I tacked this onto the end of a previous discussion, but thought it might be better here in it's own spot.
My husband and I are Australians travelling to Canada in August. Edmonton is our reason for travelling, (watching a sporting event) so for us that's a definite. We arrive in Vancouver for a couple of days, head up by train to Jasper, get across to Edmonton by some mode of transport or other then have about 5 days afterwards to head back to Vancouver. A four hour drive through farming land is nothing for us, so that might well be on the cards to get to Edmonton in the first place if we can do a one way car hire. We are up to doing public transport too in any of the areas. We're not planning on having a car in Edmonton, as our accommodation is within a 15 minute walk or commensurate bus trip of the field. We could hire a car to get back to Vancouver. We're thinking of maybe overnighting in Victoria just before we head home and Lake Louise is on my list of things I'd like to do.
The other thread has great information and I'll be taking careful note of it when we're planning. Any more ideas for us though?
Edmonton - Rockies - Vancouver
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One way car rentals are pretty problematic in Canada. Only Aussies and Brits seem to ask about them, Canadians generally give discouraging replies; I have yet to see a subsequent report by an Aussie/Brit describing a successful one way rental.
Greyhound Canada runs four coaches a day between Jasper and Edmonton and 8 a day between Edmonton and Calgary. If you can't find a reasonably priced one way rental, Calgary to Vancouver, I'd suggest renting the car in Calgary, spend 2 or 3 days visiting Banff/Lake Louise, return the car to Calgary airport and fly to Vancouver.
I agree with Ron but will add that you can also take the train from Jasper to Edmonton (Via Rail) but I'm sure it will be more expensive than a coach bus.
Ah, thank you both. Funny the things we tend to take for granted. Will look into those.
I looked into the possibility of a one-way rental when we did Fernie/Lake Louise/Vancouver a few years ago and if memory serves, one of the reasons we shelved the idea was because of the cost. We ended up bussing it from Fernie to Calgary Airport, hired a car for a couple of nights in Lake Louise then drove back to Calgary Airport and flew to Vancouver. However, I had done Canada before and had seen a bit of the country. Had I not, I might've been happy to shell out. If Vancouver Island is on the menu the drive to Tofino is unbelievable.
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Lots of people do one-way car rentals between Calgary/the Rockies/Vancouver but there is usually a "drop fee" for the privilege. Get several quotes from various companies because it can vary from nothing, to several hundred dollars. This is a much discussed topic on another travel forum, and many people there have mentioned booking with little or no one-way fee through a British agency, Canadian Affair.
I'd check on continuing by train from Jasper to Edmonton. The other options are as mentioned the Greyhound Bus, or the daily Sundog shuttle that goes to West Edmonton Mall and the Edmonton airport. www.sundogtours.com