travelling to Canada for conferences

Introduction

Air Canada partners with:
- Star Alliance, including Air New Zealand

if passing through USA, even though your online ESTA travel visa may be approved, you may not get past border security in the US if you have travelled to “US designated sponsor of terrorism countries like Iran, Iraq, or Cuba” in the past, or if your travel or social media content raises red flags
border security in the US and in Australia have the right to copy images and data from your mobile phone, laptop, cameras, etc - and if these provide evidence that you may have committed a crime or are a risk, these will be kept and you may be detained

Travel from Australia

flight to Vancouver
- Air Canada - flights from Sydney (14.5hrs) or Brisbane (13.5hrs)
- via Hawaii stopover:
  - ~11hr flight Melbourne to Honolulu (Jetstar)
  - ~6hr flight Honolulu to Vancouver (Air Canada) - no flights direct to Calgary from Hawaii though
- via China:
  - China Eastern Airlines - flight Melb-Shanghai-Vancouver 25hrs
  - Xiamen Airlines - from Sydney via China
- via LA - see below
flight to Los Angeles then to Canada
- Virgin Australia - flights are via Sydney or Brisbane
- Qantas - flights are direct from Melbourne 14.5hrs, or via Sydney or Brisbane
- Air New Zealand - flights are via Auckland and take 17.5hrs or 20hrs
Melbourne to Calgary requires at least 1 stop (LA) and will take around 24hrs allowing for stopover time
Melbourne to Montreal requires at least 1 stop (LA) and will take around 24hrs allowing for stopover time

Vancouver

coastal city on the west coast 230km north of Seattle
multicultural population of around 2.4 million - only half speak English as 1st language
the fourth-most densely populated city with over 250,000 residents in North America behind NY, San Francisco and Mexico City as it has mountains to north and north-east and the bay to the west, and the Fraser River to the south and east while only 50km south by car is the US-Canadian border.
Port Metro Vancouver is the third-largest port by tonnage in the Americas thanks to its forestry industries
warmer, cloudier, more humid and wetter winters, and warmer nights than Calgary thanks to the coastal influences
rainfall peaks in March and Nov (whereas Calgary peaks in June-July and is not as heavy)
started from a farm and sawmill in the 1860s following the Fraser Gold Rush of 1858 and The Great Vancouver Fire on 13 June 1886, razed the entire city.
it began to flourish once the railroad was established in 1887 and population grew from 1,000 people in 1881 to over 26,000 by 1901, and 100,000 by 1911.

