Stay up to date with KBC’s client news round-Up: New tourism experiences, culinary milestones, Indigenous stories, stargazing spectacles and scenic rail journeys across North America.
NEWS
Utah Awarded Its First Michelin Star in Inaugural Michelin Guide Southwest
Utah has earned a place on the global culinary map, with the state’s first Michelin Star awarded in Salt Lake City and three Park City restaurants receiving Michelin Recommended status in the inaugural MICHELIN Guide Southwest.
Utah is gaining recognition as a leading foodie destination following its inclusion in the inaugural MICHELIN Guide Southwest. Salt Lake City’s Urban Hill received the state’s first-ever Michelin Star, while Park City‘s Handle, Matilda and The Nelson Cottage by High West were recognised with Michelin Recommended status.
The honours shine an international spotlight on Utah’s rapidly evolving food scene, highlighting the quality and creativity found across both the state’s capital and its mountain destinations. Visitors can pair award-winning dining with Utah’s renowned outdoor experiences, from exploring Salt Lake City’s vibrant neighbourhoods and Park City’s world-class skiing, hiking and cultural attractions to discovering the Mighty 5® National Parks, Zion, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, Arches and Canyonlands, as well as spectacular state parks such as Dead Horse Point and Goblin Valley.
Freedom Destinations (www.freedomdestinations.co.uk, 0333 234 0922) offers a 14-night Ultimate Utah fly-drive itinerary from £3,239 per person, including return international flights, accommodation and car hire. Highlights include exploring Temple Square in Salt Lake City, spotting bison on Antelope Island, marvelling at the Bonneville Salt Flats, discovering Bryce Canyon National Park’s dramatic rock formations, and experiencing the standout dining scenes of Park City and Salt Lake City.
Utah: www.visitutah.com
Step into 12,500 years of history at Tse’k’wa National Historic Site in British Columbia
Tse’k’wa National Historic Site, one of Canada’s most significant archaeological sites, has reopened under Indigenous leadership, inviting visitors to explore a sacred gathering place of the Dane-zaa People that has been in use for more than 12,500 years.
Located in Northern British Columbia’s The Great Wilderness, Tse’k’wa National Historic Site, a sacred gathering place for the Dane-zaa People for over 12,500 years, offers a rare glimpse of early human history. Also known as Charlie Lake Cave, it is recognized as one of Canda’s most important archaeological discoveries.
First excavated by Simon Fraser University in 1974, Tse’k’wa reached a significant milestone in 2024 when the university returned the archaeological collection to a newly built onsite repository. The return of these artefacts marked an important step in Indigenous-led stewardship and cultural preservation.
Today, Tse’k’wa is one of the few Indigenous-owned and managed National Historic Sites in Canada. Overseen by the Tse’k’wa Heritage Society, a partnership between Doig River, Prophet River and West Moberly First Nations, the site offers visitors the chance to walk in the footsteps of the region’s earliest inhabitants while gaining a deeper understanding of the connections between people, place and time.
Bon Voyage (www.bon-voyage.co.uk, 0800 316 3012) offers a 16-night British Columbia: Backroads & Beyond fly-drive itinerary from £4,275 per person, including international flights, accommodation and car hire. Highlights include exploring Northern British Columbia’s vast wilderness, spotting wildlife in remote mountain and forest landscapes, experiencing the region’s rich Indigenous and pioneer heritage, and enjoying scenic drives through some of British Columbia’s most spectacular landscapes.
British Columbia: www.supernaturalbc.com
Look Up at One of the World’s Greatest Night Skies in the Canadian Rockies
When darkness falls in Jasper, the real magic begins, especially in October. The Jasper Dark Sky Festival, returning to the Canadian Rockies from 16-25 October 2026, is one of nature’s most spectacular shows.
The Jasper Dark Sky Festival takes place within Jasper National Park’s Dark Sky Preserve, an 11,000-square-kilometre protected area renowned for exceptionally low levels of light pollution and some of the clearest night skies in North America. Jasper was officially designated a Dark Sky Preserve in 2011 and is widely recognised as the world’s largest accessible Dark Sky Preserve.
Now in its 16th year, the festival combines astronomy, science, Indigenous storytelling, photography, live music and family-friendly experiences beneath a canopy of stars. Highlights for 2026 include the much-loved Symphony Under the Stars, telescope viewing sessions, planetarium experiences, science activities. Visitors may also be lucky enough to witness the Northern Lights, with October regarded as one of the best months for aurora viewing in Alberta.
Beyond the festival, Jasper offers countless reasons to extend a stay. Visitors can cruise the iconic Maligne Lake to Spirit Island, ride the Jasper SkyTram for panoramic mountain views, spot elk, moose and bighorn sheep, hike glacier-fed valleys and explore one of the most wildlife-rich regions of the Canadian Rockies.
