Wines And Islands - Canada Cruise

Explore the breadth of BC wine, its people and place through this special tasting, culinary and nature adventure. Guided by our on-board experts, as well as other wine industry leaders and pioneers, each day you’ll learn about and taste the best wines from BC’s distinct wine regions. A first of its kind voyage on Canada’s West Coast.

This exclusive trip, with a very limited number of guests aboard a spacious catamaran yacht, island hops between Vancouver Island and the natural coves and harbours of remote Gulf Islands. You’ll be given an in-depth look at British Columbia’s emerging “Wine Islands” and their unique place in the Salish Sea—a wine region like no other.

Explore locally grown and crafted drops together with a diversity of wines from the Okanagan, Similkameen and other BC wine regions while on board MV Cascadia, all paired with Chef prepared meals created with local, fresh ingredients and inspired by the sea and land surrounding you.

Cruise into South Gulf Island pockets which are normally “hard to reach” by car or larger vessels and form part of the “sense of place”. See the land from a different perspective. Tender alongside ridges of rock, sandstone and soils which support the Mediterranean-style brush and arbutus trees synonymous with the area. Observe sea lions in their element. Stop to wander on a small island cay formed by a diversity of sands and imagine the geological history underlying our “Wine Islands” region.

From geology and philosophy, to aroma, construction and the pairing meals our chef creates, this is a deep journey into what shapes our wine. Augmenting the wine exploration, we’ll also take in the region’s spectacular nature with naturalist guides, as we island-hop the Vancouver Island and Gulf Islands region, anchoring in remote locations inaccessible by any other means.

The entire trip is designed to give you special experiences not available to the general public. The ethic is the same approach as our Craft Beer Cruise (going on its 14th season), but wholly customized to BC’s wine regions and winemaking ethic.

Our wine guide is Tania Tomaszewska. A banking lawyer turned wine explorer, Tania is an independent BC Wine Industry advisor and wine professional specializing in “wine journey design”. Tania creates and leads small group, private wine tasting adventures to be experienced in corporate boardrooms, private dining rooms, backyard patios and out in BC wine country. Tania has travelled extensively and lived and worked in Australia for many years before returning to her native British Columbia and re-immersing herself in our local terroirs.

Tania is passionate about where wine can take us and is thrilled to be coming back on board for our annual Wines & Islands adventure, and to sip us through the Salish Sea. Tania is WSET Advance Certified (Level 3 Wines and Spirits) and has completed the Wine Executive Program at University of California, Davis. As an “Island Girl” having grown up in Victoria, British Columbia, Tania is thrilled to be coming back onboard MV Cascadia this year, and to be part of such an exciting time for the BC Wine Industry and our “Wine Islands” as they emerge on the global wine stage. Tania loves anything related to travel, geography and pinot noir. Her motto for learning and living: “Always be tasting!”.

Inclusions

• All meals, snacks and beverages prepared from the freshest ingredients by our superb chef.
• Fine wines featured with the evening meal, and a limited amount of beer included and available throughout the trip. (Liquor is not a large part of our trips, so plan on light consumption).
• Services of our naturalist and professional crew.
• Shore excursions.
• Use of gear on board, including rubber boots, kayaks and fishing gear (with fishing licence).
• All accommodations on your vessel and, on trips with a land day, in a local lodging.

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Exclusions

• Transportation to the trip’s point of origin or from the trip’s point of return for Cascadia. The exception is the flights from Vancouver to the start of the trip and return are included for Cascadia’s Haida Gwaii trips, as well as any trip that has a current Flight Promotion.
• 5% Goods and services tax (GST), on Canadian trips. There is no GST on Alaska trips.
• Any tip you wish to leave for your crew. Tipping is entirely confidential.
• Sustainability fee. As a professional eco-tourism company, it is at the core of our operating principles to work with local communities (as we are members of the local community ourselves), respect regulations, look after the planet and contribute to local opportunities. Responsible operations cost a little more. We extracted from the fare a percentage of the increased costs that go toward sustainability and added it to the list price as a sustainability fee of $200 per trip. Through this, we hope our guests share in the pride that a trip with Maple Leaf Adventures is a contribution to the sustainability of the coast, as well as being a great experience.
• Fishing licence.