Calgary

population around 1.4 million
similar latitude as London
1000km east of Vancouver by car (~12hr drive via Banff)
700km NE of Spokane
4000km NW of New York
Fort Calgary was established at the forks of the Bow and Elbow rivers in 1875 and railway arrived in Calgary in 1883
Calgary Stampede runs early to mid July
nearby Canadian Rockies:
- Calgary lies 130km (1.5hrs by car) east of Banff (in the Banff National Park which is dominated by glacier capped mountains and beautiful turquoise lakes fed by glaciers)
- Jasper , Yoho , Kootenay , Waterton Lakes National Parks
- best time to visit the mountains is June through September when the mountain lakes are thawed and the brilliant turquoise colour of their water can be enjoyed
- mountain resort towns of Banff, Lake Louise and Jasper tend to be crowded in July and August
- many of the roads and activities close for Winter by mid-October and in November the Rockies are generally abandoned as too cold for hiking but no reliable skiing yet
- Downhill skiers visit the mountains from December through April and even into early May.
- Bow Lake is approximately 30 minutes north of Lake Louise and 100km or 1hr NW of Banff, off the Icefields Parkway (Alberta Highway 93) and a half-mile north of the Crowfoot Glacier. This stunning lake sits at an elevation of 6,300 feet and is one of the largest lakes in Banff National Park. Best seen in Sept during fall, but wildflowers may be a feature in late Spring-summer.
- https://www.outdoorphotographer.com/?locations=bow-lake
- https://zizka.ca/2017/05/13/resources-for-photographing-the-canadian-rockies/
climate:
- 1084m above sea level
- winters are freezing and dry, short days and little to see in the relatively small city - best to go to Banff or Jasper for the snow
  - In winter, a strong Chinook wind from the west can increase the temperature by 20°C (36°F), so that temperatures can go from -10°C (15°F) to 10 ° C (50°F) in a few hours, and these winds keep the snow cover thin to around 6cm
  - Cold snaps can cause temperatures dipping as low as -30°C (-22°F)
- summers are mild (occasionally can reach 30degC), long sunny days, some good rains and cold nights (night temperatures struggle to stay above 10 degC and may drop to zero)
- the rest of the year is quite dry, sunny and cool with cold nights
- snow may fall in early Sept onwards and briefly even into May or June
- May and Oct can deliver lovely, warm, sunny weather, but also can produce blizzards.
- deciduous trees get their new spring leaves some time between the first week of April and the first week of May so Calgary looks fresh and green in May
- The most popular time for Calgary gardeners to plant their annuals is the Victoria Day long weekend, i.e., the weekend preceding May 25th
- yellow and golden fall colours usually are at their peak around mid-late September
- second Monday of October is Canadian Thanksgiving Day
- average maximum temp:
  - Dec-Feb around zero degC
  - Mar, Nov = 5degC
  - Apr, Oct around 11-13degC
  - May 16degC
  - June, Sept 20degC
  - July, Aug 23-24degC
- rainfall:
  - mainly in summer over June-July 80mm/month (June is similar to Sydney in August-September in terms of rainfall and daytime max. temperatures but colder nights)
  - May, Aug 60mm/mth (May is similar to Sydney in July in terms of rainfall and daytime max. temperatures but colder nights)
  - Apr, Sept 40mm/mth (April is similar to Melbourne's winter in terms of rainfall and daytime max. temperatures but colder nights)
  - Mar, Oct 20mm/mth
  - Nov-Feb less than 10mm/mth
flights from either:
- Vancouver (1.5hrs) Air Canada
- Denver (2.5hrs) Air Canada
- Los Angeles (3.5hrs) Air Canada
- San Francisco
- Toronto (3hrs) Air Canada
- Houston (4hrs) Air Canada (no flight direct to Calgary from New Orleans)
- New York (7hr) Air Canada
- London (9hr) Air Canada
- Paris via Toronto (14hrs incl. 2hr stopover) Air Canada
- Paris via Montreal (16.5hrs incl. 4.5hr stopover) Air Canada
- Frankfurt (9.5hr) Air Canada

Montreal, Quebec

in the SE of Canada, largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest in Canada, and the tenth-largest in North America with total pop. ~6m of whom ~90% speak French and 60% able to speak both English and French
~200km east of the national capital Ottawa and 258km SW of Quebec City
the commercial capital of Canada is Toronto
flights from either:
- Vancouver (~5hrs) Air Canada
- Toronto (just over 1hr) Air Canada - then bus to Niagara Falls ~ 1.5hrs
- Los Angeles (5.5hrs) Air Canada / United - but if travelling to/from Melbourne, expect a 3-5hr stopover in LA airport
- Melbourne
  - via LA (22.5hrs with 3hr stopover in LA) Qantas / Air Canada
climate
- in May: daily max 19deg, min 8deg, 13 days rain avg 81mm
- in June: daily max 24deg, min 13deg, 13 days rain avg 87mm
events
- Montreal International Jazz Festival June/July
- Les Francos de Montréal is a large annual music and performance festival June
- Just for laughs comedy festival ?July
- most popular sport is ice hockey.
Old Montreal is a historic area southeast of downtown containing many attractions such as the Old Port of Montreal, Place Jacques-Cartier, Montreal City Hall, the Bonsecours Market, Place d'Armes, Pointe-à-Callière Museum, the Notre-Dame de Montréal Basilica, and the Montreal Science Centre.

Table of Contents

travelling to Canada for conferences

Introduction

Travel from Australia

Vancouver

Calgary

Montreal, Quebec