Western Canada vacation, rail and Rockies

Planet

Any activities undertaken are strictly controlled within the park or region that they take place. ie. hikes and mountain bikes stick to trails so that they don’t disturb the naturally environment that they go through. In this itinerary, Banff National Park features prominently, and the park has strict rules to ensure that future generations get to explore too. Other examples in this itinerary include hiking the Bow River Falls & Hoodoos Trail - both request guests keep to the trail, whatever method of transport you use.

Any motorised boat trips stay away from environmentally sensitive areas, and we encourage families to enjoy kayaking and stand-up paddle where possible, which are less harmful to the environment, but allow them to enjoy the fabulous landscape without noise. In particular, this is very much the case at Vermillion Lakes – a great place for wildlife spotting and on Lake Louise,

With our self-drive trips, we always suggest routings and attraction and accommodation ideas that are off the beaten track. This means clients avoid main roads and heavy traffic – and it encourages visitation to less well-known places, away from the crowds, where the tourism dollar is more needed and appreciated.

Wherever possible, we also actively support attractions, accommodation and service providers accommodations that have their own environmental policies in place and encourage our clients to ensure their own environmental footprint is minimised wherever possible.

People

We have taken time to work with our Canadian partners to ensure our clients are encouraged to use accommodation and support products that are authentic and support local businesses and communities. Our partners are Canadian based and comply with all relevant laws that protect the rights of their employees.

Prior to departure, we let our clients know about local customs, specially relating to indigenous communities and their traditions. We also recommend using services like the Metis Guide: where you can see wildlife through the eyes of an Indigenous Guide and hear stories about how nature runs in the blood of the people who have lived here since the 19th century.

Wherever possible, we use locally owned accommodation that supports the communities in the area and provides employment to the local population. We also try to ensure that local produce is used and we suggest restaurants that are unique and used locally sourced ingredients. In Tofino on Vancouver Island, there are a huge number of options to chose from and in the capital, Victoria we suggest enjoying food tastings of craft beer, chocolate, tea, tapas, cheese, bread, olive oil and other local products. This will enable you to visit small businesses that are normally only frequented by locals.

In order to promote the overall health of their workforce, one of our first nation accommodation providers has also established the Employee Wellness Programme, which aims to address the holistic health needs of not only their staff, but also of the communities that surround their lodge. In essence, the programme is devoted to reducing the incidence of accident and illness in the workplace, promoting healthy lifestyles, maximizing potential and promoting optimum quality of life.