Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with travel and canada

All I want for Christmas is my yum smoked meat.

nosila — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 16:19:12 -0800

I'm traveling to Dallas on Northwest Airlines from Montreal Pierre Trudeau Airport tomorrow morning. I just bought three pounds of smoked meat that is NOT shrink wrapped. Can I take it? Can I carry it on? I just spoke with someone from Travelocity and someone from U.S. Customs at the New York border. Both said to put it in my luggage and it should be fine. I wasn't planning on checking a bag. Obviously, I CAN check a bag, and I will if I have to, but does anyone have any experience doing this, either in checked luggage or carry-on? Thanks!

How to avoid the H1N1 while vacationing it its hotspots?

pick_the_flowers — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 12:09:11 -0800

How can I make sure I don't get H1N1 for Christmas? I live in a (underdeveloped) country where only 1 case of H1N1 has been reported. It was reported about 2 weeks ago. I've learned Tamiflu is (allegedly) available here, but there is no talk of vaccine.

I'm going to Canada for Christmas/New Year.

I'm concerned that the H1N1 is going to spoil my vacation; it seems so many people I know either have it now or have had it recently.

Can I get some kind of vaccination upon arrival? Is that a good plan?

Looking for advice.

I'm looking for an affordable mobile plan that will let me surf the web and use Google maps during a short trip to Canada.

stuart_s — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 12:31:05 -0800

I'm going to Vancouver next month. My Sprint phone won't be of any use to me there. When I went to Toronto last year, I was able to make exorbitantly expensive phone calls and I wasn't able to access the internet or use google maps. I'd like to do all of those things economically. I still have my old Treo 75?wx. Perhaps that could be of some use? Thank you.

US/Canada customs hate me

ttyn — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 21:24:18 -0800

Canadian citizen with American green card. Traveling with no passport? Do I need to apply for a passport (Canadian, since I am not an American Citizen) if I am living in the U.S. and would like to fly to Canada to visit my parents for a week?

Can I not get by with entering Canada with my citizenship card and then entering the U.S. with my green card?

Are the taxes on an American sweepstakes win by a Canadian worth our while?

stungeye — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 08:28:22 -0800

SweepstakesFilter: My wife (a Canadian like myself) recently won a large number of travel rewards points from an American chain of hotels. Help us determine if the prize is worth keeping considering what we'll have to pay in taxes to the IRS. We have confirmed the legitimacy of the prize. (The contest was handled by ePrize and we've been in direct communication with a rep from the hotel chain.) To redeem the prize we have been asked to fill out an IRS W8BEN Foreign Status form. The instructions for the form state that "Foreign persons are subject to U.S. tax at a 30% rate on income they receive from U.S." Unlike casino winnings (for which the 30% tax can be recouped by a Canadian winner) I cannot find any information on the foreign tax liability for points-based sweepstakes.

When asked about taxes, a representative from hotel chain said the following:

"Although I cannot provide you with tax advice, it is likely that your tax liability will not be based on the published retail value of the points, but instead based on internal costs to provide the points."

The published retail value of the points was $35,000 and we've been told that the internal cost will be around $15,000. The points can be cashed in for approximately 12 round-trip overseas flights, or (for the sake of monetary comparison) converted into $10,000 worth of Amazon gift-cards.

So here are my questions:

Have you been in a similar situation? Care to share your "Canadian winner of US sweepstakes" taxation experience?

Can you suggest a firm to contact that will know how to deal with this situation? (So far the Canadian tax advisers we've contacted haven't been overly helpful.)

Should we accept the prize, even if it means paying $4,500 to $10,500 USD? (The former being tax on internal costs, the later being tax on the retail value of the points.)

If we accept the points and are surprised with a giant tax bill (say the full $10,500) can we return the prize to avoid the taxation?

Best American hostels?

smackfu — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 09:58:49 -0800

What are the best hostels in the U.S. and Canada? The various hostel finder sites are aimed at people who know where they are traveling and want to find a place to stay. This works well in Europe where they are usually a dozen choices so you can travel anywhere, but not so well in the US where some major cities have zero good hostels. And I don't really care where I go, I just want to go away for a long weekend and not spend much money.

You can define "best" however you wish, but not requiring a car would be a big plus.

Have you used the Canrailpass?

skwt — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 21:36:46 -0800

Have you used the Canrailpass? Or traveled across Canada in a similar way, by train or bus? I'm thinking about doing a last-minute 3 or 4-week Canrailpass trip around Canada. Anyone have any pointers/stories?

