In May and June 2023, we travelled from east to west across Canada. From Halifax in Nova Scotia to Montreal in Quebec, to Toronto in Ontario, to Vancouver and Whistler in British Columbia. Along the way some night trains and commuter trains, the Niagara Falls and – imagine this – a bus journey. A true Trans-Canada Train Trek.

We arrived at Jasper in de province of Alberta early morning. It was worth waking up early for the views. The day was organised differently. No breakfast or lunch but brunch. So you’re expected to have breakfast in town. Nice cost-saving measure for VIA Rail. 

Jasper is a famous and important stop on the route. Many passengers get off here, or get on for the last stretch. But as town it is small. Only onder 5,000 inhabitants and a few streets. 

Be as it may, there were a few breakfast options. We wanted to try Beavertails, but it only opened at 10 AM so that’s too late. We had breakfast at Coco’s Café. Nice people. But they did mix up the order. I guess five orders at once is a bit much. 

Jasper was full of rainbows and pride messages. A bit too much even. Ah well. It was pride month.

Rocking the Rockies

The leg in the Rocky Mountains is the most popular part of the trip. So it’s important to grab a good view. In Jasper, the dome windows were cleaned.

Danny and I started the journey in the economy class dome car, which not everyone appreciated. We only stayed an hour. Afterwards we found seats in ‘our’ dedicated dome car.

At one point the attendant came with wine… but not for us. She looked at us, started on the other side and was out of glasses when she got to us. When she returned with a full trey, she started downstairs and gave others seconds. We had to ask the canapé provider, Flo(rent), for Jeanette to come with a glass of wine for us. Surely, it wasn’t on purpose she ignored us, but it actually felt that way.

The Rocky Mountains do offer beautiful vistas, not unlike Switzerland or Norway, but bigger. We passed Mount Robson and a waterfall. 

Meals on day 4

Tje brunch offered a mix of breakfast and lunch, as you’d expect. By day 4 some items return. Which on one hand is nice, but can’t VIA Rail think of 4-5 days of unique menus?

Blue River and Kamloops

We had two stops to stretch our legs. In Blue River an ambulance evacuated one of the passengers. We were ordered in before we could see who.  The next stop, Kamloops North, was a bit longer. But it’s basically a shunting yard.

Lake Kamloops

Dinner happened while winding next to Lake Kamkoops. This provided an opportunity to photograph the head and the tail of the 22 or 23 cars-long train. 

Last night

By the way, the delay of over five hours was gone. We were ahead of schedule in Kamloops so the train stopped a few times during night not to be too early in Vancouver Pacific Central Station.

The end

The last morning felt a bit rushed. There was a waiting list for a quick breakfast. Many items weren’t available anymore. After breakfast we had to be off the train by  8.30 AM.

So, this was it. Next week I’ll discuss life on board The Canadian. 

2023 Trans-Canada Train Trek

1. REVIEW | Brussels Airlines Brussels to Munich in Economy.
2. REVIEW | Lufthansa Premium Economy Munich to Montreal.
3. REVIEW | Air Canada Economy Montreal to Halifax.
4. Flying Brussels Airlines, Lufthansa and Air Canada Brussels – Munich – Montreal – Halifax in minimal economy.
5. HALIFAX | Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21.
6. REVIEW | The Westin Nova Scotian Halifax.
7. NOVA SCOTIA | Sampling Halifax.
8. REVIEW | VIA Rail Canada night train 15 ‘The Ocean’ from Halifax to Montreal.
9. QUEBEC | Meandering Montreal.
10. REVIEW | InterContinental Montreal.
11. FORMULA 1 CANADIAN GRAND PRIX | Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Montreal track walk.
12. MONTREAL | Dining solo at Monarque felt like being part of a tv show.
13. MONTREAL | Exporail – Canadian Railway Museum in Saint-Constant.
14. REVIEW | VIA Rail train Montreal to Toronto in business class.
15. ONTARIO | Touring Toronto.
16. REVIEW | Little Canada museum in Toronto.
17. TORONTO | CN Tower.
18. REVIEW | Residence Inn by Marriott Toronto Downtown / Entertainment District.
19. CANADA | Train excursion to Niagara Falls.
20. THE CANADIAN | Day 1: boarding in Toronto and crossing Ontario.
21. THE CANADIAN | Days 2 & 3: Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta.