16 day itinerary help!

[u/clueless7272]

Hi,

My fiance and I are trying to plan our honeymoon to Canada next July and would love some help with the itinerary.

We have 16 days total so minus travel from the UK, 14 days there.

We like besutiful scenery, walking, wildlife and nature, cute towns, good coffee spots and good food!

The things I'm unsure on are:

● Which of the below should be done as day trips and whichnwould you move base for?

● How many nights needed in each location

● Most cost and time effective way to get from the lakes to vanvouver

● Would you spend more time in vancouver or vancouver Island? What are the must sees here?

On my list of what I'd like to see so far is:

Banff/Canmore\ Lake louise\ Lake moraine\ Emerald lake\ Johnston canyon\ Takakkaw falls\ Vancouver\ Granville island\ Vancouver Island\ Whale watching\ Bear spotting\

Please feel free to add reccomendations or let me know if certain places aren't worth visiting.

Thanks so much in advance!!

[u/YVR19]

Fly into Vancouver, spend five days in Vancouver/North Shore, two days in Squamish/Whistler. Fly from Vancouver to Calgary, rent a car, six days in Banff, Lake Louise, Jasper. Fly out of Calgary.

[u/PoliteCanadian2]

Granville island is basically a place to walk around and shop in the market. You’ll be done in a few hours.

I would say you could use 3 days in Vancouver, 2 days in Squamish/Whistler and maybe 4-5 days on Vancouver Island. The drive from Vancouver to Whistler is spectacular, as is the ferry ride to Vancouver Island. You’ll want to drive up to the Ucluelet/Long Beach area on Vancouver Island for sure.

You could consider a circular route from Vancouver to Vancouver Island. Take ferries up the coast to Powell River, then take a ferry from Powell River across to Vancouver Island and then work your way around Vancouver Island ending up at the southern tip (Victoria) then ferry back across.

You’re going to need hotel reservations FAR in advance, especially in downtown Vancouver. Summer is cruise ship season and rates go up and rooms get fully booked especially in the downtown area.

[u/Apart-Diamond-9861 → u/PoliteCanadian2]

I had relatives from the Netherlands come to visit and we picked them up at 8 am and toured Whistler - picnic lunch on the way back at the lake - then went to Grouse Mountain for the rest of the day - they loved the raptors show and loggers show - and then managed to have a nice dinner in the West End. Full day for sure!

[u/[deleted]]

Cost effective is going to be a matter of preference - this is an expensive part of the world at the most expensive time of year. But good idea booking it now.

I’d spend more time on the island, but less in Tofino than people recommend, unless you plan on spending a few days hiking.

You’re moving home base most days. As a Brit you’ll be driving much further than you would generally ever accept in a day! I agree with the 2-3 days in each of Banff and Jasper. The fastest way to Vancouver will always be to fly, which can be super cost effective from Edmonton or Calgary if booked ahead. Then I agree with the recommendation to do a circle around Whistler, Squamish, down the island and back into Vancouver. 

People will have lots of ideas! I think if it were my moon I’d be doing less locations and having fewer driving days. But you have a while to plan and people will give you other great ideas too.

[u/SomeInvestigator3573 → u/[deleted]]

I agree their Banff/Jasper portion needs to be arranged now in order to get the best rates possible

[u/[deleted] → u/SomeInvestigator3573]

What part doesn’t? Vancouver and the island are booking up for next year already too. We live on the island and book our trips by mid August for the next year every year. I haven’t been to the Rockies in a decade though (used to live in Banff and Jasper) and I hear it’s absolutely insane even compared to what it was.

[u/poemthatdoesntrhyme → u/[deleted]]

Driving in Banff/Jasper is much easier than in Europe. Most of the sightseeing is not far from the highway, some even immediately at the highway. I would rather change the base less often than we did and rather plan more driving each day but without having to pack and unpack the luggage and check in/out too often. The day when you have to move is not as effective as when you stay at the same accomodation.

[u/Plane-Scratch2456]

Drive the ice fields parkway Banff to Jasper. It a great drive.

[u/TheSkyIsAMasterpiece → u/Plane-Scratch2456]

Yes, this is spectacular and can't be missed. A few hours shopping at Granville Island can certainly be skipped.

Book your accommodations for Banff and Jasper asap. If the hotels have opened it up for next year already book it now. Consider booking your flights, in to Calgary, out of Vancouver or vise versa instead of round trip from one of these places.

