21 Sep 2024
The actual Rocky Mountaineer train was awesome, as were our hotels pre and post train travel - the Fairmont Hotels in Vancouver and Banff. I would highly recommend this trip; I can not highly recommend booking the trip through Vacations by Rail. Their overall service, attention to detail, and follow up are absolutely unacceptable. For a total trip cost of over $20,000 you would think they could do better. They dropped the ball multiple times - very disappointing.
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E SNYDER
Submitted 11 Sep 2024
On this excursion there are two days spent on the Rocky Mountaineer train, travelling from Vancouver to Banff with an overnight hotel stay in Kamloops. The staff was excellent, the food and drink were good and plentiful, but space was cramped in the Silver Leaf (go for Gold if possible) passenger cars. A real downside is that the train uses the same tracks as the country's freight trains and there were many lengthy delays along the way while negotiating right-of-ways. This is not mentioned in the literature. On our departure from Vancouver, a fellow passenger asked staff what time we might expect to arrive in Kamloops that evening, and they replied, "we have no idea". That was our first notice. We were on the train for 11 hours the first day and 14 hours the second day, finally arriving at our Banff hotel at 9 PM. The sightseeing tour (Brewster) and buffet lunch on the following day was a GREAT way to wrap up the experience, though. Would have enjoyed more time to explore the Banff area.
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Sue Coller
Submitted 31 Aug 2024
We ran into the railway strike, so one of our two days on the train was converted to a very uncomfortable 8 hour bus ride, with a boxed lunch and a broken restroom on board - which the driver knew about before we started. The company can't be held responsible for the strike, however in contacting the company about compensation, all I get back is crickets.
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EUGENE GLADSTONE
Submitted 13 Jul 2024
Every aspect of the trip met expectations except for one - the scenery. The first 1 1/2 days were mostly wasteland, and only the final few hours delivered the Rocky Mountain experience that I expected.
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