Canada Travel Tips – Medical

Before you leave, please check whether your insurance already covers overseas travel. If not, be sure to purchase travel medical insurance before leaving for Canada. When traveling, please carry your insurance policy number and emergency contact number with you.

1. Canadian Hospitals and Medical Services

Canadian hospitals and medical services provide you with quality services. Most hospitals in Canada are managed by the government, and service fees are set by provinces or hospital management agencies. Medical services for non-Canadian citizens are charged at a daily price or based on the medical condition and the length of treatment. Medical costs vary from place to place, but on average are between $1,000 and $2,000 per day.

Hospital emergency rooms are open 24 hours a day. Most cities have community clinics where non-emergency patients can go for medical treatment or consultation without an appointment. The cost of each clinic varies. Please check the “Medical, Clinics” column in the Yellow Pages for the telephone number of each clinic.

2. Prescriptions and Pharmacies

Please carry with you all the prescription drugs you will need during your trip, as well as copies of your prescriptions in case you need them. Pharmacies can be found everywhere in Canada. Most large cities have at least one 24-hour pharmacy, and many grocery stores also have drug counters in the store. All prescription drugs should be kept in their original packaging, with the type of drug and the prescription being used labeled on it. If you do not have the original packaging, please bring a copy of the prescription or a certificate from your doctor. You may also want to bring spare glasses or contact lenses, or a prescription from your eye doctor, in case you need new glasses or contact lenses.

3. Emergency Services

Most cities in Canada offer 911 emergency services. In an emergency, you can dial 911 from any phone to call the police, fire, or ambulance. If you are temporarily unable to reach 911 service, dial “0” and ask the operator to call the police, fire, or ambulance. You can make emergency calls for free from any pay phone.

Canada Travel Tips – Communication information

Canada’s telephone system is very similar to that of the United States. Canadian telephone numbers are 10 digits. The first 3 digits are the area code, and the next 7 digits are the local number (for example, 555-555-5555). If you make a long-distance call outside the local area, dial “1”, then the 3-digit area code, and then the 7-digit local number.

To make an international call from Canada (except the United States), dial “011”, then the area code and local number. For long-distance directory assistance, dial 1 + area code + 555-1212. Directory assistance is free from pay phones. Guides to local and long-distance calls can be found on pay phones and in the first few pages of the phone book.

Dial 411 for directory assistance, Chinese directory assistance 6047388888

1. Using a Cell Phone in Canada

Cell phone coverage in Canada varies depending on the type of phone you use, your local cell phone service provider and plan, and your phone carrier system. Contact your cell phone service provider for information about international roaming services and to find out if your phone is compatible with Canada’s network and frequencies.

2. Postal Services

There are post offices in communities across Canada. Many pharmacies, convenience stores, and shopping malls also have mailing offices. The price of mailing a standard postcard or letter within Canada is 0.54 Canadian dollars. Mailing to the United States is 0.98 Canadian dollars, and to other countries is 1.65 Canadian dollars. Letters and parcels are charged by size and weight.

3. Internet and Email

When traveling in Canada, you can still communicate through email or the Internet. Most Canadian cities have Internet cafes and coffee shops that provide wireless Internet access. Hotels generally provide wired and wireless Internet access to guests, and libraries can provide free Internet access for a limited time.

4. Voltage and Electricity

Canada, like the United States, uses 110 volts (60 Hz). You need a universal adapter to use electrical equipment from other countries. 110-volt wall sockets (or power sockets) and plugs are both two-pin designs. If the socket is different from the one you use in your home country, you will need a socket converter.

Canada Travel Tips – Canadian Currency Information

Canada uses dollars ($) and cents (¢) similar to the United States, Australia and New Zealand.

In addition to 0.01 cents, 0.05 cents and 0.25 cents, Canada currently has 1 dollar and 2 dollar coins, commonly called “loonie” and “toonie”. Banknotes come in different colors and patterns, the most common being the 5 dollar bill (blue), 10 dollar (purple), 20 dollar (green), 50 dollar (red) and 100 dollar (brown).

Most hotels, shopping malls and restaurants accept US dollars, but sometimes the exchange rate is lower than that of banks and airports. The exchange rate of large hotels is usually close to that of banks. It is recommended that you exchange Canadian dollars before departure.

1. Currency Exchange in Canada

You can exchange currency at any regular financial institution, bank, trust company or currency exchange office in Canada. Many large shopping malls, hotels and restaurants can also exchange currency, but the exchange rate is usually lower than that of financial institutions. It is best to exchange currency in advance before departure.

2. Provincial Sales Tax and Federal Tax

Most goods and services in Canada are subject to a 5% federal tax (GST) or “Goods and Services Tax”. Except Alberta, all other provinces will add a 5% to 10% provincial sales tax (PST) on purchased goods and financial transactions. The region does not charge provincial sales tax. Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick replace PST and GST with a 13% HST (combined sales tax). Some hotels and shopping malls combine GST or HST in the price; other places charge the price of goods and taxes separately.

3. Credit Cards and Bank ATMs

Major credit cards such as American Express, MasterCard, Visa, etc. can be used in Canada. The amount on your monthly credit card bill when you get home has already been converted to an exchange rate. Remember to contact your credit card company to let them know that you will be using your credit card abroad.

Using an ABM (bank automated teller machine), also known as an ATM (automatic teller machine), is a convenient way to get cash when traveling abroad. Most international bank card systems, such as Interac, Plus, Cirrus and Maestro, are installed on most ABMs in Canada. ABMs are easily found in many places, such as banks, stores, airports, etc. You can also use your credit card to advance cash at ABMs. It is best to contact your bank in your home country before you leave to let them know that you will be using your credit card in Canada, as you may be subject to certain specific terms or withdrawal limits.

4. Bank Opening Hours

Normal bank opening hours are Monday to Thursday, 9:30 am to 4:00 pm. Many banks are open until 6:00 pm on Friday. Some banks and branches may also be open in the evenings during the week, and even on Saturdays. Trust companies are usually open from 9 am to 6 pm Monday to Friday and on Saturday mornings.

5. Tipping

Canada has a habit of tipping. Canadian restaurant bills usually do not include tips or service charges, but tips account for a significant proportion of the waiter’s income. Some restaurants will charge a service charge for large purchases. Generally speaking, tips are 15% to 20% of the total amount of consumption.

Tips for barbers, hairstylists and taxi drivers are usually 15%. Tips for hotel, airport and train station waiters, doormen, porters, etc. are 1 to 2 Canadian dollars per piece of luggage. Canadian bar and nightclub guests usually tip the bar and table waiters separately.

Canada Travel Tips – Customs Information

1. Gifts

When bringing gifts with a unit price of less than 60 Canadian dollars into Canada, tourists can be exempted from customs duties and taxes. Gifts over 60 Canadian dollars are subject to customs duties on the excess amount. Alcoholic beverages, tobacco products and promotional materials are not included in the category of gifts.

2. Alcohol and tobacco products

You can bring limited quantities of alcoholic beverages into Canada, subject to the age requirements of each province or territory (see below). You must arrive with the alcoholic beverages you bring. The age of entry into Canada for alcoholic beverages is 18 in Alberta, Manitoba and Quebec, and 19 in Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Ontario, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador. You can only bring one of the following alcoholic products duty-free: 53 ounces of wine, 40 ounces of hard liquor, 40 ounces of wine and hard liquor combined, or 24 x 12 ounce cans or bottles of beer or ale. You can bring the following items duty-free into Canada: 200 cigarettes, 50 cigars or cigarillos, 7 ounces of manufactured tobacco, or 200 tobacco rods.

3. Items prohibited and restricted by Canadian Customs

Many agricultural products are restricted or prohibited from entering Canada. Canadian law requires that all agricultural products brought by travelers, whether by land, water or air, must be declared to customs officers upon arrival. Except for indoor potted plants from the United States, all other plants must be allowed to enter Canada with prior permission. Weapons such as pistols, maces and pepper spray are prohibited from entering Canada. In addition, certain fruits, vegetables, honey, eggs, meat, dairy products and plants from other countries are also prohibited from entering Canada.

4. Customs contact information

You can log on to the Canada Border Services Agency website to find the customs address closest to you, or call the Border Information Service (BIS).

Toll-free number in Canada:

  • English 1-800-461-9999 or
  • French: 1-800-959-2036.

Outside Canada, please call

  • 204-983-3500 or 506-636-5064 for English service;
  • 204-983-3700 or 506-636-5067 for French (long distance charges apply).

St. John’s

Saint John is the largest city in the Canadian province of New Brunswick, and the second largest in the maritime provinces. It is known as the Fundy City due to its location on the north shore of the Bay of Fundy at the mouth of the Saint John River, as well as being the only city on the bay. In 1785 Saint John became the first incorporated city in Canada.

