New year, New Management

Dennis Thomas a proud memebr of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation takes on the challenge of being the new Project Manager for Takaya Tours and what an amazing job he is doing right from the beginning. With already 30+ tours booked and rising, this accomplished young man shows great initative, commitment and a positive attitude towards his job. He's not only a remarkable boss but also a role model and mentor to his colleagues and treats them with respect. Being culturally involved and connected with his nation makes him very knowledgeable and an amazing tour guide; also he had the great honor of representing the Tsleil-Waututh Nation in the Opening Ceremony of the 2010 Olympics. Overall Takaya Tours kicks off its great year of 2011 and as each day passes by its only going to get better and better!

Mayor Gregor Robertson

On April 6th, 2011 The people of Vancouver celebrated its 125th birthday and Takaya Tours was honored to have the Mayor of Vancouver Gregor Robertson aboard the Dancing Serpant as the Paddled from North Vancouver to the Olympic Cauldron where the celebration was taking place. That was a great day for Takaya Tours.

Upcoming tour This Saturday!!

Hey Everybody!! There is an upcoming tour this Saturday and I am very excited, I feel that I am ready to take charge and be a lead guide for that day. I will bring my camera and take pictures and share with everyone of what I do as a tour guide. Click on the title and it will link you to a site where you can watch a video of what we do at Takaya Tours.

EA Games Tour!!

Yesterday, Wednesday May 4th we had a tour for members of the fantastic games company Electronic Arts. It was a team bonding experience for the group that they will never forget and what a journey they had full of adventure, cultural knowledge, story telling and one with nature, away from technology. We started our tour for the first time in Belcarra, usually we start off tours in Cates Park but its just all the more experience for me as a tour guide. Ive never been to Belcarra and yesterday we have explored more of the beautiful lands of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation. This was a 2 hour canoe journey so the team of Dennis, Lauraleigh and myself Geronimo each told them the history of Belcarra, Cates Park, and Boulder Island. Lauraleigh was upfront in the canoe and what an amazing job she done telling the legend of the 2 headed serpant, Story of the Wolf and Chief Watsauk Siem. Dennis was telling the group about the history of the Tsleil-Waututh people and what Archaeological findings are in display at Simon Fraser University's museum and Museum of Anthropology. I sang the Wolf Song and from my own Culture the Beaver Song and Goodbye song, they were very interested and Facinated with what we had to offer and we hope to inspire them to create not only a fantasy based game about First Nation Peoples but more fact based game. A game that you can learn the actual history of Aborignals and the way they lived before contact.

'Fam' Tour!!

Today we had a free tour for Various Members of Tourism Vancouver, My name is Geronimo Alec and I am a practicum student working my Volunteer hours for Takaya Tours and this was my third tour as one of the guides and had a blast today! Today was so beautiful, a bit cloudy but sun still shining as we soared along the calm waters of the Indian Arm in Cates Park. We had 2 canoes out there, The Soaring Eagle and Dancing Serpant, with 8 people in each canoe to get it even and stable. With the team of Dennis Thomas, Laura Leigh, Rayleen and myself, we made a good effort with telling stories, legends, the history of the Tsleil-Waututh nation, plants and their traditional uses and sang traditional songs. I even sang a song from my own Nation which which is Wetsu'weten Nation in Burns Lake. The group had fun and had an amazing experience with our performances so i hope they will share their experiences and spread the word about our authentic aboriginal tours we have to offer.