Trip to west-Canada with family; all help appreciated

[Jochen]

Hey all,

We still need to leave for South Africa this year, but as always, we're already thinking about next year. 2011 will be a bit special, as both my parents and my wife's parents have said that they would like to join us on one of our "long distance holidays" (anything out of EU is "very exotic to them ...it's a generation-thing I guess). I can understand they want to join, as they're all celebrating that big event in their lives called "retirement" .

Now, since we know our parents all speak a lot about Canada, we decided that's the place we're gonna go!

The problem is: Canada is so big, I am overwhelmed with the possibilities. I've been reading a lot of travelogues, and they all seemed fun itineraries. They mention so many fun places! I cannot choose! Aargh!

Hopefully you guys can help me out a bit.

So what are we looking for?

- we're all nature lovers so we're gonna stick to west-Canada.
- we have 3 weeks max to be there
- we'd like to see deer, elk, eagles, black bears and grizzlies. But if possible some sea-wildlife too (whales, seals, ...)
- no RV's please. Me & my wife wouldn't mind, but our old folks want comfortable beds etc. So we're looking to rent a 6-seater ("monovolume") and stay at B&B hotels.
- Our parents cannot take hikes for long periods, so we're looking for places were we can do trails of 1 to 2 hours max (one before noon, one in the afternoon, for example).
- no skiing, no fishing.
- we'd like to spend as little time as possible in the car (except perhaps for the really really scenic route that justifies a long drive). So drives in between hotels should remain under 300km/day if possible.

That's what we know. This s what we don't know:

- when to go? We want to stay out of the summer months (July, August), as then it's too busy and prices are higher. So I guess it'll be either June or September. But which of the two is the best (weather-wise, crowd-wise and wildlife-wise)?
- we'd like to do some activities other than hikes too, to break up the tempo and to let our parents recuperate a bit. And to have a diverse program. But what? A boat trip would be one thing, but then no kayak (my dad can't swim, and can actually drown in water ankle-deep - seriously I've seen him almost do it, lol).
- Where should we go? What should we definitely see? I guess Bannf & Jasper are a given. And Vancouver island, for the seaside. But other than that?

Can anyone offer help on the above, or even have fun in drafting out a little itinerary for us? You have my eternal gratitude!

J.
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[Red Tape]

Jochen: you won't regret selecting Western Canada for your holidays. It sounds like if you can arrange air transportation into Calgary and out of Vancouver you could pack more into your holiday. However, if you can't you should be able to get a one-way between the two cities to make your return flight home.

I'm sending a link to a friend in Calgary who knows both Alberta and BC quite well.

Between Calgary and Vancouver you can travel through the Okanagan Valley and sample some Canadian wineries (yes! they make wine everywhere these days, it seems).
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[YYCWoman]

Thanks for the heads up, Red Tape:

Jochen, your road trip sounds ambitious but quite doable --

I offer a couple suggestions -

- include Kananaskis Country for some of the rugged mountain country, you can make a loop from Calgary to Kananaskis, then onward to Banff - the decision to head north to Jasper or west to Radium will be yours - but you wouldn't want to leave the north route over the Columbia Parkway too late in the year (October would be the latest). The road west will bring you into the Kootenays and some of the hot springs & mountain lakes and the odd winery (personally, this area has some of the best microbreweries that even a not-normally-a-beer drinker can appreciate).

- if Calgary is your starting point, I have to encourage you to consider going 90 minutes EAST for a day to the Drumheller area and a stop into the Royal Tyrell Museum ~ it is world renowned and the area is stunning for scenery. ( http://www.tyrrellmuseum.com/ )

- consider onward from Calgary to Whitehorse, Yukon (Of course, I'd promote that - I grew up there) Air North has several flights a week from Calgary and you can OW from YYC to YXY, and then YXY-YVR (www.flyairnorth.com). Whitehorse is a small city with all the amenities and a week in the Yukon would go quickly, but a trip over the historic White Pass to Skagway, Alaska and a day or two north to Kluane National Park would give you much opportunity for wildlife spotting (add mountain goats and sheep to your list! ) and rugged scenery.

