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Cosmos Heart of the Canadian Rockies with Calgary Stampede & Alaska Cruise (8555)

19 days from Calgary to Vancouver 
Welcome to Calgary! More fun than a 10-gallon hat can hold, it’s no wonder the Calgary Stampede is “the greatest outdoor show on Earth.” The stampede brings the Old West to life throughout its grounds, with entertainment and exhibits, great food, world-famous Chuckwagon horse races, and the Calgary Stampede Rodeo. Continue your adventure through the western Canada’s stunning scenery, rugged mountains, breathtaking glaciers, mighty rivers, and gorgeous national parks. Your value-minded Canadian vacation takes you to Banff National Park, Jasper National Park, Kamloops, Victoria, and Vancouver. Enjoy two nights in Banff National Park, Canada’s oldest national park and gateway to the Canadian Rockies. You’ll have time to take an optional excursion and explore the alpine meadows, glaciers, lakes, hot springs, and quaint shops on your own. You’ll also enjoy two nights in Jasper National Park, the largest national park in Canada. You can hike, explore the shops, and take an optional excursion to Maligne Lake and Spirit Island. Between Banff and Jasper, you’ll enjoy a highlight of this Canadian Rockies tour—a thrilling ride aboard an Ice Explorer, an all-terrain vehicle, on the Columbia Icefield, the largest expanse of ice in the Canadian Rockies. Your journey between the two national parks also includes a stop in Lake Louise, whose turquoise waters create a natural mirror that reflects the surrounding mountains and pristine wilderness. Embark on ferry crossings between Vancouver and Victoria to visit the world-famous, gorgeous Butchart Gardens. Board your Alaskan cruise ship and sail amid the emerald forests and turquoise glaciers of the spectacular Inside Passage on your way to Juneau, Skagway, and Ketchikan. Choose to take in the authentic Yukon atmosphere of the Klondike Gold Rush National Historic Park, or ride the antique narrow-gauge railway. Cruise stunning Glacier Bay for the chance to witness mammoth ice calve into the sea. Keep your eyes on the water for the chance to spot whales, porpoises, orcas, eagles, and more! For the value-minded traveler, the stunning scenery, adventure, and natural wonders of this affordable vacation in Canada and Alaskan cruise is the trip of a lifetime!

Itinerary (2023)

