From Colorado to coastal Maine, America has a lot on offer in leaf-peeping season. But here’s a secret: Our northern neighbor is kaleidoscopic in autumn.
The undulating alpine scenery coated in burgundy, buttery yellow and tangerine hues is particularly on show aboard the Rocky Mountaineer’s First Passage to the West. On route through Banff, Alberta, you’ll experience Western Canada through oversized train windows with a glass of local wine or a hearty breakfast — lemon and honey buttermilk pancakes or smoked salmon avocado toast — prepared by on-board chefs.
It’s a journey designed to get the good times rolling and banish that nagging question: “Are we there yet?”
National perk
Banff is best known for its imposing mountains and bluer-than-blue lakes (the Caribbean Sea-colored Lake Louise, in particular).
For peak foliage, the best time to visit the national park is the last two weeks of September and the first week of October. Leaf-peepers can look forward to the alpine (tamarack larch) trees doing their thing as they undergo a metamorphosis from lush green to burnished gold.
This needle-laden tree, which abounds in Banff National Park, can also be appreciated through a bird’s-eye perspective on the Banff Gondola, one of the add-on activities offered by the Rocky Mountaineer.
Picture rail
Intrigued by the glamour of train travel but could do without sleeper car squishing? You’re in luck.
The Rocky Mountaineer is a daylight-only rail experience, so you’ll be on the tracks by day, and resting at beautiful hotels every night. To keep the choo-choo chummy all around, entertaining onboard hosts help narrate your time on the tracks with intel about wildlife and the geography, and campfire-worthy tales about historic sites and notable people.
When booking, select either GoldLeaf or SilverLeaf service options. With the GoldLeaf tier, you’ll be spoiled with cinematic vistas from a bi-level, glass-dome coach, the lower of which is for dining — you’ll also have access to an exclusive outdoor viewing platform. SilverLeaf service, meanwhile, takes place on a single-level train car, and you’ll dine on gourmet nosh from your seat.
Rates vary by service level and package (i.e., short journey, Rockies highlights or circle journey).
Right on track
Vancouver, Kamloops and Banff are the trio of destinations highlighted on the legendary “First Passage to the West” — and quite the trio it is. Get what the Hollywood North hype is all about at glam restaurants and retail outposts juxtaposed with equally bejeweled mother nature (snow-capped mountains, coastal tides, you know the deal).
From Vancouver, you’ll chug along to Kamloops, with verdant landscapes, the peaks of the Coast Mountains, the Fraser River and the foamy white-water of Hell’s Gate dazzling you en route and in town.
Next, you’ll make your way east through the Shuswap region, with its endless lake vistas. Once your caboose gains elevation, you’ll be mountain spotting all the way to Banff.
For railroad buffs, the real scene-stealer may very well be the engineering feats of the Spiral Tunnels, unveiled in 1909, which pass through Mount Ogden (lower tunnel) and Cathedral Mountain (upper tunnel), up the steep incline to Kicking Horse Pass.
Geology geeks will rejoice the most in traversing the Continental Divide. And just about everyone will go gaga for retracing the route of 19th-century explorers connecting Canada’s East and West when the railroad was completed in 1885.
This year, rates for the “First Passage to the West” packages start at $1,720 for a two-day rail journey from Vancouver to Banff, inclusive of two breakfasts and two lunches onboard, luggage handling and rail station transfers in Kamloops and overnight hotel in Kamloops.
The “First Passage to the West” discovery package starts at $4,140 and includes the two days of Rocky Mountaineer rail service and meals, along with eight nights of hotel accommodations, luggage handling and multiple rail station transfers, a National Parks pass and Banff gondola rides.
But best of all, First Passage to the West packages go in both directions. That means you can start in the Rockies (Banff) and go to Vancouver, or vice versa.