In particular:

1. I'd like to travel through the northern provinces if possible. Does the Canrailpass cover that? I'm finding it hard to find coverage. 'Anywhere VIA Rail goes', it says, but I don't know where that is.

2. I'd like to zig-zag all around, and it's not like I know which towns to stop in, other than a few of the major cities. How do I decide where to book my destinations, such as my first one out of Toronto? Has anyone done this? Can anyone offer an example itinerary? Even a few stops would be useful. Basically I want to cover as much of the country as possible in let's say 30 days. How do I even begin to plan this.

3. I guess I'll be staying in hostels mostly, when I'm not sleeping on the train. By the way, if you've used the Canrailpass, is it practical to sleep in 'Comfort class' (the lowest/worst class)?

4. Doing this all last-minute, will I have problems with everything being booked?

And whatever else you think I should know...

Thanks very much.

What's a stranded girl to do?

miss_scarlett — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 08:44:06 -0800

Albertan, in Ontario for a family get together in Durham- I long to visit friends for a day in Toronto - So far I have a way INTO To., early Wednesday morning...getting BACK to Durham is the problem. The other hitch is, I will be getting into To. at around 5am...what on earth can I do to pass the time between then and say...brunch with friends at a reasonable hour? So, my question is two fold:

a) Any suggestions on Transportation from toronto, ontario to Durham, Ontario on a Wednesday afternoon/evening

and

b) Any suggestions on way to pass the time on a Wednesday, in Toronto, from 5am until say...10am?

Thanks MeFites!

Canadian National Parks

netbros — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 08:06:54 -0800

This is for our Canuck MeFites (or those with knowledge or experience). Please tell me about the Canadian National Park System. For the past 25 years I have spent a great deal of my leisure time exploring the U.S. National Parks. I am interested in doing the same north of the border. I especially love hiking in the mountains, so I'm looking for national park recommendations in the Purcell Mountains or Canadian Rockies. If you have familiarity with specific trails or off-road exploring that would be great.

But I don't want to exclude the easterners. What would you recommend on your side of the country? My previous Canadian experiences have been limited to Montreal and Toronto. I'd like to get out of the cities and into the wild. Thanks in advance for your assistance.

Things to do in Montreal

fourcheesemac — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 06:28:00 -0800

Things to do in Montreal and vicinity, next week? Going to be in Montreal Tuesday to Friday of next week. Anyone local or familiar with the town have any suggestions of good stuff going down? Good places to eat, good museum exhibits (contemporary art, especially), decent day hikes near the city, fun walks, and (given my interests) any sort of First Nations/indigenous events, exhibitions, etc. within driving distance . . . Thanks in advance!

Passport troubles

Tiresias — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 20:03:51 -0800

Possible passport problem while catching a connecting flight in Shanghai I am a Canadian citizen currently residing in Japan. Time to go home! My passport is set to expire August 6th, so I booked a flight back to Canada on August 4th. Unfortunately, that flight connects through Shanghai --- and I just realized last night that it may be a problem to connect through China using a passport set to expire in two days.

The Canadian embassy has not been helpful, except to tell me that there is no way they can issue a temporary extension.

So, I have two questions:

1) Can I connect through Shanghai on a passport set to expire in two days? I will be in the airport for less than 24 hours.

2) I am a dual citizen and currently hold an Italian passport. Could I possibly leave Japan on my Canadian passport (I need to, for visa reasons) and then enter China on my Italian passport, which is valid for another few years?

Any information you have will be helpful, because I am utterly, utterly freaking out right now.

Is this worth checking out?

Bakuun — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 10:45:51 -0800

Does anyone have experience with SWAP? (It's a Canadian work-abroad program for students that my boyfriend is currently considering, particularly for acquiring a work visa in the USA.) I've found a thread on a forum mentioning that all SWAP does is basically lick the stamp for you, on official forms available elsewhere. Deflates the excitement balloon a bit, but then if they actually speed up the process somehow, that stamp licking could be worth it. Especially when getting a US work visa is quite the difficult affair otherwise.

As far as I understand it, the regular process would require you to have a sponsor/job lined up already, while SWAP makes the visa available with no such strings.

Hoping for some personal experiences!