Day 1CALGARY
 Welcome to Calgary, home of the Calgary Stampede! Your Tour Director is on hand late this afternoon to answer any questions.
Day 2CALGARY STAMPEDE GROUNDS
 Welcome to Calgary and “The Greatest Show on Earth.” Dressed in your best Cowboy fashion from belt buckles, boots to chaps, explore the Calgary Stampede grounds at your leisure with your included admission. Step through the gates of Stampede Park into a world of wonder, fun, and “Wild West” excitement. Walk back in time and experience the traditions and culture of Canadian First Nations at Elbow River Camp or stroll the streets of a recreated frontier town. Enjoy a wide variety of exciting talent at the many entertainment stages, and then maybe head into the dazzling array of international exhibits and displays of Western art. This evening, watch the heart-stopping Chuckwagon Races in an all-out dash for the finish line, an amazing contest of nerves and horsepower. You’ll be out of your seats cheering on your favorite driver during each heat. Afterward, get ready for an outdoor STAGE SHOW featuring hundreds of singers, dancers, and musicians in a lavishly produced and choreographed musical variety spectacular.
Day 3CALGARY STAMPEDE GROUNDS AND RODEO
 Fuel up for the day’s activities by visiting Fluor Rope Square at Olympic Plaza for a pancake breakfast. Return to the Stampede grounds this morning to see anything you missed yesterday, and cheer on your favorite rodeo contenders. If you haven’t already, get suited with a cowboy hat, threads, and boots at one of the many stalls before heading to the Grandstand for the Calgary Stampede Rodeo this afternoon. See the best of the best as they saddle up for world-class rodeo action. Top professionals take on the West’s wildest horses. You’ll also enjoy rodeo’s most famed event—bull riding! You will be in awe of the talent as you sit on the edge of your seat. Make the most of your time here and discover Canada’s country core. With square dancing, mock gun fights, country bands, bars, restaurants and livestock, there is loads to see.
Day 4CALGARY–BANFF NATIONAL PARK
 The discovery of oil converted this ranching town into a sophisticated city. Sightseeing highlights downtown, Fort Calgary, Stampede Park, the Saddledome, and Canada Olympic Park. Motor west through the foothills and into Banff National Park, gateway to the majestic Canadian Rockies. An orientation tour includes Banff’s unspoiled beauty.
Day 5BANFF NATIONAL PARK
 Banff is one of Canada’s favorite year-round resorts, with summer activities such as hiking, boating, and fishing. With a free day, your Tour Director will suggest an optional helicopter ride over the Canadian Rockies.
Day 6BANFF NATIONAL PARK–LAKE LOUISE–COLUMBIA ICEFIELD–JASPER NATIONAL PARK
 Enjoy a day of scenic grandeur. First stop is Lake Louise, whose turquoise waters create a natural mirror that reflects the surroundings. Up next: a stop at the Columbia Icefield to experience the Ice Explorer, an all-terrain vehicle that travels on ice measuring 750 feet thick. Then, journey north into Jasper National Park, where precipitous gorges, snowcapped summits, and lakes of exquisite blues and greens come into view as the motorcoach scales three mountain passes. Later, your Tour Director suggests an optional float trip down the Athabasca River. Enjoy an orientation tour of Jasper townsite upon arrival.
Day 7JASPER NATIONAL PARK
 Today, join our optional excursion to Maligne Lake and Spirit Island, where you embark on a narrated cruise of the lake. The balance of the day is free to enjoy everything Jasper has to offer—from guided hikes and quaint shops to meandering wildlife.
Day 8JASPER NATIONAL PARK–MOUNT ROBSON–KAMLOOPS
 Depart Jasper and follow the Fraser River to the base of Mount Robson, the highest peak in the Canadian Rockies. The Yellowhead Highway continues south along the mighty Thompson River, with spectacular views of the Monashee Mountains. Overnight in Kamloops.
Day 9KAMLOOPS–FERRY CROSSING–VICTORIA
 As you travel through British Columbia’s Coast Mountain Range to its majestic Pacific coastline, the vegetation changes from desert landscape to lush alpine forest. Board your ferry for the spectacular crossing to Vancouver Island. Sightseeing in Victoria includes world-famous Butchart Gardens, the Inner Harbour, Bastion Square, and Thunderbird Park. This evening, consider a stroll along the lively Waterfront Promenade.
Day 10VICTORIA
 Today is free to explore on your own. You may choose to join an optional wildlife and whale-watching trip cruising the beautiful waters of the San Juan and Gulf Islands, looking for whales, porpoises, seals, and eagles. Your Tour Director will have ideas for enjoying this most British of Canadian cities.
Day 11VICTORIA–FERRY CROSSING–VANCOUVER
 This morning, set sail across the Strait of Georgia and through the spectacular Gulf Islands. In Vancouver, city sightseeing includes Stanley Park, Gastown, Chinatown, and other famous landmarks. The remainder of the day is free to explore Robson Street and experience British Columbia’s premier shopping and entertainment location.
Day 12VANCOUVER (EMBARKATION)
 Embark your cruise ship. (D)
Day 13SCENIC CRUISING: INSIDE PASSAGE
 Spend the day cruising one of the world’s most spectacular waterways. Located along the coast of British Columbia, the Inside Passage is the longest sheltered inland waterway in the world. Watch the water for orcas and humpback whales. (B,L,D)
Day 14JUNEAU
 Located at the foot of grand mountain peaks on Gastineau Channel, Alaska’s capital city of Juneau has massive Mendenhall Glacier and the Juneau Icefield at its back door. Visit the rustic shops in town—or get out and kayak, raft, hike, whale watch, flightsee, or fish. There’s no end to the adventure because of the long daylight hours. (B,L,D)
Day 15SKAGWAY
 In winter, the sidewalks are all but rolled up in Skagway, so you can imagine the frightful conditions endured by gold prospectors who passed through en route to the Yukon. Take your time and poke your head into every little shop, from the Trail Bench to Lynch & Kennedy’s Dry Goods. The Red Onion Saloon, with its honky-tonk piano and costumed barmaids, is a treasure trove of memorabilia featuring pictures of Klondike Kate, Peahull Annie, and other historic characters. To complete the picture of those rip-roaring days, visit the nostalgic Trail of ’98 Museum. (B,L,D)
Day 16SCENIC CRUISING: GLACIER BAY
 Glacier Bay has more actively calving tidewater glaciers than anyplace else in the world. How does it feel when a colossal chunk of ice splits off a glacier and crashes into the sea? The sound is like thunder. The impact shoots water hundreds of meters into the air. You hold your breath as you capture the moment on camera, then you wait for it all to happen again. (B,L,D)
Day 17KETCHIKAN
 Alaska’s “First City” of Ketchikan is so named because it is the first major landfall for most cruisers as they enter the picturesque fjords of the Inside Passage, where the town clings to the banks of the Tongass Narrows, flanked by green forests nurtured by abundant rain. An important hub of the salmon-fishing and -packing industries—visitors can try their luck on a sport-fishing excursion or simply savor the fresh seafood at one of the local restaurants. It is also one of the best spots along the Inside Passage to explore the rich cultural sights of Native Alaskan nations like the Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian. (B,L,D)
Day 18SCENIC CRUISING: INSIDE PASSAGE
 Arguably one of the greatest cruising routes in the world, the Inside Passage stretches through stunning landscapes, from Misty Fjords National Monument to famed Glacier Bay National Park & Preserve. Sailing the Inside Passage offers opportunities to spot some of Alaska’s most iconic wildlife, with humpback whales and orca plying the bountiful waters alongside the ships, bald eagles soaring overhead and brown bears lumbering on the shoreline. (B,L,D)
Day 19VANCOUVER (DISEMBARKATION)
 Your cruise ends this morning. Please schedule flights after Noon. (B)

Included Cosmos Meals

7 breakfasts, 6 lunches, 7 dinners

Related Cosmos Tours

8550 - Heart of the Canadian Rockies with Calgary Stampede

Cosmos Pricing Details

Gratuities for Tour Director and driver are available for pre-purchase.

Any applicable Goods and Service Tax (GST) and/or Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) for Canada are additional. Taxes will be calculated and listed at the time of booking, prior to payment being collected.

Taxes will be calculated and listed at the time of booking, prior to payment being collected. Cruise line non-commissionable fare, government taxes, and fees of $480 to $540, depending on ship/date, are additional and mandatory. These fees will be added to your Vacation Estimate.

Cosmos Notes

Cruise itineraries are provided by Holland America Line and are up to date at time of printing. Your travel documents will contain the most current information.

At least one member of the traveling party must be 21 years of age or older.

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Cosmos Tour Dates


Guaranteed Departure  indicates Guaranteed Departure
*Tour Land StartCosmos RetailRequest Quote
Guaranteed Departure 07/06/2024 $4,167.00
Guaranteed Departure 07/09/2024 $4,226.00
07/05/2025 $4,529.00
07/05/2025 $4,529.00
07/08/2025 $4,589.00
07/08/2025 $4,589.00
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