Canada The Complete Guide 2013 Welcome to Canada Welcome to Bon Voyage, a company specialising in service. Our goal at Bon Voyage is to provide each of our clients with a personal service and give attention to detail, so that we may help to make your holiday dreams a reality. We have been involved in the planning and preparation of detailed holiday arrangements for many years and are delighted to be able to share our knowledge and experience with you by arranging the perfect holiday experience. We realise that there are many companies to choose from, and that is why we have made such a commitment to the level of service that we offer. From the moment of your initial enquiry through to the time that you return home from your Canadian vacation, our dedicated team are always available to offer you advice and assistance. Whatever your requirements... just give us a call and allow us to prepare a personal quotation for you. We look forward to hearing from you. This brochure has been produced by our partner 1st Class Holidays You can book your holiday with complete peace of mind, in the knowledge that your money is safe. The air holidays and flights in this brochure are ATOL protected by the Civil Aviation Authority under ATOL number 5421. CALL BON VOYAGE: 0800 316 0193 email: [email protected] website: www.bon-voyage.co.uk 2 Contents Information Resorts, Lodges & Wildlife 60-83 A selection of unique resorts, lodges and packages to bring you closer to Canada Map 4 & 5 some of Canada's famous wildlife, including grizzly bears, polar bears & General Information 6 & 7 whales. How to use this brochure 8 & 9 Cruising 84 - 99 A selection of cruises with all the major cruise lines. Choose from cruises Getting to Canada that start & end in Vancouver or take a one-way cruise from Vancouver Flight Information 10 - 13 to Alaska, and take the opportunity to explore Alaska in more detail by rail, car or coach. We also have New England Cruises. Getting around Canada A wide range of ways to help you travel around Canada. Self Drive Tours 100 - 123 Car Rental 14 & 15 Driving in Canada is a pleasurable experience. Wide open roads and Motorhome Rentals 16 & 17 easy to drive cars make self drive touring one of the most popular ways to explore Canada. We have a wide selection of tours based around the Rocky Mountaineer Rail Journeys 18 & 19 most popular touring routes in both eastern & western Canada. VIA Rail around Canada 20 & 21 Coach, Ferry & Private Transfers 22 & 23 Independent Tours 124 - 137 Hotels & Sightseeing Ideal for the independent traveller, these are a range of tours created using either car hire or sightseeing and transfer services to give a sense We can offer hotels in most Canadian cities, the listing on pages of independence & freedom, yet having the reassurance that your 25 to 27 gives a city by city listing, with the main cities being itinerary is pre-planned for you. featured on pages 28 to 59. Hotels of Canada - Introduction & listing of all cities 24 - 27 Toronto 28 & 29 Niagara 30 & 31 138 - 157 Ottawa 32 & 33 Escorted Tours A range of escorted touring options. Choose from tours of Eastern or Montreal 34 & 35 Western Canada, combine them both or perhaps take one of our tours Quebec City 36 & 37 that includes a cruise to Alaska. Maritime Provinces 38 & 39 Calgary 40 & 41 Banff, Lake Louise & Jasper 42 - 47 58 & 59, 98 & 99 Alaska Hotels & Tours 117 & 156-157 Vancouver 48 - 51 Explore this great northern land in detail. We offer one of the widest Victoria & Vancouver Island 52 - 55 range of Alaska touring options and can also offer you our own personal recommendations of things to see & do. Whistler 56 & 57 Alaska & Yukon 58 & 59 Save £s Early Booking Discounts Available Winter in Canada 158 - 159 An introduction to the many options available in Canada in the winter. Many of our featured hotels are offering early booking discounts. If you see the above sign next to your chosen property, it may be bookable at a lower price should you book early enough. Discount amount and “book-by” dates, vary from hotel to hotel, so please call Booking Terms & Conditions 160 - 162 us for accurate pricing. Booking Form 163 3 General Information Time Zones Canada lies across 6 time zones. Newfoundland GMT minus 3 1/2 hrs Atlantic GMT minus 4 hrs Eastern ALASKA- USA (most of Ontario & Quebec) Fairbanks GMT minus 5 hrs Central (Manitoba, Saskatchewan & Western Ontario) Anchorage GMT minus 6 hrs YUKON Seward NORTHWEST Mountain TERRITORIES (Alberta, small part of B.C. & Northwest Territories) Whitehorse GMT minus 