- time of year? you miss the crowds but also some of the best local celebrations in July & August.... I invite any and all to Calgary during our world famous Calgary Stampede in July. It is Calgary at it's best and a great celebration to western heritage. If you insist, I would vote for June, when the days are getting longer and warmer.... you can't go wrong with September, but prepare for service hours being reduced and seasonal business to offer less (tours, etc).

- Vancouver Island is a great desitination and you would be remiss to not include the west coast of the island (Tofino, Ucuelet, Port Alberni) and some salmon fishing while there.

- the country is big, but I think you've got the right idea to concentrate on one part for 3 weeks. Enjoy, and feel free to ask for assistance or further comments.
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[stellameltin]

hello Jochen,

Do not worry abount the place that you have chosen for your holiday trip with family. As canada is a wast country and it is famous with its real nature beauty and perfect whether I have surety it will be the best place for your trip. There are so many places like Prince Edward Island, Ottawa, Kelowna, Churchill, Vancouver in top list and will give you enough satisfaction by your trip. More over you can contact some high quality rental car companies like entireprise, avis, taril canada to give a perfect map to your trip.
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[Jochen]

Hey guys 'n girl!

Thanks a lot for all the tips. I'm going to look at these right away.

@RT; you are the 2nd person to advise me to fly to Calgary first, and start my trip there. But in the meantime, I also got some other tips which made me draft out this itinerary:

- Start in Vancouver, stay a night (B&B), rent a dodge minivan for 6 ppl
- Drive to Clearwater (Wells Grey NP). 2 days to get there. B&B & small activities along the way.
- One full day in Clearwater. So B&B 2 nights
- Drive on to Jasper. Stay 3 nights in B&B & do all sorts of things in the neighbourhood
- Do the Icefields parkway
- 3 nights B&B in Bannf. See the sights, do some hikes, etc.
- Drive to Yoho NP. 1 night B&B
- Drive to Glacier NP, 1 night
- Drive back via Kamloops & Hope, 2 days to get to Vancouver, B&B along the way.
- 3 more nights in Knight Inlet lodge for some more up-close bear watching & orca watching.
- Fly home

Total: 16 nights

Do you think that is doable or too much driving? To be honest I can squeeze in 2 more nights if needed. It's not that we're in a hurry or on a tight budget or something.

Thanks again,

J.
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[briggl]

It looks like a pretty good itinerary to me.
The longer drives you have broken up into two days so that works fine.
The longest drive you have left is about 4 hours and that wouldn't bother me any.
It looks like you've put some time into coming up with this itinerary.
Should be a good trip.

(By the way, the town (and park) is Banff, not Bannf.)
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[Red Tape]

YYC woman would be in a better position to judge...as i've not done the drive between Vancouver and Banff. If as briggl says, no drive is longer than 4 hours, it should be pretty doable.

It looks as if you're purposefully avoiding cities, but I do recommend popping into Vancovuer proper...on a clear day coming in from the airport, the first glimpses of the city are spectacular (and from Queen Elizabeth Gardens as well).
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[briggl]

I took a look at the website for the Knight Inlet lodge and it looks pretty interesting.
The only problem is they don't provide pricing on the website. You have to send an "inquiry" and then they will provide pricing. I'd like to know how much they charge, but I'm not ready to send them an inquiry.
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[Jochen]

Hey guys,

@Briggl: BaNNf was a typo

@RT: yes we do avoid cities. But by now I squeezed in not one but 2 nights in Vancouver to start with. Perhaps another one at the of the trip.

The problem now is: looking for fun things to do that are NOT hikes (to spare the old folks' legs a bit). Extra problem is that we don't want kayak-type boat trips either, nor anything that interferes with wildlife (like fishing).

I found some cable ways. Always fun. And two trips to glaciers. One in a specially adapted bus, one in a hummer. So that's all cool. I've been thinking about adding museums, but they've got to be really REALLY interesting cuz it looks stupid to me to get indoors while all the beauty is outside. Some other things I haven't found yet: any beautiful caves? Any wildlife (-rehab) centers? Etc...

B.regs,

J.
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[merry558]

Canada is the best place for trip it is a vast country .There are many places to visit and you get satisfied from your trio for canada.Canada is the best trip spot

[briggl]

merry558, even if you showed your true location, this would be a useless post. So you are banned according to the zero tolerance policy
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