Canada has given us two completely different trips and some of our greatest travel memories. In 2009 we crossed Eastern Canada from Toronto to Newfoundland. Fifteen years later we came back for Calgary, the Stampede, the Canadian Rockies and Vancouver — before sailing north to Alaska.
Our 2009 road trip took us from Toronto through Montréal, Québec City, Ottawa and Niagara Falls, then east to Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland.
In 2024 we returned for Calgary and the Stampede, a three-day Rockies adventure through Yoho, Banff and Jasper, then finished in Vancouver.
Newfoundland. The Irish accents, music, place names and the Irish Loop on the Avalon Peninsula stopped us in our tracks.
Walking on the Athabasca Glacier, surrounded by the Canadian Rockies, was one of those travel moments we'll never forget.
French roots in Canada stretch back more than four centuries, to the settlements of New France in the early 1600s. After Britain took control of New France in the 18th century, French-speaking communities remained — especially along the St Lawrence River — and their language, culture and identity endured.
Today, English and French are Canada's two official languages at federal level. Québec is the heartland of French-speaking Canada, while Francophone and Acadian communities are found well beyond the province too. Travelling through Montréal and Québec City made that side of Canada especially vivid for us: the language, architecture and atmosphere can feel dramatically different from Toronto just a few hours away.
Two completely different Canadian adventures on one map: our 2009 journey from Toronto through Eastern Canada to Newfoundland, and our 2024 trip from Calgary through the Canadian Rockies to Vancouver. Tap any marker for the story behind the stop.
Toronto → Montréal → Québec City → Ottawa → Niagara Falls → Prince Edward Island → Nova Scotia → Newfoundland
Big cities, French-Canadian culture, Atlantic coastlines and an unexpectedly emotional Irish connection at the very end.
🍁 Full Eastern Canada guide →Calgary → Yoho & Banff → Columbia Icefield → Jasper → Vancouver → Alaska
The Stampede, turquoise lakes, glaciers, mountain roads and one of the most spectacular cities we've visited.
⛰️ Full Rockies & Vancouver guide →In 2009 we embarked on one of our greatest road trips — starting in Toronto and travelling all the way to Newfoundland. It gave us cosmopolitan cities, French and British heritage, Niagara Falls, the Atlantic provinces and one of the strongest Irish connections we've ever encountered abroad.
Our starting point for the 2009 trip: a huge, energetic, multicultural city and the launch pad for the journey east.
French-Canadian culture, Old Montréal, food, music and a city with a character completely its own.
One of our favourite parts of the entire 2009 trip. The old streets, French language, historic architecture and views around Château Frontenac gave Québec City a character unlike anywhere else we visited in Canada.
Canada's capital surprised us. Parliament, museums and seeing traditional Pow Wow dancing became one of the trip's most memorable cultural experiences.
No photograph prepares you for the noise, spray and sheer volume of water. It exceeded the hype for us.
Red-soiled farmland, beaches, fishing villages and a gentler pace — a completely different side of Canada.
Atlantic coastline, seafood culture, colourful communities and strong Celtic connections.
This was the extraordinary surprise. The accents, place names, music and warmth felt uncannily familiar. Driving the Irish Loop on the Avalon Peninsula became one of the most unexpectedly emotional travel experiences we've ever had.
Fifteen years after Eastern Canada, we came back for a completely different adventure: Calgary for the world-famous Stampede, three packed days through the Canadian Rockies, the Columbia Icefield and Jasper, then Vancouver before boarding our Alaskan cruise.
The Stampede was one of the greatest events we've attended anywhere: rodeo, chuckwagon racing, live music, fairground energy and an entire city getting involved. Calgary was also our gateway to the mountains.
We did a guided three-day tour, which let us cover an enormous amount without having to organise every stop ourselves.
One of the most unusual experiences of the trip. The Icefield Explorer took us onto the Athabasca Glacier, where we stepped out and actually walked on the ice surrounded by mountains.
Lake Louise, Moraine Lake, Peyto Lake, Bow Lake, Emerald Lake and Maligne Lake — the turquoise and jade colours were every bit as spectacular as we'd hoped.
After the mountains, Vancouver felt like another world: glass towers, ocean, mountains on the horizon. The Panorama Seaplane tour was a standout, and the hop-on hop-off bus gave us an easy way to cover the city before our cruise.
Montréal, Ottawa, Niagara, the Atlantic provinces and Newfoundland.
Our Athabasca Glacier experience.
The extraordinary lakes of the Canadian Rockies.
Our Panorama Seaplane flight over Vancouver.
A taste of the atmosphere at the Calgary Stampede.
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Explore some of the cities from our Canada travels virtually with our friends at Drive From Home. Choose the city guide or jump straight into the drive.
Canada is enormous. Our two trips worked because each focused on a region rather than trying to cross the whole country at once.
If the Stampede is part of your plan, build the western itinerary around those dates rather than trying to squeeze it in.
We covered a huge number of major stops in three days without having to manage the driving and logistics ourselves.
We used Vancouver as the final Canadian stop before sailing north. Read the separate Alaska diary for that part of the journey.
Toronto. From there we travelled through Montréal, Québec City, Ottawa and Niagara Falls before continuing to Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland.
Québec City was one of our favourite stops of the whole trip, while Newfoundland surprised us with its strong Irish connection and the unforgettable drive around the Irish Loop.
For us, absolutely. It was one of the greatest events we've attended anywhere, and the whole city atmosphere was part of the experience.
Yes. It let us see Lake Louise, Moraine Lake, Yoho, the Columbia Icefield, Jasper, Maligne Lake, Peyto Lake and much more without having to organise every leg ourselves.
The Panorama Seaplane tour. Taking off from the downtown waterfront and seeing Vancouver, Burrard Inlet and the surrounding mountains from the air was spectacular.
From Toronto to Newfoundland in 2009, then Calgary to Vancouver fifteen years later — and we'd go back again.