Take the Rocky Road

I am feeling very Privileged right now.

Anyone who knows me will now know I have been given the great privilege of an educational visit on the Rocky Mountaineer with this wonderful company I work for. When I found out I was on Cloud Nine as this is probably top of my bucket list of things do.

I will be travelling in October and as well as experiencing the Rocky Mountaineer Train itself I will be visiting Banff, Jasper and Lake Louise on one of the Rocky Mountaineer Tours.

Funnily enough just before I found out about the trip I had just done a training session with Rocky Mountaineer so I thought I would give you a few insights.

Rocky Mountaineer as a company was formed fairly recently as companies go in 1990 in British Columbia and is a family owned business.  Despite its growth to become the largest privately-owned luxury tourist train company in the world, welcoming nearly 2 million guests onboard it is still Family owned and run. Their Goal and secret to their success is quite simply to provide the most spectacular and unforgettable travel experiences in the world.

One of the main questions I get asked is when is the best time to travel on the Rocky Mountaineer and this depends really on what you want out of the trip.

The Season runs from April to October.

If you travel in the Spring April-June you are more likely to see more wildlife as this is when many animals are coming out of hibernation. Temperatures are cooler especially at the start of the season and if you want to combine the trip with an Alaskan Cruise these usually Start in May.

July to August is the Summer season but don’t be fooled into thinking Canada has a relatively temperate climate as some parts of the Region can hit temperatures of 45 degrees in the summer so you may want to take this into account when selecting your dates. However, having said that these months offer lush green vegetation and floral displays and are a lovely time to see the Rockies in full bloom.

September to October is fall and this is when you can see the Autumnal colours but don’t go expecting it to be like New England in the fall as many of the trees in this region are evergreen so don’t change colour.

2017 is a special year as Canada is celebrating its 150th Anniversary as a Country, relatively new as Countries go.

The Train itself travels for approximately 10 Hours a day at 30 Miles per hour. You do not sleep on the Train. You get off and a Hotel is provided at the midway stop.

It has 3 levels of Service to choose from.

Silver Leaf – This is a single level Carriage with a domed roof. The start of the dome has glass to be able to see more but the top is covered.  You will have Breakfast and Lunch on the Train courtesy of Rocky Mountaineer and this will be served sat at your seat. As well as this there is unlimited drinks and snacks served by the attentive staff throughout the journey. Evening meal is not provided at the hotel but you can add this on or eat out, although many find after all the food and snacks on-board they don’t want anything else on arrival.

Gold Leaf – Is a 2 level Carriage with a fully glass Domed Roof affording the most amazing views. You sit on the top level to make the most of the view obviously and downstairs is a dining carriage where you will go to enjoy your two meals, Breakfast and Lunch. The food in the dining car is provided by Michelin trained chefs and really is fine dining at its best.   Gold Leaf also has an outside vestibule where you enjoy some fresh mountain air and get amazing pictures without the glass in between you and the scenery.

Deluxe Gold – This is basically the same as the Gold in terms of the seats and service on the Train but you get upgraded Hotels on the Tours.

Your luggage travels by road so you only need a small bag on the train with you. Your case meets you at the Hotel in between at Kamloops.

Guests should be aware that Kamloops is used as it is a perfect mid-point on the journey however the hotels here are moderate in standard so do not expect 5* luxury no matter what grade you have booked on your tour.

You can add various Tours to the Train Journey allowing stays in Banff, Jasper and Lake Louise or you can just book the Train Journey itself. Most of my customers tend to combine the trip with an Alaskan cruise from Vancouver as it seems daft not to when you have flown all that way.

Here are some examples of the fantastic packages we can offer with Rocky Mountaineer.

ROCKY MOUNTAINEER OFFERS

 If you have any questions please feel free to ask and I will try my best to answer them for you.

 


About Me

I have worked in the Travel Industry for 33 years, ever since leaving school. My Dad was in the Navy so I guess I get my wanderlust from him. I was a Manager in a successful Travel Agency for 16 years before joining Cruise.co.uk. I am married and have a son who…

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