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For a few years i've been thinking about moving to Canada for work (obviously after all my current commitments are through) so i'm planning a little holiday to go travelling there next year to see if it's right for me.

I'm initially planning to go to Montreal and then visit Quebec and Toronto within a few weeks. That being said, I want to visit some small towns and generally go wandering before I make my way over to Vancouver.
I have a few questions, apart from the obvious touristy stuff, is there anything else worth seeing?
Do you think it would benefit me in anyway to hire out a car to go wandering? I've looked at a few flights to fly from coast to coast but what i'd really love to do (if money permits) is to drive the length. I don't see the point in going to see Canada but missing half of it whilst I sleep at 30000 feet.
I'm no stranger to driving around foreign countries and also driving for days on end so this is not a problem for me. Chances are I might be going alone though.
Also, my french isn't that great, I know enough to find a toilet and introduce myself, is this going to hinder my travel at all?

So if anyone can give me any advice on what it's like to live, drive and work there then that would be great. Advice from locals and people who have moved there for work would be great!

Cheers.

Well, 95% of the people can understand english. And I love driving in Canada, if you can, just go to some random forest and walk. Climb a mountain ( if you are going from montreal to quebec, Climb Le mont ham-sud, it's a bit offroad but one hell of a nice mountain. )

Else some tips, uhh. Walk alot, the nature and the forests are beautiful.

Isocadia

PS: yeah, half my family lives there and I go to Lac Nicolet every summer, so I know the place.

back when i lived in the US, i went to canada for a few days and i instantly thought that Montreal looked so much more eouropean than US and it even reminded me of russia - my home country a bit. Canada is nice. i liked it there.

Whilst i am going to go wandering through forests and climbing mountains (and dodging bears) I really want to get a perspective on what it's like to live there. As long as my lack of french won't hold me back i'm sure i'll get along fine, but how are the people? I really don't know much about Canadian culture, transport, economy and job market.

Well, I think the people are nice, mostly in smaller vilages ( we go near saint martyrs des canadiens, there live like 5 people there ). And don't worry about bears, We went to the rocky's in a place with alot of bears and didn't see one, I even left my steak ( my beloved steak ) outside and the next morning it was still there. But where do you want to live, outside of the big cities, or inside. Because inside it's like almost an other big city. Culture, well, just be nice to people and don't make fun of the natives ( is that the political correct word? ). transport in the city's is by metro, and through the country I think buses or trains. But get your own car, is alot easier. The economy, well we don't suffer alot from the crisis and there's always jobs to be found. Tim hortons is always looking for new people, and the numbers that say that half of the people are workless, yes, the half of the year when you can't fish . But about finding a job, in what sector, since you are posting here I think gaming or computer, well, they are always wanted, if I'm correct.

Well, I just love Canada xD. So you won't hear bad stuff from me

Isocadia

@Oolite - Where are you moving from? US?

I would recommend eventually settling in Vancouver, mainly for the mountains, the lack of smog, and the summers that aren't extremely hot. Toronto is a nice city, but it's really stuffy in the summer and there's not a lot of good natural scenery. Vancouver usually is considered the nicest place to live in the country.

If you drive across the country, I will be very jealous of you I have family in New Brunswick but I've never been further east than Ontario. When you're driving through Saskatchewan, prepare to be incredibly bored because it's just straight and flat for hours.

Alberta and B.C. have the greatest natural scenery in the country. I recommend stopping in Jasper, which is a national park in Alberta, near the B.C. border. I go there at least once a year, as it's only an 8 hour drive from Vancouver. There you'll see deer, moose, bears, and goats just walking down the streets in broad daylight. You can sit in a coffee shop, look out the window and see a herd of moose walking down the street. It's really cool!

Good luck and take lots of pics!

EDIT:

As far as I've been told, Montreal is fairly English speaking. Once you get out to the boonies of Quebec, you will find areas where nobody speaks English. Maybe when you're in Quebec it's good to stick to Quebec City and Montreal if you plan on stopping and talking to people.

Well, i live on the British Columbia side of Canada but since you've mentioned Vancouver ill post.


Well, Canada is a very diverse place with different people and environments in every province and territory. I personally think a car would be the best way to go. If you need more convincing i suggest you go to see the movie One Week. (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1104806/)


probably not. only 20% of Canadians speak French and most live in Quebec. once you enter Saskatchewan i believe it would be very hard for you to even find a French Canadian.

And don't worry about meeting a bear. in my town we get quite a few trying to get into our garbage but thats about as bad as it gets. in fact, I've even been in contact with a black bear when it snuck up on me and sniffed my leg whale i was walking down a street at night. they're harmless and if you are nervous about them simply wave your arms over your head and yell at it. that scares them away every time.

