The Informed Traveler
The Informed Traveler
Canada Strong Pass & Exploring Canada By Rail
Canada is the place to visit this summer for a number of reasons including the Canada Strong Pass that the government introduced a few weeks ago. It lets you enjoy free or discounted admissions throughout the country — from museums to nature to railroads. So on this week's podcast travel expert Onanta Forbes joins me to go through how to take advantage of the Canada Strong Pass. Then, we'll continue our Canada travel theme talking about exploring the country by rail. Cris David from Railbookers will be here to discuss the many different and popular routes you can take.
Well, hello and welcome to the Informed Traveller podcast, a weekly travel podcast where our goal is to help you become a more informed traveller. And I'm your host, Randy Sharman. Canada is the place to visit this summer for a number of reasons, including the Canada Strong Pass that the government introduced a few weeks ago. It lets you enjoy free or discounted admissions throughout the country from museums to nature to railroads. So in a few seconds, travel expert Ananta Forbes will join me to go through how to take advantage of the Canada Strong Pass. Canada's Strong Pass. And then we'll continue our Canada travel theme, talking about exploring the country by rail. Chris David from Railbookers will be here to discuss the many different and popular routes you can take. But first, let's kick things off chatting with travel expert, Ananta Forbes, who joins us each week to discuss some of the travel news and travel trends. You can follow her adventures on Instagram, Facebook, and X at Ananta Forbes. AnantaForbes.com is her website. Hi, Ananta.
SPEAKER_00:Howdy.
SPEAKER_01:Stampede time in Calgary. Yes. Let's talk about this Canada Strong Pass. I don't have accolades for the government on a lot of things, but this one I think is a fantastic idea.
SPEAKER_00:Yes. You know, they came through pretty quick after the election, and it's a wonderful opportunity to embrace Canada's nature and our culture across the country. So from June 20th to September 2nd, we can enjoy free admission to Parks Canada destination, including national historic sites, national parks, national marine conservation areas. So this applies to Canadian citizens, permanent residents, Temporary residents, so like international students and foreign workers and visitors and tourists. So this is the best time, you know, in summer because we get a lot of tourists that come here. So we are out and about as residents and citizens ourselves. So let's go. It's a wonderful opportunity.
SPEAKER_01:It is. It's a really good idea. I always say sometimes the simplest things are the hardest to explain, but I'll give kudos again to the government. It really is quite simple. It is for everybody, Canadians and visitors alike, and you don't have to apply anywhere. You don't have to go online and register or get a physical pass. Basically, you just show up to the places that apply, right?
SPEAKER_00:It's simple. Yeah, you just visit any participating Parks Canada site, museum, gallery, or via rail to benefit from these free admissions and discounts. And some of the popular examples could include like Banff and Jasper National Park in Alberta, Pacific Rim and Yoho National Parks in BC, Bruce Peninsula and Thousand Islands National Park in Ontario, and Cape Breton Islands National Park in Nova Scotia. So from coast to coast, It's wonderful. And now, yeah, the access to these destinations is free, but most camping and other overnight accommodations in these places still require paying fees, but with a discount of 25% to all visitors. So you still get a bit of a savings. There are provincial and territorial parks and other areas that aren't operated by Parks Canada. that still may require regular fees. So travelers should check itineraries ahead of time to confirm what qualifies under the Canada Strong Pass.
SPEAKER_01:And I think the best thing to do is to go on the Government of Canada website. Just Google Canada Strong Pass. It'll take you to one of the links of the Government of Canada website and explains it quite simply there as well. You mentioned the free admission for all visitors to national parks and national historic sites and so on. And then a 25% discount on camping fees, etc. But also... If you scroll down further, if you have booked already a camping site or something where you're paying a fee where you get a discount, you can apply to get a refund.
