Two years ago we drove west from Ontario for 4 weeks with our 15 year old daughter. I second a great deal of the suggestions presented to you. We did it all! We saw the stampede (both the afternoon and evening show) The afternoon show is the rodeo and the evening is more of the singing and dancing along with the chuckwagon races. We got our tickets early and were able to have infield seating for the rodeo. We stayed at the Best Western Calgary where breakfast was included and you could walk to the rodeo. With all the driving we did it was nice to leave the car for a few days. A must see is Drumheller. The Olympic Park on the way out of Calgary was very interesting as well. We did a two hour horseback ride in Kananaskis on the way to staying in Canmore for a few nights. Also heard was expensive in Banff and not too far away. Climb the Agnes Trail at Lake Louise. Your 14 year old will love it! The views are amazing. Take the day and drive slowly from Banff to Jasper. See the Icefields and take the transportation to the glacier. We stayed at a B&B right in Jasper (The Glass House) that is run by the two retired principals from the town. The loft would hold everyone in one room and they also provide breakfast with a brown bag to take your leftovers for lunch (fresh muffins etc) Vancouver can be expensive so we stayed at the University of British Columbia apartments. Less money but a bit out of the downtown area. Forgot to mention that we did whitewater rafting in Jasper (Sunwapta River) where you had six in a raft and had to be minimum of 12 years old. What a thrill! Hope this helps to confuse you more. Have a great trip. We still talk about it and definitely want to go back.

If you decide to not go West, you might be interested in canoeing in the Algolquin Park widerness in central Ontario. This would be a fantastic experience for your two children. There are companies that rent everything from canoes to food. Ask your relatives to investigate if you are interested. Another option is to rent a cottage in Northern Ontario. This would certainly give you a taste of the great outdoors.

Thank you all for your advice. Just to update you , have now booked return flights to Vancouver (cheapest option, and as we're coming in August, thought best to book ahead). I favour travelling for one week, staying somewhere (with canoeing/nature experience opportunities) for one week, amd then taking a week for a scenic return to Vancouver. Have had suggestions from Canadian colleague of coastal or Rockies round trips. Any thoughts?.....

Niagara falls, Tadoussac. Do web search on these. Tadoussac is about 15 hours NE of Toronto along SL River. And a very cool nature place.

Klar, if you're looking for a place in which to spend a week, hibiscushouse's review of Beaverfoot Lodge near Golden, BC may be of interest to you:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34519462

Although the British Columbia coast is wonderful, I think the Rockies would represent a bigger change from your everyday environment. For that reason I would give a higher priority to the Rockies than to the coast.