A big part of Vancouver's appeal is how easily you can swap the skyscrapers for whale-filled oceans and mountain-punctured skies.
Feast your senses in the contrasts of a modern city tucked between some of the world’s expansive sceneries.  One minute you are walking the busy urban city, the next you are in hiking in the mountain or fishing in its teeming rivers and seas.
Music, culture, and art lovers rub shoulder to shoulder with rugged mountaineers, explorers, and outdoorsmen. The art crowd hangs out at Vancouver Art Gallery or the Contemporary Art Gallery. Consummate outdoorsmen and women frequent Vancouver Island – to chance upon grizzly bears, whales, and orcas. Cultural vultures will probably head for the sights and sounds of Canada's biggest Chinatown. From steaming dim sum for lunch to Chinese apothecaries offering herbs to soothe any illness, it’s all here thanks to the migrant workers of the 19th century.
Go to the Vancouver Lookout Tower for the ultimate 360-degree views of the city locked in eternal embrace of the beckoning wilderness. Walk to Stanley Park and wonder at the beauty of this cosmopolitan city's doorstep, with its pine-tree-clad park offering isolated trails and incredible vistas.  Wander into the Seawall that encircles it - a 20-mile coastal path full of joggers, whizzing skaters, and wandering couples. Grab a bike and cycle between Coal Harbour and Kitsilano Beach. Get a tan on any of its beaches.
 

Explore Alaska’s magnificent winter vistas, weaving through its rugged, snow powdered islands and slow-moving glaciers. Experience this great expanse as you traverse into a living natural artwork, mountains jutting from the shores and a smattering of islands completing the picture.
Used as a sailing route with its calm sheltered waters, chance upon killer whales or harbor seals swimming alongside your boat.  Seeing glaciers amble along the icy seas and the slow creaks and thundering boom of breaking ice gives you a sense of the power and magnificence of nature.
The Inside Passage is a journey of glaciers, remote hidden villages, and carved fjords – it is a breathtaking voyage through the intricate mesh of Alaska’s fractured, raw and spectacular coastal landscapes.

See why this beautiful land is called the Salmon Capital of the World.. This land is home to grizzly and black bears - as well as cruising whales and swimming seals. Spotting wildlife here is perfect.  Towered over by steep banks and valley walls, Ketchikan's ocean inlet is peppered with granite stacks, looming from the waters. Cruise through the waters, or soar just above in a sightseeing plane, to take in the full majesty of the magnificent Misty Fjords National Monument.
 
Head to the Alaska Rainforest Sanctuary, and see eagles, black bears, and great, thick, yellow banana slugs - the squeamish are advised to keep well clear. See a collection of intricately carved totem poles rise, preserving the heritage of the indigenous Tlingit and Haida people of these lands at Ketchikan's Heritage Centre. Ketchikan has the world's most extensive collection and some of the oldest and most precious totems in existence. This frontier city hasn’t always been so wholesome, however. See the colorful historic street built on crooked stilts over Ketchikan Creek, which has a crude history as the central red-light district in the city. The brothels closed in the 1950s, but you can explore this legendarily seedy past at Dolly’s House - a brothel turned museum. See the Married Man trail, a historical route used to enter Creek Street away from prying eyes.

Icy Point boasts of the most stunningly beautiful scenery that Alaska has to offer. And that is saying a lot considering that Alaska is synonymous to miles and miles of unspoilt nature.
Imagine eagles soaring overhead, whales breeching before your eyes. Moody, low-hanging clouds set the scene while velvety green mountains provide the backdrop. Sparklingly clear waters lap at pebbly shores. These are beaches of the adventure kind, you won’t find sun loungers and sombreros here, more like kayaks and canoes, ready for those who want to take their discovery off shore.
That in itself is Alaska.
See for yourself why the village claims to have more bears than humans by taking an ATV ride and rider through the forests. Located on Chichagoff Island, 35 miles west of Juneau and right in the centre of Glacier Bay, Icy Strait Point began life as a salmon cannery business, providing employment for the residents of nearby Hoonah.