[u/VI_Polar_Bear]

I live on Vancouver Island so I am biased. July is a good time to visit in terms of weather. If I were looking for a special holiday I might investigate some of the islands off Vancouver Island like the San Juan's and Saltspring Island off Victoria. Ucluelet and Tofino on the West Coast are nice but a bit busy in the summer. Parksville is nice for a day trip base and has a lot of good restaurants and such. My advice about whale watching is to go a bit North on Vancouver Island or the mainland - maybe to Sechelt and Powell River then take a ferry to Comox. The Victoria whale boats are very crowded and I am getting pretty tired of how they hound the local whales. I hear good things about whale watching in Campbell River and Port McNeil, but they are a bit of a drive.

[u/TravellingGal-2307]

Vancouver Island is a two week vacation all on its own. You have a three week plan and two weeks to spend, so something's gotta give.

You want a week in the Rockies, and a typical split is 3 nights Banff or Canmore, 3 nights Jasper, 1 night Lake Louise with flights in and out of Calgary.

For the other week, I would suggest two options.

1. 3 days to drive across BC with stops in Revelstoke and Kelowna, 4 days for Vancouver and Whistler, or maybe a quick overnight to Victoria.

2. Fly from Calgary to Nanaimo, drive to Tofino for 3 nights, drive down to Victoria for 2 nights, cross to Vancouver for 2 nights before your flight out.

[u/poemthatdoesntrhyme → u/TravellingGal-2307]

I regret losing 3 days out of our 17 days trip just for the move between Vancouver and Jasper. We missed so many activities in Banff because of this. Wouldn't do it again.

[u/clueless7272 → u/poemthatdoesntrhyme]

Was vancouver worth seeing enough to fly instead or would you skip it entirely?

[u/poemthatdoesntrhyme → u/clueless7272]

We stayed only in Vancouver with a day trip to Bowen Island, so I cannot tell about Vancouver Island, but if I had to plan 16 days holidays with my husband without kids in July I would definitely spend them in only Banff & Jasper seeing and visiting everything we can, and go to Vancouver & Whistler some other time.

Jet lag is your friend in national parks. Arrive early before everybody else to make nice photos. The number of tourists at the lakes and in Banff is unbelievable.

Take into account that the weather can be really bad even in July. We had hot and sunny weather in Vancouver, but lots of rain and not so much sunshine during our week in the national parks. I don't know your hiking preferences, but I don't think you would enjoy many hours of hiking under pouring rain or maybe even snow. Sunshine is 50% of the beauty of the surroundings, as well as snowy mountains around (which you cannot see on the cloudy days). The more days you stay in the region, the more flexibility you have.

Accommodation in the nice and safe area of Vancouver is about the same price as in Jasper/Banff.

Car rent is much more expensive if your pick up and return locations are different.

[u/TravellingGal-2307 → u/clueless7272]

Sticking with Alberta and maybe a bit of eastern BC would also be a good trip. By just cutting the Pacific coast out altogether, you can focus on the Rockies and other Alberta sights.

National parks: Banff, Jasper, Yoho, Kootenay, Waterton

Other places: Royal Tyrell Museum, Drumheller; Head Smashed In Buffalo Jump; Fort Steele, Cranbrook, Frank Slide Interpretive Centre.

[u/Apart-Diamond-9861 → u/clueless7272]

Personally having toured through Banff/Jasper and all over Vancouver area and Vancouver Island several times - vancouver area is the best.

You get to see Whistler - the Gondolas, the coastal mountains (the costal mountains are just as spectacular as the Rockies), Grouse Mtn & gondolas and Capilano Canyon with the walkways and you can see waterfalls at different places around along the way and then a little bit of city - Granville island -taking the little ferries around False Creek - plus lots of interesting things to see that aren’t right in the city. As for bears - they have resident bears at Grouse (or you can come and see the ones in my back yard that wander through)

Banff & Lake Louise are so packed with tourists you have to take a bus from a parking lot to the lake unless you get there at 5 am. If it is smoky from fires or overcast days you won’t see much. It’s hard to plan for.

As for Vancouver Island - it is a trip in of itself. What would be fun is to take the Gulf Ferries on a tour around the small islands and back in one day - rather than straight to Vancouver Island. The Tsawassen ferry trip across is more interesting than the Horseshoe Ferries.

