Great Canadian Rail Journey with Alaska Cruise

Welcome to Toronto!

At 6 pm, meet your Tour Director and travel companions for a welcome drink.

Taking the Plunge

Drive along the shores of Lake Ontario to Niagara Falls. Take a Niagara Falls sightseeing cruise for a thrilling boat ride to view the thundering falls from river level. Return to Toronto for an orientation drive before a special dinner atop the 1,815-foot-tall CN Tower. (B/D)

TOUR HIGHLIGHT - NATURAL WONDERS: The famous natural wonder of Niagara Falls consists of three massive waterfalls - American Falls, Bridal Veil Falls, and Horseshoe Falls - plummeting from the southern end of Niagara Gorge. Spanning the border between Canada's Ontario and America's New York State, the largest of the falls is Horseshoe Falls - also known as the Canadian Falls -which straddles the border of both countries. Take a thrilling sightseeing cruise on the waters below the thunderous cascades of Niagara Falls and feel the mist and magic of this stunning spectacle of nature.

All Aboard in Toronto!

After breakfast, head to Union Station for departure on the Canadian, VIA Rail's premier transcontinental train. (B/L/D)

On VIA Rail, during the day your cabin for two offers armchairs, toilet, and a picture window. By night it transforms into upper and lower beds where guests must be able to climb a ladder to reach the upper bed. If you are a single passenger, your cabin by day features small couch-style seating, toilet and sink, and a large picture window. By night, an economy of space requires the pull-down bed to fill the space (obstructing the furniture and bathroom facilities). Public restrooms are available on each coach. Train travel is subject to unforeseen delays.

TOUR HIGHLIGHT - TRAIN SPOTLIGHT: Spend the next three days and nights on this classic trip across Canada's heartland. Your VIA Rail Sleeper Plus class rail cars are refurbished art-deco cars from the 1950s. Domed observation cars let you enjoy views of the Canadian countryside as you roll past Ontario's beautiful landscapes.

Riding the Rails

Your exciting travel on the VIA Rail train continues through Ontario and Manitoba. (B/L/D)

TOUR HIGHLIGHT - EPIC RIDE: Watch the scenic countryside from your train as you glide past sparkling lakes and sun-dappled forests of Ontario. Try the observation dome for unparalleled views or enjoy quiet conversation in one of the comfortable lounges. Enter Manitoba with its endless golden prairies and vast cultivated fields.

Spectacular Saskatchewan

Continue through the picturesque prairies and winding rivers of Manitoba and Saskatchewan. (B/L/D)

TOUR HIGHLIGHT - SCENIC WONDERS: View the ever-changing landscape with ease and comfort as you meet and mingle with fellow passengers and enjoy freshly prepared meals that showcase Canadian cuisine and regional specialties courtesy of your VIA Rail first-class train service.

Rocky Mountain Trails

Travel from Saskatchewan to Jasper. Admire the scenery as your train roughly parallels the famed Yellowhead Route, Canada's historic trail of westward expansion. Arrive in Jasper for an orientation drive and free time this evening. (B)

FREE TIME TIPS - EXPLORE MORE: in Jasper with free time to taste the traditions of Alberta's gorgeous town nestled in the Canadian Rockies. Take your pick of an abundance of local eateries serving everything from Mediterranean cuisine to wood-fired pizza to good old-fashioned comfort food like smokehouse brisket, mac-and-cheese, venison sausage, bison short ribs, and baked beans, of course! Your Tour Director can recommend the best spots to satisfy your adventurous appetite and your GlobusGO mobile app has maps and tips for a terrific night under the Dark Sky stars.

Untamed Beauty

Travel through Jasper's unspoiled beauty to glacial Maligne Canyon to stunning Maligne Lake for lunch and a narrated scenic cruise to Spirit Island. Return to Jasper where the balance of the day is at leisure to explore Jasper on your own. (B/L)

TOUR HIGHLIGHT - NATURAL WONDERS: Spanning nearly 4,250 square miles of spectacular natural beauty, Jasper is the largest national park in the Canadian Rockies. Its vast wilderness, majestic peaks, abundant wildlife, and breathtaking panoramic sights lie below an incredible Dark Sky to thrill stargazers as well. A cruise to Spirit Island on the turquoise waters of Maligne Lake is a spectacular sight to behold as one of the most photographed locations in the world for its jaw-dropping beauty.

Moving Mountains and Lifting Hearts

Head south through Jasper National Park on Icefields Parkway to the Columbia Icefield for a thrilling Ice Explorer ride on Athabasca Glacier with a Glaciologist guide. Climb Sunwapta Pass to savour stunning vistas of alpine meadows, waterfalls, and massive glaciers. Next, stop at Lake Louise, whose green-blue waters form a perfect mirror reflection of Mount Victoria. Continue into Banff. (B/D)

TOUR HIGHLIGHT - EPIC RIDE: Be moved by an expedition across the Athabasca Glacier. Traverse this massive ice field aboard the all-terrain Columbia Ice Explorer and walk on the surface where the Earth's geology is changing beneath your feet. Feel the force of nature's strength on an ancient glacier that still carves the face of the Rocky Mountains today.

Breathtaking Banff

Guided sightseeing includes Bow River and Falls. The balance of the day is at leisure. Consider an optional flightseeing trip for a bird's-eye view of the Rockies. (B)

TOUR HIGHLIGHT - PICTURE PERFECT: Get ready for a spectacular adventure to explore the beauty of Rocky Mountain peaks, turquoise glacial lakes in Banff National Park - Canada's first national park. This awe-inspiring natural wonder, where soaring peaks and sapphire lakes meet the heavens for a breathtaking experience like no other on Earth!

Heavenly Heights

This morning, travel through the spectacular beauty of Yoho National Park, one of Canada's most popular recreational areas and site of pre-Cambrian fossil finds. On to Canada's Glacier National Park, where the motorcoach climbs 4,379-foot-high Rogers Pass, a perfect spot for photos of the surrounding mountain cliffs and glaciers. Continue to your riverside resort. Tonight, enjoy a riverside BBQ with S'mores. (B/D)

LOCAL FAVOURITE - ACCOMMODATION SPOTLIGHT: Put your feet up in historic elegance in this beautifully rugged setting at the South Thompson Inn in Kamloops. Once home to a thoroughbred-racing stable, the 55-acre riverfront property retains its original Manor and Carriage Houses, renovated into first-class luxury lodging.

British Columbia Treasures

Continue west and catch a BC Ferry to Vancouver Island. An orientation tour of Victoria includes the gardens of Beacon Hill Park, the Fairmont Empress Hotel, Bastion Square, and Thunderbird Park. Free time this evening-enjoy dinner on your own at one of the many restaurants in this harbour city. (B)

TOUR HIGHLIGHT - EPIC RIDE: Cruise on the BC Ferry from Vancouver to Victoria for its 90-minute cruise across the water, keep a watchful eye on this bracing crossing to spy sea birds, seals, dolphins, or maybe even a humpback whale or a pod of Orcas. Arrive in the very British city of Victoria on Vancouver Island - also known as the Garden City for its amazing array of blooming flowers. Wander the quaint downtown core with its British colonial architecture to shop and admire its heritage buildings and stunning gardens, then relax over proper British afternoon tea.

The Grandest of Gardens

The morning and afternoon is at leisure for independent sightseeing and shopping. For shoppers, Government Street's elegant shops and Market Square's collection of specialty stores are good places to start. History buffs should be sure to visit the Royal British Columbia Museum. Later, visit Butchart Gardens, followed by a special farewell dinner in the original, now restored, greenhouse. (B/D)

LOCAL FAVOURITE - PICTURE PERFECT: Butchart Gardens, named for the woman who founded this botanical oasis of blooming shades and horticultural design, is a National Historic site for its legacy and lush treasure of millions of flowering beds and over 900 varieties of plants in exquisitely landscaped gardens bring fairytales to life.

Alaskan Adventure Awaits!

Travel on a scenic BC Ferry crossing through the Gulf Islands to Vancouver where you will begin your 7-Night Alaska's Inside Passage cruise. (B/D)

TOUR HIGHLIGHT - NATURAL WONDERS: You're in for one wild and wonderful week on a roundtrip cruise on the incredible Inside Passage through the spectacular ports of Alaska. Cruise from Vancouver to discover spellbinding scenery from narrow fjords to scattered islets and towering peaks. Get close to massive glaciers in Glacier Bay National Park and wait breathlessly for ice to calve off and plunge into the ocean. Inside Passage waters are as smooth as it gets, while on shore you'll find endless thrills and chills.

Glacial Fjords & Grand Forests

Alaska's Inside Passage is a protected network of waterways that wind through glacier-cut fjords and lush temperate rain forests along the rugged coast of Southeast Alaska. Arguably one of the greatest cruising routes in the world, the Inside Passage stretches through stunning landscapes, from Misty Fjords National Monument to famed Glacier Bay National Park & Preserve. (B/L/D)

TOUR HIGHLIGHT - WILD BY NATURE: Sailing the Inside Passage offers opportunities to spot some of Alaska's most iconic wildlife, with humpback whales and orcas plying the bountiful waters alongside the ships, bald eagles soaring overhead and brown bears lumbering on the shoreline.

Coastal Cliffs & The Catch of the Day

Steep cliffs and glacier-covered mountains flank the Tracy Arm fjord, fringed by the largest intact coastal temperate rain forest in the United States. Old-growth trees colonised Tracy Arm's mouth long ago as the Ice Age retreated. Continue cruising to Juneau, Alaska and visit the most remote, most beautiful, and strangest state capital in the United States. Surrounded by water, forest and mountain sights, visitors seeking things to do in Juneau indoors and outdoors can hike a glacier, eat fresh-caught fish on a seaside patio and tour a grand capitol building all in one day. (B/L/D)

TOUR HIGHLIGHT - INTO THE WILDERNESS: Even more glorious than nearby Glacier Bay, Tracy Arm is part of the 5.7 million acres (or around 23,000 square kilometres) of pure wilderness sheltered by the Tongass National Forest (America's biggest). Visitors often see bears, whales and mountain goats roaming across various corners of this pristine area - not to mention chubby baby seals resting on the ice floes. Summer temperatures average 35 to 60 degrees Fahrenheit (0 to 16 degrees Celsius), so pack warm clothing. Pack your waterproof gear, when travelling by cruise ship, in preparation for the more than 1.5 metres of rainfall each year!

The Rush for Gold

At the height of the Klondike Gold Rush, the port town of Skagway served as the primary gateway to the legendary gold fields, and quickly grew into Alaska's largest settlement. It was then a raucous frontier hub packed with trading posts, saloons, and guesthouses. As the gold rush faded into the 1900s, so did Skagway - but today it has been reinvigorated as a gateway for a new kind of visitor: those looking to explore Alaska's colourful history, pristine wildlife, and unrivalled natural beauty. (B/L/D)

TOUR HIGHLIGHT - LEGENDS & LORE: At every turn, you'll find yourself immersed in gold rush lore in the town of Skagway, from the infamous Red Onion Saloon that still keeps a pistol that Wyatt Earp left behind on his way to the Klondike, to the narrow-gauge White Pass & Yukon Route Railroad, traversing rugged mountains, waterfalls, and towering glaciers on its course to Whitehorse deep in the Yukon.

Making a Splash

On your cruise to Glacier Bay (A UNESCO World Heritage Site), close your eyes and take in the sounds - the creaks and groans of 'living' ice, the shrill cries of gulls and soaring eagles, the splash of a breaching humpback whale. Frosted peaks towering over mossy forests, wide tidewater glaciers (there are seven in the park), and marine wildlife are givens on Glacier Bay cruises, but every experience in this changing biosphere is unique. (B/L/D)

TOUR HIGHLIGHT - WILD DISCOVERIES: Cruise to Glacier Bay where the sounds of creaking groans of living ice in constant flux, the shrill calls of gulls and soaring eagles, and the splash of breaching humpback whales are likely to greet you. Frosted peaks towering over mossy forests, wide tidewater glaciers (there are seven in the park), and marine wildlife are main attractions, but every discovery in this dynamic biosphere is unique.

With the serene majesty of snow-flecked and forested mountains defining its shores, Glacier Bay National Park offers some of the most dramatic scenery in the world. Keep your binoculars and camera at the ready as you cruise Glacier Bay to the mile-wide Margerie Glacier for the chance to witness ice calving. Wildlife abounds in Glacier Bay, so stay ready - you never know when you will see the fluke of a humpback rise out of the water or spot a lone brown bear patrolling a windswept beach.

Alaska's First City

Take an adventure and cruise to Ketchikan, Alaska. Alaska's "First City" of Ketchikan is so named because it's the first major landfall for most cruisers as they enter the picturesque fjords of the Inside Passage, where the town clings to the banks of the Tongass Narrows, flanked by green forests nurtured by abundant rain. (B/L/D)

TOUR HIGHLIGHT - HISTORY & TRADITION: Ketchikan has long been an important hub of the salmon-fishing and -packing industries. Visitors can savour the fresh seafood at one of the local restaurants on a cruise to Ketchikan excursion. Ketchikan is also one of the best spots along the Inside Passage to explore the rich cultural sights of Native Alaskan nations like the Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian. You can see intricately carved totem poles at the Totem Heritage Centre and Totem Bight State Park, while the attractions of Saxman Village just outside of Ketchikan offers the chance to see Tlingit culture in action, with working carvers and a dance show in the clan house.

Where the Wild Things Are

Scenic cruising through the Inside Passage offers outstanding opportunities to spot some of Alaska's most iconic wildlife. (B/L/D)

TOUR HIGHLIGHT - ALASKAN ADVENTURE: Sailing the Inside Passage offers opportunities to spot some of Alaska's most iconic wildlife, with humpback whales and orcas plying the bountiful waters alongside the ships, bald eagles soaring overhead and brown bears lumbering on the shoreline. One of the greatest cruising routes in the world, the Inside Passage stretches through stunning landscapes, from Misty Fjords National Monument to famed Glacier Bay National Park & Preserve.

British Columbia Treasures

Disembark your ship for a guided sightseeing tour of Vancouver. See the waterfront, Chinatown, and Stanley Park with its old-growth evergreen forests and totem poles. Free time this evening to explore this vibrant city on your own. (B)

TOUR HIGHLIGHT - CITY SIGHTS: Created in 1888, Stanley Park is considered the 'crown jewel' of Vancouver. The oldest park in the city of Vancouver, the dramatically beautiful and panoramic setting of Stanley Park spans more than 1000+ acres right next to downtown Vancouver. Here, Native culture is preserved with a striking collection of First Nations Totem Poles, carved from western red cedar and each carving tells of a real or mythical event with each carving bearing significant meanings - the eagle representing the kingdom of air; the whale as the lord of the sea; and the wolf as the genius of the land - to name a few.

Safe travels until we meet again!

Your holiday ends with breakfast this morning.