Category Archives: Sightseeing

If I were Canadian, I’d live in Vancouver!

Why? Vancouver is a cosmopolitan city yet is surrounded by amazing sea and mountain views. The city’s size makes it very manageable to explore with children in tow yet it has an international, big city feel. If you’re planning to take the family on Trafalgar’s Rockies Thrills and Glacier Chills Family Experiences trip, then I would recommend spending a few days here to enjoy even more of what this fascinating city has to offer.

Since one could spend days exploring all the diverse family-friendly activities and sights of Vancouver, I’ve listed my top five things for kids, teens and parents to do.

1. Stanley Park
Stanley Park is truly an urban gem due to its extreme diversity. Its 1,000 acres include a small beach area, hiking trails, rose garden, cricket fields, and horse drawn carriages. And there’s so much to do: Vancouver Aquarium, playgrounds, Children’s Farmyard, and Miniature Railway. If you want your kids to sleep well at night, plan on spending an entire day in Stanley Park. It’s the perfect antidote to jet lag!

2. Capilano Suspension Bridge
Since teens especially like thrilling experiences, they are prime candidates for Capilano Suspension Bridge (although all ages are welcome). With the Capilano River 230 feet below, walking 450 feet across the swaying footbridge is not for the faint hearted! If you’d like to continue the excitement, then check out Treetops Adventure which is a series of elevated suspension bridges located amidst high foliage. And the Cliff walk which winds its way along a precipice and is anchored at 16 points into the cliff. Capilano is a quick 15 minute ride from the city and is easily accessible.

3. Grouse Mountain
Getting there is half the fun! Grouse Mountain Skyride lifts you one mile to the Alpine Station 3,700 feet above sea level. Once atop Grouse Mountain, there are spectacular views of Vancouver, the surrounding waterways and mountains. There are plenty of family-friendly things to do up top including easy hiking trails, a visit to the wildlife refuge with bears and wolves, Birds in Motion demonstration and Theatre in the Sky with 3-D nature movies. My kids really enjoyed seeing the seasonal logging shows and lumberjack competitions.

4. Vancouver Aquarium
Situated in the middle of Stanley Park, the Vancouver Aquarium is Canada’s largest marine wildlife museum. With 70,000 animals, it’ll be hard for children and teens to say they’re bored here. Some of the highlights include the Encounters program, where you can get up close and personal with marine animals and their trainers, the Rain Forest room and the 4-D theatre.

5. H.R. MacMillan Space Centre
Want to know how rockets fly or how astronauts live? Then head to the H.R. MacMillan Space Centre. Kids of all ages will enjoy games which will have them pretending to morph into an alien or land a spaceship successfully. Don’t forget to check out the planetarium shows too.

By Luisa Frey

Luisa, an accomplished travel writer is a regular contributor to www.trafalgarblog.com

Season logging show and lumberjack competitions at Grouse Mountain

I arrived in Paris for my Best of France Trafalgar trip a few days early and spent time wandering the many famed sights and streets of this charming city. Before I knew it Day 1 had arrived and I was meeting up with our Travel Director Cindy and 48 others who had made the big trip from Australia, Canada and the US. It was a nice and diverse group, some young and a very independent 86 year-old lady!

We set forth into Burgundy wine country on our way to Lyon stopping by the medieval town of Beaune at Maison Reine Pedauque winery. After a tour of the cave-like wine cellars (which date back to the 17^th century) we had the pleasure of tasting some of their specialty local drops – the first of many to come on this trip! Upon arriving in Lyon, Cindy took us to the top of a hill which had magnificent views of the city and then it was off to enjoy a nice dinner in France’s culinary capital.

The next day we passed Avignon to see the Papal Palace and the bridge of Avignon, then onwards to Monte Carlo before staying the following two nights in Nice. Our hotel, Boscolo Plaza was in a very good location – one block from the Promenade des Anglais. We had a whole free day in Nice and I visited the Russian Orthodox Church, took a boat ride, tried their local specialty socca (crepes made of chickpea flour) and visited the famous casino (no luck!), all with my seat mate, an American lady from Oregon. We got along beautifully.

In the ancient fortified city of Carcassone we stayed at Les Trois Couronnes, which had a magnificent view of the best castle I have ever seen, especially at night. Most rooms had a view of it, including mine! Dinner at the hotel was very good and included their famous cassoulet with local wine.