What's happening in Montreal this weekend?

ajliberto — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 18:27:21 -0800

What's happening in Montreal this weekend? So I'm driving up to Montreal this weekend from Boston with a couple of first timers (I was there once before). I am hoping to get some suggestions for some exciting times for artsy/designy/musiciany twenty-somethings who are into openings, live music, dance parties, etc... We're staying in the plateau, but have a car, so we can get around a bit. Oh, and I've been keeping an eye on stilepost.ca, so anything in addition to that would be awesome!

What are some must-see things in the Eastern part of Newfoundland?

chunking express — Tue, 05 May 2009 11:12:34 -0800

What are some must-see things in the Eastern part of Newfoundland? My wife and some friends are staying in and around St. Johns for a few days, and then in and around Trinity/Bonavista for a few days. Is there anything particularly standout we should definitely check out?

Also, can anyone recommend places to stay in Avalon or St. Johns? We're still looking for a cottage there. It'd be for 5 people.

How long does it take to cross the U.S./Canada border by car?

mccxxiii — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 20:46:57 -0800

Can anyone give me specific advice about wait times and possible traffic problems at the Milltown International Bridge U.S./Canada border crossing? I am planning a road trip for July that will involve driving from New Brunswick into Maine across the Milltown International Bridge.

I've never crossed the U.S./Canada border in a car, and I have no idea how the system works, how fast it goes, how far it gets backed up waiting, etc. Do you have to get out of the car and go through some kind of process, or is it a drive-through thing?

In the U.S. rental car (properly paperworked for international driving) will be 2 adult American citizens, fully documented, no animals, no plants, no funny business, nothing shady, all attempts made to follow the rules.

We will arrive at the bridge around 5pm/6pm on Wednesday, July 22, and we hope to cross quickly in order to get down to Bar Harbor as early as possible that night.

Any MeFites out there have experience with this specific border crossing? Are we going to run into rush hour commuter traffic that will slow us down? Is this crossing commonly clogged at all hours of the day with commercial trucks? Should we tweak our plans to hit the bridge at a different time? Am I missing something that's going to be a problem that I don't even realize?

Thanks in advance for any advice. Not trying to make a mountain out of a molehill, but I am kind of an uptight Type-A and I like to plan thoroughly.

Road trip USA for Aussie noob

b33j — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 18:09:17 -0800

International Travel novice: What do I need to know that I don't know that I don't know? I'm Australian (from warm Queensland), meeting a friend from the Netherlands in the USA (Florida) in February 2010 for a two month road trip that will go through Canada (via Texas, California, Washington and many other places - itinerary mostly not set in stone yet) with the aim to concentrate on mutual internet friends, natural beauty and historical places. Tourist attractions (like Disneyland), not so much.

I know that I need airline tickets (but when do I book?) and a passport (what about visas?). What else do I need to know? Tips on packing (buy my winter stuff there?), on flight luggage, changing currency, paying for things over there (travellers cheques? Will my debit card work? What about my Mastercard? Will I have to pay fees for exchange of currency?). How much will it cost? How much would you set aside per day for living expenses if you were doing it cheap? What about powering my battery charger for my camera - should I be the converter here or there? Storage for my photos?

What should I have asked in this question that I didn't think to ask? Books and websites much appreciated as well as personal anecdotes.

Total last minute Montréal vacation.

grapefruitmoon — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 18:11:22 -0800

MontréalFilter: 'moonMan and I are very suddenly going to Montréal from Wednesday to Saturday. What should we do while we're there? I checked out some previous Montréal threads and found some good hotel and bar recommendations. I'd like to know about some other stuff though, like:

Cafés! We're big nerds who like to sit around and drink beverages and do crossword puzzles. Recommend some places that are awesome.

Museums: there must be some, right? Are there any that are particularly awesome? Bonus points if they have weird exhibits.

Bookstores: The nerdier, the better.

And yes, we will eat poutine. Oh man, will we ever. Oh, and ps: I speak French. 'moonMan... is charming. Not so much with the French though.

Travel Plan Assistance Please

madmamasmith — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 17:48:40 -0800

Traveling from Texas to Canada, Bear Creek Provincial Park in Summerland BC. Is the Vancouver Airport the closest airport or should we fly in to Seattle and drive up? Not sure the best route. Help....airline tickets into Vancouver are like $600!

Travel Insurance + Canada

ryanbryan — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 04:40:26 -0800

Planning a working holiday to Canada, and need advice on travel insurance... Planning a working holiday to Canada, with possible side travel through the US and Europe. Looking into travel insurance and have been warned about being wary of those policies with limits on dental. Is this really something I ought to be concerned with? Never really had dental problems, already had wisdom teeth out etc. What are typical prices for dental procedures in Canada?

