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Travel Canada

Why Travel Canada

to Canada?
Not just a greener, gentler version of USA, Canada is a huge, picturesque, sparsely populated country, with a multicultural identity and an interesting clash between English and French influences.

Canada is most attractive for outdoor types, particularly skiers in winter and hikers in summer, though the relaxed urbanity of Vancouver and lively culture of Montreal draw city lovers too.

For land viewing of arctic wildlife - especially polar bears - Canada's Churchill is unbeatable.
It's safe, spacious, spectacular, serves good, varied cuisine and speaks your language... what more do you want?

Downside:
Although extremely cold in many places [-20C is not uncommon], the short summers can be very hot [30C+].
It's not cheap [nor expensive].

Canada's best:
Best cities: Vancouver [BC, English] and Montreal [Quebec, French]
Best wildlife: Churchill, Manitoba
Best winter festival: Ottawa Winterlude [Ontario]
Best summer festival: Calgary Stampede [Alberta]
Best beaches: Vancouver [BC] and Nova Scotia [Atlantic Prov.]
Best sight: Niagara Falls [Ontario]
Best cuisine: Quebec
Best landscape: BC and Atlantic Prov.

Where to go in Canada:
For your convenience we've split Canada Travel into five zones; click to see a more detailed summary of those places.

West: British Columbia [BC] and Alberta provinces, including Vancouver city, Victoria, the Rocky Mountains, Banff and Jasper National Parks.
Pleasant city life in Anglophile Vancouver; stunning scenery all around; excellent outdoor activities of all sorts, including whale watching.
Alberta's parks are justly famous.

Centre: Ontario province, including Ottawa, Toronto and Niagara Falls.
Ottawa's Winterlude festival, winter sports, summer hikes and Niagara Falls are the main attractions here.

French East: the French speaking province of Quebec [picture top left, Iles-de-la-Madeleine], including Montreal and Quebec city.
Great night life and cuisine in Francophile Canada; stunning scenery all around; excellent outdoor activities, especially wintersports. Pretty cities.

Far East: the Atlantic Provinces of Newfoundland [picture top right], Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.
Laid back, rustic charms of little villages and splendid hiking routes full of rugged coasts and wildlife are the features that bring most travelers to this area of Canada.

Centre/North: the less visited central provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba - including the town of Churchill - and the northern provinces of the Northwest Territories, Yukon and Nunavut.
The number one item of travel interest in north Canada is wildlife, especially around Churchill, though outdoor activities ranging from winter sports to summer hikes with big views are popular.

Best Festivals in Canada:
Some festivals are not yet confirmed, so please check before you book.
Jan/Feb, weekends only, La Fete des Nieges [Snow Festival], Montreal [Qu], dominated by a huge and labyrinthine snow castle.
Feb.weekends only, Ottawa [Ont] Winterlude festival features parades, dances, snow races, ice sculptures, sleigh rides and more, but especially skating.
Jan - Feb, Quebec City, Carnaval de Québec, a vigorous 10 day celebration of parades, themed parties, ice sculptures and, bien sur, winter sports of every description.
April, World Ski and Snowboard Festival, Whistler [BC], snow and music combined!
June - July, Montreal [Qu] International Jazz Festival.
Mid-May, Ottawa [Ont] Tulip Festival, a five day city-wide street party for all ages surrounded by 100,000's of tulips.
July, Just For Laughs, Montreal [Qu], a world comedy festival.
Summertime sees lunatic 'Fringe' theatre festivals all over Canada, from Victoria to Montreal.
Aug, Montreal Pride, a huge performing arts festival, gay, but not exclusively so. Free concerts, shows, parties conferences and more.
Summer, one week, Toronto [Ont], Caribana West Indian carnival, complete with parades of calypso bands, parties, ethnic foodstuffs and dancing in the street.
July, Calgary [Alb] Stampede, a 10 day world-class rodeo riot.
Early Nov, Whistler [BC] Winterstart Festival, a carnival and events galore.

Activities in Canada

Skiing: all over but esp. in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario and Quebec.
Walks/hikes: Champion walks of all sorts with BIG views, from hours to months, esp. in BC, Quebec, Ontario, Nova Scotia.
Water sports: white water rafting, canoeing and kayaking, all over.
Whale watching: good trips off both the east and west coasts.
Seals: Quebec's Magdalen Islands [Iles-de-la-Madeleine]
Mountain biking: all over, hire easily available.
Caving and climbing: the Rocky Mountains

Canada star rating

This post was written by: Franklin Manuel

Franklin Manuel is a professional blogger, web designer and front end web developer. Follow him on Twitter