alleyne

My husband &amp; I are travelling to Vancouver in May 2003 and wishing to hire a car and drive along the West Coast of USA and back to Canada and take about 4 weeks. Any tips on car hire that is not too expensive. Also tips on things to see or do or not to do. I am not into daring sports &amp; my husband is a train and car freak.<BR>Thanks Alleyne

Brian Kilgore

The Royal Hudson is a steam train that runs from Vancouver north along the BC coast and back again, for daytrippers. <BR><BR>For train fans, it's mandatory. It used to be the Hudson until it pulled a royal couple across Canada (George VI, I think) and as a former engineer said on tv the other night, the King pulled out a wand and touched the train and made it &quot;Royal.&quot;<BR><BR>I dod not know king's carried wands, but anyway, that's what was on tv.<BR><BR>For car rental; perhaps the best tip is to check with your own home insurance company, and with your credit card company, to determine whether you need to buy expensive additional insurance.<BR><BR>Not buying the extra insurance can save you a lot of money.<BR><BR>BAK

Gary

Sadly I think the Royal Hudson is mothballed for the time being as is most of BC Rail's passenger services including the wonderful Starlight Express. There are still excellant train trips to the Rockies, most notably the Rocky Mountaineer - a private company that is actually making a profit so you can depend on it still being around next year.<BR><BR>The same passenger train mallaise seems to be happening in the US as well though I think there are still a couple of classic trips in California. You should check the US Posts on that.<BR><BR>Car rental shouldn't be any problem but make sure the company wll allow you to take it accross the border. Any 'Gold&quot; credit card will allow you to opt out of insurance coverage. <BR><BR>For things to do and not do in BC check the past posts and do some research and then ask more specific questions. Do the same for the US West Coast.

April

That's true, Gary. Last time we took the train trip to Squamish the Royal Hudson was in storage, with apparently no plans to bring it out. <BR><BR>Your husband may find the model train museum on Granville Island in Vancouver interesting. They have a website. Even if you're not airplane buffs, I recommend a detour off the Oregon coast to McMinnville to visit the one and only Spruce Goose at the fabulous Evergreen Aviation Museum. It's worth seeing. Nearby Lincoln City has a factory outlet mall if you want to shop. No taxes in Oregon.

alleyne

Thanks for the information.