Rocky Mountaineer made its first run under private ownership on May 27, 1990, and has since carried more than two million guests through western Canada. It travels by daylight on purpose: guests spend each night in a hotel, so none of the scenery passes in the dark. Three routes leave Vancouver, where the train departs from a restored 1954 locomotive shed. First Passage to the West runs to Banff and Lake Louise, Journey through the Clouds to Jasper, and Rainforest to Gold Rush travels by way of Whistler and Quesnel. GoldLeaf, introduced in 1995, seats guests in a two-level glass-dome coach above a 36-seat dining room where meals are cooked on board; SilverLeaf uses a single-level dome coach. The Stadler-built dome cars have dimmable windows and swivelling seats, and hosts on board bring the history, geography and wildlife of the route to life. The landscape is the reason to go: Hell's Gate, the Spiral Tunnels, Kicking Horse Canyon, Craigellachie, where the last spike of the transcontinental railway was driven, and Mount Robson, at 3,954 metres the highest peak in the Canadian Rockies.
- Nearest airport
- Vancouver International (YVR), 9.3 Miles / 15 Kilometres by road, to Rocky Mountaineer Station
- On board
- GoldLeaf coaches 68 seats; SilverLeaf coaches 56 seats
Insider tip Travel in April or October: the shoulder months cost markedly less than July for the same journey.
Why I choose it The Canadian Rockies by daylight rail, arriving in Banff for the Fairmont Banff Springs.
