Canadian Rockies and Vancouver Island holiday
Highlights
Vancouver | Victoria | watching Orca Whales | Pacific Rim | Ucluelet | Cathedral Grove | Inside Passage | Bella Coola | Grizzly Bear excursion | Tweedsmuir Provincial Park | Anahim Lake | Mount Robson | Jasper National Park | Icefields Parkway | Banff National Park | CalgaryDescription of Canadian Rockies and Vancouver Island holiday
This Canadian Rockies and Vancouver Island Holiday takes you off the main tourist track to discover the best scenery that the region has to offer, from thick forests to shimmering glaciers to diverse and fascinating wildlife.You’ll spend a day soaking up the sights of cosmopolitan Vancouver before heading off for four days on Vancouver Island, where natural highlights include spotting Orca near Victoria, exploring the beaches and rainforest of Pacific Rim National Park, watching Black Bears near Ucluelet and walking underneath the towering Douglas Firs and Western Red Cedars of Cathedral Grove.
Then there’s a ferry journey down the Inside Passage, one of the world’s richest marine environments, where eagles soar up above and several species of whale inhabit the waters. This epic ferry journey ends in Bella Coola, a small community and one of the best places in British Columbia to spot Grizzlies. In season (mid-August to late-September), it's even possible to join an optional excursion in search of them.
The next few days take in little-known Tweedsmuir Provincial Park, where bears, both Black and Grizzly roam. You’ll also visit Jasper and Banff National Parks, and take a spectacular drive through the Icefields Parkway.
Hello. If you'd like to chat about this holiday or need help finding one we're very happy to help. Rosy & team.
01273 823 700 rosy@responsibletravel.com
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Small group holiday
Small group travel is not large group travel scaled down. It is modelled on independent travel – but with the advantage of a group leader to take care of the itinerary, accommodation and tickets, and dealing with the language. It’s easy to tick off the big sights independently – but finding those one-off experiences, local festivals, travelling markets and secret viewpoints is almost impossible for someone without the insider knowledge gained from years in the field. If you’re heading off on a gap year your, perhaps – but for those with a two-week holiday, a small group tour will save valuable planning time.The leaders are not guides – they’re not there to shepherd you around. Instead, they’ll let you know which local restaurant serves great value food – without running the risk of travellers’ tummy. They’ll allow you to avoid hour-long queues at train stations and attractions.
We like to think of small group travel as the Goldilocks option. It is independent travel without the fuss, worry and bunk beds – and organised travel without the coaches. And it’s cheaper than a tailor made tour. It’s sits somewhere in the middle – and we think it’s just about right.
Have big, life-enriching experiences that would be impossible to organise without lots of time and insider knowledge.
Simplicity
Make the most of your holiday time by letting someone else do the hard work and boring logistics!
Peace of mind
Small group tours take care of the security aspects – and provide a safety net should anything unexpected happen.
If you don’t have three months to spend exploring, small groups trips let you cover more ground in less time. Your days are not spent queuing for tickets or finding hotels – so you can squeeze more into your holiday.
Solo travellers who’d like company
Likeminded travel companions plus peace of mind for those travelling alone. Single supplements are usually available – providing privacy if you want it.
Less confident travellers
Stray from the tourist trail without worrying about getting lost, and meet local people without dealing with the language barrier.
Couples and friends have private rooms, and you can choose to eat alone or not. Single supplements give solo travellers their own room.
“There won’t be any free time”
Free mornings or afternoons let you explore on your own, or just relax.
“The accommodation will be basic”
Trips are as high or low end as you like. Though off the beaten track destinations won’t have luxury hotels, this is all part of the adventure.
“I won’t like the other travellers!”
Tour operators try to create groups with a similar demographic – age, families, activity levels... Chances are, you’ll even make new friends.
“Will we be following an umbrella?”
No.
Story: The first British woman to climb Manaslu, Valerie climbed Everest for her 50th birthday. She’s spent fourteen Christmas Days trekking to Everest Base Camp, and is involved insetting up Responsible Tourism initiatives in the Himalayas.
Story: Roshan has led over 130 trips – he adores showing travellers around Sri Lanka. He won the company Leader Award in 2010, but his career highlight was working on their Tsunami Project – which earned him a responsible tourism award.
Responsible tourism
Responsible tourism: Canadian Rockies and Vancouver Island holiday
UK office
It all starts at home so we have first worked at reducing our carbon footprint in our UK offices. Through energy conservation measures and recycling policies in place, we are proud to be actively reducing the waste produced and our impact on the environment. We support various projects all over the world to try and give something back to the places we visit.
Leaders & local suppliers
We have an excellent long-term relationship with the local operator who employ and train all leaders. We provide refresher training with a focus on Responsible Tourism, so our local leaders can educate our clients locally on helping to preserve the way of life in their area.
When visiting National Parks we stick to marked trails to reduce our impact on the local environment and we pay entrance fees which go towards supporting conservation efforts in the area. Throughout the trip we employ a ‘leave no trace’ policy in regard to litter - everything taken into the park is taken out to preserve the local environment. We recycle wherever possible and all leaders are trained in responsible tourism to enable them to follow best practice and enforce our ‘leave no trace’ policy.
Group size
We operate small group tours that have a low impact on the communities we visit and we always ensure our operations do not disrupt or lead to the displacement of local people. This allows us to stay in unique and characterful accommodation that would not have benefitted from tourism due to their limited size. The maximum group size on this trip is restricted to 12 clients which reduces further the environmental impacts of visiting remote areas.
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