Heading north? Don’t act like a clueless European who plans to visit LA, NY, Miami and Chicago in the same week-long trip. Canada is massive — roughly the same size as the US, depending on how you want to define things. To make the most of it, you’ll want to tap the experts at top tour companies who will do the daunting grunt work of planning your perfect Canadian adventure for you. They’ll ensure you have the finest experiences moose country has to offer — from hiking in the Canadian Rockies to crab fishing from a helicopter cabin — without the stress of rushing between airports.
Below are some of the best tours and guides in the business.
Starting and ending in Vancouver, this trip for travelers ages 18 to 35 weaves its way through British Columbia and Alberta, including stops in the alpine village of Whistler, the Lillooet Mountain Range, Jasper National Park and the mountain mecca that is Banff. Excursions run the gamut from canoeing along the River of Golden Dreams and oohing and ahhing at trains traveling through the Spiral Tunnels to walking across the Capilano Suspension Bridge in Vancouver and white-water rafting on the Fraser River.
“Jasper gets a lot of attention for its landscapes, but the fireside chat with the Warrior Women is an experience that catches people off guard,” said Julia McPhail, Contiki’s operations director, of the Indigenous ladies who have called this land home for thousands of years. “Hearing their stories firsthand is so inspiring.”
To scope out some of the best landscapes in Banff, visit from mid-September to early October for golden larch season, said McPhail, referring to a type of pine tree that transforms its needles from green to a golden hue during this time.
11 days; from $2,825 per person; departures run June through October.
Arctic in the summer? Oh yah. Marvel as the frozen tundra melts into a landscape of wildflowers and greenery as animals frolic freely. On this trip, globetrotters will get up close — and hopefully not too personal — with Canadian critters, including beluga whale pods as you kayak on the Churchill River and polar bears near the historic Prince of Wales Fort, on guided safaris aboard Polar Rovers.
“Summer in Churchill is simply the most magical time in one of the most amazing places on this planet,” said Eleanor Edye, expedition leader for the tour. “Walking the town streets, you’ll see locals zipping around on their ATVs as they go out to collect berries, go fishing or visit with friends around a bonfire at the town beach, where you can sit and listen to the sound of beluga whales blowing as you roast a marshmallow.”
Seven days; from $9,295 per person; departures on Aug. 12 and Aug. 16.
Denis Vincent, a Whistler-based pilot-guide, recounts a recent outing on this trip as the group crossed over the glacier from Whistler up to Tantalus Ridge to reach the fjord of Princess Louisa Inlet: “Along the way, we spotted a remarkable number of marine mammals. Hovering above Chatterbox Falls, we caught a gorgeous rainbow, then continued to a scenic viewpoint near Mount Albert for lunch at a table sculpted out of snow.”
This kind of magic is par for the course in these parts, where you’ll experience a private expedition by helicopter through some of British Columbia’s most rugged terrain — coastal fjords, glacial mountain ranges and canyon landscapes that no road reaches — starting and ending in Vancouver, with an immediate private transfer to and from the Whistler helicopter base. You’ll travel with a pilot-guide, camp manager and chef as you crab fish directly from the cockpit of the helicopter, stargaze at summit level in a mobile mountain camp and spy orcas, grizzly bears and elk.
Five days; from $15,500 per person; dates available upon request for private groups.
Take it from Heather Warren, Intrepid Travel operations manager and tour leader for Canada: “Skip the assumption that peak summer is best; many leaders love May and September most.”
You may have missed the boat for May, but in September, too, you get fewer crowds, snowy peaks, changing seasons and a much better chance of feeling like you have the Rockies to yourself. During this expedition, you’ll see gin-clear Lake Louise, Moraine, Peyto and Maligne, and walk on the ancient ice of Athabasca Glacier before heading to the top of Sulphur Mountain.
For Warren, the Icefields Parkway is the real star of the trip.
“Travelers often arrive excited for Banff and leave talking about unexpected wildlife sightings, glacier viewpoints and roadside photo stops along this spectacular stretch of road,” she said.
Seven days; from $4,990 per person; departures in August and September.
If you run hot, then let this tour of cooler-weather Vancouver Island be your summer calling. Capped at 12 attendees, this journey takes you up “The Chief” and along Whistler’s High Note Trail. You’ll also gape at 800-year-old trees in Cathedral Grove and meander along the trails in Pacific Rim National Park.
Summer is also prime time for glimpsing orcas and humpbacks, and you might also spot sea otters, eagles, starfish, seals, birds, wolves and bears. (The fifth day of the trip, spent exploring Vancouver Island, in particular, is a wildlife trekker’s utopia.)
Josiane Bureau, director at Windigo Aventure, a partner of Much Better Adventures, loves the region’s gentle terrain and shorter coastal walks.
“Being that close to the water, you can move quietly, and that’s when you have better chances to see wildlife, sometimes incredibly close,” she said of Clayoquot Sound. “It’s a much more intimate way to experience the landscape.”
Ten days; from $3,948 per person; departures run July through September.
What’s not to love about spending nearly two weeks soaking in hot mineral springs, exploring Banff’s streets with a Whyte Museum historian and hiking through Jasper National Park? Plus, that gondola ride up Sulphur Mountain with cinematic Rocky Mountain vistas? Nothing could be better.
It’s all part of G Adventures’ National Geographic Journeys programming. Sightseeing on Vancouver Island and in historic Whistler, as well as standing before the Athabasca Glacier — one of the range’s largest, retreating nearly 5 meters a year — are other capstone experiences in store for you.
G Adventures’ chief experience officer, Harvey Taphorn, recommends that visitors pay homage to English-Canadian mountain man and pioneer Bill Peyto (buried in Banff) during their travels by dining at Bill Peyto’s Café in Lake Louise (a pit stop not on the itinerary).
“‘No room to swing a cat’ is given new meaning with the story of how Bill Peyto used a lynx to clear a pub so he could have a quiet drink to himself!” said Taphorn.
Twelve days; from $4,424 per person; departures throughout August.
Visitors to the greater Victoria area should seek out this Indigenous-owned tour operator offering canoe and walking tours through Victoria’s Inner Harbour. Guided by a Lək̓ʷəŋən host, known today as the Songhees Nation, you’ll walk downtown Victoria or paddle in a traditional canoe as you take in tribal teachings and songs.
The canoe tour lasts two hours and costs $95 for children under 12 and $145 for adults, while the walking tour costs $35 for children under 12 and $55 for adults. Tours operate frequently June through September; check the website for availability.
Melissa Jean Barnhard of the Songhees Nation, traditional name Nawhea’mowha, recommends Thunderbird Park to see an “impressive collection of totem poles and monumental carvings that help tell the stories of First Nations communities on the coast.”
She also directs folks to Beacon Hill Park: “It is home to the iconic Story Pole carved by Master Carver Mungo Martin, beautiful camas meadows that reflect generations of Indigenous stewardship and Mile Zero, the symbolic start of Terry Fox’s Marathon of Hope,” she said.
In Quebec, choose a day trip filled with sea kayaking, seabird watching, whale watching, hydrophone (an underwater microphone used to listen to marine sounds) exploration or a whale photography workshop. All of those are available via a small-boat safari along the St. Lawrence River with De Fleuve St. Lawrence Excursions.
Trips depart from Les Escoumins, near the village of Tadoussac, with July and August giving tourists good odds of seeing humpback, beluga, blue and other whale species. Tours start at around $65 per person and last two-and-a-half to four hours, with tours operating regularly from May to October.
“We speak French, English and we’re trying hard to learn beluga,” said co-owner and captain Simon Beaudry. “Bring a beanie; it’s cold on the water. Thankfully, whales don’t mind the cold.”
Read the full article here