From the airport to the city centre Canada

Several airports handle national and international flights, with the largest and busiest in Vancouver (yvr.ca), Toronto (torontopearson.com) and Montreal (admtl.com). All provincial and territorial capitals and major cities have their own airport, plus a host of regional airports for domestic flights. Domestic fares are often quite expensive, but one low-cost airline, Flair Airlines (flyflair.com), offers attractive fares, although it does not cover all three territories.
The country's major airports can count on a good transportation network to get you downtown, including public transit and express shuttle services by bus or train. Of course, you'll also find cabs (including services like Eva, Lyft and Uber), limousines, car rental companies and hotel shuttles at major airports. To plan your journey to the city center, visit the relevant airport website.

Arrival by train Canada

VIA Rail serves all of Canada from east to west (viarail.ca), with the exception of Newfoundland and Labrador and the three territories. In addition to main lines such as the Canadian (Vancouver-Toronto), the Windsor-Quebec Corridor and the Ocean (Montreal-Halifax), there are also regional trains such as the Jasper-Prince Rupert line in Western Canada, the Winnipeg-Churchill line in Manitoba and the Montreal-Jonquière line in Quebec. From Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal, the Amtrak rail company (francais.amtrak.com) offers travel to the United States. While train travel is pleasant, fares can be higher than by bus. However, travel cards are available to offer flexibility and savings for those who plan to use the train a few times during their trip.
In addition to these national networks, there are private lines such as the Rocky Mountaineer, which links Vancouver to Banff/Lake Louise and Jasper, the White Pass & Yukon Route Railway, which operates in Alaska, the Yukon and northern British Columbia, and the Train de Charlevoix, which follows the St. Lawrence River between Quebec City and La Malbaie. A great way to combine travel with sightseeing!

Arrival by boat Canada

With such a vast hydrographic network, it's no surprise that there are countless ferries in Canada. Among the most popular are BC Ferries, which serves dozens of ports along the West Coast (bcferries.com), Ontario Ferries, which provides connections to certain islands in Ontario (ontarioferries.com), the Société des traversiers du Québec, which offers more than a dozen marine services in the vicinity of the St. Lawrence River and Gulf (traversiers.com), not to mention Marine Atlantique (marineatlantique.ca), Bay Ferries and Northumberland Ferries (ferries.ca), which offer a number of routes in the Atlantic provinces.
Maritime services are also available between Canada and the United States, with Black Ball Ferries linking British Columbia to Washington State (cohoferry.com) and Bay Ferries offering a service between Nova Scotia and Maine (ferries.ca).

Public transport Canada

Long-distance buses. In addition to the VIA Rail train, which serves most Canadian provinces, the country benefits from a network of intercity buses, which vary by province and territory or by destination (they may be non-existent in some municipalities, and no service at all in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut). Examples include BC Bus North in British Columbia (bcbus.ca), Rider Express from British Columbia to Ontario (riderexpress.ca), Megabus (ca.megabus.com, also serving Montreal in Quebec and several U.S. cities) and Ontario Northland (ontarionorthland.ca, also serving Winnipeg in Manitoba) in Ontario, Orléans Express in Quebec and as far as Ottawa in Ontario (orleansexpress.com), Maritime Bus in the three Maritime provinces (maritimebus.com), and so on. However, there is no pan-Canadian network, with each company operating in its own province or territory, or combining several. Crossing the country by bus is therefore quite a challenge. That said, with the definitive departure of U.S.-based Greyhound in 2021 (except for a few border destinations), the country's intercity carriers are looking to introduce a pan-Canadian system enabling the purchase of a single ticket, regardless of the number of bus operators used.

Urban transportation. Every medium-sized and large city in the country also benefits from a public transit network. Cities like Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal, for example, have well-developed bus, metro and/or light rail networks, not to mention bus and/or commuter rail services covering the entire metropolitan area. Passes are available for a day, several days, a weekend, a week or a month, depending on the length of your stay.

