Call to book01904 521 936
Tour Search
#Favourites

Highlights of Canada and the Rocky Mountains in Winter

Save
3.9 stars(14 reviews)
Gallery

Embark on an epic journey through the frozen Rocky Mountains of Canada by rail

11 days From £2,595 per person

2024 Tour code: CWW24

About the tour

On this wintry train adventure, we spend time in vibrant Vancouver, visit incredible Lake Louise and travel through the spectacular frosted scenery of the Canadian Rockies.

Unforgettable experiences

Journey through the Rocky Mountains
Journey through the Rocky Mountains
Journey on The Canadian through Canada's Rocky Mountains, waking up to panoramic views of the sunrise over towering mountains, snow-covered trees, and the ground covered in a blanket of snow, as well as amazing wildlife - the perfect winter setting.
Lake Louise
Lake Louise
Stay in Banff, gateway to Banff National Park, and see the natural wonders of Maligne Canyon and frozen Lake Louise.
Stanley Park, Vancouver
Stanley Park, Vancouver
Explore the multicultural city of Vancouver and famous landmarks including Gastown, Chinatown and Stanley Park.

What’s included

Itinerary

Day 1 - London and Vancouver

We fly from London Heathrow to Vancouver, checking into our hotel on arrival for a three-night stay.

Day 2 - Discovering Vancouver

We set out on a sightseeing tour of Vancouver today, making our way firstly to Gastown. Named after 'Gassy' Jack Deighton, a Yorkshire seaman who settled here in 1867, today Gastown is a popular downtown area full of cafés, contemporary fashion shops, galleries and more. Continuing to Chinatown, one of the largest of its kind in North America, we soak up the sights, sounds and smells of the Asian inspired streets and food stalls. Finally, we visit Stanley Park, 400 hectares of wild open space where we see the city's famous and colourful totem poles which celebrate Canada's Native American heritage.

Day 3 - Free time in Vancouver

You're free today to explore Vancouver at your own pace. You could escape the city and take the bus to Grouse Mountain for a ride on the Skyride cable car, which boasts jaw-dropping views across Vancouver's skyline, Pacific Ocean and nearby Gulf Islands. At the top, you can enjoy a range of seasonal activities, including sleigh rides or a snow limo. Perhaps stay closer to the bustle of the city and sample the flavours of Granville Island, which boasts a mouth-watering food market and an array of craft studios.

Day 4 - The Canadian

We transfer to Union Station and board The Canadian for our overnight journey through the majestic Rocky Mountains to Jasper. The Canadian is truly iconic, transporting us in restored stainless steel carriages through incredible landscapes in comfort. During the night, we climb into the foothills of the Rockies, awakening to the sight of glaciers, lakes, plunging canyons, frozen waterfalls and soaring snow-covered peaks illuminated by the sun's first rays of the day.

Day 5 - Jasper

We arrive in Jasper, a quaint mountain town at the edge of the wilderness and located in the heart of the Canadian Rockies. The town is surrounded by tree-covered mountains, and at this time of year, is blanketed in snow. With free time to look around after checking into our hotel for two nights, you could take a walk through the wintry streets, admiring quaint houses and small shops. It isn't unusual to even see a family of elk crossing the road.

Day 6 - Maligne Canyon

The Rockies are transformed by snow and ice in winter and take on a truly magical beauty and today we make a visit to Maligne Canyon, a 164-feet deep gorge of sheer limestone walls that's home to wildlife such as grey wolves, hoary marmot, caribou and moose. During our time here, we take part in an ice walk with a local guide, heading to the canyon floor to explore frozen waterfalls, ice caves and incredible ice formations and learn about mysterious Medicine Lake. We enjoy a picnic lunch as we go, warming up afterwards with a traditional treat of hot chocolate and smores.

Day 7 - Jasper

Today is a free day in Jasper where you're free to enjoy the surroundings and explore at your own pace. This peaceful mountain town is laid-back and low key, with cosy cafés and restaurants to while away some time. For a wonderful winter experience you could warm up at the Miette Hot Springs in the National Park.