Find your fortune like the first settlers Skagway did. You can still feel the gold rush along this citys’ streets. Take a walk at Klondike National Historical Park and downtown to imagine a city during this golden era. While the gold may now be gone, a treasure trove of natural glory and history waits to be discovered here.
Explore the jagged mountain ridges - with peaks of white snow above a treeline of towering pine forests - providing a reward for the ages.Ride one of the world’s most spectacular railroads and go back to the days of adventure.our engine will puff steam below the precipitous, colossal scenery, while the vintage carriages curve around the White Pass & Yukon Route, alongside tumbling waterfalls and spanning deeply-etched gorges. Walkthrough historic trails like the Chilkoot Trail Hike, to explore in the well-trodden footsteps of the gold seekers.

Icy Bay lives up to its frigid name. Gaze through Sapphire blue waters strewn with blocks of ice and the whole feeling is one of eerie, silent solitude. Yet, despite Icy Bay’s timelessness, it is a relative newcomer to the planet. Icy Bay as we know it is just 100 years old, formed by the retreat of the Guyot, Yahtse, and Tyndall Glaciers.

Described as “an indentation of the glacier face” by Captain Vancouver, the 30-mile strait was named but not recorded on any maps.

Today, it would almost unthinkable to not visit the superlative beauty of Icy Bay during a voyage to Alaska. The chilly waters are fed by a stream from the Saint Elias Mountain Range, making the surrounding scenery some of the most spectacular on Earth. Fjord-like conditions have proved a boon for migrating wildlife; expect harbor seals hauled out on bright-blue ice, a plethora of sea birds and marine mammals and even the odd grizzly perched on the side of the water.

The weather might not always be on your side (Icy Bay’s temperature in August is just 11˚C or 50˚F) but if you like big, bold, beautiful coastline then wrap up warm and experience Mother Nature at her very best.

Admire and become part of this awesome landscape. Valdez is a spectacular coastal city tucked into the deep shores of Prince William Sound. With unspoiled wildness, majestic mountains, tidewater glaciers, and deep green rainforests this is a must-see.

Rent a boat or kayak and get up close and personal with Colombier Glacier, one of the fastest moving glaciers in the world. This huge chunk of ice is renowned for its dramatic carving, leaving colossal chunks of ice in the water. Book a plane and see the scenery from up high with Flightseeing tours having the advantage of offering exceptional aerial views of the glacier and the surrounding Chugach mountains.

Valdez holds some of the oldest fish derbies in Alaska with big prize money, a testament to the superb fishing opportunities available. Hike trails of all levels of difficulty are well maintained and offer awesome views, including dramatic waterfalls and lots of wildlife. With eagles, seabirds, bears, seals, sea lions and sea otters all commonly seen, and whales and porpoises frequent visitors it can be hard to know where to look next.

Welcomed by magnificent sights like glaciers carving through itself and the surrounding mountains as whales languish into the deep blue framed by mountains, Seward and Kenai Fjords National Park offers one of the most awesome sceneries in the world. Fjords carve into the landscape, while the Harding Icefield - which caps Kenai Fjords National Park - reaches out its icy fingers, with glaciers spilling down between mountain peaks.

Head to Holgate Glacier, to come face to face with a breathtaking stack of intense blue and white ice. You can go face to face with these colossal ice behemoths with a kayak or a quick boat ride, walk through the discarded confetti of ice chunks, and chance at witnessing an ice ledge creaking and groaning, before plunging to the waters below. Anchorage is adjacent, contrasting the wild wonders of Alaska. It is not uncommon for deep-sea fishermen to bump shoulders with businesspeople. It is a fascinating city called home by almost half of the Alaskan population.

This small city’s skyline is humbled by the snowy peaks of the wilderness beyond. Soak in the unique culture, tradition and heritage of the First Nation people of these lands as well.

Hubbard Glacier, off the coast of Yakutat, Alaska, is the largest glacier in North America, with a calving front that is more than six miles wide. One of the main sources for Hubbard Glacier originates 76 mi inland. It has been a very active glacier, experiencing two major surges in the past 30 years. This glacier was named after Gardiner Greene Hubbard, a U.S. lawyer, financier, and philanthropist. He was the first president of the National Geographic Society.

