Canada whale watching cruise off Vancouver Island
| country: | Canada |
| location: | Vancouver Island, British Columbia |
| departures: | 2010: 30 Jul |
| price: | From £2450 (10 days) excluding flights |
| more info: | Price includes 2 nights in Vancouver Airport Hotel, six nights accommodation onboard Island Odyssey, expertise of skipper, cook and naturalist and full use of all onboard facilities. We are able to arrange flights - please enquire |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
the amazing things you'll be doing
This breathtaking trip to Canada will be onboard the custom-built boat, 'Island Odyssey' - a 68ft ketch, with accommodation in cabins. Together, we will discover the beautiful archipelago and wildlife off Northern Vancouver Island which is the home of the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society Adopt a Whale project. It is a very special area and quite possibly the best place in the world to watch orcas. Each summer, members of the 200- strong resident orca population spend time in Johnstone Strait foraging for salmon and socialising with other orca families.
We will get a chance to watch grizzly bears on a day trip to Knight Inlet. These magnificent predators converge in the river lowlands and, at low tide, can be found feeding on seaweed, crabs and shellfish along the inlet beaches.
The entire region is an area of outstanding natural beauty. We will have opportunities to explore the beautiful beaches and virgin forests on foot, visit local villages and the world-class native museum at Alert Bay.
Highlights include:
We will get a chance to watch grizzly bears on a day trip to Knight Inlet. These magnificent predators converge in the river lowlands and, at low tide, can be found feeding on seaweed, crabs and shellfish along the inlet beaches.
The entire region is an area of outstanding natural beauty. We will have opportunities to explore the beautiful beaches and virgin forests on foot, visit local villages and the world-class native museum at Alert Bay.
Highlights include:
- Visit the home of the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society adopted orcas and their family pods. Learn about the research and conservation work.
- Enjoy a day trip to watch the grizzly bears at Knight Inlet.
- Other wildlife we are likely to see includes minke and humpback whales, Pacific white-sided dolphins, Dall’s porpoises, harbour porpoises, Steller sealions, bald eagles, black bears, and otters.
- Travel amongst spectacular island and forest scenery of Johnstone Strait, searching for wildlife onboard our specially chartered boat, ‘Island Odyssey’.
- Visit native Canadian Indian sites and learn about the rich cultural history of these first nation peoples.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | Fly to Vancouver and stay overnight in a hotel. |
| Day 2: | Internal flight to Port Hardy, Vancouver Island. Transfer to Port McNeill to board ‘Island Odyssey’. |
| Day 3-7: | Onboard ‘Island Odyssey’, discovering the wildlife of Johnstone Strait and the surrounding inlets, including a day Grizzly bear watching at Knight Inlet. |
| Day 8: | Travel to Port McNeill for transfer to the airport. Internal flight from Port Hardy to Vancouver. Overnight at hotel in Vancouver. |
| Day 9: | Return flight to London. Depending on your flight time there may be free time to explore Vancouver, one of North America’s most vibrant and cosmopolitan cities, beforehand. |
| Day 10: | Arrivals home. |
how this holiday makes a difference
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By participating in this trip you’ll be making a valuable financial contribution to the vital conservation work of WDCS, the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society.
Environment We travel at low speeds to reduce fuel consumption and use sails and kayaks when appropriate. Our boat is the first small ship in British Columbia and Southeast Alaska to offer carbon neutral trips. Purchasing our offsets each year from companies that use their offset dollars to impact our areas of operation along the coast. Our chefs prepare local and organic foods and purchase all our orders in the local areas. After calculating our carbon footprint this spring as part of Eco-Trust Canada's Carbon Smart process, we are now offering carbon neutral trips! In September 2008, we purchased carbon off-sets for a year of operations. Offsetters is a local company chosen by the 2008 Eco-Tourism and Sustainable Tourism Conference as their choice for the purchase of offsets. They invest their funds in local renewable energy and energy efficiency projects. As we specialize in nature tours in the Pacific Northwest we wanted to invest in local projects making a difference here. We are the first small-ship operator along the BC and Southeast Alaska Coast who is Carbon Neutral. We will continue to be a pioneer in sustainable tourism practices and encourages other ecotour operators to do the same. The company, our crew and our trips all uphold high values about environmental sustainability and work hard each year in reducing our impact. Each year we discuss ways in which we can lower our footprints and implement small changes throughout the season. Community We focus on sustainable tourism practices on all of our adventures. Purchasing our food locally, employing locals, using local guides, suppliers and outfitters in our areas of operation. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |