Canada travel resources

Before you go

• Visa-exempt visitors flying to or through Canada need an eTA. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) says on its eTA facts page that it is valid for up to five years or until the passport expires, whichever comes first, and that a new passport needs a new eTA. US citizens are exempt. IRCC’s help page on extra charges says third-party websites do not operate for the Government of Canada, charge extra fees to submit your application, and get no refund from the government. Its own site is the one at canada.ca, and the fee there is CAN$7.
• The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) lets you make your customs and immigration declaration up to 72 hours before a flight with Advance Declaration in the ArriveCAN app, at the participating airports it lists, including Vancouver, Toronto Pearson and Montréal-Trudeau. You then confirm or update it at a kiosk or eGate.
• You must declare CAN$10,000 or more in cash or monetary instruments, in Canadian or foreign currency, when you enter or leave Canada. The CBSA says there is no limit on how much you may carry and that it is not illegal, as long as you declare it. When you arrive, you report it at an airport kiosk, on your CBSA declaration card if you were given one, through your Advance Declaration or verbally to a border services officer.
• Moraine Lake Road in Banff is closed to personal vehicles year-round. Parks Canada allows only its shuttles, licensed commercial operators and registered guests of Moraine Lake Lodge, and says a reservation is required for all Parks Canada shuttles.
• Parks Canada’s pass page for Banff says you need a pass if you spend time in a national park, including stops in towns and at viewpoints, and on the Icefields Parkway and the Bow Valley Parkway even if you do not stop. Daily passes are valid until 16:00 on the day after purchase. Passes are sold at the park gates, the visitor centres, campgrounds and partner locations, and online. A Discovery Pass gives entry to more than 100 national parks, national marine conservation areas and national historic sites, must be signed by the holder, and is non-refundable and non-transferable.
• Parks Canada asks you to keep at least 30 metres from deer, elk, sheep and moose and 100 metres from bears, wolves, cougars and coyotes in Banff. Its Banff wildlife page says it is illegal to feed, entice or disturb wildlife in a national park, with fines of up to CAN$25,000.
• Ontario’s government says that if you are visiting Ontario for less than three months you may drive on a valid licence from your own province, state or country. You must be at least 16, have insurance for the vehicle and carry the ownership permit or an exact copy. For longer visits from another country it asks for an International Driver’s Permit from your own country, which you cannot get after you arrive.

Top destinations in Canada

• Vancouver: official site · Wikivoyage
• Toronto: official site · Wikivoyage
• Montréal: official site · Wikivoyage
• Banff National Park: official site · Wikivoyage
• Niagara Falls: official site · Wikivoyage

Travel resources

• Destination Canada
• VIA Rail Canada
• Parks Canada
• Weather Canada
• Electronic travel authorization (eTA)

Travel tips

1. Dial 9-1-1 for emergency assistance. The RCMP’s website, linked in the quick facts, says to dial it, and GOV.UK lists 911 for an ambulance, the fire brigade and the police. For a maritime emergency, call the Canadian Coast Guard’s regional search and rescue line, which depends on the province you are in.
2. Carry bear spray on hikes in the Rockies. Parks Canada says that in its mountain parks carrying it is a good idea, that the label must show it is for use on animals, and that it is not permissible to carry it on a commercial airline, even in checked baggage.
3. In winter, plan for closed roads. GOV.UK says highways are often closed because of snowstorms and avalanches in Alberta, British Columbia and other provinces, and advises snow tyres and emergency supplies. It also says wildfires can start at any time of year, with particular risk in western Canada and forested parts of Quebec, Ontario and Nova Scotia in summer.
4. Don’t carry cannabis across the border. It is legal to buy in Canada, but the CBSA says transporting it across the border in any form, including oils containing THC or CBD, without a Health Canada permit or exemption is a serious criminal offence. It applies whatever the amount and even with a medical document.
5. In Quebec, French is the only official language: section 1 of the Charter of the French Language says “Only French has that status.” A few French phrases will help in Montréal.