Oh Canadaaaaaa - Sept 2025!

[NewtoOrlando]

Welcome to my 2025 Canada pre trip report!

**DISCLAMER ** I am starting this by saying I am totally rubbish at finishing a trip report, let alone making it sound interesting and somewhat fun but as this is a totally new experience for us, I want to give it a go and have something to look back on in years to come!

The Cast

Me, Rachael, 43 and an NHS dogsbody working in Paediatrics! Chief planner, planning control freak, lover of Disney, doggies, serial killer documentaries, and travel research!

Craig, 43, policeman, chief financer of all trips, works his little bum off to make sure these trips can go ahead and happy to go along with my plans as long as it includes some of his faves, a nice car, sport and burgers!

(Us on our holiday to Lanzarote in July this year!)

This will be our 2nd big holiday without the bambinos (we're off to Florida in 10 days without them!). We asked if they wanted to come, Katie (19 at the time of going) said no as she is going to Pompeii and Lanzarote next year with my sister and Joey (nearly 18 at the time we go) only gets 20 days annual leave and has to go to college for 1 week every 10-12 weeks so didn't want to commit. It's a shame as would love them to come and experience it, but they're older and can make their own choices now!

Why Canada?

We have talked about going to Canada for years. And kept going back to Florida as we love it there. But when we sat down and worked out how much a Florida trip would cost us next year for the same dates V a Canada trip, cost wise there was very little difference, and we decided that we didn't want to keep spending the same money doing the same thing. I have worked with a lovely Canadian lady for the last 7 years and she has been on at me to go visit, she is from Vancouver Island, and her Mum still lives there so that was another deciding factor. I have lost 8 stone in the last 3 years, and finally feel like I can go on a more active holiday than I have done before. I have always shyed away from outdoor activities, but now I feel happier and healthier than ever, so why not push myself to do something out of the norm for us! And then we watched Race Across The World Canada. And that was that! Mind were made up! A totally new experience for us, and one I hope that we both love!

When?

We are flying Heathrow to Vancouver on 3rd September 2025, and staying for 14 nights. We live 15/20 mins from Heathrow, so went for the LHR flight, which leaves at 12.15pm, getting us to Vancouver at 13:50. Then we are flying home from Seattle, on 17th September. We we're originally flying home from Vancouver, but Craig decided he wanted to visit Seattle while we are in that region, as he wants to see Lumin Field, the Seattle Seahawks Stadium as he is a big NFL fan.

I booked a package with BA, which includes return flights, 11 days car hire with AVIS, 2 nights in Whistler and 1 night in Victoria, Vancouver Island. This came to £2215 in total, and we have paid a deposit of £150. So just over £1100 each, which I didn't find too bad considering flight only was coming out at £700pp.

3rd September 2025
Will leave home at about 8.15 as even though we are only 15/20 mins from LHR, it's rush hour so need to have a bit of extra time with the traffic. I've booked the Aspire Lounge as got a good deal with a Black Friday 25% offer, and as we're flying later in the day and it's going to be a long day, I thought we have a nice few hours chilling out before flying.

We leave Heathrow @ 12.15pm and fly to Vancouver, and from there we will pick the car up and drive up to Whistler and spend 2 nights at the Pinnacle Hotel Whistler (booked as part of a BA package) The hotel cost if booking separately was around £228, plus $10 CAS a night parking.

I am hoping time/weather permitting, we can visit Brandywine Falls, which is on the way to Whistler from the airport. It's a small hike, but has a beautiful waterfall so I thought it would be somewhere nice to stop and break up the journey!

It's about a 2 hour drive from Vancouver to Whistler. The first night will be a write off, but we will grab something simple for dinner and grab a beer before crashing out!

While in Whistler we will visit the Olympic plaza, and do the Peak 2 Peak Gondola that goes between the 2 mountains, plus Whistler Trainwreck and the Sea to Sky Highway drive.

5th September

We leave Whistler to drive to Kamloops, and have a one night stop off to break up the journey, this is a 4 hour drive, and about 185 miles long. For here I have booked the Wingate by Wyndham for £147 including breakfast and parking.