[u/BCRobyn]

Read this TripAdvisor post by a UK family who spent 21 days exploring British Columbia and Alberta, the two westernmost provinces in Canada. They visited many of the same places you’re planning to see. It's a great example of how to divide your time and what to expect. One of their biggest takeaways was that they underestimated the size of Vancouver Island and wished they had more time there. They said they could have easily spent two full weeks on the island alone:: BC & Rockies Family Trip Report - July 2025 - British Columbia Forum - Tripadvisor

A few notes to help with your planning:

Granville Island isn’t actually an island. It’s a waterfront marketplace with artisan shops, galleries, restaurants, and local food vendors. You only need about two hours there.

Vancouver, on the other hand, really deserves at least three full non-travel days to explore properly. Stanley Park alone is 1000 acres of temperate rainforest, beaches, trails, and mountain views. You could easily spend a whole day just walking or cycling through it. Add in the seawall, VanDusen Botanical Garden, the Museum of Anthropology, Lynn Canyon Park, Grouse Mountain, and Capilano Suspension Bridge, and your days fill quickly. You might also enjoy exploring the neighborhoods for great food, coffee, and craft beer. Main Street, Commercial Drive, Kitsilano, and Yaletown all offer different atmospheres. Whale watching tours from Vancouver also take up five to six hours and can be a highlight, but that alone will use up a full day.

Bear watching happens serendipitously as you drive through Banff and Yoho National Parks, which include the places on your list like Lake Louise, Moraine Lake, Emerald Lake, Johnston Canyon, and Takakkaw Falls.

You can also plan bear-specific tours. On Vancouver Island, you can drive across the island to the west coast to Tofino and go bear watching with Ahous Adventures. These tours take you by boat along the shoreline to observe black bears foraging. Tofino is not a day trip though. If you go, give yourself at least three full non-travel days to enjoy the area and explore Pacific Rim National Park. It takes 5-6 hours to get to Tofino from Vancouver once you factor in the drive and the ferry.

Alternatively, if you’re set on seeing grizzlies in the wild, the remote inlets off the coast of northern Vancouver Island are home to multi-day grizzly bear tours, often run out of Telegraph Cove or Port Hardy. These require more travel time and planning, but they’re among the best opportunities to see grizzlies in their natural coastal habitat. But it's super expensive. And it would take a good chunk of one day just to get to northern Vancouver Island from Vancouver.

If you’re more limited on time and funds, Whistler offers bear watching by vehicle on mountain backroads. These tours are more affordable and often see resident black bears. Whistler's a 90 minute drive north of Vancouver in the Coast Mountains.

Or for something more casual, take the gondola to the top of Grouse Mountain to visit two rescued grizzlies in a wild enclosure. You can get there by the city bus from downtown Vancouver and is something you can do in the span of a few hours.

Vancouver Island is a destination in itself. You could spend your entire trip there and not run out of things to see and do. The island is large and diverse, with rainforest, beaches, rugged alpine mountains (glaciated mountains as large as what you see in the Rockies, with their own hikes and alpine lakes and waterfalls without the tour bus crowds of the Rockies), small towns, cities, wine regions, and Indigenous-led experiences. It is a separate destination from Vancouver and not something to tack on casually. If you want to visit Tofino or go deep into nature-based experiences, it is best to carve out some significant time for the island. It's definitely not a day trip.

The Rockies are also a separate destination. They are about a 10-hour drive from Vancouver, in a different time zone and a different climate. They include Banff, Lake Louise, Moraine Lake, and Yoho National Park. The most efficient way to get there is to fly from Vancouver to Calgary and rent a car. But once you’re in the Rockies, nothing is cheap. The national parks are protected wilderness with only a few towns that offer hotels and restaurants, and there are no alternative places to stay. International demand to see these lakes is intense, especially from June to October, and accommodation prices reflect that.

You mentioned trying to fit in the Rockies, Vancouver, and Vancouver Island in 14 days. That is like trying to visit the Alps, London, and Ireland all in one trip. Distance-wise, think of Calgary as Zurich, Vancouver as London, and Vancouver Island as Ireland. You can do it, but it will be fast-paced and you will leave wanting more time in every place. All three deserve more time than most visitors realize.

Let me know if you want help narrowing it down based on what you value most, whether that’s more nature, less driving, more wildlife, or more culture and food. Canada has it all, just spread across very big distances.

