This tour was outsourced to another company and we were not notified of this. Instead of the smaller tour we expected, it was over 50 people on a dirty bus with majority of commentary in Chinese. Buying the food package meant only eating Ch..inese buffet and if you didn't buy this then some places didn't have anywhere to eat. This was a lot of distance to cover in 5 days, especially as there is so much traffic in Canada and most of our days were spent on the road and not sightseeing. However, the guides were very punctual.Read full review
Tour was very good but felt rushed at some stops and during meals.
Wasn't aware that we had to pay cash for tours and meals but our credit card was finally accepted. We booked the tour the day before we left and we should have been told ab..out this important detail. Both the tour guide and the driver were excellent. Hotels did not meet up to the standards advertised.Read full review
Very easy transition. Jeremy was an excellent tour guide. He was a great at interpreting for us and very informative. He made sure we stayed on schedule and we got everything done in a timely manner.
By: Francois Bredenkamp | Tue Sep 17, 2019 at 08.12 AM
A fabulous tour through what could possibly be some of the prettiest areas in the world! It's so nice to leave all of the logistics in the capable hands of the tour guide and bus driver and just enjoy the experience. I commend Gordon for th..e excellent way he managed the tour.Read full review
The whole trip was excellent value for monies paid. I believe the optional parts should have been clearer and some visits should have been placed in the compulsory package like visits to the museum, observation gallery, churches etc.
The.. hotel accommodation was excellent. The opportunity to get breakfast on the last day was difficult and the long drive on the last morning heading for thousand islands should have been broken up with a visit of done kind. I know that would mean rearranging the tour but the 5 hours was too much. The restaurant on the last day was not as good a standard as the others. The paper plates was an issue and the food was too oily, the tour guide and coach driver were excellent.Read full review
6 Days Tour.
Want to severything optimally in a short time.
A tight schedule certainty understandable.
Ottawa, the cruise that may from the program would have liked to have seen a bit more of the city.
Very surprised chiese orga ization luc..hes or chinese food. More clarity about the luches.Eurpean people eat something else before noon.
Everything was arranged well and had a nice 6 days tour.Read full review
I am usually the taking-a-rental-car type of traveller, but I am so glad that I did the tour cos it gave me a great introduction not just to the park, but also to all the practicalities around. I would never be able to recognise all the mou..ntains and lakes and all the stories behind if I were to do it on my own.
Also I am glad to see that the national parks in Canada have stricter rules on how many people/cars are allowed to each spot, the parking lots are generally smaller and off-site and people would need to take a shuttle to get there. Not to mention that even the road to the Moraine lake is closed (already around 10pm in early September) when the parking lot (for private cars) is full. However, being on a tourbus you don't have to worry abou none of that since they are designated parking for that.
Note that the cruise to the Maligne lake is very weather dependent, all cruise on the morning of Sep 5 (sunny day) was cancelled due to the heavy fog just surrounding the lake area. The lake staff the best time is to come here in a hot clear day in the afternoon.
I was on two different busses during the 4-day tour with two different guides. The first driver we had – Mike, was a great driver and full of charisma. I saw him documenting each stop we made with his logbook very carefully, also sang for us and explained about the park environmental issues.
Some improvements would be better cleaning of the buses, I could see stains on the bus windows which is not so pleasant when you wnat to take lots of pictures.
And yes the tour is mostly catered to Chinese tourists, some guides are better in English than others, but generally I think all the non-Chinese speaking on our buses were quite content.
You might not get the best hotel rooms with a view, or do an upgrade.
Afterall very content with the tour, ready to go back and explore on my own now I know which are my favorites.Read full review
Good bang for the buck!!! Clarion hotel & conference centre for 4N was not a good one especially the old lady at their front desk. Good tour guides except for their very thick accent...hard to understand the words they’re saying. Excellen..t driver in Mike!!!Read full review