There's a few places we want to stop at along the way, Nairn Falls, Seton Lake and the Thompson river view point.

There's a mall there called the Aberdeen Mall so I shall be participating in some retail therapy at Bath and Body Works! There is a sports bar called Canadian Brewhouse where we will go for dinner so Craig can get his sport fix!

6th-9th September

Will leave the hotel and make the drive to Canmore for 3 nights, this is the longest drive so far, about 5.5 hours and 322 miles! We will leave the hotel after breakfast, and hopefully stop in Golden, and visit the Golden Skybridge which is part of the Banff Jasper Pursuit Pass.

I've booked 3 nights at the Canmore Mountain Inn for £497, including parking.

We picked here because it's very close to Banff without paying Banff prices! We will be purchasing the Pursuit Pass, which will give us access to the Banff Gondola, Colombia Icefield, Golden Skybridge, Lake Minnewanka, and a Banff/Jasper bus tour. We will also visit Lake Louise, Morraine Lake, and Banff itself.

More planning needed for these days! But tea at the Fairmont Lake Louise is a must as I have dreamed of doing this for YEARS!

9th September

We leave Canmore and drive back down to Vancouver via Kelowna for a one night stop to break up the journey again. This part is around 5 hours and 303 miles. I haven't really looked at stop offs between Canmore and Kelowna, so that's something I need to do. We will stop for the night at the Hampton Inn and Suites Kelowna Airport, which was £97 including parking, which was paid for using Clubcard vouchers on hotels.com.

10th-13th September

Today we leave and drive down to Vancouver to catch the ferry to Nanamio on Vancouver Island. I haven't booked the ferry yet as it's not on sale. We have booked 3 nights in a lovely apartment though VRBO in Campbell River, with a view over the Straight of Georgia where you often see orcas, eagles, porpoise and other marine life! Plus the odd cruise ship coming through! This was £378.

From here we will go on a whale watching boat trip, a bear trip, go for some walks, and just enjoy the peace and quiet for a few days.

Our last night on Vancouver Island will be spent at the Grand Pacific Hotel Victoria (not sure on cost of this as it is part of the BA booking!)

We will visit my friends mum in Qualicum Beach for a cuppa on the way to Victoria, plus visit Coombs for the old country market, and see if the goats are out! Craig wants to stop in Ladysmith, as he loves Resident Alien and I think they filmed some of it here! No plans for Victoria yet, we only have a night and some of the day here. I know there is Buchart Gardens to see but it's not really our sort of thing! More research required!

14th-16th September

We will get the ferry from Victoria back to Vancouver, drop the car off and check into the Pinnacle Hotel Harbourside in Vancouver, this was £533 for 2 nights.

No breakfast and no parking but thats ok as we won't have the car for this bit! Vancouver will consist of a trip to Stanley Park, Granville Island, Capillano Suspension Bridge (If I am brave enough lol) Gastown and generally mooching and finding a bar for a few beers as Craig wont have to drive anywhere!

16th-17th September

Today is an early start as we are travelling from Vancouver to Seattle, on Amtrak. I booked this a few weeks ago, and it cost $74 CAD so about £52. I paid this on my Revolut card on a fully flexible booking incase we need to make any changes. We leave Vancouver at 7:15am and get to Seattle at 11:40am. I have booked one night at the Belltown Inn, as recommended by Deborah from her trip report!

This was £181 for the night. No breakfast and no parking but again we don't have the car. Seattle will consist of trips to the Space Needle, Pike Place Market, Freemont Troll, Pier 55, Chihuly Gardens, Lumen Field, Gasworks Park and Kerry Park to try and see Mt Rainer. We will find somewhere for dinner and crash after our early start!

17th September - Last day & travel home.

Check out of our hotel, leave our bags and see any bits of Seattle we didn't get the chance to see yesterday! We will get the Seattle Link Light Railway from the city to the airport.