The town of Jasper has a welcoming small-town atmosphere. With a genuine mountain community. Visitors can browse independent shops, cafés and restaurants, breweries, bars and bakeries, all set against a backdrop of snow-capped peaks
Frontier Travel (www.Frontier-Canada.co.uk (020 8776 8709) offer 7 nights at The Crimson in Jasper from £1,379pp (two sharing) in mid-October – including accommodation, car rental and return flights from Heathrow to Calgary.
For more Information please visit: www.travelalberta.com
New York’s Big Apple extends upstate this autumn
The real Big Apple experience begins beyond New York City. Each autumn, Upstate New York‘s orchards burst into life, inviting visitors to pick their own fruit, feast on cider doughnuts and go leaf-peeping in some incredible landscapes.
For those who think New York begins and ends with the Big Apple, autumn offers a delicious reason to head upstate. New York is America’s second-largest apple-producing state, harvesting around 29.5 million bushels of apples each year from more than 55,000 acres of orchards.
As the state’s official fruit, apples are woven into New York’s identity, and orchard visits have become a quintessential fall experience. Farms offer a tempting range of indulgent apple fritter sundaes, warm apple cider doughnuts, fresh cider and much more. Established for over 100 years, Beak & Skiff Apple Orchards in the Finger Lakes, a three-time winner of Best Apple Orchard in America, allow visitors to pick their own apples, sample hard ciders, wines and craft beers, enjoy live music and food trucks, and take in panoramic landscapes.
The region’s long harvest season, which stretches from late summer into autumn, coincides perfectly with New York’s celebrated foliage displays, creating an irresistible combination of leaf-peeping, scenic drives, farm-fresh food and outdoor adventure.
America As You Like It (www.americaasyoulikeit.com 0208 742 8299) offer a 9- day ‘ Beyond the Big Apple’ self-drive from £1420 per person, including flights, car rental and accommodation.
For More Information please visit: www.iloveny.com
New Hotel 1883 opens in North Dakota’s Legendary Badlands
Medora’s newest hotel has opened in the heart of the North Dakota Badlands. Located on the banks of the Little Missouri River, the hotel combines contemporary comforts with the pioneering spirit that made Medora famous.
Hotel 1883’s comfortable rooms feature large windows facing east and west, offering breathtaking views of the Badlands and the National Park from every room, and provide an ideal base for exploring Theodore Roosevelt National Park, where bison, wild horses, prairie dogs and bighorn sheep roam across colourful Badlands scenery.
The hotel’s name references the year Medora was founded by the Marquis de Mores. It was also the year a young Theodore Roosevelt first visited the region, an experience that would later shape his conservation philosophy and ultimately influence the creation of America’s national parks system.
All of which is great planning, as the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library also opened this year, on July 4, in Medora, North Dakota, offering an immersive experience of Roosevelt’s life, leadership, and conservation legacy. Rather than creating a traditional museum, the library presents immersive storytelling, holographic technology and personalised visitor journeys that bring Roosevelt’s life and conservation legacy to life. The building is beautifully integrated into the surroundings and follows some of the world’s highest sustainability standards, reinforcing Roosevelt’s strong conservation values.
Beyond the national park, Medora offers an authentic taste of the American West. Highlights include the acclaimed Medora Musical, the Pitchfork Steak Fondue, the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame, the historic Chateau de Mores, and of course, the recently opened library.
North America Travel Service (www.americanholidays.com 02038687654) offer a 15-Night fly Drive holiday through North and South Dakota from £2945 per person including international flights, car hire and accommodation.
For More Information please visit: North Dakota Tourism | Official North Dakota Travel & Tourism Guide
From America’s Red-Rock Canyons to Canada’s Glacier-topped Mountains – First Class Holidays combines two sensational routes to create a NEW North America rail adventure
First Class Holidays has launched ‘Canyons to Canada by Rail’ combining two of Armstrong Collectives celebrated rail routes, including a journey on Canyon Spirit, USA and a journey on Rocky Mountaineer, Canada.
Travel by rail through the dramatic landscapes of the American Southwest and the majestic Canadian Rockies on this unforgettable journey. From Denver’s vibrant city streets to Utah’s red-rock canyons and western Canada’s alpine lakes and glacier-capped peaks.
First Class Holidays (www.fcholidays.com / 0161 888 5630) offers a 15-day Canyons to Canada by Rail’ itinerary from £9,369 per person, including return international flights, internal flight from Salt Lake City to Vancouver, all transfers, 3-day Canyon Spirit Rail journey from Denver to Salt Lake City in Premier upgrade, Rocky Mountaineers Journey Through the Clouds from Vancouver to Jasper in Gold Leaf Service, all accommodation, meals and beverages while on the trains and various excursions: Vancouver City and Capilano Suspension Bridge Tour in Vancouver, Icefields Parkway Discovery Sightseeing transfer and Banff Wildlife Tour.
For more information on Canyon Spirit visit: www.canyonspirit.com
For more information on Rocky Mountaineer visit: www.rockymountaineer.com