2026 CANADA FARMING TOUR
(with an optional Alaskan cruise)

Flying Air Canada with coach travel throughout the Canadian Provinces of Alberta and British Columbia with an optional 8-Day Holland America Line Cruise of Alaska.

The farming tour of Canada kicks off in Edmonton and then visits Red Deer, Calgary, Lethbridge,  Banff, Canmore, Lake Louise, Icefields Parkway, Three Valley Gap, Kelowna, Victoria to visit the world famous Butchart Gardens on Vancouver Island.  As with all Australian Farmers Tours you will get off the tourist track visiting, sheep, beef, dairying horticultural, grain and cropping properties as well as attending the Calgary Stampede known as “The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth” featuring one of the world’s largest rodeos, parades, stage shows, concerts, agricultural competitions and chuckwagon racing.

Crossing the Rocky Mountains seeing Banff, Lake Louise, the majestic Victoria Glacier, the massive Columbia Icefield and Athabasca Glacier are just some of the many highlights of this Canadian farming tour. The 7 night Holland America Line ship MS Zaandam departs from Vancouver on July 22nd and cruises the Inside Passage in waters that are as smooth as it gets and delivers spellbinding scenery from narrow fjords to towering peaks and you’ll get close enough to massive glaciers and wait breathlessly for ice to calve off and plunge into the ocean.

You’ll also have the opportunity of seeing humpback whales, orca, bald eagles and brown bears; magnificent Tracy Arm Fjord; Juneau – Alaska’s capital; Skagway – home of the gold rush-era; Glacier Bay – with amazing scenery and wilderness and Ketchikan known for its many Native American totem poles and nearby Misty Fjords a glacier-carved wilderness featuring snow-capped mountains, waterfalls and salmon spawning streams. It’s also home to rich wildlife including black bears, wolves and bald eagles.

TOUR COST
The Canadian tour cost may well qualify as a deduction for taxation purposes and in this regard you should have a word with your accountant or financial adviser. The cost of the 20-day Canada Farming Tour flying from Brisbane is $14,900 per person based on share twin rooms with private facilities in 3 to 4 star hotels with all breakfasts 9 lunches and 10 dinners and includes sightseeing, entrance fees, on-farm and technical visits. The cost also includes airline carrier imposed charges, airport taxes and fees, gratuities to tour guide, coach drivers and porterage. The hotel single room supplement is $3,480. The cost of the Canadian land content only tour (no airfares) is $11,900.

ALASKA CRUISE
The 7 night optional cruise onboard MS Zaandam departing from Vancouver on the 22^nd July cruising the Inside Passage is fully inclusive of all meals and fares range from $1,650 per person for an inside stateroom at Cat I and $2,470 per person for an ocean-view stateroom with a window at Cat C on Main Deck. More expensive cruise fares are available and range from $3,735 for Cat BC, $4,150 for Cat BB, $4,350 for Cat B up to $4,750 for Cat A per person for verandah cabins. Our recommendation is the ocean-view stateroom with window at the cruise fare of $2,470.

Flying Singapore Airlines to Milan with coach travel throughout Italy the tour itinerary encompasses firstly the Italian Lake District then Venice, Modena and Bologna in the Emilia-Romagna region, Florence, Pisa, Lucca and Siena in Tuscany, Perugia and Assisi in Umbria, Sorrento on the Amalfi Coast, Naples, Pompeii and of course Rome.

The tour will be managed throughout Italy by Englishman Michael Barker well known as an experienced European tour guide by many Australian farmers.

Italy is a land of rolling hills, picturesque olive groves, vineyards and tomato gardens with rugged coastal cliffs. The country’s breathtaking scenery is matched only by its rich history. Italy has produced some of the greatest painters and sculptors of all time, and the legendary art cities of Rome, Florence and Venice have exquisite galleries packed with priceless masterpieces by Michelangelo, Botticelli, Donatello and da Vinci. It is one of the largest producers of wine in the world as grapes are cultivated in almost every region and there are more than one million vineyards. Italy is also a leading olive oil and vegetable producer and Chianina cattle, noted for their size, are raised for beef while Piedmontese cattle are raised both for milk and beef. Their milk is used for traditional cheese and their meat is seen as a premium product. There are over 400 Italian cheeses and gorgonzola and parmesan are familiar names to us as was Ron Barassi and Franco Cozzo. Cheese and wine play a major part of the Italian cuisine while espresso coffee is consumed everywhere along with such famous dishes as pasta, pizza, lasagne, focaccia and gelato. There are over 50 indigenous Italian sheep breeds and most are bred for milk production as there are only a few areas where meat production prevails.

The Colosseum and Pompeii still bear witness to the once mighty Roman Empire. A few historic Italian names that might immediately spring to mind are perhaps Christopher Columbus, Leonardo da Vinci, Marco Polo, Casanova, Michelangelo’s David; Galileo – the mathematician and astronomer and Marconi with his invention of radio. Or more likely Andrea Bocelli, Luciano Pavarotti – one of the most famous tenors of all time, Sophia Loren, Mussolini, former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, Claudia Cardinale, Al Pacino and Robert de Niro. Italy is home to Maserati, Lamborghini, Ferrari, Alfa Romeo and the humble Fiat. There are dozens of Italian Fashion Houses and how could you resist buying an Armani suit, for an arm and a leg, made from ultra-fine Australian Merino wool or a trinket from Fendi, Fiorucci, Gucci, Prada or Valentino to name just a few.

As the tour includes many horticulture, viticulture and viniculture enterprises, livestock, dairying, cropping, agricultural machinery and technical visits it may well qualify as a tax deductible expense and in this regard you should have a word with your accountant or financial adviser. However, it is not all work and no play as the tour includes fabulous sightseeing and leisure time.

TOUR COST
The tour cost flying economy class with Singapore Airlines from Melbourne is $17,510, from Adelaide is $17,505, from Sydney is $17,468, from Brisbane is $17,356 and from Perth is $16,935 per person based on a share twin room in 4 star hotels with a single room supplement of $3,840. The cost includes all breakfasts, 13 lunches and 15 dinners, sightseeing, entrance fees, on-farm and technical visits and travel by luxury coach. The cost also includes gratuities to coach drivers, local tour guides, tour manager and porterage.

The tour itinerary covers the southern agricultural states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and the Union Territory of Pondicherry, as well as Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi in India’s north. Today, India ranks second worldwide in farm output, with over 750 million people engaged in agriculture — the diversity is remarkable. India accounts for 10% of global fruit production and is the world’s largest producer of fresh fruit.

Although India is the second-largest global producer of wheat and rice, its population of around 1.5 billion is growing faster than its ability to keep up with production. India’s population has now surpassed China’s 1.4 billion. The country’s uniqueness lies in its extraordinary diversity of cropping patterns and livestock breeds, many of which are deeply adapted to local environments.

From spice and plantation crops in the humid south, to multi-cropping rice fields and coconut groves, and further north to drought-resistant millets and sheep-rearing in arid regions, this tour reveals how centuries-old farming wisdom blends with modern science to sustain millions of livelihoods.

Alongside farm and technical visits, the tour weaves in cultural treasures, deepening understanding of the intricate relationship between India’s vibrant communities and their land. From intimate discussions with local agronomists to exploring UNESCO heritage sites and bustling markets, the tour is designed to inspire innovation, foster partnerships and broaden perspectives on global agriculture.

Embark on this unforgettable journey through the heartlands of India’s diverse agricultural landscapes. Experience the contrast between the lush backwaters and plantations of Kerala, the rich temple towns and fertile plains of Tamil Nadu, and the historic, arid farmlands of North India. In just over three weeks, tour members will explore cutting-edge farming technologies, integrated livestock systems and sustainable cropping methods tailored to climates ranging from tropical coasts to dry deserts.

Although India has the world’s largest cattle population, as much as 70% is owned by 67% of small and marginal farmers and the landless. Around 60% of livestock farming labour is provided by women, with more than 90% of animal care work carried out by women within family households. India also holds 53% of the world’s buffalo population and 15% of the world’s cattle population, and ranks fifth globally for sheep numbers after Australia.

India is the world’s sixth-largest coffee producer; second only to China in rice production; third-largest producer of tobacco, sorghum and rapeseed; and the second-largest producer of wheat, sugarcane, tea, cashews, fresh vegetables, silk and inland fish. It is also the world’s largest producer of millets, pulses, spices, chillies and peppers, lemons and limes, cows, goats and buffalo milk.

Cricket is the most popular sport in India. English author Sir John Mandeville once wrote, “India remains a land of many diverse countries.”

As the 25-day tour includes many on-farm and technical visits, it may qualify as a tax-deductible expense. To support this, tour leader Dale Price will maintain a detailed daily diary for submission with your income tax return.

However, it is not all work and no play — the tour also includes leisure time for shopping and bargain hunting in India’s renowned bazaars, a visit to the Taj Mahal (one of the Seven Wonders of the World), an overnight houseboat stay in the backwaters, and jungle treks, safaris and a cruise in the Periyar National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary to observe elephants, tigers and more.

TOUR COST
Singapore Airlines will be announcing their group airfares to India around mid-April while the cost of the land arrangements is $7,850 per person based on sharing a twin room with private facilities in mostly 4 star hotels, all meals, spectacular sightseeing in a toilet equipped Volvo air-conditioned coach with on-farm and technical visits. The single room supplement is $2,680.The tour cost also includes gratuities to coach drivers, local tour guides, tour manager and porterage.