Rocky Mountaineer Adventure and Great USA National Parks

Overview

Day 1 – UK – Denver

Titans VIP door-to-door transfer service collects you from home for your flight to Denver. On arrival, we transfer to our hotel for the evening.

Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel (4-star)

Day 2 – Denver

Denver is where city slickers meet the great outdoors. Here, high-rise buildings are set against the magnificent Rocky Mountains. You can enjoy all the perks of city life; great restaurants, lively bars, and a thriving art scene, yet the wilderness of the American West is at your fingertips. We enjoy a brief tour of the city this morning, taking in the gold-domed State Capitol building – one of the steps of which is exactly a mile above sea level, earning Denver its Mile High City nickname. The remainder of the day is yours to spend as you please. Perhaps learn more about Denvers gold rush heritage at Larimer Square, or wander around the shops on the pedestrianised promenade, 16th Street Mall.

Excursions & visits:

Orientation tour of Denver (morning)

Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel (4-star)

Day 3 – Rocky Mountaineer (Denver – Glenwood Springs)

Rocky Mountaineer is famed for its unrivalled luxury rail experiences through some of the worlds most spectacular scenery – and todays journey is no exception. Youll carve through rugged canyons, glide by the Colorado River and cross over the Continental Divide. But its not just about what youll see; the journey is brought to life through vibrant storytelling from local experts and regionally inspired cuisine from Rocky Mountaineers award-winning culinary team. Its truly unforgettable. We stop for the night in Glenwood Springs before doing it all again tomorrow.

Glenwood Springs Hotel

Day 4 – Rocky Mountaineer (Glenwood Springs – Moab) – Arches National Park

We board Rocky Mountaineer this morning for the second leg of our journey, taking us across the Colorado-Utah border. Youll gaze out at red sandstone landscapes through the glass-domed carriages as the hoodoos and spires of the iconic scenery around Moab emerge. But the day doesnt end there; this afternoon we board a coach to follow the mountains, passing beautiful canyons as we make our way to Arches National Park. The area is famed for its preservation of over 2,000 giant natural red sandstone arches sweeping over 73,000 acres of wilderness. Delicate Arch is a stone icon of the park standing at a huge 43 feet tall. Take a moment to soak up the landscape around you – youre sure to lose all perspective on size before long.

Excursions & visits:

Entrance to Arches National Park (afternoon)

Aarchway Inn, Moab (3-star)

Day 5 – Canyonlands National Park

Canyonlands National Park is another remarkable stretch of scenery. Crowded with towering rock pinnacles, skyward-jutting buttes and canyons carved by the Colorado and Green rivers – it feels like a vision of ancient earth in front of your very eyes. In fact, some canyon walls are adorned with pictographs and petroglyphs dating back some 10,000 years. We explore this majestic parkland to its fullest today.

Excursions & visits:

Entrance to Canyonlands National Park (all day)

Aarchway Inn, Moab (3-star)

Day 6 – Bryce Canyon National Park – Bryce

We wend our way to Bryce Canyon National Park today, absorbing the scenery en route. The park is famed for its rich sunset-coloured spires (known as hoodoos) and magnificent natural horseshoe-shaped amphitheatres – all offset by tracts of evergreen forest. The combination of mountain and desert climate here has created thousands of limestone spires, fins, arches and mazes. Its simply otherworldly. There are a series of viewpoints, which well stop at to make the most of the dramatic scenes.

Excursions & visits:

Visit Bryce Canyon National Park (all day)

Best Western Plus Rubys Inn, Bryce (3-star)

Day 7 – Zion National Park – Springdale

Zion National Park is renowned for its soaring monoliths and echoing canyons; its enchanting waterfalls and raw rock colours; its prolific wildlife and Native American heritage. Its barren and unforgiving, but completely captivating. Yet, well also spend time contemplating a more delicate part of the park, where swathes of meadow sway in the breeze and wildflowers bloom. Its a place of two contrasting personalities.

Excursions & visits:

Visit Zion National Park (all day)

La Quinta Inn, Springdale (3-star)

Day 8 – Lake Powell – Williams

Welcome to the wild, wild west. We arrive in Williams this evening after a stop at Lake Powell, an area of spectacular natural scenery in north Arizona. Williams is a small town with a big warm western heart – and it has held on tightly to its heritage. Take a wander through the town to reveal charming historic buildings, bars playing live music and classic Cadillacs patrolling the roads (its also the last stop on the famed Route 66, so expect to see some impressive motors from car enthusiasts).

Excursions & visits:

Visit Lake Powell (afternoon)

Grand Canyon Railway Hotel, Williams (3.5-star)

Day 9 – Grand Canyon National Park

Williams is also famed as the gateway to the Grand Canyon and today is dedicated to this undoubted wonder of the natural world. Well start the day by boarding the Grand Canyon Railway for a train ride with a twist. Vintage rail cars, western musicians, and cowboy characters; the Grand Canyon Railway is more than just a mode of transport and it has been delivering guests to the Grand Canyon in style since 1901. Our journey will start out amongst thick pine trees before gliding through wide open, desolate desert landscape. The Grand Canyon is highly recognisable from television and adverts, but nothing can prepare you for seeing it in person for the first time. This colossal gorge carved by the Colorado River – now a tiny silver ribbon a mile below – truly inspires with panoramic views of outstanding beauty. Theres no better way to view it than from the air and youll have the opportunity to take to the skies in an incredible optional helicopter flight.

Excursions & visits:

Journey aboard the Grand Canyon Railway (morning)
Entrance to Grand Canyon National Park South Rim (all day)

Grand Canyon Railway Hotel, Williams (3.5-star)

Day 10 – Kingman – Las Vegas

Well visit Kingman this morning – a famed stop along iconic Route 66. Wander along Beale Street and have a snoop around the classic and well-preserved diners, watering holes and motels before we continue to Las Vegas. This oasis of indulgence in the heart of the Mojave Desert is unlike any place youll have visited before. Here, the lines between reality and fantasy become blurred and youll come away wondering if it was all just a mirage after all. Well take in the dizzying delights together on a tour this afternoon.

Excursions & visits:

Orientation tour of Las Vegas (afternoon)

Tropicana Las Vegas – a DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel (4-star)