Yes, Canada is one of the easiest countries to backpack independently, as long as you plan around long distances and summer prices rather than language or safety.
English works everywhere outside Quebec, and in
Montreal and
Quebec City most hostel and transit staff switch to English without fuss. Dorm beds run C$45 to 90 (US$33 to 65) a night, with
Banff,
Vancouver and
Tofino at the top end in July and August and often booked out weeks ahead. The Toronto to Montreal corridor is simple by train (about 5 hours), while the Rockies take more planning without a car, so book shuttles and beds there first. Budget around C$90 to 150 (US$65 to 110) a day.
Plan on two weeks for one region of Canada, three weeks for a region plus a city corridor, and about a month to see both the east and the west properly.
With 14 days, pick either Vancouver with Vancouver Island (Victoria 3 nights, Tofino 4) or the Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and Quebec City corridor. Three weeks lets you add Charlevoix, Tadoussac and Halifax to the eastern cities. Thirty days covers that corridor, a flight west (Toronto to Calgary takes about 4 hours), Banff for 4 nights, Jasper for 3 and the Pacific coast. The country is roughly 5,500 kilometers wide, so any trip that crosses it needs at least one domestic flight.
Yes, you can get around Canada without a car on the main travel routes, though remote parks and scenic drives are much harder.
VIA Rail links
Toronto,
Ottawa,
Montreal and
Quebec City, with Toronto to Montreal taking about 5 hours for C$50 to 150 (US$36 to 110). In the west, airport shuttles reach
Banff from Calgary in about 2 hours, Roam Transit buses serve Banff, Canmore and Lake Louise, and BC Ferries plus connecting buses get you to Victoria and Tofino (6 to 7 hours from Victoria). VIA Rail’s Canadian runs Jasper to Vancouver in about 20 hours. The Cabot Trail, Gros Morne and the Icefields Parkway outside May to October are where you’ll want a rental car.
The must-visits in Canada are the Rocky Mountain parks around Banff and Jasper, the cities of Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal, and the walled old town of Quebec City.
Give
Banff, the
Icefields Parkway and
Jasper 6 to 8 days combined; the parkway runs 232 kilometers past the Columbia Icefield.
Montreal needs 3 to 4 days and
Quebec City 2 to 3, about 3 hours apart by train. From
Toronto,
Niagara Falls works as a day trip, about 2 hours each way by GO Train or bus. On the west coast,
Tofino and
Long Beach in Pacific Rim National Park Reserve are 7 to 9 hours from Vancouver by ferry and bus, so plan at least 3 nights there.
If you’re short on time in Canada, skip the Prairies, the full cross-country train and an overnight stay at Niagara Falls.
The farmland between Winnipeg and Calgary is about 1,300 kilometers of flat road or rail, so fly over it: Toronto to Calgary takes about 4 hours by air, while VIA Rail’s Canadian does not stop in Calgary and takes days to cross the Prairies.
Niagara Falls fits easily into a day trip from Toronto, and the arcades and wax museums of Clifton Hill add little.
Edmonton and
Ripley’s Aquarium of Canada can drop off a short list. The Maritimes and Newfoundland deserve 7 to 10 days of their own, so leave them for another trip if you only have two weeks.
Yes, our itinerary-planner does exactly that. Set your trip length in days, give your interests and travel style, optionally give start- and end location and/or some mandatory stops you would like to include and the itinerary planner creates your personalized routes for Canada in seconds. Try it out!
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