Our flight home is at 19:40 from SeaTac and we land on 18th September at around 13:00! Hopefully be home in the front door by 14.30 if all on time!

I haven't really looked at any places to eat, as we're very easy when it comes to food, and happy to grab something on the go as we will be on the move quite a lot! After bariatric surgery food isn't always top of my priorities, but Craig will definitely be after some poutine and burgers though!

I'm really excited for this trip but also massively apprehensive as it's wayyyyy out of my comfort zone! Florida I can plan with my eyes closed, but this is totally different!

The hotels in Vancouver, Kamloops, Canmore and Seattle are booked pn hotels.com as a book now pay on arrival and free cancellation basis, so I keep checking prices and cancelling/rebooking, by doing this I have saved about £500 so far. I am hoping to get as much prebooked as possible so save on money while we are there, that way our spending money is our money for food, souvenirs etc! We're not super budget travellers, but also we don't need ultra luxury either. Clean and comfy is what we're happy with.

In total, this trip is coming out at about £4284 for the 2 of us. I think this is a reasonable deal, but to be honest, it's a trip of a lifetime and I am not really bothered!

I will update more as we get closer to the trip, and once I have booked ferries, National Park passes, and attraction tickets. If anyone has any recommendations on places to see, things to eat, routes to take etc please throw them my way! We are not massive hikers by the way, happy to walk but we're not into hiking to the top of mountains... gondolas are allowed haha!

Thanks for reading

[cornishfrogboy]

That looks a great trip.. and a great price.

Might be worth seeing if there is a Hockey Game on in Vancouver as that was an absolute highlight for us.

[Melbatb]

Originally Posted by cornishfrogboy

That looks a great trip.. and a great price.

Might be worth seeing if there is a Hockey Game on in Vancouver as that was an absolute highlight for us.

See more...

Also look for Canadian Hockey League games as well be cheaper or even university ones -we saw two games on our trip to Nova Scotia and only booked in the day!

Otherwise sounds like a fabulous trip! We were lucky in Seattle to see an NFL game as well as a baseball match!

[smithlane]

Oh Rach this looks AMAZING! I'm very jealous of this trip, as you know we loved Vancouver, VI and Whistler. I also have Banff on my long list of places to visit!
I've been to Seattle loads with work and love the city, the views from Kerry Park are amazing. i know you don't have long there but if you can squeeze in a trip to Bainbridge Island, you get the most amazing views of Mt Rainier and the Seattle skyline from the ferry. Also Pike Place Market is a must! Lowells and The Pancake Shop for breakfast too
In Vancouver we hired bikes and went around Stanley Park and all the way down to Granville Island, love this city. You HAVE to go to Joeys Bar for dinner and drinks and for a special meal then LIFT is a must! If I think of anything else ill message you

[pinkandfluffy]

Oh my! I followed your link from my ‘rookie’ question in the general trips thread. Your trip looks amazing and has definitely given me some things to consider when planning ours. I’m hoping to book a package with BA too, at least getting the first nights hotel in. What class of car were you offered with BA, only one option is coming up for me but I would prefer something a bit bigger.

[NewtoOrlando]

Originally Posted by cornishfrogboy

That looks a great trip.. and a great price.

Might be worth seeing if there is a Hockey Game on in Vancouver as that was an absolute highlight for us.

See more...

Thank you CFB! I am still booking/cancelling and tweaking hotels. Anything to save some money haha! We do want to try and catch a spots game, but think we might miss the start of most of the seasons!

[NewtoOrlando]

Originally Posted by Melbatb

Also look for Canadian Hockey League games as well be cheaper or even university ones -we saw two games on our trip to Nova Scotia and only booked in the day!

Otherwise sounds like a fabulous trip! We were lucky in Seattle to see an NFL game as well as a baseball match!

See more...

Thanks Mel! I have loved your Canadian trip reports, it's so different to what we would usually do on holiday, and i'm really hoping we love every minute of it! Craig would LOVE to catch an NFL game, but the season starts a few weeks after we get back, irritating!