Bike, scooters & co Canada

A number of Canadian cities offer bike-sharing services (several packages available, electric bikes also offered depending on the city), whether with local companies like Mobi by Rogers in Vancouver (mobibikes.ca), Bike Share Toronto in the country's economic capital (bikesharetoronto.com) and BIXI in Montreal (bixi.com), or the giants Bird and Lime. The latter also offer self-service electric scooters in certain locations, but after pilot projects where anarchy got the better of them, several cities have decided to ban them from public roads. You'll find the list of participating cities on their respective apps, and be sure to check out the requirements (minimum age, deposit, helmet, etc.).

With a driver Canada

There are cabs almost everywhere in Canada, even in the villages. Most companies based in major cities have their own app. The Uber service (uber.com/ca/en-ca/ride) is also available in most provinces, while Lyft is present in British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario (lyft.com/rider/cities - other provinces coming soon). For longer distances, and to save on travel costs, it's also worth checking out centralized car-sharing systems. We suggest AmigoExpress (amigoexpress.com) and Poparide (poparide.com/en).

By car Canada

Distances are vast in Canada, and the road network becomes increasingly sparse the further north you go. In the south of the country, the Trans-Canada Highway stretches from British Columbia to Newfoundland, and is symbolized by a maple leaf (the island of Newfoundland, however, is only accessible by ferry or plane). It should be noted that Nunavut is not connected to the Canadian road network, which means a particularly expensive flight, and that in many remote parts of the country, the roads are unpaved.

French, Belgian and Swiss driver's licenses are accepted for periods of up to three, six or twelve months (depending on the province or territory); if not, you'll need an international license (highly recommended outside Quebec, regardless of length of stay). If you wish to rent a car in Canada, you must be at least 21 years of age, or even 25 for certain models, and have a credit card. Gasoline, sold by the liter, is less expensive than in Europe, and its price varies greatly from day to day and from company to company, much to the annoyance of Canadians.

In terms ofregulations, the speed limit is 100 km/h on highways (or 110 or 120 km/h in some provinces), 70 to 90 km/h on regional roads and 50 km/h (sometimes less) in town. Freeways are always free except for the 407 north of Toronto, the A30 Express southwest of Montreal and the Cobequid Pass northwest of Truro in Nova Scotia, and some twenty bridges are also tolled, including those linking Canada to its American neighbor. Seatbelts must be worn by all passengers, and car seats are mandatory for younger passengers. The maximum permissible blood alcohol level is 0.08 g/l, and impaired driving is punishable by a fine or more (frequent checks). In winter, freeways are generally cleared of snow, but driving requires special reflexes, and snow tires are strongly recommended (compulsory in some places, ask for details).

Traffic rules and signs are much the same as in Europe, with a few differences. Traffic lights are placed on the opposite side of street intersections. There is no right of way in Canada (priority is given to the first on the right), and right turns at red lights are permitted everywhere except where a sign indicates that they are prohibited, as well as on the island of Montreal. You must come to a complete stop when following or passing a stopped school bus (almost always yellow) whose red flashers are working. In cities with streetcars, such as Toronto, vehicles must also come to a complete stop at least 2 meters behind the rear door of a stopped streetcar, to ensure passenger safety.

As for parking, no problem in the regions. But parking in the city is often difficult, and before stopping your vehicle, you may have to read three or four signs to find out if you're on the right sidewalk, in the right time slot, and thus avoid being ticketed or, worse still, impounded! You should also check whether parking spaces are subject to a charge or require a sticker reserved for residents, which may well be the case. Please note: it is strictly forbidden to park in front of a fire hydrant. If you make a mistake, rest assured you'll get your ticket within 5 minutes. You should also be aware that parking is generally only permitted in the direction of traffic. If you're planning to stay several days in a major Canadian city, check the city hall website to see if temporary parking passes are available. These allow you to park your vehicle in a specific area for 24 hours, 48 hours or a week, and the formalities are simple and can be completed online. This way, you can leave your vehicle parked during your stay, saving you a lot of headaches.