Also, does anyone know of a website/company to get cheap travel insurance for an Australian? Best I've seen for a comprehensive policy is about $870 AUD for 12 months.

Posting for a friend on this one.

Can a US/Canadian dual citizen travel in Cuba without a licence?

Anonymous — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 07:18:36 -0800

Can a US/Canadian dual citizen travel in Cuba without a licence? If someone is a dual Canadian/US citizen, with valid passports from both countries, can they visit Cuba (leaving from Canada)?

The sense I get is that it’s very possible - fly from Canada, on a Canadian passport - all no probem. But the sense I also get is that technically, it might still be a violation of US law, since US citizens (I think) are barred from taking vacations in Cuba, even if they’re also citizens of other countries.

So… let me ask:

- Is my understanding of the law right? Is it illegal under US law for a dual-citizen to travel to Cuba?

- Regardless of the letter of the law, is there any reason to actually worry about the practical consequences of this, if the person in question travels on their Canadian passport?

I gather the embargo is actually about *spending money* in Cuba, not actually about traveling there.

So- would it help matters if the Dual-citizen was traveling with a Canadian, and the Canadian paid for everything?
(a similar question was asked here but this is a little different),

Should I take a suitcase or a pack to Whistler?

girlgeeknz — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 18:54:20 -0800

Should I take a suitcase or a pack to Whistler? I'm going to Whistler for 3 weeks of skiing (yay). Leaving from Auckland (New Zealand), with 2 nights stopover in Vancouver on the way, and 3 nights in San Francisco on the way back. There'll be a few transfers on buses or in taxis during the journey.

I'm 5' 4", and not very strong. I prefer a suitcase with wheels, because I can roll it along and my strength isn't an issue. My boyfriend thinks I should take a pack, because I can put it on my back, and if there's snow on the ground a suitcase on wheels wouldn't be suitable. I think a pack will be too heavy for me (I have used one before to get up the mountain when we ski locally, and always find it very difficult).

Which would you take?

More fun in Montreal

kenzi23 — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 14:49:16 -0800

What's fun and funky in Montreal next weekend? Going to Montreal next weekend (1-4 Jan) and I'm looking for fun and funky stuff to do there. What my friend and I like:

ethnic food (really authentic)
interesting local food
cool design - shops, museums
indie bands
punk/electronic bands
good DJs/dancing
interesting people
international stuff
art
really amazing croissants and coffee

Is there a free paper/guide for Montreal that I can pick up or see online? Any recommended listings for the kinds of things we are looking for? Is there a good neighborhood to stay in to be close to the kinds of places we will like? Any must-see for us?

Thanks!

Cross Canada by car in December

Meatbomb — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 04:11:35 -0800

Driving across Canada, in December, please advise. How long will it take, and how bad will the snow / conditions be? I am an experienced driver, and the need is to get from Toronto to Vancouver and back. Leaving Toronto Dec. 1, and need to be back there Dec. 26.

What I want to know is how long realistically will this trip take? I can push and drive quite long days, no need for major siteseeing or tourism on the way, the aim is to maximise time in Vancouver. There will only be one driver, but I have no problem driving 12+ hours per day.

Travelling on major highways, will snow or really bad weather be a potential issue? It will be a rental car, so preparing with snow chains etc. will be kind of a hassle / impractical.

And please, any other tips or advice you think I need for such a plan.

Traveling by train from Seattle to Vancouver, BC.

bamassippi — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 10:31:33 -0800

Traveling by train from Seattle to Vancouver, BC. I'm planning a weekend getaway across the border from Seattle to Vancouver BC and looking to travel by rail via Amtrak. Why does the Seattle-Vancouver BC route only offer train trips once per day?

Is this only temporary?
Why the odd hours?
Have any of you traveled to BC via Amtrak?
What was your experience?

South Cariboo Camping in September?

Mitheral — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 10:16:18 -0800

I'm going to be spending an early September weekend in 108 Mile Ranch for a wedding. We (myself, Mrs. Mitheral and 4 year old) would like to camp for the week after in the area (say no more than a couple hours drive away, less so south eastwards). Recommendations for must see places/things or camping? We'll be car camping with a tent and wouldn't mind staying in a few different places. We don't fish though someplace my daughter could toss a line in from a dock might be a nice diversion. We prefer Provincial park style camping though a Forest Service site would be good for a few nights; a specific recommendation would be great.