[NewtoOrlando]

Originally Posted by smithlane

Oh Rach this looks AMAZING! I'm very jealous of this trip, as you know we loved Vancouver, VI and Whistler. I also have Banff on my long list of places to visit!
I've been to Seattle loads with work and love the city, the views from Kerry Park are amazing. i know you don't have long there but if you can squeeze in a trip to Bainbridge Island, you get the most amazing views of Mt Rainier and the Seattle skyline from the ferry. Also Pike Place Market is a must! Lowells and The Pancake Shop for breakfast too
In Vancouver we hired bikes and went around Stanley Park and all the way down to Granville Island, love this city. You HAVE to go to Joeys Bar for dinner and drinks and for a special meal then LIFT is a must! If I think of anything else ill message you

See more...

Thank you lovely Alicia! I loved your trip report! Although you lot were far more adventurous than we will be! Would love to hire bikes in Stanley Park, if my thighs can cope with it haha! I am looking to possibly regig the Seattle part to get an extra night there, as thee is more there than I thought there would be!

I actually booked Joeys for dinner for our last night in Vancouver as it's my birthday a few days after we get back, so thought it would be nice to have a nice dinner and wear a dress instead of shorts and a hoodie for a change!

[NewtoOrlando]

Originally Posted by pinkandfluffy

Oh my! I followed your link from my ‘rookie’ question in the general trips thread. Your trip looks amazing and has definitely given me some things to consider when planning ours. I’m hoping to book a package with BA too, at least getting the first nights hotel in. What class of car were you offered with BA, only one option is coming up for me but I would prefer something a bit bigger.

See more...

Thank you for reading along! I love a BA custom trip...the flexibility it gives works so well. When I first started planing this trip a few years ago we were going to fly into Calgary and out of Vancouver coming home so I was irked slightly when I was ready to book and realised BA dropped the direct Calgary flight! At the moment we are flying to VAN and then driving to Whistler, but I am considering changing it to fly VAN and then getting an internal flight to Calgary.

So many decisons!

We have a Ford Edge or similar booked, I would rather a Tahoe or Suburban but it's only the 2 of us so probably a b big, but much better than the Mustang we just had in Florida! I think choice of car depends on the location you're picking up from though?

[stanleycamel]

Your trip sounds amazing and enjoy the rest of your planning.


Another vote for Bainbridge Island and Pike Place Market (it has quite an interesting history) in Seattle. I'm a huge fan of Dale Chihuly so really enjoyed the Gardens at the base of the Space Needle. Something worth looking at may be the Seattle City Pass as depending on what attractions you want to visit may save you money.

I've been lucky enough to have had a private visit to the Boeing Factory north of Seattle before it reopened for tours and as an aircraft "nut" it is a fascinating place to visit. However, if you time is limited the Museum of Flight is worth a trip and it can be easily reached by bus from Seattle City Centre which takes about 20/25 minutes.

There are so many places to eat in Seattle depending on tastes and budgets - I usually try to have breakfast at least once a trip at the Dahlia Bakery, a cheesecake from the Confectional and a pint at the Old Stove followed by a scone (it's not a biscuit and never will be) at the Honest Biscuit.

In Vancouver I liked Granville Island with its great market and plenty of nice places to eat. Yaletown has some good bars serving local beers. A trip over to and up Grouse Mountain on a fine day gives some great views over Vancouver too.

Lake Louise - If possible I would get there as early as is possible because it is very, very popular with bus tours. I was lucky enough to spend a couple of nights there and was lucky to be upgraded to the Glacier Suite. It was great to get up early in the morning and walk around the grounds with hardly anyone there and the same in an evening. When you book your afternoon tea if you get the chance tell them it is an early celebration for your birthday and ask for a window table if you can. I spent more time looking out of the window than I did concentrating on my dinner - the views are just amazing and occasionally you may hear a dull rumble coming across the lake as the glacier "moves" or drops some ice.

You may have already seen this but you can no longer drive up Moraine Lake Road and have to use a Shuttle Service - here's a link to some information about it... https://www.banfflakelouise.com/expl...e-lake-shuttle