Travel

Flying to Canada

Numerous airlines operate flights to Canada, including the country s main carrier, Air Canada (AC) (www.aircanada.com ). Airlines flying from the UK to Canada also include British Airways (BA) (www.ba.com ), Virgin Atlantic (VS) (www.virgin-atlantic.com ) and Air Transat (TS) (www.airtransat.co.uk ). WestJet (WS) (www.westjet.com ) and most major US carriers fly from the USA. Fares increase significantly in July and August, as well as during the ski season (December to April) if you re flying to western Canada.

Vancouver International Airport has announced C$1.8 billion of improvements over the next 10 years, including upgrades to its domestic terminal. Calgary International Airport is currently expanding, with a new runway opening in 2014 and a new international concourse to be completed by 2015.

From London to Calgary is 9 hours 20 minutes, to Halifax is 6 hours 50 minutes, to Montreal is 7 hours 20 minutes, to Toronto is 8 hours and to Vancouver is 9 hours 45 minutes. From New York to Montreal is 1 hour 25 minutes, to Toronto is 1 hour 30 minutes and to Vancouver is 5 hours.

Star Alliance North America Airpass: allows travel to more than 300 destinations within 20 countries including Canada. Participating airlines include Air Canada, Continental Airlines, United and US Airways. You can buy between three and 10 coupons and the price varies according to the number of coupons and your point of origin. Full details are available from www.staralliance.com .

Other airports in Canada

Travel by rail

The Canadian rail system connects to the USA at several points. US rail operator Amtrak (tel: 1 800 872 7245; www.amtrak.com ) runs the following international routes: New York-Albany-Montreal (the Adirondack), New York-Albany-Buffalo-Toronto (the Maple Leaf) and Eugene-Portland-Seattle-Vancouver (the Amtrak Cascades).

There are no international rail passes covering trains into Canada. Amtrak’s USA Rail Pass does not include routes north of the US border.