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An in-depth review of My Canada Trips – a travel agency specialising in helping you book the perfect Canada holiday.
Last month, I headed off to Canada with my friend Helen for the RV road trip of DREAMS in Southern Alberta. Everything was booked through My Canada Trips, and the service we had from them is a big part of what made the trip so memorable. From the itinerary they put together for us to the excellent service, they made the whole trip run so smoothly.
Our road trip took us from Calgary to Banff, then Jasper, the outskirts of Edmonton, and finally down to Drumheller. From mountains, forests and glacial lakes to Badlands and dinosaur fossils, all in the space of a week. This was the perfect introductory itinerary, and it really felt like we saw the best of everything Alberta has to offer. Here’s my review of the trip, the service, and what it’s like to book and travel with My Canada Trips…
My trip was supported by My Canada Trips and Travel Alberta. As always, all words and opinions are my own.
My Review of My Canada Trips
What I Booked: Alberta Motorhome Adventure
We booked the Alberta Rockies and Badlands Motorhome Adventure: an 8-night trip which covers some of the top destinations in southern Alberta. It’s a fantastic itinerary, taking in Calgary, Banff National Park, Jasper National Park, Edmonton, and Drumheller. The itinerary is a tiny bit rushed, but it’s a great way to get an overview of Alberta’s “best bits” in a short space of time.
This particular trip package starts from £1,949pp* and includes:
- Return Flights
- 1 Night Accommodation in Calgary
- 7 Nights motorhome hire with 1,500km, linen kits, kitchen kit, platinum package, and liability reduction zero
- Campsites in Banff, Jasper, Edmonton and Drumheller
*Based on 2 people sharing. From £2039pp for a family of 4 based on 2 adults and 2 children under 11.
WATCH: Click here to watch my video of the trip
Before the Trip
From start to finish, the service from My Canada Trips was excellent. Once everything was booked in, they sent us a personalised travel e-book. This contained all our campsite booking vouchers, our Parks Canada Discovery Pass (for visiting the national parks), and a whole heap of useful travel info.
The ebook was 32 pages long and tailored specifically to our trip. It was packed with helpful info to help us prepare. This included things like driving tips and important traffic rules to be aware of, which is incredibly useful when planning a road trip.
Sixteen pages of the booklet were given over to our itinerary. That might sound excessive, but this was brilliantly in-depth. Each section suggested the best route to take, and recommended a variety of stop-off points along the way. Many were places that we might not have found out about otherwise, like Beaver Boardwalk in Hinton or the eerie “ghost town” of Rowley on the drive down to Drumheller.
It also broke down the campsite information for each stop, including the address, directions, and facilities. It was great having this booklet to read before the trip so we could get prepared – but it was also really handy having it to refer back to throughout the trip! I recommend downloading it to your phone so you can look over it anytime you want.
The Trip Itself
This was far and away the best trip I’ve done in a long time! We landed in Calgary and spent a night in the downtown (which was just long enough for a very jet-lagged dinner and some tired sightseeing). The following morning, we picked up our RV from CanaDream and hit the road.
The whole process was so simple and smooth. Within about 30 minutes, we were driving towards Banff National Park. There are quite a few paid add-ons with an RV booking, but they’re already included with My Canada Trips, which made the process much easier.
As I mentioned above, the itinerary is a little bit rushed. One week just isn’t quite enough time to see everything that Alberta has to offer. But, it’s a great introduction to the province – and packs in a little of everything that makes Alberta awesome. The Canadian Rockies, the southern Prairies, the province’s two largest cities, and the rugged Badlands.
Part of the problem was that my friend and I wanted to see and do everything in each destination (especially Banff), so we tried to pack too much into each day, and ended up burning ourselves out. I’d recommend taking things a little more slowly than we did, and maybe aiming to do no more than 2-3 activities/tours each day. Again, that super-thorough ebook was incredibly helpful for finding fun things to see and do.
As I say, the trip was a perfect overview of Alberta’s “best bits”, although it certainly left me wanting to go back for more!
The Motorhome & Campsites
The CanaDream motorhome was fantastic! It was spacious, clean, nicely decorated, and felt very high-end. The kitchen was huge and had everything we needed to cook. I couldn’t believe we had a full-sized fridge freezer! However, it’s worth noting that the Kitchen Set only includes exactly enough items for two people. Two cups, two plates, two glasses, etc!
I loved all the campsites that My Canada Trips booked for us. These were all highly rated, well-designed RV campsites with great facilities. My only niggle was that the campground for Edmonton was actually in Devon, about a 45-60 minute drive from Edmonton. After the 4-hour drive from Jasper to get there, we didn’t really feel like driving any further, so we ended up staying at the campsite for a chill day and skipping Edmonton. That was a shame, because I’ve been before and it’s a cool city. If you want to visit, speak to My Canada Trips when you book your holiday and see if they can find you a campsite a little closer to the city.
The other slight niggle was that both the first two campgrounds were unserviced plots, which meant there was no electrical hookup for the RV. The fridge and lights still work, but you can’t charge phones (except while driving) or cook. I don’t think this would be an issue if you prepared for it, but again, you can always speak to My Canada Trips and get them to book a site with full hook-up. We asked them during the trip, and they were able to move us to a fully serviced campsite. That’s the best bit about booking through a specialised travel agent – everything can be tailored to suit your needs!
Is it Worth the Price?
Honestly, I think so! Sure, it would probably work out cheaper to book everything separately. But I don’t think it would be that much cheaper, and when you think about how much My Canada Trips sort out for you, it is definitely worth paying that extra price.
Anyone who has planned and booked a road trip on their own will know it can be a headache. You have to plan the route, book the flights, research the best places to stay and things to do, book the accommodation, book any tours in advance, and so on. If just one thing changes – say, one of the roads is closed or the accommodation you booked is no longer available – it can have a knock-on effect on the rest of the trip.
If you book through a specialised local agency like My Canada Trips, they can sort out any issues or necessary re-bookings as they come up. They were even able to change one of our campsites midway through the trip, because we needed one with full hook-up to charge our camera equipment! And because it’s a local company, they’re likely to be aware of any issues that could affect your trip (like roadworks or natural disasters) before you are.
Based on the service we received, the tailored ebook, the value of the motorhome that was included, and the brilliantly planned itinerary, I think this trip was 100% worth the price!
Final Thoughts
It’s not just road trips and motorhome holidays! My Canada Trips have a full range of specialised holidays in Canada, including cruises, city breaks, rail holidays, and escorted tours.
I’d gladly recommend My Canada Trips based on my experiences. Especially if it’s your first trip to Canada. Let a team of local experts do all the planning and hard work for you! Here’s the quick version of my pros and cons:
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Local experts
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Great itinerary for seeing a lot of Alberta in a short space of time
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Reasonable price given what’s included
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Great service throughout
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Personalised travel ebook
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Flexibility to tailor the trip to suit you
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ABTA and ATOL protected
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Much less hard work than booking everything separately
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Probably more expensive than booking everything separately
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A few niggles with the campsites (but easily solved)
Read More
The Perfect 1-Week Road Trip in Alberta
12 Amazing Places to Visit in Alberta
Alberta Road Trip Itinerary – Fossils, First Nations, and Frontiers
Got a question about My Canada Trips or want more info from this review? Scroll down to leave a comment!
