Canadian Rockies by Glass-Dome Rail

Arrive at Vancouver International, about 30 minutes by road or 25 on the Canada Line and transfer privately to your base. Time today to walk the seawall at Coal Harbour with the North Shore mountains ahead.

• Private transfer via Vancouver International
• Walk the seawall at Coal Harbour with the North Shore mountains ahead
• Time to settle in before dinner

Cycling the 10-kilometre seawall around Stanley Park, the First Nations totem poles at Brockton Point, and Granville Island market by aquabus.

• Stanley Park seawall by bike
• Brockton Point totem poles
• Granville Island public market

Gastown's cobbles and steam clock, Chinatown and the Dr Sun Yat-Sen classical garden, and the Museum of Anthropology's Northwest Coast collections at UBC.

• Gastown and Chinatown walk
• Museum of Anthropology
• Dr Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden

Board the Rocky Mountaineer in Vancouver and travel by daylight along the Fraser River and through the Fraser and Thompson canyons, with meals served at your seat. On arrival, check in to your hotel, arranged by the railway, for a short night before the second day.

• Board the Rocky Mountaineer in Vancouver and travel by daylight along the Fraser River and through the Fraser and Thompson canyons, with meals served at your seat
• Check in to your hotel, arranged by the railway, for a short night before the second day
• Timings reconfirmed locally the day before

Rejoin the Rocky Mountaineer for the second daylight leg, over the Continental Divide through the Spiral Tunnels and Kicking Horse Pass, arriving in Banff in the early evening. On arrival, walk Banff Avenue with Cascade Mountain closing the view.

• Rejoin the Rocky Mountaineer for the second daylight leg, over the Continental Divide through the Spiral Tunnels and Kicking Horse Pass, arriving in Banff in the early evening
• Walk Banff Avenue with Cascade Mountain closing the view
• Timings reconfirmed locally the day before

The glacial lakes at their best early: Moraine Lake is private-vehicle-free and reached by shuttle or bus, and the Valley of the Ten Peaks behind it. Moraine road closes in winter.

• Moraine Lake by shuttle (roughly June-October)
• Lake Louise lakeshore walk
• Tea house hike (optional)

The Sulphur Mountain gondola and boardwalk, the Cave and Basin where the park began, the Banff Upper Hot Springs, and a wildlife drive on the Bow Valley Parkway.

• Banff Gondola and Sulphur Mountain boardwalk
• Cave and Basin National Historic Site
• Bow Valley Parkway wildlife drive

Drive the Icefields Parkway north, a full day with stops at Bow and Peyto lakes, the Athabasca Glacier Ice Explorer and the Columbia Icefield Skywalk. On arrival, walk the small town and look for elk on the edges at dusk.

• Drive the Icefields Parkway north, a full day with stops at Bow and Peyto lakes, the Athabasca Glacier Ice Explorer and the Columbia Icefield Skywalk
• Walk the small town and look for elk on the edges at dusk
• Timings reconfirmed locally the day before

Maligne Canyon's limestone gorge, Medicine Lake, which drains underground each autumn, and the boat to Spirit Island on Maligne Lake.

• Maligne Canyon walk
• Maligne Lake cruise to Spirit Island
• Medicine Lake

The tram up Whistlers Mountain for the range panorama, Athabasca and Sunwapta falls, and stargazing in one of the world's largest dark sky preserves.

• Jasper Skytram
• Athabasca Falls
• Dark sky preserve stargazing

An early lake or canyon walk before the drive out. Private transfer to Edmonton airport, about four hours by road, in good time for your onward flight.

• An early lake or canyon walk before the drive out
• Late check-out arranged where the hotel allows it
• Private departure transfer