Canada? The land of maple syrup, why would I want to go there? I hear you. But I want to stop you right there. Having traveled far and wide in search of a scene of tranquility, where a mountainous horizon meets an urban sprawl, I was at an impasse. Then it struck me out of nowhere, a £99 flight from New York to Vancouver. With an airline with a maple leaf as it’s logo… As if flying to Canada wasn’t embarrassing enough. After a stuffy 6 hour flight across the width of North America I realised I had found the place I had been searching for. To my astonishment it just happened to be the west coast of Canada.
Having explored Vancouver, I jumped on a bus up north (well further North, Jon Snow north). I got off at Squamish on the route up to Whistler. The Mountains, the lakes. All this just an hour and a bit out of a major cosmopolitan city. Having rented a bike I cycled along towards sed mountains. The fresh mountain air, the quant little village at the bottom, accompanied by a vast array of natural beauty. This was my idea of a holiday.
Where to go
Contrary to belief Canada is one of the most interesting places to visit. For nature and hiking head to Calgary or Edmonton and take the bus or train services cross country through the northern rockies towards Vancouver. The lakes, mountains and picture postcard perfect scenery will blow you away. This route usually takes about 25 hours, best to stop off along the way and take in some incredible hikes.
For a more urban scene head to Toronto or Montreal. Fun, night life loving cities, with a dollop of culture. You can again go cross country from here and make full use of campervan hire services, again provided at student prices through STA. Plus if you get bored the US is literally an hour’s drive away.
What to do
Hiking, mountain climbing, canoeing, white water rafting, nightclubbing or just climb up the Toronto space needle (ok it’s not officially called the space needle but whatever) and take in your surroundings, the view is worth it. Canada is one of the most underrated countries when it comes to traveling.
Generally whenever I come across people going around the world they seem less than keen to say the least about (abut as the hosers like to say-sidenote am I allowed to say that not being canadian and all?), it seems canadians are the same, clearly too polite to speak up and say what an awesome country they really have. Either way you wont regret including Canada on your travel list.
How to get there
Flights go direct to most major Canadian cities from london heathrow and gatwick, STA travel offer return flights into Toronto Pearson International and Ontario international from just £299. These services usually run twice daily, with 3 times daily flights to Vancouver.
A few key points
Canada may not be as bad as the US for overpriced health emergencies but either way make sure you have travel insurance, it’s literally 37p per day with STA for student travellers.
If hiking always be well prepared and make sure people know your route and expected time back, especially if you’re solo.
Canada have different money than the US, this got me when I arrived. Seems the Canadians have the queen on their banknotes, this still gets me to this day.
The Student Traveler 