jwward

Please help experienced travelers out there. <BR>We are considering a vacation to Canada. <BR>Since we live on the east coast this area <BR>is where we would probably go, however, we <BR>are lost and need advice as to where and what <BR>to see. Any information greatly appreciated. <BR>We will be renting a car and traveling for about two weeks. <BR>Thanks

Geo

JWWard, <BR> <BR>Since you have two weeks it would seem that you could see much of the eastern part of Canada. Maybe you should be more specific in your likes/dislikes. <BR> <BR>If you prefer the big city experience, Toronto and Montreal are good values for Americans, with the favorable dollar exchange rate. You can stay in a very nice downtown Montreal hotel for the same price you would pay for a roadside (Holiday Inn, Ramada, etc.) stop in the states. <BR> <BR>If you prefer the ocean you might want to concentrate on Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, PEI, (there's a very fast auto ferry that can take you from Maine to Nova Scotia.) <BR> <BR>Of course, there's Quebec City, Ottawa, for history. You might want to include a litle of each type of activity. <BR> <BR>Geo

Bob Brown

We had a good time in Quebec City and the surrounding area for about 3 days a couple of summers ago. The food in the restaurants is good and we stayed at very nice B and B, Les Maison du Mesnil, which is now located on the Ile d'Orlean in the St. Lawrence River. We enjoyed the old city, the Plain of Abraham Battlefield, and the museum has a bi-lingual presentation on the battle itself. Chute Montmorency is one spectacular waterfall, with a bridge that crosses directly above the brink of the falls. (No place for those who fear heights.) We also drove around the whole of the Gaspe Peninsula. Things could be a little dicey there because French is the language of the day, and I don't speak much of it. But we ate in a 4 star restaurant, La Maison Sous Le Vent, near Matane, where the hostess spoke excellent and classy English, which matched the food. I recall the place well because the floors were a work of art. The owners had carefully selected wood and stone sections to make up an inlaid the floor. Gorgeous. <BR>We also found New Brunswick to be friendly and pretty. Ditto for Nova Scotia. There are good websites for all of the provinces, so good hunting. <BR>But for something interesting, try Quebec. If you speak a little French, so much the better. Just stay out of the politics of separation. <BR>

Donna

We live in NH and go to Canada often. If you like cities, Montreal and Quebec are fabulous, as are Toronto and Ottawa. There are numerous festivals in Montreal (jazz, fireworks, film). You might combine Quebec City and Montreal with a few days or more in Magog on Lake Mephremagog, which is glorious. There's a lovely country inn with a terrific restaurant right on the lake with a beautiful jogging, strolling, bike path. Or, you could combine a trip to Ottawa, Toronto, Niagara Falls, Niagara-on-the Lake. If you like plays, be sure to check out www.shawfest.com. There are wonderful websites, where you can request ample literature. Or, you could peruse a few tour guides (the Colorguides are excellent) and see what you find most appealing.

lisa

Good for you -- the exchange rate is fantastic and Canada is wonderful! I have taken lots of trips to Canada (lived in Michigan for 24 years so Canada was right next door). Two trips in particular stood out. One was to Banff-Lake Louise-Jasper -- gorgeous!!! But the one I would recommend for you, since you're on the east coast, was from Maine to Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island then back through New Brunswick. A friend and I did this trip in August of '97 and had a fantastic time. It took 10 days/9 nights but we could have easily spent 2 weeks. We flew into Boston, rented a car, and drove up to Maine. Spent 2 nights in Bar Harbor and saw Acadia National Park, which was beautiful. We took the ferry over to Nova Scotia and drove to Halifax, Nova Scotia, where we spent two nights. I hadn't heard much about Halifax and didn't know what to expect but we absolutely loved it -- stayed in a historic inn a few blocks from the waterfront and had some unbelievable meals. The public gardens in Halifax are not to be missed. We also stopped in Truro to hike Truro Falls for an hour or two which was pretty and doesn't take long at all. We wanted to drive up to Cape Breton for a couple of days because we've heard the scenery is gorgeous, but with only 10 days and a lot of ground to cover, we didn't have time for that. Instead we took the ferry over to Prince Edward Island, which is lovely with its red soil and black-and-white churches and green-and-gold hills all set against the blue sea. Very picturesque. We stayed three nights in Charlottetown but drove all over the island while we were there (if you're not so into Anne of Green Gables then you may only need 2 nights in Charlottetown; we needed 3 because we had to see everything "Anne.") From there we drove over the bridge to New Brunswick, stopped overnight in St. John, then stopped one more night in Maine, and flew back out of Boston. Next time I would like to go back to Nova Scotia and spent a whole week there because it is beautiful and has lovely people and is a huge bargain right now! <BR>If you're more of an urbanite and don't like to drive so much then you might prefer Toronto/Montreal, both of which are fantastic and a lot of fun. But if you really love the outdoors then the beauty of Banff, Jasper, and Lake Louise is unequaled in my experience, if you don't mind flying into Calgary and renting a car there instead of sticking to the east coast. <BR> <BR>Good luck and have a great time.

Leo

<BR>DON'T GO TO QUEBEC, UNLESS YOU SPEAK FRENCH!!!!! <BR>

Susan

I found the previous writer's comment interesting ... would you advise travellers not to go to France, unless they speak French? Or Greece, unless they spoke Greek? If we stick to only those countries where we speak the language, our travels would be very limited!

Leo

<BR>You are right Susan, but its a different story when people do speak English and refuse to speak it to you. I was in different parts of Montreal and some employees kept on talking French to us, although they knew we were tourists and only spoke English. Quebec is in an English speaking country, why do they wanna speak French????????????????????? <BR>They told us they wanna have their own country in Canada, with their own law.That's what they have right now!!!! <BR>The people of Quebec are chasing the tourists away with an attitude like that. <BR>We will never go back there. I think Canada is a great country with very friendly people, but for me Quebec is an exception.

Leo

<BR>Susan, when you are going to France or Greece, and the local people hear that you are coming from theUS. i'me sure that they will TRY to speak English, unlike most people we met in Montreal!!!

intrigued

Sometimes people will speak the wrong language for someone (in this case French) when they are displeased with the tone and content of what is being said by the other person (in this case the English speaking tourist). The multiple question marks, exclamation points and tone of these posts makes me wonder if this is one of those situations.

Susan

Without wanting to get into an argument, I advise you to pay no attention to what the previous writer says about Quebec. As an English speaking Canadian, I've been to Quebec City several times and love it. (I am less fond of Montreal, but that's just a personal choice.) If we only travel where we speak the language, we'd be very limited in our destinations.

lynne

<BR>I'm an Anglo from Ontario who speaks some French - while in Mexico this year I found the friendliest Canadians I met were French Canadian...remember you meet unfriendly people wherever you go...as well as really friendly and helpful people wherever you go. <BR> <BR>I do think it goes a long way if you learn a few words of the language of whatever country you visit - hello, please and thank-you are always a good place to start! <BR> <BR>If you miss Quebec when you visit Canada you miss a huge part of our culture! Quebec is a VERY beautiful province and has some of the friendliest people that I have ever met. Please don't be turned off by someone else's bad experience.