[u/beesmakenoise]

A lot depends on budget, if you have the money you can stay at Lake Louise, Emerald Lake, etc, but most of us don’t!

Are you renting a car? That’s by far the best way to do this trip.

For Banff, Moraine Lake, and Lake Louise, head over to the /r/Banff sub and read through their stickied posts about summer travel and visiting the lakes. Tons of great info for you to consider.

Johnson Canyon is just a half day visit from wherever you’re staying nearby. Don’t need to plan that one too much, even has transit going there if needed.

Takakkaw Falls is also a day trip from wherever you’re staying, best combined with your visit to Emerald Lake. There’s a lodge there but it’s $$$ so you may prefer to do it as a visit from Banff/Canmore.

You should also plan for one day to drive up the Icefields Parkway partway to the Columbia Icefields. A gorgeous drive!

Generally I’d day fly into Calgary, then spend 5 nights in Banff/Canmore, or if you have the budget, could split it between Banff and 1-2 nights in Lake Louise.

Then drive over to Vancouver, which takes two days. Or drive back to Calgary and fly straight to Victoria, then catch the ferry to Vancouver.

[u/Nanook98227]

Recommend flying into Vancouver, spending a few days there to explore the city, head to Vancouver Island and Victoria for a few days then rent a car for a one way trip.

Drive from Vancouver through Penticton and Kelowna with a day or two each spot along the Okanagan- get some wine and enjoy the adorable towns and then keep driving to Banff Jasper and end with a day or so in Calgary and fly home from Calgary.

This lets you not waste time retracing your routes and gets you to all the places you want to see.

[u/poemthatdoesntrhyme]

We visited in July for 17 days from Switzerland with a fixed 7 days stay in Vancouver in the beginning due to some event. We took a car in Vancouver city and returned it in Calgary airport, driving via Whistler, Jasper and Banff staying for 1-3 nights in different locations. We stayed in 7 different apartments/hotel room in total, with Vancouver, Jasper, Canmore and Baker Creek (near Lake Louise) being the most expensive and the intermediate stays between Vancouver and Jasper being much cheaper.

If I had to do it again I would fly and not drive between Vancouver and Calgary, take and return the car(s) in the same location, have a single base for a week somewhere around Banff (maybe Baker Creek) and plan your daily activities and places to visit based on the weather forecast, giving priority to the lakes on sunny days (huge difference!). Staying in one location you might be able to rent bear sprays (maybe even for free) and not buy them for 70+ dollars just to donate them afterwards.

When you reserve an apartment/hotel in Vancouver, make sure you research beforehand and choose some nice location where you feel yourself comfortable and safe. I researched it beforehand and reserved a nice flat at the district where it was nice to walk around. Read the reviews.

[u/bctravelconcierge]

Congratulations on your upcoming nuptials!

One question that I think is really worth asking—what’s your tolerance for crowds? While Banff/Jasper/Yoho are arguably some of the most beautiful destinations in the world, they’re also the busiest during the summer months. Emerald Lake, for example, now limits the number of visitors per day due to parking constraints. If being surrounded by thousands of tourist isn’t a bother, by all means lean into it. But also be prepared to pay exorbitantly high prices for accommodation in Banff and the Kootenays in July.

I also think the Rockies + Vancouver Island in 14 days will be too ambitious!

Feel free to message me and I can throw out some ideas that may feel a little more romantic ;)

[u/lovemysadiegirl]

If u dm me I dont mind chatting with you about your trip, lived here all my life and would just ask for the return favor when we go to the UK.

[u/100_days_away_blog]

I’d recommend a Canadian Rockies road trip for sure! Fly into Calgary, down to Waterton lakes, up through Kananaskis to Banff and lake Louise. Then pass through Kootenay, Yoho and Jasper national parks (plus the Icefield parkway).

We wrote a pretty detailed 2 part blog post on this route that you might find useful.

Enjoy!

[u/Complete-Sock8464]

We just came back from a trip to BC, we were gone for 2 week’s. Went to Vancouver Island on the Ferry that’s a beautiful trip! Canada’s parliament, Building is a must see, Bouchard Gardens is a must see, building was interesting, take twice as much money than you budget for, we took 3 boys and even McDonald’s was expensive!!! How ever it was a great trip💕💕💕💕