The Independent Travel Reader Offers

Fifteen nights from only £2,759 per person

Selected departures May to September 2012

The Canadian Rockies, coupled with an Alaskan cruise, must surely rank amongst the very finest scenic and wildlife holidays on earth! Combining Canada, the world’s second largest country, with a cruise to Alaska, the largest state in the US, our tour has been designed to showcase the very best that such an enormous area can offer.

The magnificent Rocky Mountains are Canada’s crowning glory: home to bears, majestic elk, moose and beaver with vast forests that seem to go on forever. Opaque lakes, of stunning emerald green and turquoise glassy waters, reflect the magnificent scenery like no other place on earth as they sparkle in the sunlight. Carpets of wild flowers bedeck the green meadows spread beneath the towering glaciers - huge expanses of brilliant white ice and snow, contrasting with the muted greys and pinks of the jagged peaks.

Our seven-night cruise with Holland America Line to Alaska is available as an extension to the tour on almost all departures. The cruise includes two days at sea sailing the calm, sheltered waters of the famed Inside Passage. In Alaska, we visit historic ports of Skagway and Ketchikan, where the prospectors of the 1890’s Klondike gold rush took their first steps towards riches or heartache! We spend a whole day cruising the pristine waters of Glacier Bay, travelling through a landscape that was completely covered by a 20-mile wide glacier just 200 years ago!

Fully escorted price includes:

Return, direct flights from London Gatwick and connections from Manchester
Seven nights excellent hand-picked three-star superior accommodation (medium class in Kamloops, arranged directly by the Rocky Mountaineer)
Explore some of the most spectacular alpine scenery in the world on a stunning two day journey through the majestic Rockies on the incredible Rocky Mountaineer train between Banff and Vancouver
Seven-night Alaska luxury cruise through the ‘Inside Passage’ with Holland America Line, visiting the awe-inspiring World Heritage Site of Glacier Bay National Park (prices shown includes an inside K or J category cabin with daily breakfast, lunch and dinner)
Guided visits to Lake Louise Peyto Lake & the 300-meter thick Athabasca Glacier
Travel on the Icefields Parkway, one of the world’s most scenic highways
Experience optional glacier helicopter flights, bear and whale-watching, fishing, kayaking, hiking and even dog-sledding, amongst the huge selection of shore excursions on our Alaska cruise
Stay, and tour, in Vancouver, a vibrant, sophisticated city overlooking the Pacific Ocean
Two lunches, two breakfasts, selected drinks and staff gratuities on Rocky Mountaineer train
All transfers and porterage of one item of luggage per person
Escorted by an experienced tour manager (excluding cruise portion)
The price of this holiday is per person based on two people sharing a twin room
Single rooms are subject to availability at a supplement of £745 to £908 per person
Cabin category upgrades subject to availability, ranging from just £30 to £1505 per person

Manchester departures

Prices include standard class rail ticket on the day before your flight to Calgary from Manchester, Liverpool, Chester, Stockport, Stoke, Stafford & Crewe to Gatwick Airport and one night at the 4-star Sofitel Gatwick Airport on bed and breakfast basis. Applies to trains arriving in Euston after 16.00 hrs. On your return from Vancouver the flight will return you direct to Manchester Airport, arriving at 09.05 hrs.

Rocky Mountaineer GoldLeaf Service from £539

Upgrade to the double-decker GoldLeaf Dome Coach with its panoramic wrap-round windows that make you feel right in the middle of the breathtaking scenery! Guests also have access to the open-air observation vestibule at the end of each carriage. Impeccable service is complimented with 3-course gourmet dining in the lower-level dining room. GoldLeaf upgrade is not bookable online, please call us on 01283 742300 Mon-Fri 9am-5pm to book this option.

Alaska Cruise

Package ; transfers on return to Vancouver. We have Please note . Cruise itinerary is subject to change depending on weather conditions. Onboard currency is the US dollar. Extras: Subject to change, US$11 per person per day will be added to your onboard account for cruise staff gratuities and a 15% service charge is added to drinks bills.

Visas and Health Matters

Canada - UK & Irish nationals do not require a visa. However, please ensure that your passport is valid for at least six months after the intended return date. There are no current health requirements for Canada.
Alaska, USA - British passport holders do not require a visa under the USA Visa Waiver Programme. Please ensure your passport is machine-readable (i.e. a red passport with two lines of letters, numbers and ‘>>>>’ at the foot of your personal details page) and is valid for at least six months after your departure date from the US.
Please note British passport holders qualifying for the Visa Waiver programme must now apply online for authorisation to enter the USA, for which there is now an administration fee of $14 per person. This may only be submitted online by logging on to: https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov and registering at least 72 hours prior to travel. It is now a requirement that all passengers apply in this way. Without authorisation prior to travel, admission may be denied at a US port of entry. For the latest information, please visit the ESTA website, as detailed. Holders of non-British passports will need to contact the American Embassy in London for details at least three months prior to departure. Details can be found on: http://www.usembassy.org.uk/cons_new/visa/niv/vwp.html.

Whilst the travelling schedule shall pose no problems for people of any age in normal physical health, we would point out that we often enjoy walking tours (sometimes over unmade paths) of the various places of interest. This tour also reaches an altitude of 5,700ft and temperature variations can be unpredictable, especially during spring and autumn. For these reasons this holiday may not be suitable for clients of greatly impaired mobility. Please bear this in mind when considering this holiday.

To make the most of your trip, we recommend you check the Foreign Office website at www.fco.gov.uk/travel or call the Foreign Office Travel Advice Unit on 0845 850 2829.