Rocky Mountaineer Debuts Seattle Departures on 2011 Rail & Cruise Vacations with Holland America Line Cruises

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada (March 24, 2011) - In May 2011, Vancouver-based rail service Rocky Mountaineer will debut Rail & Cruise itineraries departing Seattle. This marks the first time the award-winning rail service has offered Seattle departures in addition to its Vancouver departures.

In partnership with Holland America Line Cruises, these new 12 to 17 day itineraries provide the ideal land and sea experience.

Departing Seattle for coastal British Columbia and Alaska, the trip begins with a seven-night Holland America cruise. The sea voyage makes stops in Juneau, Sitka, and Ketchikan, then travels southward to Victoria and Vancouver. From Vancouver, guests board Rocky Mountaineer’s award-winning train and take a two-night rail trip through the Canadian Rockies, passing Hell’s Gate, the Coast Mountains and Pyramid Falls en route to Jasper National Park. The itinerary includes four additional overnights in destinations along the route, such as Victoria, Vancouver, Kamloops and Jasper.

The new Rail & Cruise itineraries will debut on May 8, 2011, and are available through September 11, 2011. Rates start at $2,599 Cdn per person, based on double occupancy, and include:
• Two days onboard the Rocky Mountaineer train
• Seven-night Glacier Bay Inside Passage Cruise
• Four nights’ hotel accommodation in destinations along the route
• Victoria Clipper from Seattle to Victoria
• Victoria to Vancouver tour, including Butchart Gardens and BC Ferries
• Rail station transfers in Vancouver, Kamloops and Jasper
• Luggage handling and National Parks Pass
• Nine breakfasts, eight lunches and seven dinners

These new Seattle departures mark the latest in Rocky Mountaineer’s demonstrated commitment to rail and cruise vacations. In 2011, Rocky Mountaineer will offer more than 12 different itineraries with Holland America, as well as a new partnership with Disney Cruise Lines, offering a pre-cruise rail trip to Whistler as a part of an Alaska cruise on board Disney’s Wonder.

About Rocky Mountaineer
Rocky Mountaineer offers 45 unique Canadian vacation packages and four distinctive rail routes, rich in history and natural wonders, through British Columbia and Alberta. This world renowned, luxurious train travels by daylight through the wild beauty of Canada’s West and is the best way to experience the majestic Canadian Rockies, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Over the past 20 years, Rocky Mountaineer has grown to become the largest privately owned passenger rail service in North America and has welcomed more than one million guests onboard from around the world. In 2010, Rocky Mountaineer received its fifth World Travel Award for “World’s Leading Travel Experience by Train” and was acknowledged for the first time for “World’s Leading Luxury Travel Product of the Year”. Rocky Mountaineer has also been recognized by National Geographic as one of the “World’s Greatest Trips” and by the Society of American Travel Writers as “The Best Train Experience in the World”.

For more information about Rocky Mountaineer, please visit rockymountaineer.com.

Media Contacts:
Richelle Swinburne
Manager, Communications
Rocky Mountaineer
Vancouver, British Columbia
Phone: (604) 606-8419
Email: rswinburne@rockymountaineer.com

Rose Chase
Travel Media Relations Specialist
Rocky Mountaineer
Vancouver, British Columbia
Phone: (604) 606-8473
Email: rchase@rockymountaineer.com