SPEAKER_00:I know, and this is pretty amazing. If you have your camping reservation, as your reservation date approaches, an email will be sent to you with details on how to claim your 25% discount. And then if you've already purchased a discovery pass that is valid June, July, or August 2025, Parts Canada will automatically extend the expiry date of these passes by three months. I think that's a huge bonus. And then if you've already purchased a seasonal lockage or seasonal single location pass online, a partial refund will be issued automatically in the coming weeks and no request is required. I think that's amazing. You don't have to do any work to take care of stuff that you've already been proactive on.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, exactly. So again, kudos to the government. Let's hope it works. But we should clarify, too, the free admission is, for example, in the national museums, is for children and teens 17 and under and a 50% discount for young adults ages 18 to 24. But for families, that's a huge savings.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, it is, yes. And it also applies to via rail travel. So it's free coast-to-coast travel for children and youth age 17 and below when joining an adult with a ticket and a 25% discount for young adults between the ages of 18 and 24. And we've talked about how fun rail travel is. So, and, you know, granted via rail isn't throughout all of our countries, But still, an opportunity to think about maybe taking advantage of where it does travel.
SPEAKER_01:Well, if you were thinking of taking a rail trip through Canada or across Canada or parts of Canada and wanted to take your family, this is a great time to do it. But I wouldn't wait too long because, you know, train space is limited.
SPEAKER_00:Absolutely. And travel within Canada during summer is a busy time frame. So, yeah, take advantage of it. But always palming ahead is better.
SPEAKER_01:And there are, too, some participating provincial and territorial museums and galleries that are offering free admission for children and a 50% discount for young adults as well. Not all, but some of them.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, absolutely. So, you know what I think the best thing for people to do is go on to the Parks Canada app. And this is an opportunity that you can access it anytime, even offline, no login required. And you can stay connected and find out, you know, different ways that you can take advantage of this pass. You can also stay connected with weather forecasts, get directions, discover handy tips, and also self-guided tours. So, lots of Lots of information at your fingertips.
SPEAKER_01:Well, yeah, I think it's an awesome idea. Again, you can go on the Government of Canada website, just Google Canada Strong Pass, or as you mentioned, go on the National Parks app. There's lots of information there, and you can decide what you want to visit and where you want to go.
SPEAKER_00:Absolutely. Lots of places to choose from. That's for sure.
SPEAKER_01:Onanta Forbes is a travel expert. You can follow her on Instagram, Facebook, and X at Onanta Forbes. Onantaforbes.com is her website. Happy trails, Onanta.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, happy stampeding.
SPEAKER_01:This is the informed traveler podcast. I'm Randy Sharman. Just want to remind you of our website, the informed traveler.org. That's where you can find our contact page. If you have any questions or comments about the podcast, you could also email me too, with any questions you might have. My email address is Randy at the informed traveler.org. And if you want to get up to date travel info through the week, or just see a few amusing travel stories and links, you can like us on Facebook at facebook.com slash informed traveler on Instagram at informed traveler. or on X at Informed Traveller. Plus, you can now sign up for our monthly newsletter. It's released at the beginning of every month and our July issue is now available. Just go to our website, theinformedtraveller.org, click on the newsletter button and it'll take you right there. Or better yet, subscribe to it and have it arrive in your inbox each month. Well, one of the best ways I think you can explore any country is doing it by rail and Canada is no exception. In fact, taking a rail excursion across Canada is the best way to see the country. So joining me now to chat about the many different routes is Chris David. He is the VP of Sales for Railbookers. Railbookers.ca is the website. Hi, Chris. Hi, Randy. Tell me a little bit about Railbookers. Obviously, it's about train travel, but it's way more than just traveling on a train, isn't it?
SPEAKER_02:Yes, Randy, that it is. In fact, the name Railbook is a little bit misleading for our company because it gives a sense that rail is all we do, but it's actually just a part of it. We are a full-service independent travel tour operator, and that's probably a little bit of esoteric travel industry jargon. And what it means is that we handle all the aspects of independent travel. So that would be your transfer from the airport or the cruise port to your hotel or train station, all your hotel accommodation. any and all sightseeing tours that you want to do while you're traveling. And then, of course, all the rail segments that you'd be looking to do when you're in any destination that you're traveling in. So it's about putting together a comprehensive independent travel itinerary, including rail and all those other components as well. And you do this all over the world, right? Yes, we do, Randy. We're now on... Pretty much every continent where there is rail. We have great trips in Africa, Southeast Asia. We're introducing Japan later this year. We do India, South America with some fantastic luxury rail in Peru and Africa. North America and Europe are our biggest operating destinations, US,
SPEAKER_01:Canada, and everywhere across Europe. Well, I am a big railway buff, so I'm excited to talk about rail travel. I think it's a great way to explore Canada and travel across Canada. Are you seeing an uptick? You mentioned that some of your more popular tours are in North America. Are you seeing an uptick in travel in general and Canada as a destination.