Living in BC is fantastic because of the smaller population. you can go out dirt biking, shooting, hunting, and nobody would care.

driving in BC is also nice because of all the beautiful scenery and wide empty roads. driving in Alberta makes you want to speed because you can see your destination whale remaining 20 minutes away from it lol. the roads are flat and only have a slight curve in them to keep you awake.

(PS. I don't really want to make a new thread about this but did anybody else here or experience the 5.0 earthquake 5 hours ago in Ontario? ive heard it on the news this morning at work.)

Well, if you are going to the west of the country, yeah Jasper is good. The park I liked extremely was Glacier national park. That was just plain beauty.

Isocadia

PS: 20% speaks french and I would say atleast 60% of that 20% also speak english. So you don't have to worry.

@Jeku, i'll be moving from the UK so it will be quite a journey. The whole point of eventually moving there would be to start afresh so i'll be taking minimal amount of stuff and building up my belongings all again (i'm a hoarder so this it'll be a quite a challenge to leave stuff behind).
Vancouver is first on my listo, i'm not a fan of overly busy cities, but i'm also not a fan of barren wastelands with a population of 15 people, i'm hoping it doesn't have the same attitude as some of the big cities over here (birmingham and London especially).
I'd love to pursue my teaching over there, hence why i am choosing Vancouver and not a backwater town but if i choose to continue freelance then i'll have the freedom to live anywhere with internet access. Not ideal to be having my main source of income being that unstable though.

One thing i am worried about is the people, there have been many occasions when i lived down south that i wasn't accepted into groups of people, be it in my own circle or friends of friends, purely because i lived 300 miles north...
As pathetic as it sounds, it actually happened so i'm hoping people are a little more welcoming than the dirty British southerners

Cheers for the info guys, i'll be visiting as many national parks, mountains and wilderness as i can.
Apart from outside camp sites, what are the general rules around camping in the outdoors? its generally frowned upon in a lot of places in cornwall so it's best to be safe i suppose.
I'll be stopping off almost every place i come across and either sleeping in the car or pitching a tent on the nights.

I've roughly figured out my route on google maps here.(Link at bottom) The original route was straight into america, which defeats the point really. So i butchered the road and tried to fit in all the places i'd like to see.
Starting with Quebec, i'd drive down into Montreal and down to Toronto. I'd head north up near Algonquin Provincial Park and all the way down to Thunder Bay. Next stop is Winnipeg and then Saskatoon, followed by Edmonton. Down to Calgary then up through Banff and Jasper National Parks. From there i'd go to Prince George and then all the way down to Vancouver. Obviously i'll take a few detours along the way, visiting various sanctuaries and national parks (there seem to be a few ).

Most of the northwest territories seems like empty space, but if there are ample roads to go driving around this will definitely take up a few days of exploring.

So do i seem to be missing anything? There aren't any odd border control i need to get through on this drive is there? I can only assume no but best to be aware. I feel like i might be missing out on a hell of a lot.

Might be taking it to the extreme but a drive from Vancouver to LA for a flight home would be awesome to add on to the end. Chances are that money and time won't permit this and i'd be renting a car from Quebec or Montreal so how that would work i have no idea. Maybe i'll leave America for another road trip.

Obviously i'll let you guys know when i'm going, take a ton of pictures and report to a blog as soon as i can.

EDIT: This forum hates Googlemaps links (probably the %) so i'll just paste it here and you can check it out if you want.

Well, Just as you leave banff, head to the west a bit to glacier national park, I believe it is worth the detour.



Edit: North of Jasper is Pocahontas, also a nice place to visit. Just by looking at your trip so many memories start to jump up

I found a decent site with the rules for camping in BC here.
http://www.bcadventure.com/adventure/camping/index.html



Once in the country you can move through the provinces and territories freely.

ahh, yes i saw those. Think of my route as more of a guideline. I'll be heading down those roads to get between major locations but i'll be taking as many random turns as i dare!

Cheers JZ28, nice to know I'll be able to freely travel between provinces without any hassle, I've had problems with it in many places before.


You never thought of doing it yourself? Whenever i get chance i always try to road trip around England (as unimpressive as that sounds). I was always surprised of how many little places I could find dotted around. That being said, Canada is a whole other beast.

I'm thinking i'll probably spend about 2 weeks on the road, i'm sure i'll fall desperately in love with one place that i won't be able to leave for a few days.

One last question and i think i might be done, when would be the best time to visit, i was thinking early summer, but the winter would be a great time as long as the weather isn't too hazardous.

I think its time to start pricing this sucker up...

