Flying into Vancouver, B.C. is the perfect opener to an eye-popping scenic adventure. Miles of forests, rivers, straits and mountains surround the city, whetting the appetite for the gorgeous scenery to come. To stay overnight in Vancouver, we chose a hotel on the water within walking distance of our port. But we arrived early enough to take a scenic bus tour around the city. Floatplanes constantly took off and landed outside our hotel, giving us our first idea of how important small planes are for getting around in BC and Alaska.
As host to the Olympics in early 2010, Vancouver added several hotels so finding one to meet the budget and travel style is not a problem.
Vancouver’s cruise ship port looks like a distant cousin of the Sydney Opera HouseFloatplanes constantly landed and took off outside our hotel
Stanley Park, a good place to spend the day, sticks out into the water like a thumb
Ketchikan
Jaded travelers may say that Ketchikan, usually the first port of call, is a mere tourist trap. Maybe if a visitor spends the entire time on shore browsing the cute village shops, the person would leave with the impression the town is about shopping. We did our share of browsing but what we loved in Ketchikan was the Saxman Native Village. The town claims to have the world’s largest collection of totem poles. Many of them can be seen at Saxman, Totem Bight State Park and the Totem Heritage Center. After sitting and putting away more food that was good for us, we also liked the hike to Saxman, particularly passing trees filled with eagles and houses that had totem poles out front.
Cute shops attract shoppers in Ketchikan, a fishing village also known for its totem poles
Totem poles line the Saxman Native Village entranceSaxman should be a Ketchikan destination