SPEAKER_02:Yes, we're doing very well. There is some sense that given the volatility going on in the world that people are less inclined to travel. We're actually seeing very strong bookings into 2026. So all indications in our world at Railbookers are that there's tremendous demand and people are still looking to travel and Canada is a part of that. We have quite a strong domestic demand internally within Canada. Canadians looking to travel in Canada by rail on some of our fantastic itineraries, as well as outbound to Europe and further afield.
SPEAKER_01:So let's talk about some of the popular routes. Theoretically, you could explore every corner of this country by rail and use your services. But I would think that the one from Vancouver to Toronto, and you can correct me if I'm wrong, the Via Rail service there, the Canadian, is one of your more popular ones?
SPEAKER_02:Absolutely. Yeah, the Canadian is really iconic and it's probably the most popular rail experience, passenger rail experience in our country. And As you said, Randy, just such a great way to experience Canada, to really kind of get a feel for the vastness and the diversity and the majesty of our great country. You know, we're second largest country in the world and it takes a full four days and nights to travel across Canada by train. And, you know, for someone who really wants to take the measure of the country and get a good feel for what we're all about, going through all the little sightings, the little whistle stops as well as big, towns and our most beautiful areas along the way, doing that journey by rail is the best way to do it. And yes, the Canadian, the iconic via rail train that travels between Toronto and Vancouver, it's the most popular. Although there are a lot of other things to do, a lot of other areas you can travel by rail, but that's the big one.
SPEAKER_01:Well, and I suppose you can take as much time as you like. As you mentioned, it takes four or five days just to cross the country from Toronto to Vancouver and you still got part of the country that you haven't explored yet. But can you do like a hop on, hop off kind of ideal if I wanted to stop a day, say in, I don't know, Jasper, Lake Louise, Banff, something like that, or a couple of days in Calgary, a couple of days maybe in Winnipeg. Can you do that?
SPEAKER_02:Yes, certainly. You can always, you know, disembark the train wherever you'd like to along the route and spend some time exploring. The most popular region to do that, Randy, would be the Canadian Rockies. So the VIA Rail train travels through Jasper en route to Vancouver. And many of our Railbookers packages that we sell will include an interlude in the Canadian Rockies from Jasper. So what many people would do is disembark in Jasper and then spend four days or so exploring the Canadian Rockies, traveling down the Icefields Parkway from Jasper to Banff and taking in the magnificent scenery, the incredible national parks you have there, wonderful experiences going up to some of the top of the mountains on gondolas, doing some lovely high seeing mountains, lakes, waterfalls, lake cruises, the iconic... Lake Louise, for example, perhaps staying overnight in some of those classic hotels in the Rockies. And then continuing on to Vancouver from there, either on Rocky Mountaineer, which is the other great, famous and iconic Canadian train, which is a luxury daytime sightseeing train. So you could take that from Banff down to Vancouver to continue your journey, or you could you know, do that last piece from Jasper down to Vancouver, which is an additional one night overnight on the VRL Canadian train.
SPEAKER_01:Well, I am looking if you actually wanted to explore coast to coast from Vancouver all the way to Halifax, you could do that too on an 18 day explorer. That would be something.