Well, it depends what you like, I went there in the summer and seeing all those green forests was awesome, but of course in the winter you get that "winterwonderland" effect. The only problem I see is that it might get REALLY cold in the winter.

If you are starting in Quebec and traveling West towards Vancouver, and if you have no experience with winter driving conditions, I'd suggest early summer. I was born and raised in Alberta for 20 years, but spent a lot of time in Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Northwest Territories. I then came to BC where I am currently for the last 20 years. In my field (Search and Rescue/Disaster Response) I have been from the East Coast to the West Coast and all over the hills, plains, mountains. Winters are quite different in Canada compared to other places. Not only can you expect heavy winds and snow, but we also get freezing rain and "white-out" conditions. Of course, in BC, we don't get the "winter conditions" that the prairies get, but BC does get it's snow in the mountain passes. Although it can be quite beautiful to see, it can also be very treacherous for those not experienced with these conditions.

There are a lot of places you can pull over and camp for a night as you travel. You will need to find out what the fire restrictions are in the summer time for each province you pass through. For example, in BC we have tinder-dry forests and the hazard rating is high to extreme, which means no fires at campgrounds. Other places have restrictions, but as mentioned you will need to inquire that location. Make certain you have things like an emergency blanket, flashlight, bottled water, etc in case you end up lost or stuck somewhere. In some places, it can be hours before you see anyone. Ensure you plan your route and note emergency numbers along your way.

You will find the people along your route are quite friendly. For example, my rescue unit were on a deployment one year during a massive forest fire. We were sent in to help evacuate homes, and had to locate a few missing persons. The locals were very friendly, given the circumstances they were facing. Some families provided us hot coffee and baked goods (cookies, cake, etc) because they knew we came hundreds of miles away from our homes and families to help them in their time of need. For you, if you end up lost or need some help, people will be very friendly and helpful.

If you do decide to travel in the winter, I would suggest you ensure you have items such as: emergency blanket, booster cables, tire chains, emergency road kit for your vehicle, bottled water, and a flashlight (crank if you can get one). These will help you out if you end up stuck in the snow somewhere. Also remember to record not just your route, but emergency numbers for each area you pass into.

Hopefully that did not put you to sleep. The drive from one end of Canada to the other is quite a nice drive. There is so much to see and take in. all I can suggest is be prepared for anything (weather, emergencies, etc) and take lots of pictures. And of course enjoy your trip and welcome to Canada

Cheers for that BlackFox. As i've said previously, my one concern would be the people, they are key to whether i'd enjoy it there or not. The one thing i am worried about is camping, i'll take enough to keep me warm, but I hope i'll be able to get comfortable enough to get a good sleep. With the amount i'll be doing i'm sure i will be out like a light though.

I'd love to have gone in the winter as the driving conditions wouldn't bother me, I have a feeling it would impair my journey (causing added fees when I get the car back late) and that i wouldn't be able to see much. What i've planned for now is around the end of march to the middle of July (well, what i really did was pick some of the cheapest flights )
The car hire i have chosen is for 16 days, i planned to spend at least 2 weeks on the road, but i've given myself 2 days grace on top of that, whether it is spent roaming around Vancouver, or racing to drop the car off.

Before I go into the details of cost, my mate has been trying to convince me for a few days to not go and road trip, but to just stay in Vancouver. He's not the adventurous type and would prefer everything to be set in stone before leaving, with no chance of mishaps at all. He seems really against the idea in general. I have my concerns but he has really thrown a spanner in my motivation. Surely its not that bad of an idea, no?

Right, cost time. These are all rough estimates as of now though. The values are in GBP with the current exchange rate from Canadian Dollars.

600 Flight Over There

900 Flight Back

700 Car Hire for 16 days

600 Petrol (following exact route, so it will probably be a lot more. Also worked out from the MPG on the most efficient running car they could offer me and from UK fuel prices)

1000 spending money minimum (this will be my budget for food, campsite costs, day trips etc.)

Total Cost so far: £3800

I was surprised at the amount this came to, it seems relatively cheap to see all of Canada. I know I won’t be staying in a luxury hotel and participating in any fine dining experiences but that suits me fine. I would want at least 1k of insurance money, just in case things go really wrong though.

More in depth planning is needed, but i'll get back to you guys when it is all set in stone.

Sounds like you've got everything worked out.

Just remember, contrary to some opinions: we do live in houses, not igloos; and we do have electricity, running water, and flush toilets It's remarkable how some think we still live in the Ice Age up here.

Best of luck on your trip and hope you enjoy our beautiful country.

The road conditions can be quite severe in the winter, and they sometimes even close down major highways if it's too dangerous. If you still want to venture in the dead of winter, bring chains and a working cell phone!

I would recommend early fall and to get some air conditioning in your car. Good luck