7 hrs Pacific Yellowknife (Majority of British Columbia & Yukon) GMT minus 8 hrs BRITISH COLUMBIA Edmonton SASKATCHEWAN Prince Rupert ALBERTA Jasper Port Hardy Whistler Saskatoon Helpful Hints Tofino Banff Vancouver Currency in Canada is the Canadian Dollar (approximate Victoria Regina rate of exchange is $1.5 to £1) Calgary The most commonly accepted credit cards are Visa and Mastercard. Taxes - Provincial Sales Tax (PST) and Goods & Services Tax (GST) will be added to the advertised price of all UNITED STATES products purchased locally (consumer products, as well as restaurant meals and beverages). Average Temperatures In °Celsius (low/high) Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec British Columbia 0/8 0/8 2/13 2/13 8/19 8/19 13/22 13/22 6/14 6/14 1/9 1/9 Vancouver Alberta -1/-15 -1/-15 -8/9 -8/9 -1/18 -1/18 7/22 7/22 -1/16 -1/16 -13/1 -13/1 Banff Saskatchewan -23/-8 -23/-8 -13/9 -13/9 4/23 4/23 10/26 10/26 -2/19 -2/19 -8/0 -8/0 Regina Manitoba -24/-10 -24/-10 -14/9 -14/9 5/23 5/23 12/26 12/26 1/18 1/18 -19/0 -19/0 Winnipeg Ontario -8/-1 -8/-1 -3/12 -3/12 9/24 9/24 17/27 17/27 7/21 7/21 -8/8 -8/8 Toronto Quebec -14/-4 -14/-4 -7/11 -7/11 7/24 7/24 14/16 14/16 4/20 4/20 -11/5 -11/5 Montreal Nova Scotia -7/1 -7/1 -4/9 -4/9 5/19 5/19 14/23 14/23 7/20 7/20 -4/9 -4/9 Halifax 4 General Information 2013 National Holidays New Year’s Day - January 1 Good Friday - March 29 Easter Monday - April 1 Victoria Day - May 20 Quebec National Day (Quebec only) - June 24 Canada Day - July 1 Civic Holiday (BC & Ontario only) - August 5 Labour Day - September 2 Thanksgiving Day - October 14 Remembrance Day (BC only) - November 11 Christmas Day - December 25 NUNAVUT Boxing Day - December 26 On these days, all post offices and banks and some museums, libraries, stores, restaurants and nightclubs are closed. In addition to these dates, various Provinces and regions observe their own additional holidays Labrador City LABRADOR MANITOBA St.Johns NEWFOUNDLAND QUEBEC ONTARIO Quebec City NEW Did you Know? Winnipeg BRUNSWICK Thunder Bay Canada is the second largest country Halifax in the world. (Russia being the largest) Montreal NOVA Canada has 10 Provinces and 3 Territories. SCOTIA Ottawa Canada and the United States share the largest undefended border in the world. Toronto OF AMERICA Niagara Falls Distances between major Canadian cities* Approximate Distance In Miles Halifax Montreal Ottawa Toronto Winnipeg Edmonton Calgary Vancouver Montreal 775 Ottawa 892 118 Toronto 1109 335 248 Winnipeg 2267 1493 1375 1301 Edmonton 3108 2334 2216 2143 841 Calgary 3083 2320 2203 2129 828 186 Vancouver 3751 2977 2859 2785 1384 771 655 Victoria 3815 3041 2923 2849 1449 836 720 65 * For guidance purposes only 5 1st Class Holidays WHO ARE 1ST CLASS HOLIDAYS? AWARD WINNING SERVICE 1st Class Holidays was founded by the current directors in 1996, Our personal, friendly service and the first class attention to detail based on a strong passion for travel and a desire to offer the we provide has led us to become an industry leader in tailor made highest standards of service. We remain independently owned holidays and our service has been recognised throughout the with the Directors still focused on offering the best service & the years by our winning a number of prestigious industry awards. best holiday choice. We realise that by booking your holiday through us, you are placing your trust & your holiday dreams in Best Operator to Canada our hands and we will do our absolute utmost to ensure that we Best Canada Website provide your holiday of a lifetime Travel Agents Favourite Tour Operator- 9 times winner Long Haul Operator of the Year (as voted by TTA Worldchoice Travel Agents) OUR TEAM We are based in Manchester with a dedicated team of very experienced and knowledgeable management and staff who share the Directors vision and love of travel. We are committed to finding ways to constantly improve our service offering and delivering excellent customer service is at the heart of everything we do. We firmly believe it is vital to employ people who are QUALITY DOCUMENTATION passionate about the travel industry in order to give the customer advice and recommendations based on genuine knowledge and 2-3 weeks before your departure date you will be sent a experience. comprehensive quality documentation pack which will include a day-by-day itinerary, airline e-tickets, all the necessary hotel and FINANCIAL PROTECTION travel vouchers, luggage allowance information, luggage labels and lots of general information on your destination.