Planning an affordable trip to (West) Canada?

coota1268 on 12/04/2017 - 09:04

Hey all. I’m looking at going to the West-Side of Canada in June/July for 10 days. So far I’m looking at doing the following things:

Vancouver (4 Days):
Ice hockey
Day Trip to Vancouver Island
Grouse Mountain / Capillano Suspension Bridge
Stanley Park
Day Trip to Whistler

Rockies (2/3 Days)
Unsure if I should do Train, Bus or Car?.

Jasper/Banff (1 Day at Each)
Cable Cars
Lake Cruise?
Hot Springs
View beautiful scenery

Note: I’m not interested in Skiing.

Questions:
* Anything else major in Vancouver I should consider doing/seeing?
* How can I have an affordable Rockies Experience without breaking the bank? I don’t really want to spend $5K on a 2 day train ride, but still want to experience the Rockies and their beauty.
* Any recommendations on a “Canadian River Cruise” to do? Or would a trip to Vancouver island be enough?

Thanks

Travel

Comments

  • Wampus on 12/04/2017 - 09:29

    If you're confident of driving a car in Canada, definitely do that, it's the most affordable way to do Canada. I really liked Calgary as well, if you drive across the Rockies, check it out. I saw an ice hockey game and actually really enjoyed it.

    There's also an aquarium in Vancouver where they have beluga whales, I really liked that but understand if you don't want to see a whale in captivity.

  • [Deactivated] on 12/04/2017 - 10:28
    +1

    Vancouver and affordable don't belong in the same sentence.

  • meiztom on 12/04/2017 - 11:27

    Add Wreck Beach & Deep Cove to Vancouver. Add The Chief to Whistler day trip (halfway up).

  • iamw0man on 12/04/2017 - 11:30

    Pretty sure this promo is still going even though the post says it's expired.
    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/281321

  • try2bhelpful on 12/04/2017 - 11:52

    Look at doing the Hop On/Hop off Vancouver
    https://westcoastsightseeing.com/hop-on-hop-off/sightseeing-…

    The walk through Stanley park was really nice and they drop you at the top and you can walk down and pick it up at the bottom.

    The cable car out of Banff is really good and it is worth looking at the buffet for the Banff Fairmont, it was pretty good value from memory.

    Personally I would do the trip in Autumn to see the leaves change and get best view of the lakes - I think you are going to be very cold during June/July and you won't be able to stay outside for very long. We went in Spring and it was lovely, and roughly 6C at Lake Louise.

  • macca9123 on 12/04/2017 - 14:30
    +1

    Having lived in Calgary for a year and spent considerable time in the mountains, I personally liked the May/June timeframe best. It tended to be less busy tourist-wise and there was plenty of snow on the peaks making it amazingly beautiful. The only downside is that some roads and some attractions may still be closed if there was considerable snow during winter.

    As Wampus said, hire a car for the drive through the Rockies. Allow a whole day driving the Icefields Parkway between Jasper and Banff as there are so many times you'll want to stop and take photos of the incredible scenery (and of course take the obligatory bus out to the Athabasca Glacier). You could then easily spend another day driving around Lake Louise / Morraine Lake / Emerald Lake alone. Morraine Lake was my favourite, but Emerald Lake is special to me because we honeymooned there over Christmas one year.

    It's also a long drive from Vancouver to the Rockies (800km to Jasper). You need to allow enough time for that, probably overnighting in Kamloops.

    You didn't say where you were flying into and out of, but if you were heading towards Calgary from Banff then I would also allow a day to detour and explore Kananaskis Country if the road is open. You'll be mountained out after all that.

    Depending on what your priorities are for what you are interested in, you're not going to see too much on Vancouver Island in a day, except perhaps the Butchart Gardens or cruise around Victoria. Both are nice, but I would personally rather have another day in the Rockies instead.

    For 10 days I would do something like this:

    Vancouver
    * Arrive, explore downtown (1 day)
    * Stanley Park, Downtown & Ice hockey game (1 day)
    * Grouse Mountain / Capilano Suspension Bridge (1 day)

    Drive to Whistler and explore locally. (1 day)

    Drive to Kamloops and stay overnight. (1 day)
    Drive to Jasper, explore locally and stay overnight. (1 day)

    Drive the Icefields Parkway to Banff (1 day)
    Explore Lake Louise / Morraine Lake / Emerald Lake (1 day)
    Explore Banff and surrounds (1 day)

    Drive to Calgary via Kananaskis Country and depart (1 day).

    That's a pretty full-on schedule though and a one-way hire car won't be cheap.

    • tunzafun001 on 19/05/2019 - 08:12

      This itinerary is pretty much spot on, except:

      Vancouver half day, then straight to Whistler . Forget the bridge, It's $55 per person…meh!

      Spend an extra day in Whistler. Ski 1.5 days in Spring.

      Drive to Mount Robinson just before Jasper. Awesome scenery to bunk down into for the night.

      Check out Jasper, then stay at the Columbian Glacier, or Water Fowl lake (just outside Lake Louise).

      Finish Ice field pathway, Lake Louise and go to Banff. Both are a little over rated. The drive and little stops along the Ice Field Pathway are better.

      Do a day in Banff (Hot Springs and Cave is $11 when paired together)

      Drive to Calgary…where I currently am at right now working out what to do!

      *Note :

      We hired a one way RV, and paid $0 for accom, except for park entry at $10 pp/ per day. And around $350 in fuel for 1400km!

      So slept wherever we wanted (need to be a bit clever).

      In Spring the sun sets around 9:30 - 10:00pm..heaps of time!

      Believe it or not, the hardest thing to find in an RV is water.in Canada!! You wont find a tap in a petrol station… easily..for example in Banff, look for the Scout Hall next to the Petro Canada station, or at the back in the staff park in the Husky station. Also, look on the back of visitor centres. If not, an RV park is around $30 - $60 per night.

      Poo dump spots are Mon-Fri. So ideally, find one on the outskirts of town in the morning on a weekend!
      .

      • macca9123 on 19/05/2019 - 20:02

        Glad it's working out!

        If you've got time in Calgary, it's worth a drive out to the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Paleontology in Drumhellar (if you're interested in the natural sciences). It is arguable the best dinosaur museum in the world, situated on what used to be the edge of a vast inland sea. It's a real hotpot of buried dinosaurs that they are continuously digging up. Totally different scenery, but it's a whole day to go there, explore and come back.

  • ascotno1 on 12/04/2017 - 17:54

    Im going to Vancouver in October and have booked a trip through the Rockies with VIA Rail Canada which was a lot cheaper than the Mountaineer.
    http://www.viarail.ca/en/fares-and-packages/our-lowest-fares…

  • LyndonBBear on 14/04/2017 - 16:16

    TripADeal does discount trips to Canada and the Rockies. It is a group guided tour but we really enjoyed our trip, plus a cruise through Alaska.

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