News Releases

Canada's Rocky Mountaineer train wins a top honour at the 2005 World Travel Awards

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada (November 15, 2005) – Rocky Mountaineer Vacations (RMV), owners and operators of Canada’s internationally acclaimed Rocky Mountaineer train has won the prestigious World Travel Award as, “World’s Leading Travel Experience by Train.” The 12th annual World Travel Awards gala event was held in London's Royal Opera House last weekend and was attended by over two thousand tourism industry leaders from across the globe.

Fellow nominees for this award included The Blue Train (South Africa), Rovos Rail (South Africa), Great Southern Railway Ltd. (Australia), Palace on Wheels Inc. (India), Orient - Express Ltd. (U.K.), Orient Express (Peru).

This is the first time a Canadian company has won a World Travel Award in a train category. Executives from Rocky Mountaineer Vacations, North America’s largest privately owned passenger rail operator, were on hand to accept the award for its increasingly popular GoldLeaf Service presented between Vancouver, British Columbia and Banff, Alberta.

“This is a tremendous honour for our organization,” says Peter Armstrong, Founder, President and C.E.O. of Rocky Mountaineer Vacations. “For the Rocky Mountaineer to be recognized with such a prestigious global award and nominated together with such an outstanding collection of world renowned tourist trains, speaks volumes.”

The World Travel Awards were established in 1993 to acknowledge, reward and celebrate the enormous achievements found in all areas of the global travel industry. Now in its 12th year, travel professionals and discerning travellers have come to regard the World Travel Awards as the very best endorsement that a travel product could hope to receive. Candidates for nomination are based upon the previous year’s voting by travel agents in over 200 countries from around the world. Votes are registered online at the official World Travel Awards website and a total of 176,000 travel professionals including 110,000 travel agents took part in this year’s voting process.

Rocky Mountaineer Vacations (RMV) offers year-round vacation packages to the most unique regions of Canada, including the world-acclaimed Rocky Mountaineer two-day, all daylight rail journey between Canada’s West and the Canadian Rockies. From mid-April to mid-October (with select December departures), there are over 70 vacation packages ranging in length from two to 17 days. A portfolio of non-rail holidays, under the umbrella of Spectacular Canada, is offered year-round. With sales representation in 18 countries, RMV has established an international reputation for attracting guests from Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Europe. In 2006, the company will premiere the highly anticipated Whistler Mountaineer train, a three-hour experience between North Vancouver and Whistler, B.C. and launch the new Fraser Discovery Route, a third route for the award –winning Rocky Mountaineer train between Whistler, B.C. and Jasper, Alberta.

Contacts:

www.rockymountaineer.com
www.whistlermountaineer.com