The Rocky Mountaineer and Alaska Cruise

Following our flight from London Heathrow, we arrive in Calgary, Canada, and transfer by coach to our hotel in Banff for three nights.

Our morning starts with a cable car ride on the Banff gondola up to the summit of Sulphur Mountain to enjoy panoramic views of the timeless Rocky Mountains. After some free time soaking up the amazing vista, and maybe enjoying a coffee or browsing the gift shops, we take a coach excursion to breathtaking Lake Louise. This turquoise glacial lake is framed by towering snow-capped mountains and is one of the most photographed sights in the Canadian Rockies. You're free over lunchtime here, and there are some great bakeries and cafés to choose from. We continue to the vivid Emerald Lake, the largest freshwater lake in Yoho National Park - stopping enroute at Spiral Tunnels Viewpoint. This evening we meet a retired member of the Canadian Mounted Police Force, affectionately known as a 'Mountie', who talks about their time in service.

With a day at leisure, you have time to explore the mountain resort town of Banff at your own pace. Surrounded by wilderness, there are a number of excursions available from here, including guided visits to Lake Minnewanka - a glistening turquoise lake, known by the First Nations people as the 'Lake of the Spirits' - and the wide, low, but powerful Bow Falls. You might also like to take a dip in the Upper Hot Springs Pool - a site with an incredible view. The town attracts many tourists, for shopping as well as nature, and with its creative community, has an alternative side to it. So you may be happy to stay local and soak up the charms of the Main Street, a row of half-timbered independent shops and a variety of restaurants.

We depart by coach along the famous Icefields Parkway, a 144-mile road that links Banff and Jasper and passes through some incredible scenery. We travel past many of the highest and most rugged peaks in the Canadian Rockies, pausing to admire the views over the turquoise waters of Peyto Lake, before making our way to the Icefields Centre at the foot of the Columbia Icefields. Here, we stop to marvel at the Athabasca Glacier and you have the option to enjoy a ride over the ice field by giant Snocoach (payable locally). Afterwards, we continue to Athabasca Falls, where thundering waters carve their way through the peaceful mountain scenery. We spend the night in the friendly Rocky Mountain town of Jasper.

Boarding the Rocky Mountaineer, we begin the first of our superb daylight journeys through some of Canada's best-loved scenery. Our trip to Kamloops is aptly named the 'Journey Through the Clouds' route. The route heads upwards through the Yellowhead Pass, and along the way we see the magnificent Mount Robson, the highest mountain in the Rockies. We travel through Banff National Park, cross the Continental Divide and pass the cascading Pyramid Falls. We travel in SilverLeaf Class, in panorama cars with food and wine included. Your journey is relaxed and scenic, watching Canada's landscapes unfold, as breakfast and lunch are served at our seats. We disembark for a night at a local hotel in Kamloops.

Our Rocky Mountaineer experience continues on another dramatic stretch of the line that takes us along the Thompson and Fraser Canyons, past Hell's Gate, as we keep our eyes open for native Canadian wildlife. The line begins its descent towards the Pacific Coast, and before long we arrive in Vancouver for a two-night stay.

Our day begins with a guided sightseeing tour of Vancouver, one of the most vibrant and cosmopolitan cities in the world the city was founded by European settlers who came over during the Gold Rush of the mid 19th century. Since then, Vancouver has evolved into a thriving and lively coastal city and is regularly ranked as one of the world's most desirable places to live. Our tour includes the old Gastown Quarter - an area of stylish coffee shops, galleries, native art stores and home to the famous Gastown Steam Clock - Chinatown, with its colourful, traditional architecture, and leafy Stanley Park, home to a set of unique totem poles that honour the city's Native American heritage.

We say goodbye to mainland Canada, boarding MS Volendam for an incredible seven-night Alaskan cruise. After settling into our cabins, we enjoy our first dinner on board this evening.

We awake this morning in an entirely different landscape as we sail through the extraordinary Inside Passage to Alaska. We wind through this UNESCO protected network of waterways, passing stunning fjords and deep inlets, along Southeast Alaska's wild and rugged coastline. This area of pristine waters, snow-capped mountains and glacial waters is renowned as a haven for marine animals - this may be our first opportunity to spot a whale from the deck of our ship.

Our ship arrives at Tracy Arm, where we make a short service stop. Here you have the option of joining an excursion to see the twin Sawyer Glaciers up close, or simply enjoy the experience on board. The naturalist, John Muir described Tracy Arm as 'one of the most dramatically stunning fjords of Southeast Alaska'. The ice-carved fjord is surrounded by steep cliffs, glacier-covered mountains and the largest intact coastal temperate rain forest in the United States. Lunch is served as we travel to the Alaskan state capital, Juneau. Completely inaccessible by road, this former gold rush city is set against a backdrop of mountains and you have a free afternoon here.

Today we call at the colourful port town of Skagway. Once the lawless hub of the Klondike Gold Rush, the town hasn't lost its authenticity, and its buildings have been authentically preserved. With free time here, you could wander along the town's historic boardwalk, which looks much the same as it did in the 1850s, browse the galleries and craft shops or watch local life go by from a coffee shop or saloon. You could also choose to book an excursion on the White Pass & Yukon Route Railroad, riding a restored vintage rail car to the summit of White Pass.

Our day is spent on board as we cruise through some of the most dramatic scenery in Alaska. You'll experience wide tidewater glaciers, fjords and shimmering mountain peaks with a soundtrack of creaking 'living ice' and the shrill screeching of gulls and eagles. Glacier Bay's ice formations are around 4,000 years old and protected by UNESCO. We're likely to see wildlife - whales and seals inhabit the water, while bears, mink and moose stalk the shores - so wrap up warm and get on deck with your camera.

We dock at Ketchikan this morning, where you have the day to explore. Apart from being the Salmon Capital of the World, Native Alaskan culture and art flourishes here and this may be one of the best spots on our cruise to see intricately carved totem poles and other culture artefacts. The Totem Heritage Centre is easy to reach and an interesting place to visit, with its large display of poles, retrieved from abandoned villages. A little further north, you'll find Totem Bight State Park, which has another collection of famous poles, and a native community house. The town itself has a museum, souvenir shops and local art - and there are plenty of dining options to sample the town's celebrated salmon.

We set sail for Vancouver today, cruising back along the legendary Inside Passage. Regarded as one of the world's greatest cruising routes, we pass through spectacular landscapes of glacier-shaped fjords and lush rain forests as we travel south. Cruising this route today we may be lucky to see orca or humpback whales alongside our ship, and possibly bald eagles soaring high above.

After breakfast, we disembark in Vancouver, where you are free to explore until early afternoon. Vancouver's breathtaking setting, distinctive architecture and laid-back way of life make it one of the world's most desirable cities to live in. You might like to explore the vibrant Gastown area of the city (the city's first settlement, named after a Yorkshire seaman!), wander through stunning Stanley Park - with its fabulous Native American totem poles - find a great place for lunch, or spend some time in a gallery or museum. Early this afternoon, we transfer to the airport for our flight back to the UK.

Following our overnight journey, we land at London Heathrow and our holiday comes to an end.