On the way to Biarritz, in the Pays Basque, we stopped at Lourdes for a couple of hours. An exceptional place with lots of local charm. Lourdes holds a strong religious significance as the site where the Virgin Mary appeared on a number of occasions. Many pilgrims come here to collect water from the spring – known to have healing powers and so I filled a couple of bottles for my friends back home.

Biarritz is famous for its surf and a popular place for celebrities to escape to. I had a nice time walking by the beach and the shopping was also good. I wasn’t looking, but I saw a pair of nice Mephisto sandals that I had to have, at a much better price than in the US!

After a night in Biarritz we continued through the beautiful French countryside to the famous wine region of Bordeaux.

Susana from California

The fortified city of Carcassone, France

Susana in Biarritz, France

Our Greek Island Hopper Trafalgar trip continued with three nights in Santorini.

We opted for a full day island tour with a local guide, visiting two charming towns where we purchased some fresh little tomatoes from a street vendor – delicious! We saw pistachio trees, olive trees and vineyards and later took to the iconic Black Beach and Red Beach. After a swim and lunch we visited SantoWines, a local winery which was very interesting. We enjoyed a guided tour and even got to taste their famous white and dessert wines.

That night, our Travel Director Filippos, invited the group to join him at a local restaurant. We all went and had a wonderful dinner in the centre of Fira. Afterwards, we visited a local bar where we relaxed with a few drinks on the balcony. I enjoyed that Filippos sat and mingled with us on occasions like these.

Another full free day on Santorini, so we took part in the optional Volcano and Caldera Cruise. This turned out to be quite an adventure with a few unexpected challenges, but my boyfriend really enjoyed it. It was actually his best day on the trip! We took what looked like a pirate ship to the island of Nea Kameni, an active volcano in the Santorini archipelago. It’s a big mountain covered in craters and black rocks, and the climb up it is tough so be sure to wear running shoes. We decided to go all the way to the top – exhausting but worth it. The view is amazing.

In the evening, a private coach took us to the beautiful town of Oia for dinner, where we enjoyed a lovely meal at a terrace restaurant. For dessert, Filippos kindly bought us a box filled with traditional Greek desserts, which we shared. Afterwards, we walked around town and stopped to view the famous Oia sunset.

Bidding farewell to Santorini, we boarded the ferry to Athens and again we were upgraded to VIP. Being our last night in Greece, everyone decided to have dinner together at a traditional Greek taverna in the Plaka. This was the best dinner of them all – a real taste of Greek culture. The food was fabulous! Two musicians played and sang the whole time, which was extremely charming. And a group of dancers also did a few entertaining numbers. Opa!

Overall, this was an amazing trip. The pace was slower than our last Trafalgar trip but we still got to see and do a lot of activities. I recommend it to those who want to experience the Greek Islands instead of just visiting them for a few hours on a cruise.

Elise from Ontario, Canada

To read Elise’s full Greek Island Hopper travel tale, visit the Trafalgar Community Forums here.

Red Beach, Santorini

What a view! Elise and her partner in Santorini

To celebrate our 50th wedding anniversary, my husband and I chose our dream trip with Trafalgar, where for 20 glorious days we explored the best of England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

While in Limerick, Ireland I asked Dan, our Travel Director if I should dress up that evening for the Renaissance Banquet.  He said, in his beautiful British accent, “Yes Anita, put on your feathers tonight!”

As we entered Bunratty Castle, we were pulled out of line and escorted directly to the banquet room while everyone else took to the stairwell.  I thought it was just a courtesy because of my walking cane.  We were totally shocked to be led to two thrones where we were given crowns and told we would be Lord and Lady for the evening – by the order of Barnaby Lord of Thurmond.

For days thereafter our fellow travel companions called us “Your Majesty” and bowed in our direction.  I even knighted one noble friend with my cane while others cheered!

After we returned home, a friend of mine painted Bunratty Castle for me in oils as an anniversary gift to remember our unforgettable experience.  Along with the certificate we received, it occupies a place of pride in our living room. As I recall the event, I still wonder if Dan, our Travel Director had a hand in us being selected, for what became such a memorable occasion in our lives.

Lois Anita Curtis from Tennessee, USA.

Bunratty Castle – Limerick, Ireland

Lois Anita and her husband sitting on the throne