Canada Travel Tips

These Canada travel tips will make your vacation planning go smoother!

If you are planning to fly to Victoria or make a flight anywhere in the world, this section will be very useful to you! Booking flights, getting bumped, flight delays, lost & damaged luggage, noise reduction headphones, safety when flying and security when flying are all things to be considered. There are also health considerations when flying, as well as jet lag.

Travel books are often a great help to trip planning. Check out our selection of Victoria travel books here

Pre-Travel Considerations

Before traveling to Victoria, or anywhere else, there are a number of points you should seriously consider. As mentioned previously, insurance should be considered, researching your destination (local laws for example), emergency numbers, documents and ID, the type of suitcases that would be asked to use take on a particular trip, what cameras to take with you, home arrangements and your packing checklists.

Better yet, join our FREE VIP mailing list and get a free downloadable guide to all the information you need for your visit to Victoria.

Cruise Tips

If you are thinking of a cruise to or near Victoria, (or from further afield), you may want to know the best ways to go about choosing your cruise or cabin, cruise deals, air / sea packages, the beginning of your cruise, looking after your luggage on a cruise, keeping in contact with the outside world when on a cruise, insurance for cruisers, first time cruisers, how weather conditions may affect your cruise, no smoking cruises (non smoking cruises), shore excursions, passports and visas for cruises, tipping on cruises and other charges.

You can also buy cruises online or at your local travel agency, either way, you are likely to receive great reductions from the cruise specialists!

Some of the most well known cruise lines come to Victoria. Among those are - Carnival - Royal Caribbean - Cunnard. Visit Travelocity for Cruise Deals

Customs Tips

If you visit Victoria from abroad, you will have to pass through customs... the process will go smoother if you research a little - What you discover may well be of use for a trip through customs in many countries around the world.

Some tips include having the details about expensive items you are carrying through customs as well as foreign items through customs, leaving enough time, being cooperative with customs agents, keeping receipts for all goods brought back from holiday, taxation brackets, and how to make appeals against customs duties.

AND please be aware of the new US passport requirements.

Tips Regarding Plant Material

Restrictions apply to the importation of fruits, vegetables, meats, dairy products and plant material. If you're thinking about bringing any of those things into Victoria, do your research first.

Tips About Weapons

All firearms must be declared when you enter Canada. Revolvers, pistols, fully automatic firearms and other weapons and self-defense sprays (e.g., mace, pepper spray) are prohibited.

Alcohol Laws

BC's legal drinking age is 19. Photo identification is required to purchase alcoholic beverages or enter nightclubs serving alcohol. Alcohol can be purchased in government liquor stores and at privately-owned cold beer & wine stores.

Measurements

Canada uses the metric system.

• 1 Canadian gallon = 4.5 litres
• 1 American gallon = 3.8 litres

Temperature is reported in degrees Celsius.
To convert Celsius to Fahrenheit, multiply X 2 and add 32 to get approximate temperature.

Time Zones / Daylight Savings Time
Pacific Standard Time applies in most of BC. This is three hours behind Eastern Standard Time (Ontario/New York). BC is one hour behind Alberta, with the exception of some eastern areas which are on MST/Alberta time. Daylight Savings Time changes take place generally at the beginning of April (the clocks move forward one hour) and at the end of October (clocks move backward one hour).

Public Holidays

Banks, schools, government offices and some stores will be closed on the following days in 2007:

• New Year's Day - January 1
• Good Friday - April 14
• Easter Monday - April 17
• Victoria Day - May 22
• Canada Day - July 1
• BC Day - August 7
• Labour Day - September 4
• Canadian Thanksgiving Day - October 9
• Remembrance Day - November 11
• Christmas Day - December 25
• Boxing Day - December 26

Continue on for more Canada travel tip advice... OR...

Check out our travel packing checklists!

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