Extraordinary adventures amid nature's wildest staging await at Juneau. The majestic Mendenhall Glacier sprawls down from Juneau Icefield, which provides an icy cap to the area's rip-roaring scenery. State capitals simply don't get more dramatic than this isolated, remote city lost amid the Alaskan wilds. Even the roads eventually peter out, absorbed by forests and viewpoints, firmly underlining the isolated location, hidden behind an impenetrable wall of rigid mountains. Rise up to Mount Roberts Tramway's viewpoint, to see the city swallowed by this most colossal backdrop.

This is glacier country, and no fewer than 38 ice flows branch off from the main Juneau Icefield, slowly carving out valleys in their wakes. Taku Glacier cuts deep into the mountain, forming a colossal sculpture that is one of the world's thickest - almost a mile deep. Mendenhall Glacier cascades down, just 12 miles away from downtown, terminating in its own lake and visitor centre. With 1,500 square miles of ice field to explore, one of the best ways to take in the magnitude and majesty of this epic ice sculpture is to hold on tight on as the propeller whirs, and you soar into the skies on an exhilarating sightseeing flight. Cruising up above the icy world that fills in these serrated mountain peaks is a once in a lifetime experience.

The animals that inhabit the Southeast Alaskan wilds are just as inspiring as the landscapes – families of bears patrol the riverbanks, bald eagles survey the surroundings watchfully, and Pacific humpbacks migrate from Hawaii's waters to feast on the krill rich, icy waters. Fish for huge catches, power across the ice in a snow-sledge, or kayak just below glaciers. However you choose to immerse yourself in it, Juneau's incredible outdoor adventures never disappoint.

Wild, raw, and unrestrained, Haines is Alaska at its most intoxicating. Crisp white snow crowns charcoal-coloured mountains, while seas of impenetrable pine forest flow down to swathes of scenic coastline in this magical setting. Explore a rejuvenating Alaskan escape of temperate rainforests and glaciers, as you dig into Chilkat Tlingit culture, and explore a landscape of frayed waterways, alive with Alaska's renowned wildlife. S

at at the head of the lengthy Lynn Canal - deep within the Inside Passage - Haines is a place where whale tales flick, bald eagles call, and juicy trout leap on to fishing rods. Get your hands dirty, and immerse yourself in all of nature's wonders - whether you want to slide out onto the still waters in a kayak, trek narrow trails on a bike, or rise up to grandstand views while hiking. Surrounded by watery inlets, get up close to the magnificent wildlife - whether it's brown bears wading out into the river to wrestle with huge fish, or walruses and sea lions reclining lazily on the banks.

Autumn brings a swell of fierce bald eagles to the area, and Haines welcomes the world's biggest concentration of the powerful birds. Fort Seward is a site of important gold rush history, as a former US military fort, turned heritage museum, and it's adorned with totem poles and masks. The area's native culture is kept alive through extraordinary Chilkat weaving, and the indigenous people create elaborate, richly decorated robes.

Don't leave before tasting smoke-cured salmon, fresh from the surrounding rivers.

A distant land of bears, wild landscapes and icy adventures, sail between glorious islands and witness the diverse wildlife of the Inside Passage. Eagles watch over the scenery overhead, while whales and sea lions add glorious weight to the animal life that thrives and thrashes in these icy seas.With a quintet of Pacific salmon species filling the rich rivers and waterways with life, settle back to enjoy the show, as Sitka's immense set pieces play out before you. You might notice the onion-shaped dome atop St. Michael’s Church – a relic of the area's Russian history. Sitka formed a part of the Russian Empire until a deal was struck in 1867, and the territory was sold to the United States, with the handover ceremony taking place here in Sitka. The native Tlingit culture is an important presence, and elaborate totem poles rocket up in Sitka National Historical Park. They mark the battleground of 1804, when the indigenous people clashed fiercely with the Russians. The snow-capped peak of the dormant volcano, Mount Edgecumbe, draws understandable comparisons with Mount Fuji's symmetrical cone. Climb to thrilling heights, as you arrive on Kruzof Island, and enjoy richly spellbinding views of the scattered Pacific islands, while hiking. Whether you want to spend your time flying above snow-dusted mountain ridges, fishing for colossal King salmon, or savouring Northwest frontier cuisine in waterfront restaurants, there's no shortage of ways to experience Sitka's natural wonders.

