VIA Rail Canadian and the Canadians

[Bob Dylan]

Thanks for the replies. Based on various reports that I have seen, I get the impression that smoke/fresh air stops (obviously an oxymoron) are much less frequent on the VIA Canadian than on most Amtrak long distance trains.

True, but the stops tend to be longer, especially in Jasper and Winnipeg!

 

[Willbridge]

Edmonton is a real Gem of a City, worth spending a few days exploring it, but it's best in the Summer!

The long days make it easy to get a lot done in summer, too. Edmonton is at the same latitude as Berlin (52N). A lot of people think it's further north because the inland temperatures are lower than in Gulf-streamed Europe. The long winter nights made us into big users of Scotchlite.

 

[jpakala]

We go to Canada each year and now we always use a credit card because although U.S. cash always was accepted whether we were near the border or not (and the exchange rate was maybe not what we could have gotten at a bank, it was acceptable to us) we would come home with Canadian cash that no place would accept. We would save it for a year and try to remember to take it with us.

 

[Urban Sky]

We go to Canada each year and now we always use a credit card because although U.S. cash always was accepted whether we were near the border or not (and the exchange rate was maybe not what we could have gotten at a bank, it was acceptable to us) we would come home with Canadian cash that no place would accept. We would save it for a year and try to remember to take it with us.

Dealing with foreign currencies sucks, doesn’t it? I had to carry around the $20 I got from that lovely American couple I helped planning their rail trip in the Rhine valley for five years in my money belt before I finally had the opportunity to pay with it on US soil. However, a good way to get rid of it (provided you haven’t already taken out way too much of it at the ATM) is to go „all-in“ at a shop or restaurant before you leave and just pay the balance by credit card…

 

[jiml]

Dealing with foreign currencies sucks, doesn’t it? I had to carry around the $20 I got from that lovely American couple I helped planning their rail trip in the Rhine valley for five years in my money belt before I finally had the opportunity to pay with it on US soil. However, a good way to get rid of it (provided you haven’t already taken out way too much of it at the ATM) is to go „all-in“ at a shop or restaurant before you leave and just pay the balance by credit card…

There's a reason airports (and European train stations) have all those shops and eateries.

 

[BlackDiamond]

I have a similar problem, I have containers full of Canadian and UK currency, some of my Canadian is so old I even have a $1 bill in there, I suspect they are no good anymore since they went to the Loonie.

 

[Northwestern]

From an early 1980's trip on the Canadian, I still have 6 Canadian loonies, 1 Sir John MacDonadl $10 bill, 1 Queen Victoria $20 bill, and 1 Sir Wilfred Laurier $5 bill.. I hope they are still acceptable in Canada. Maybe I should keep the Laurier $5 bill as I hear the Canada Bank wants to remove him from the bill and substitute someone else.

 

[TheMalahat]

From an early 1980's trip on the Canadian, I still have 6 Canadian loonies, 1 Sir John MacDonadl $10 bill, 1 Queen Victoria $20 bill, and 1 Sir Wilfred Laurier $5 bill.. I hope they are still acceptable in Canada. Maybe I should keep the Laurier $5 bill as I hear the Canada Bank wants to remove him from the bill and substitute someone else.

They're all still legal tender, but you may confuse the person accepting it!

$1, $2, $25, $500 and $1,000 bills are no longer legal tender, but can be 'turned in' to the Bank of Canada via any major Canadian bank, in Canada where they'll be exchanged for face value.

$5, $10, $20, $50 and $100, regardless of issue date, are legal tender.

Finally something random from work is slightly useful

 

[user 5784]

The stops that are not flag stops in the time table could likely be used as smoke breaks unless the crew specifies otherwise. North Sudberry, Sioux Lookout, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Edmonton, Jasper, Kamloops come to mind as stops that you can count on for fresh air.

they say kamloops is in the middle of a rail yard and one cant get off the train unless disembarking there.

 

[greatwestern]

they say kamloops is in the middle of a rail yard and one cant get off the train unless disembarking there.

On the Canadian this year we were allowed out for fresh air break at Kamloops but instructed not to stray away from immediate area of train as it was a live rail yard.

 

[jiml]

 

[zephyr17]

they say kamloops is in the middle of a rail yard and one cant get off the train unless disembarking there.

Who's "they" ? My experience is you are allowed off in Kamloops, but VIA personel have become quite zealous about making sure no one strays from the platform, and that includes straying beyond the physical train, even though the platform may extend beyond the train. The same principle applies in Melville, by the way.

Kamloops North is indeed smack in the middle of a rail yard and there absolutely nothing around it.

Apparently CN has become quite sensitive to clueless passengers wandering around active rail yards and has served notice to that effect to VIA. One should follow the directions of the VIA crew and not push it, otherwise deboarding at certain stops will be banned by CN. Kamloops North, Melville and to a lesser extent Hornepayne come to mind.