SPEAKER_02:Totally. I know that's an epic trip and really, you know, the ultimate Canadian adventure. You're traveling on two different overnight trains, the Ocean from Halifax to Quebec City, which is a great experience known for a wonderful atmosphere on board. There are always people in the lounge car, you know, playing guitars and having sing-alongs. And then you would have the opportunity to explore Quebec City, Montreal, and Toronto before boarding the canadian and uh heading west with that stopover in the rockies on the way to vancouver making up that amazing 18 day uh trip coast to coast
SPEAKER_01:and this is all with via rail there also is the rocky mountaineer which is a totally different experience altogether
SPEAKER_02:yes rocky mountaineer is is very different the via rail um Well, the Canadian train is a sleeper train. It takes four days a night, so the train is equipped with very comfortable sleeping accommodations. And the Rocky Monsonier, by contrast, is what we refer to as a luxury daytime sightseeing train. The idea being that you are not... wasting any of the scenery. So every minute on board that train is during the daytime. And it takes two days to get from either Jasper or Banff down to Vancouver. And so that journey is broken with an overnight in Kamloops en route. which is more or less halfway between the Rockies and Vancouver, so that when you're on board, it's always going to be daytime and you're always going to have a chance to enjoy the beautiful scenery. It's the pinnacle of luxury and elegance on board. The cuisine is second to none. The service is amazing. You have very highly trained on-board staff who are sharing commentary along that journey. And the accommodations are fantastic. Just magnificent. So it's an icon of luxury travel known worldwide, actually. There are two classes of service on board with Rocky Mountaineer, Silverleaf and Goldleaf. You know, both wonderful, both very luxurious. The big difference being that the Goldleaf carriages are double-decker. So you have the advantage of being able to enjoy your meals in a restaurant section, which is at the first level of the train. And then the seats are up top. under a glass dome panoramic window. So you enjoy these wonderful meals and then you go up to the dome section to enjoy the scenery. Whereas in Silverleaf, it's just you're being served your meals at your seat and also a slightly more limited selection of restaurants. of menu options in Silverleaf as well.
SPEAKER_01:Either way, it's a fantastic experience. I've done it. I've traveled on Via too. It's been a long time ago, so I'm way overdue to try and do a rail trip across Canada. Anything else you want to add just about railbookers in general? Like I mentioned, whatever tour you're looking for, you can tailor it to what you want, right?
SPEAKER_02:Absolutely. Randy, you're one of the lucky ones to have done Rocky Mountaineer. That's, that's awesome that you've had the experience. Yes. To perhaps, you know, the, the, the thing to add there just in keeping with what you were saying is our, our, Packages at Railbookers are completely flexible and customizable. So if you go on our website and you have a look at the different itineraries, and there are lots and lots to choose from, you'll see these ready-made itineraries that have all been very carefully curated and put together. The thing with us is those are all... basically suggestions. We've done that work based on the trends we see of creating this package that you can book just exactly as it appears, or you can change it any way you want. You can spend longer in one of the destinations. You can add a detour to somewhere you can, you know, really amend it to suit your exact requirements. And of course, choose hotels along the way that suit your travel style and budget. You have three, four and five star hotels in every destination. So you can really tailor it to what you're looking for. When you're going through the Rockies, for example, you can stay in the Chateau Lake Louise, or you can choose, you know, one of the more modest inns they have, you know, in town or, you know, whatever suits your budget.
SPEAKER_01:Well, I would think if you are trying to plan a trip across Canada, you want to do this ahead of time, right? It might be a little bit too late to plan a trip across for this summer, although you might get some last-minute deals.
SPEAKER_02:Absolutely. There's limited inventory on these trains that travel back and forth across the country. VRL has... two departures a week. So there are two trains, two actual physical trains that travel back and forth on the Canadian route, trains number one and two. And what that means is that, you know, it's every four days or so. So there's not... a huge amount of space when you factor that in over the season. So you do need to book well in advance. And for this summer, chances of getting a sleeping compartment are very, very small, so close in advance. So a year out is a good time to start planning for a rail journey in Canada.
SPEAKER_01:Well, the fall is also a great time because you get all the fall colors, very scenic there as well.
SPEAKER_02:Absolutely. It is year-round. Some people assume that it's just a seasonal thing. You can travel year-round on the train across Canada, but the fall, as you say, and the summer are the best times to experience it. from a senior perspective.
SPEAKER_01:Well, people can get more information on the Railbookers website, railbookers.ca. Chris David is the VP of sales for Railbookers. I really appreciate your time, Chris. Thank you so much. Randy, thank you
SPEAKER_02:so much for having me on. It was a pleasure to chat with you, as it always is.
SPEAKER_01:Thanks for listening. Travel safe and be an informed traveler.