villa4europe Posted October 26, 2014 Share Posted October 26, 2014 can someone tell me if this is a good deal - 15 days / 14 nights, escorted tour so everything is taken care of, breakfast as a group, lots of free time, all the transfers etc sorted, coach driven rather than myself (bearing in mind my missus wouldnt drive if we did fly drive) toronto - arrive at mid day, free time for the rest of the day toronto - Toronto city tour, Niagara falls tour ottawa - ottawa city tour Quebec - quebec city tour Quebec - free day Montreal - city tour toronto - think we'll lose the day travelling calgary - free time in toronto in the morning, fly to calgary and then free time there canmore - calgary city tour in morning then travel banff - banff tour kamloops - travel day whistler - free time vancouver - city tour, free time vancouver - free time it seems a lot of travelling and taking a lot in (too much?) which is why i think we'd prefer the coach option even if im not overly bothered by the guided tour bit, sounds like the group thing is breakfast coach, city tour then you're on your own, which again doesnt bother me because ive done china as a group where it was 3 meals and 10 hours a day in a group (that started to grind...) its only the cost, £2,500... i think in my mind ive okayed it on the basis that a fair few places want around £1,200 for a week on the either coast and i'll be doing it all in one hit, i've had a decent look, i am fairly sure i couldnt do that better myself, theres probably around £1k in flights in there Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyh29 Posted October 26, 2014 Share Posted October 26, 2014 I went to Toronto and Niagara for a friends wedding in May We hired a car and drove to Niagara , personally I'd rather do that then be on a coach in a large group Toronto ... Ok but nothing special , steam brewery for a quick tour and free beer , CN tower of course to tick some boxes ... Goto Niagara on the lake and enjoy a day there , and a day at the falls themselves , the tour behind the water is the best bet Heard great things about taking the train across Canada it would be far more appealing than a coach to me , least in a train you can walk up and down a bit Other than that I can't help much I'm afraid Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villa4europe Posted October 26, 2014 Author Share Posted October 26, 2014 i think theres a train in there somewhere through the rockies seems to be very little east to west trips available, group tour or fly drive i can live with the inconvenience of the group as opposed to the inconvenience of driving, my 2 main concerns was the number of miles i'll clock and the cost is that all you've done in canada? would have thought you'd be the one on here who had done most of those places and could tell me if they are all worth doing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyh29 Posted October 27, 2014 Share Posted October 27, 2014 Mrs H made me promise not to explore Canada without her as its the one place she really really wants to spend some time travelling in She came with me to the wedding so I managed to at least get a sampler Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NurembergVillan Posted November 12, 2014 Moderator Share Posted November 12, 2014 Looks like an amazing trip. I've been to Toronto and the surrounding area a couple of times as we have family there and the city is as many North American cities, but the CN Tower is worth a visit, plus as Tony says Niagara on the Lake and Niagara Falls have to be seen. Banff and Whistler aren't too far from Vancouver and are on our hitlist, and Vancouver itself is spectacular. If you end up over here I'd love to meet you for a pint! All in, though, it does seem like a lot of travel. It's a big old country. See if you can get the itinerary in more detail so you have travel times etc. You could always book separately and do Toronto, Banff and Vancouver as you'll hit three main parts then. Air Transat do good priced flights to/from Manchester and London to/from Toronto and Vancouver so you could fly into one and out of another. What time of year are you looking to travel? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drat01 Posted November 28, 2014 Share Posted November 28, 2014 Been to Calgary many times with work - used to have an office that looked onto the Rockies - even though a good hour drive away still an awesome place. Been all over Alberta while I went out there, so went to "little Japan" as the locals call it, ie Banff. It's a very nice place, but I think there are better nearby. We used to stay in Canmore and Kananaskis which you cannot beat to wake up in the morning and go "wow" when you open the curtains and see the place. Lake Louise is always good for a visit - been 4 times now tried to visit in each of the seasons to see how much it changes etc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trekka Posted January 24, 2015 VT Supporter Share Posted January 24, 2015 Toronto - CN Tower aside, I thought it was a little disappointing (although I was only there for a day) Ottawa - Awesome city! Quebec - I did the city tour myself and it was really, really good if done through the tourism office (which was free by the way). It's also pretty beautiful at night. Montreal - Nice little city, and I can wholly recommend some kind of cavern bar we ended up in. I wish I could remember the name but it was pretty much the highlight of my stay there! Banff - Hot springs are good as is the meat restaurant on the main street that looks like you've walked into the set of "Due South". Vancouver - You MUST go whale watching. We weren't expecting to see anything but ended up with Orca (killer whales) "playing" with the boat . Gas town is good too! As Drat says, Lake Louise is stunning but I prefer the nearby Lake Morraine: Hopefully you can that above (I've linked to my facebook photo back from 2005) 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoelVilla Posted January 24, 2015 Share Posted January 24, 2015 A friend of mine who travels a lot in work all over the world always answer 'Montreal' when asked which is his favourite city. That is all I got. Would like to travel Canada myself sometime. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lapal_fan Posted February 11, 2015 Share Posted February 11, 2015 I went to Toronto and Niagara for a friends wedding in May We hired a car and drove to Niagara , personally I'd rather do that then be on a coach in a large group Toronto ... Ok but nothing special , steam brewery for a quick tour and free beer , CN tower of course to tick some boxes ... Goto Niagara on the lake and enjoy a day there , and a day at the falls themselves , the tour behind the water is the best bet Heard great things about taking the train across Canada it would be far more appealing than a coach to me , least in a train you can walk up and down a bit Other than that I can't help much I'm afraid Think I've done all of that! Steam Whistle Puck/Bottle openers are in my lounge Behind the water was ever so slightly disappointing, because I went in March - and it was completely frozen block of ice in the tunnels still good fun though. I'd like to die in Niagara on the Lake, picturesque with the CN tower/Toronto on the extreme horizon, absolutely wonderful + house prices were cheap as chips!!! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoelVilla Posted May 25, 2016 Share Posted May 25, 2016 Canada was amazing. In Vancouver we went to watch whales; saw 4 orcas around Bowen Island. The surroundings was so beautiful. Was a bit overwhelmed actually. Banff was a must do. Going to the top of Sulphur Mountain was fantastic. Didn't like to go uphill in the gondolas; downhill was fine. Montreal was fine. It is actually the place I would have cut if I would done trip again but on fewer number of days but still a good city. If that makes sense. Toronto has a lot to do. I liked the Hockey Hall of Fame cause Im very interested. Went a daytrip to Niagara Falls. Stunning view. Niagara on the Lake reminded me of the last episode of Seinfeld Still nice though. Lovely trip. Great country and people. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Demitri_C Posted May 26, 2016 Share Posted May 26, 2016 Canada is on my list definitely want to go there at some point. looks like a fantastic country. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seat68 Posted June 22, 2016 Share Posted June 22, 2016 Going to Toronto next year purely to see a band, having a weekend there before heading into the US. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoelVilla Posted June 26, 2016 Share Posted June 26, 2016 Go up in CN Tower. Look around and go out on the glass floor. Spend a night on Yonge Street around Dundas Square and you have done Toronto Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
choffer Posted July 14, 2016 VT Supporter Share Posted July 14, 2016 On 26 June 2016 at 19:21, NoelVilla said: and you have done Toronto Not if you haven't also been to a hockey game, eh? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoelVilla Posted July 14, 2016 Share Posted July 14, 2016 22 minutes ago, choffer said: Not if you haven't also been to a hockey game, eh? They hardly play hockey in Toronto anymore 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villa4europe Posted July 14, 2016 Author Share Posted July 14, 2016 Hockey season wasn't on when I went Baseball was though, blue jays had a series vs the Yankees which I think they won, I've never seen anything like it, rough bars, posh bars, cocktail bars, cafes, restaurants, hotels, few shops...all had the baseball on Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HanoiVillan Posted March 17, 2017 Share Posted March 17, 2017 Anybody got any recommendations for Quebec City? I'm there the week after next, and long-range forecast is absolutely grisly, so indoor recommendations are particularly appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villa4europe Posted March 17, 2017 Author Share Posted March 17, 2017 Not much indoor from what I can remember, I spent the morning at the plains of Abraham then the fort, watched the change of the guard then walked along the promenade towards the fairmont, walked round the upper bit for a while, walked to the parliament building and the old city walls, ate something French then got the furnicular down to the lower part and looked round some trendy shopping street and a couple of decent bars, think the only place I really sat in to do something was the fort museum which is round by the funicular, they put on like a 30 minute show with models telling you the history of the city which was pretty cool its a pretty city with lots of nice buildings with not a whole lot there if I'm brutally honest, i know it sounds obvious but it's also incredibly French, I'm talking waitresses who couldn't speak much English and they weren't messing they came over to us to practice, lots of people didn't understand my Black Country accent you've got to eat poutine, think chips, gravy and cheese (but it's cheese curds which are a bit shit) if you want fast food go to a and w they do what imo is probably the best fast food chain burger I've ever had and I think they're only in canada, also try a st Hubert which is another canada only chain restaurant that does a fast food section but also a proper meal sit down restaurant and bar section which was really really good and beaver tails which is like a donut spread flat like a pizza and then covered in sweet toppings basically I ate a lot in Canada 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HanoiVillan Posted March 17, 2017 Share Posted March 17, 2017 5 minutes ago, villa4europe said: Not much indoor from what I can remember, I spent the morning at the plains of Abraham then the fort, watched the change of the guard then walked along the promenade towards the fairmont, walked round the upper bit for a while, walked to the parliament building and the old city walls, ate something French then got the furnicular down to the lower part and looked round some trendy shopping street and a couple of decent bars, think the only place I really sat in to do something was the fort museum which is round by the funicular, they put on like a 30 minute show with models telling you the history of the city which was pretty cool its a pretty city with lots of nice buildings with not a whole lot there if I'm brutally honest, i know it sounds obvious but it's also incredibly French, I'm talking waitresses who couldn't speak much English and they weren't messing they came over to us to practice, lots of people didn't understand my Black Country accent you've got to eat poutine, think chips, gravy and cheese (but it's cheese curds which are a bit shit) if you want fast food go to a and w they do what imo is probably the best fast food chain burger I've ever had and I think they're only in canada, also try a st Hubert which is another canada only chain restaurant that does a fast food section but also a proper meal sit down restaurant and bar section which was really really good and beaver tails which is like a donut spread flat like a pizza and then covered in sweet toppings basically I ate a lot in Canada Ta. It's mostly a break away with the wife who has been living in Canada for the last 5 months, so if we're stuck in the airbnb we'll probably manage to keep ourselves busy Don't need to worry about the lingo either, the missus is fluent. The Fort Museum sounds good, I'll check that out for sure. I can't abide poutine, but those other fast food options sound excellent. I've just remembered how massive the portion sizes are over there! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villa4europe Posted March 17, 2017 Author Share Posted March 17, 2017 i wasnt overly fussed by it but i think i still tried it 4 times just to be sure... i ate a ton of ribs over there, im not usually a rib man as they're a disappointment with hardly any meat on them, not in canada, think i added about 4 new species to my animals eaten list too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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