Day 8 - Banff

Leaving Jasper and its national park behind, we begin the drive to Banff, travelling along the world-famous Icefields Parkway - a 144-mile road that links Banff with Jasper. Travelling along a lake-lined valley, past many of the highest and most rugged peaks in the Rockies, we pass by the Columbia Icefields and the Athabasca Glacier. Along the way, we stop at Lake Louise, which at this time of year is completely frozen over, to admire the views of soaring peaks covered in verdant pine forests which slope away from the lakeshore.

Day 9 - Tour of Banff

Today's excursion takes us on a tour around the natural wonders of Banff. Exploring with a local guide, we visit Lake Minnewanka, Two Jack Lake, where we're greeted by a stunning backdrop of emerald-green waters and a sweeping panorama of Mount Rundle, the Banff Hoodoos, a cluster of needle-like sedimentary rocks, Surprise Corner, which, as the name suggests, delivers spectacular and surprising views of and Bow Falls. We also take a ride on the Banff Gondola, a cable car that transports us to the summit of Sulphur Mountain to marvel at the wintry scenes laid out beneath us.

Day 10 - Calgary

We transfer to Calgary today, where we board our flight back to London Heathrow.

Day 11 - London

We land in the UK and our holiday draws to a close.

Additional information

Departure times

Provisional departure and return times, where available, can be found together with our dates and prices by clicking on the 'Prices & Availability' button. We write to all booked customers approximately 10 weeks prior to the start of their tour to advise the exact departure and return time for their particular group.

Mobility information

Due to the nature of our tours they are generally unsuitable for those with restricted mobility. If you’d like to discuss any particular holiday with us in this respect, then please don’t hesitate to call us.

Hotels

Elk and Avenue, Banff

Elk and Avenue, Banff

View hotel

Forest Park Hotel

Forest Park Hotel, Jasper

View hotel

Sheraton Wall Centre Hotel, Vancouver

Sheraton Wall Centre Hotel, Vancouver

View hotel

Train

The Canadian Train

Enhance your holiday

Upgrades

Upgrade to a Sleeper Plus cabin on The Canadian train
Upgrade your flight to Premium Economy
London Hotels
UK rail connections

Extend your holiday

Vancouver

Reviews

3.9 stars3.9 / 5 · 14 reviews

  1. 5 stars
    (6)
  2. 4 stars
    (5)
  3. 3 stars
    (0)
  4. 2 stars
    (1)
  5. 1 star
    (2)

Kevin Jones

2 stars

Submitted 22/Mar

Very pretty scenery and well chosen resorts BUT not enough time on trains.Spent more time on coaches and no real food provisions other than very expensive restaurants.

from Great Rail Journeys
Dear Mr Jones, Thank you for taking the time to leave a review. Those are some fantastic photos! I will make sure to pass your feedback across to our product team to see how we can alter this tour for the future to include more trains and provisions. Kind Regards, Sophie.
1 comment

Collected by Trustpilot

J Ratcliffe

5 stars

Submitted 17/Mar

A really well-constructed, well-paced tour, offering fabulous scenery. We were lucky to have cold but sunny weather. The holiday is very fairly priced, but I would be prepared to pay more in order to have a few more meals included.

Collected by Trustpilot

FrancesP

5 stars

Submitted 17/Mar

An absolutely amazing holiday. From start to finish our hopes and expectations were exceeded. All three hotel rooms were spacious, all trips on the itinerary were well thought out, varied and well organised. The scenery was spectacular. Special thanks go to Jacqui our tour manager who was exceptional together with Mary our coach driver for 3 of the days.

Collected by Trustpilot

F Hirsch

5 stars

Submitted 17/Mar

Brilliant tour guide. Lovely group of people. Fabulous locations. Excellent hotels.

Collected by Trustpilot

Sue Cook

4 stars

Submitted 30 Mar 2022

Disappointed with timing and stopping points on train. Things were closing or closed in Winnipeg and Jasper and no time to really get to experience those places. I realise you don't set the timetable but I hadn't realised the stops would basically be in freightyards. Having said that the tour was very enjoyable. A great group and Tim was an excellent tour leader.

Collected by Trustpilot

Anthony Pawson

4 stars

Submitted 29 Mar 2022

Niagara Falls and Vancouver excellent, train journey in between had significant periods of boredom - and no commentary from the train operators

Collected by Trustpilot

Show 6 more reviews

Tailor made for you

Customise this tour with Great Rail Journeys Independent

Related inspiration from our journey blog