Intinerary
 

Trying to put together a holiday from toronto and niagra falls then fly to Calgary , banff , lake Louise and jasper, but can't decide weather to drive from jasper to vancouver and Victoria or get the rocky mountaineer gold leaf train instead never been to canada before and not sure whether this is the best inteniary, have 14 - 16 days , how long do I stay in each place ? Any help would be gateful, have been quoted £8,000 and I am trying to keep the cost down

What are your interests?

Here is a copy of our plan for the same area. As you will note we are taking the Rocky Mountaineer - purely because we have always wanted to do this - travelling in the silverleaf class. Brantford is so I can have a look at the place where my great-uncle emigrated to from England in the early 1900s. The rest is basically what you are asking about.

Thursday 19
Arrive in Toronto

Thurs 19 / Fri 20
Stay at
Best Western Hotel,
19 Holiday Drive,
Brantford, Ontario N3R 7J4

Sat 21
Burlington Waterfront Hotel
Sun 22
Mon 23
Tues 24

Wed 25 to Calgary
Calgary Sandman Hotel Calgary City Centre,

Thurs 26 to Jasper (Brewsters transport)
Jasper, Tonquin Inn,

Friday 27 Lake Maligne Tour
Look around Jasper

Sat 28 to Banff via Icefields Parkwaywith tour
Banff Hidden Ridge Resort

Sun 29
Discover Banff and its wildlife tour
Lake Louise / Moraine Lake Tour

Mon 30
Nature Walk around Banff

Tues 1
Wed 2

Thurs 3
Rocky Mountaineer Kamloops

Fri 4
Rocky Mountaineer Vancouver
Blue Horizon Hotel,
Sat 5
day trip to Whistler

Sun 6
Mon 7
BC Ferries Vancouver to Victoria, Vancouver Island
Inn at Laurel Point

Tues 8
Floatplane 18:20 pm 19:00 pm Vancouver
Blue Horizon Hotel,
Wed 9 Vancouver

Thurs 10 San Francisco

Hope this helps you. We will not be driving whie in Canada as we come from New Zealand, so we are walking, using public transport, or booking tours for places we want to see.

My interests are walking , animals , nice food and lovely scenery

Given your interests, I would definitely include the Icefields Highway between Jasper and Lake Louise. The scenery is spectaculr, there are numerous short walks along the way, and wildlife viewing is quite good. The biggest mistake I may on my first few trips was trying to "see it all". I have learned that for me it is best to settle in to one or two areas. The region is spectacularly beautiful and to rush through it deprives you of full enjoyment.
There are some exceptional restaurants in the region. I would encourage you to take a look at the trip reports posted here.

http://calgary.ctvnews.ca/
Hope you are aware of extensive floodings in Calgary

First, I would say it's a lot to do in 2 weeks Janet. I don't really think I would recommend it to anyone. You will spend more time moving than IN places.

If you are more interested in the west and only flying to Toronto to see the city and Niagara Falls, I think I would drop them and fly directly to Calgary. The lowest airfares from the UK to Canada are generally on Air Transat by the way.

Regarding driving to Vancouver vs. the Rocky Mountaineer I have to say that most Canadians have no familiarity with the train but those that do would probably tell you (that includes me) that it is not good value for money and you can see/do far more driving the Trans Canada. I'd drive.

I'd like to add a few comments for dottyp here as well.

What is your reason for staying in Burlington for 4 nights? Burlington has little to offer a tourist and particularly one who will not be driving.

Why does being from NZ have anything to do with not driving?

Your one week in Ontario and 2 in BC and Alta isn't too bad but renting a car would probably help you get more out of your time. All those tours in the Banff/Jasper area are fien but you could probably do the same for less money on your own with a car. The roads in that area are not that busy and people used to driving on the 'wrong side' of the road (you) do manage to drive on the 'right side' without any great problem. I never understand why people are reluctant to do so (if that is your issue) whatever side they are used to at home.

The ViaRail Canadian train would be much cheaper than the Rocky Mountaineer. Fly from Toronto to either Winnipeg or Edmonton and take the train west from either to Jasper. Use Brewster in Jasper to see what you want to see. Get back on the Canadian 2 or 3 days later to Vancouver and then rent a car to see Whistler and perhaps Victoria.
The ViaRail Canadian runs 3 days per week from Toronto to Vancouver. Since I only ride in coach I stayed 2 nights in Winnipeg and 3 days in Jasper before continuing to Vancouver.
There are several places to rent a car in Jasper within walking distance of the train station. They don't want their cars dropped off elsewhere. The Brewster counter is in the east half of the ViaRail station in Jasper.
As for a cheap place to stay in the Jasper area, I like the HI hostel about 3 miles out of town near the north end of the Icefield highway.

Improvisor,

Thanks for your suggestions and comments. They are noted.

When I planned this trip nearly a year ago I did a lot of research about where to go, what to see, and transport involved. Wonder what you would have said if we had included Moose Jaw in our itinerary as I originally wanted. All places we are visiting are because of family connections dating back to the early 1900s.

We have a friend living in Burlington we are looking forward to seeing again, and have some great exploration trips planned from there.

The Rocky Mountaineer is expensive, but an experience, which is why people take this trip. I have dreamt of this trip for the past 30+ years, and am looking forward to it.

Does it matter that I stated we are from NZ? We still plan to take tours instead as we do not feel comfortable driving on the opposite side of the road, although we did do some 15 years ago around parts of Uruguay. Part of the reason we take tours is for all the extra local information we get from the guides, making the tour more meaningful to us.

We will continue to follow our tour format of many years as it suits us.

You will definitely get lots of info from the Rocky Mountaineer. We did it in 2001 from Vancouver to Banff--went heli-hiking with Canadian Mountain Holidays which was expensive but SO worth it--then (self-guided)spent a little time in Banff, Lake Louise (we love to hike)--drove the Icefields Parkway--again, don't miss it!!--to Jasper. LOVE IT ALL! Love it so much we did the entire thing all over again (except for the train ride) in 2007. Can't recommend it all highly enough!