Rocky Mountains train in Feb

[237SJ]

Toronto to Vancouver - It`s just going to be a icy waste right? Is it still worth doing in Feb though? I know Vancouver is quite temperate so there might be some greenery there. Has anyone done it in the middle of winter?

[jd_here]

Sorry SJ, can't answer your question but look forward to the answers as that very trip that is penciled in for GA (geand Adventure) 5. Look forward to the answers. Enjoy it if you go.

[237SJ]

Thanks jd. If I do, I`ll report back. It`s between the train, Langkawi or just going to Edinburgh to see the pandas at the moment!

[jno]

A very strong chance that it will be all white on the night, yes. "Snow depths of greater than 1 cm are seen on about 88 days each year in Calgary compared with about 65 days in Toronto." Read more here:

http://www.livingin-c...anadian-climates.html

(I just chose Calgary at random, you can check other cities.)

Vancouver possibly not, as it tends to be mild and rainy. And if you get a chance to get out and see the Rockies, they are at least very picturesque.

[237SJ]

Thanks jno for taking the time to put up the link. I would like to see some snow anyway. I think the mountains will be prettier for it.

[jno]

there's no promise that you'll see anything but snow. I stayed in the Rockies at the end of March once, and there were still blizzards.

[dzug2]

It will also be dark a lot of the time so you won't see anything

[237SJ]

The train leaves Toronto at 2200 so it will be dark but I`ve been to Toronto and Vancouver at all times of the year. I can`t say I`ve noticed it being particularly dark in the winter though.

[jno]

cities aren't really dark. The prairies will be. Most of the trip will be at latitudes comparable to London's, with Vancouver and Toronto a bit further south (their days therefore very slightly longer). Daylight hours will be longer than they are now of course, but still only 9-10 hours per day.

[237SJ]

jd_here If you go onto viarail`s website and click Express Deals, you can get quite a good discount on the fare. (worth trying when you decide to do it)

[gingejbee]

Yes, it will be very "wintery" out there - but still worth going. I've been on the Trans-Siberian Railway in the middle of winter - one very memorable holiday!

[cathfromsaron]

would love to visit canada and esp. vancouver, as my grandad was stationed there during the war, and loved his time there! a train ride would be phenomenal too!

enjoy!!

cath x

[jno]

I went on the Trans-Siberian in midsummer and there were still sheets of permafrost ice by the line in Siberia. Great trip and no night at all when we got well to the north.

[237SJ]

I was going to do the Trans-Mongolian in September. I ended up in Barbados though.

[jno]

oh dear, sounds like a points failure!

[237SJ]

LOL

[Clanad]

Living, as we do, in the western U.S., might I make a suggestion? I'll provide a link that reinforces my view that you should condier seeing if you could fly into Winnepeg to pick up the "Canadien"... Hours and hours of sheer boredom on leaving Toronto with the route through endless forests followed by endless prairie (at least in the summer you could see an ocean of waving wheat fields).
Even on leaving Winnipeg, you'll have a couple of days before you get to the good part of the trip, which is the Canadian Rockies and then the slide down into Vancouver (which is one of my favorite cities int he Western Hemishphere).
Any way, take a minute to look at this review, which is fairly accurate... and welcome to this part of the world!

http://www.fodors.com...onto-to-vancouver.cfm

[237SJ]

Thanks Clanad. I`ve read the link. Trouble is I only want to fly in, do the train and fly out. I`ve been to Toronto and Vancouver many times and I don`t particularly want to hang around. If I didn`t go from Toronto it would all be over too quickly. I think Langkawi is plan A as I have to make a decision about flights soon and the train will be plan B. If I don`t do it now, I might do it on my September leave.

[jno]

for me, it'd be September every time.

[237SJ]

I think so too. I was planning Barbados again but plans have a habit of changing!

[jd_here]

Thanks SJ, will probably be another 18 months or so, as next trip to the Antipodes is already booked for early 2012, but will take a note of the web site for reference.