 

[user 5784]

Who's "they" ? My experience is you are allowed off in Kamloops, but VIA personel have become quite zealous about making sure no one strays from the platform, and that includes straying beyond the physical train, even though the platform may extend beyond the train. The same principle applies in Melville, by the way.

Kamloops North is indeed smack in the middle of a rail yard and there absolutely nothing around it.

Apparently CN has become quite sensitive to clueless passengers wandering around active rail yards and has served notice to that effect to VIA. One should follow the directions of the VIA crew and not push it, otherwise deboarding at certain stops will be banned by CN. Kamloops North, Melville and to a lesser extent Hornepayne come to mind.

"they"--many have said so in this forum. Re horneypayne everytime ive been on the train thru there anyone can get off and walk at least the length of the train . i never wander away from the train at any stop besides Jasper anyway. I dont want to ever get left behind.

 

[zephyr17]

"they"--many have said so in this forum. Re horneypayne everytime ive been on the train thru there anyone can get off and walk at least the length of the train . i never wander away from the train at any stop besides Jasper anyway. I dont want to ever get left behind.

Fresh air breaks/being allowed off at Melville and Hornepayne is still permitted as of the first week of November. Will know about Kamloops North on Wednesday.

I didn't say that any of these fresh air breaks had been discontinued. I did say CN has gotten tetchy about passengers wandering around active areas, especially at Kamloops North, and has told VIA that passenger wandering around has to be controlled or they might refuse to allow it at some or all of these places. That has not yet happened and hopefully it won't.

 

[trimetbusfan]

Been messing around with VIA's new reservation system, and it appears that you can now access car maps of the sleeper cars! I don't remember seeing this before. In some cases it appears that you can even change seats within the website, but I think that might not be possible for sleeper cars (or at least my ticket).

 

[greatwestern]

Been messing around with VIA's new reservation system, and it appears that you can now access car maps of the sleeper cars! I don't remember seeing this before. In some cases it appears that you can even change seats within the website, but I think that might not be possible for sleeper cars (or at least my ticket).

View attachment 34658

I agree that it seems you cannot change sleeping accommodation online. Although I can make a new "booking" for my bedroom type for my date of travel when I look at my booking it specifically states that I cannot make changes, and indeed all the accommodations in all the cars are shown as "Unavailable".

 

[JohnW]

We are traveling from Toronto to Vancouver in June on the Canadian. We have splurged on Prestige Class, and are in car # 31. We would like to know any of the "Ins" and "Outs" about our trip? Any recommendations on the trip? Any thoughts on tipping? All input is welcome. Thanks

 

[Rambling Robert]

I’ve only traveled Coach on two short VIA trips and the service was very good.

On a short three night stay many years ago - I toured Vancouver in a rental car and I’m so glad I took the car over to Victoria by ferry.

My “Where’s the Cat” AU trip report from Moncton NB to Halifax NS - although I experienced a seven hour delay on top of that for our return trip, I spoke with a viaRail agent for quite some time. When I mentioned that to her, she said that’s OK there hasn’t been any lights for me of waiting passengers seeking a CSR. Well, we talked about via rail and I asked her if she had traveled much on Amtrak and she said yes. She had great Amtrak stories too.

We both lit up our discussion when we learned, we both had recently been to the Buffalo Central terminal BCT. She said that while she was outside admiring the building like I had done nearly around the same time someone asked her if she and her husband would like to see the inside of the building. Needless to say when I was at college in Buffalo, there was virtually no access to the BCT it was fenced off for quite a distance. Now 50 years later, they’ve completed the first stage of tightening the roof surfaces of the BCT. I mentioned to the viaRail’s agent that the BCT was open to the public during an art exhibit and the main train hall looked unbelievable. Tons of people walking around the main train hall of the BCT! Alive! She was very happy to hear and hoped to find the art exhibit photo on google.. This conversation would’ve never taken place had I didn’t have a seven hour delay waiting for the “Ocean” to arrive to Moncton from Montreal.

I am happy that you are taking the Canadian in prestige class. What a great way to see the Canadian Rockies.

 

[Urban Sky]

We are traveling from Toronto to Vancouver in June on the Canadian. We have splurged on Prestige Class, and are in car # 31. We would like to know any of the "Ins" and "Outs" about our trip? Any recommendations on the trip? Any thoughts on tipping? All input is welcome. Thanks

My #1 advice to any night train travellers is to adjust their sleep schedule to maximize the daylight views on the scenery. Another one would be to download an offline map like “OSMAnd” to be able to track the train’s current position without mobile/cell phone reception…

 

[JRR]

We are traveling from Toronto to Vancouver in June on the Canadian. We have splurged on Prestige Class, and are in car # 31. We would like to know any of the "Ins" and "Outs" about our trip? Any recommendations on the trip? Any thoughts on tipping? All input is welcome. Thanks

Great trip! We thought we would read a lot in the prairie but didn’t. Started “collecting” the old grain elevators like the Canadians do. Expect delays as long freights get priority but it just extends your trip if you have no deadlines! We enjoyed the food, the Canadians wines and meeting people from all over the world.

 

[texline]

We did that trip, and it was the best train adventure to date. We traveled from Vancouver to Toronto and then continued on a different train to Montreal. We really were lucky, we had two groups, ours which was three couples and the three couples from Australia. We all were friends pretty quickly and shared the adventure together, we still keep in contact. I put up our adventure on a website. We had such a great crew and such a good time, we tipped heavily.

 

[Urban Sky]

Expect delays as long freights get priority but it just extends your trip if you have no deadlines!

Oh yeah, I forgot this: don’t schedule anything you wouldn‘t want to miss or would have to reschedule within 24 hours of arrival time. Arrival delays have become much less epidemic and massive as 5 years ago (and most trains actually arrive in Vancouver or Toronto early these days), but you‘ll just enjoy your time on board much more if you don’t have to worry about when the train will arrive at its destination…

 

[uncleboots]

We are traveling from Toronto to Vancouver in June on the Canadian. We have splurged on Prestige Class, and are in car # 31. We would like to know any of the "Ins" and "Outs" about our trip? Any recommendations on the trip? Any thoughts on tipping? All input is welcome. Thanks

One thing that caught me off guard, I took the trip Van-Tor one June and it didn’t get dark til 11PM and sunrise was at 4:45AM, so sleeping after 4:45 AM was a adjustment.

 

[flitcraft]

If you are a wine enthusiast, I would note that the wines served in the dining car--all Canadian, of course--are B list wines. But those served in the Park Car are a cut above. It wasn't till our second day that we discovered that you can ask for the Park Car wines in the dining car instead of the 'standard' dining car wines. Don't bother bringing snacks or drinks along, unless you have particular dietary requirements--in prestige class, they constantly make food and snacks available. (Maybe think about wearing elasticated pants??)

Bring a nice eyeshade for sleeping, since in June you will have maximum daylight. I have one that has cups in it so that the eyeshade doesn't press on your eyes--it makes wearing it more comfortable.

It was our experience that tipping was both less expected and when tipping, the 'standard' amounts were lower than on Amtrak. Do whatever you think appropriate. But be aware that the onboard passenger crew changes out at Winnipeg, so if you plan to tip your sleeping car attendant, the Park Car attendant, etc. you'll want to do so before the Winnipeg stop.

We purchased two paperback rail guides prior to the trip, and I can heartily recommend both for their coverage of the Canadian and what you'll see along the way: Canada by Train, 3rd edition, published by Way of the Rail Publishing, www.wayof therail.com. Also Canadian Rail Travel Guide by Daryl T. Adair. I don't have any idea whether either or both have a recent edition, but the general information about the route and sights, as well as background of Via Rail and Canadian rail travel, are probably useful even if they haven't been updated. Both cover Canadian trains in addition to the Canadian, but as you might guess, that train gets lots of coverage. According to Amazon, both seem to be still available, together with another guide written in 2000. I've always said that travel guides are a miniscule part of a travel budget and provide information so you get the most from the trip.

One of the advantages of having detailed route guides is that you can anticipate good photo ops in advance. And speaking of photo ops, at least when we took the Canadian, the Park Car was on the very back of the consist, meaning that you could take advantage of the railfan window at the back of the Park Car for photography. Although the trains' windows got washed before we hit Jasper, Canadian insects seem to find train windows irresistable. Splatted bugs are the enemy of photos. But, given the position of the railfan window, it was clear of bug debris the entire journey.

The bed in the prestige cars is a true double bed--no clambering up a bunk!--that is a Murphy bed brought down from the wall. Very comfortable for sleeping for two, but when it is down, it blocks access to some of the cubbies and storage in the room. So take care before your room is made up for sleeping that you have glasses, reading matter, phones, hearing aids, etc. that you might not want inaccessible for the night. Ask me how I learned this...

The in-room bathroom is much more spacious and nice than what you'd find on an Amtrak sleeper. The shower in particular was both roomier and had better water pressure, and they supply high end toiletries and a hairdryer, too!

There are a number of scheduled activities on the train, but I cannot speak to them since we spent all of our time in our room or the dining room or the Park Car. But your sleeping car attendant--more of a concierge, actually--can let you know what is scheduled so you can decide to partake or not.

I can tell you that a trip on the Canadian, especially in prestige class, is an absolute bucket list experience!

 

[railiner]

Bingo! After learning about the difference between Room F and the other "cabins for two" on this forum, I have been trying to change to that from my purchased Room B, several times, to no avail. But this morning, after being on hold for 45 minutes, I finally reached an agent who was able to find one, and change my booking, at no additional charge. So really looking forward to my first ever ride in a former "Compartment".

Thanks to those who gave that tip!