Alaska's majestic natural spectacles play out before you in Wrangell. The pure, gushing water is one of Alaska's most prized shows, and there are few better places to witness it than Wrangell - a town set amid the fractured lands of the legendary Inside Passage. Having experienced three gold rushes in its history, the immense scenery and thrilling wildlife is an enduring treasure for visitors.

The mighty Stikine River has been the lifeblood to this region for centuries, cutting through pine-cloaked valleys for 400 miles before unloading into the frigid ocean. If the tides are friendly, why not explore via jet-boat and head out to the abundant waters of Anan Creek, an ancient fishing site of the Tlingit people. Visit waters thick with lithe salmon - a bounty that tempts much of the wildlife from the confines of their forest shelters. The Anan Wildlife Observatory provides the ultimate viewing point to watch the salmon leaping from the cascading water. Look out from the cover for bears, salmon and bald eagles. Try your own luck fishing in Wrangell's waters, which are teeming with a rich bounty. Clomp through rich forests - beside waterfalls and waterways - on hair-raising hikes, which open out to glorious waterfront vistas. The aptly named Petroglyph Beach is the place to see amazing petroglyph artworks carved into the rocks.

Or tour Shakes Island's Tribal House, where you can see a replica of a Tinglit community house. The house is surrounded by fascinating, original totem poles, and a wooden footbridge conveniently links the island with Wrangell's harbour.

Navigate through the intricate outlays of some of Alaska’s most staggering winter scenery, threading a needle between craggy, snow-dusted islands, and slipping glacial giants. To cruise this 500-mile stretch of Alaskan beauty is to sail through a living work of natural art - with perfectly sculpted mountains soaring from the shoreline, and clutches of islands scattered across the dark waters with delicate attention to detail. A common sailing route due to its calm sheltered waters, gorgeous natural set pieces constantly play out here - whether it’s killer whales accompanying you through the breathtaking icy passages, harbour seals catching a break on floating hunks of ice, or wisps of cloud clinging to distant mountain peaks. Witness Mother Nature at her most dramatic and elaborate along this Alaskan coastline, where glaciers groan and creak melodramatically, before finally releasing colossal shelves of ice, allowing them to free fall into the waters below, and explode with angry booms and thunderous splashes. While fundamental displays of nature’s power always awe and amaze, it’s the tranquil beauty of this passage - amid still waters, splitting only to reveal the smooth backs of breaching humpback whales – that is relentlessly moving. A journey of glaciers, remote hidden villages, and carved fjords - the Inside Passage is a breathtaking voyage through the intricate mesh of Alaska’s fractured, raw and spectacular coastal landscapes

Boasting mountains, sea, culture, art and so much more, many cities claim to have it all, but few can back it up like Vancouver. Famously livable, just visiting this highrise city - surrounded by staggering natural beauty - is a thrill. Offering all of the creature comforts of an ultra-modern, worldly metropolis - even downtown has a hint of mountain-freshness to its air - and part of Vancouver's appeal is how easily you can swap the skyscrapers for whale-filled oceans and mountain-punctured skies. Head up to the Vancouver Lookout Tower for the ultimate 360-degree views of the city glistening, amid the beautiful embrace of the beckoning wilderness beyond. But what to see first? Art lovers might choose the Vancouver Art Gallery or the Contemporary Art Gallery. Nature lovers might rush for the ferry to visit Vancouver Island - where they can encounter grizzly bears, whales and orcas. Culture vultures, on the other hand, will probably head for the sights and sounds of Canada's biggest Chinatown. From steaming dim sum for lunch to Chinese apothecaries offering herbs to soothe any illness, it’s all here thanks to the migrant workers of the 19th century. The one-of-a-kind treasure of Stanley Park brings wild wonder and natural beauty to this cosmopolitan city's doorstep, and the pine-tree clad park offers isolated trails and amazing views. Wander the Seawall that encircles it - a 20-mile coastal path, full of joggers, whizzing skaters and wandering couples. Grab a bike and cycle between Coal Harbour and Kitsilano Beach. You can top up your tan on the shore, as you soak in the glorious views of the mountains and cityscape from the sands.