Saint John had a population of 70,063 in 2011 over an area of 315.82 square kilometres (121.94 sq mi). The Saint John metropolitan area covers a land area of 3,362.95 square kilometres (1,298.44 sq mi) across the Caledonia Highlands, with a population (as of 2011) of 127,761, marking an increase of 4.4% since 2006.
Saint John shares much of the same cultural roots found in cities like Boston and New York. The presence of Irish heritage is very apparent along with strong maritime traditions. Saint John is a true maritime city with ties to the fisheries and shipbuilding, and is known for the Marco Polo as its flagship vessel. The city has been a traditional hub for creativity, boasting many notable artists, actors and musicians, including Walter Pidgeon, Donald Sutherland, Louis B. Mayer, Fred Ross and Miller Brittain.

Newfoundland and Labrador

Newfoundland and Labrador , is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country'sAtlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador to the northwest, with a combined area of 405,212 square kilometres. In 2013, the province's population was estimated at 526,702. Approximately 92 percent of the province's population lives on the Island of Newfoundland (including its associated smaller islands), of which more than half live on the Avalon Peninsula. The province is Canada's most linguistically homogenous, with 97.6% of residents reporting English (Newfoundland English) as their mother tongue in the 2006 census. Historically, Newfoundland was also home to unique varieties of French and Irish, as well as the now-extinct Beothuk language. In Labrador, local dialects of Innu-aimun and Inuktitut are also spoken.

Newfoundland and Labrador's capital and largest city, St. John's, is Canada's 20th-largest census metropolitan area, and is home to almost 40 percent of the province's population. St. John's is the seat of government, home to the House of Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador and the highest court in the jurisdiction, the Newfoundland and Labrador Court of Appeal.
A former colony and dominion of the United Kingdom, Newfoundland and Labrador became the tenth province to enter the Canadian Confederation on March 31, 1949, as Newfoundland. On December 6, 2001, an amendment was made to the Constitution of Canada to change the province's official name to Newfoundland and Labrador. In day-to-day conversation, however, Canadians generally still refer to the province itself as Newfoundland and to the region on the Canadian mainland as Labrador.

Charlottetown

Charlottetown  is a Canadian city. It is both the largest city on and the provincial capital of Prince Edward Island, and the county seat of Queens County. Named after Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, queen consort of the United Kingdom, Charlottetown was first incorporated as a town in 1855 and designated as a city in 1885.

It was most famously the site of the Charlottetown Conference in 1864, the first gathering of Canadian and Maritime statesmen to debate the proposed Maritime Union and the more persuasive British North American Union, now known as Canadian Confederation. From this, the city adopted as its motto "Cunabula Foederis" -- "Birthplace of Confederation".
The population of Charlottetown in the 2011 census was 34,562; this forms the centre of a census agglomeration of 64,487, which is slightly less than half of the province's population.
The city's streetscape with a centrally planned downtown core containing many Victorian-era houses and buildings is an attraction, as well as the waterfront redevelopment project in recent decades which has seen walking trails and parks developed on former industrial lands. A new cruise ship terminal was opened by the port authority in September 2007 which, proponents hope, will make the city a more attractive destination for the growing number of vessels operating in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
Popular attractions within the city include the provincial legislature at Province House, which hosted the Charlottetown Conference, as well as Founders Hall, a recently redeveloped railway maintenance building which now houses an interactive trip through history tracing the development of Canada as a nation.
The Confederation Centre of the Arts provides live theatre, including the Charlottetown Festival during the summer months, as well as a nationally ranked art gallery. The Charlottetown Festival itself is headlined by Canada's most popular and longest-running musical, Anne of Green Gables - The Musical, which is an adaptation of Island authorLucy Maud Montgomery's novel. Several other small theaters and galleries can be found immediately surrounding the Confederation center including the Mac (MacKenzie theatre), the Arts Guild, and Pilar Shepard gallery.

Prince Edward Island

Prince Edward Island (PEI ) is a Canadian province consisting of the island itself, as well as other islands.
It is one of the three Maritime provinces and is the smallest province in both land area and population. The island has several informal names: "Garden of the Gulf" referring to the pastoral scenery and lush agricultural lands throughout the province; and "Birthplace of Confederation" or "Cradle of Confederation", referring to the Charlottetown Conference in 1864, although PEI did not join Confederation until 1873, when it became the seventh Canadian province. The backbone of the economy is farming, as it produces 25% of Canada's potatoes. Historically, PEI is one of Canada's older settlements and demographically still reflects older immigration to the country, with Celtic, Anglo Saxon and French last names being overwhelmingly dominant to this day.

According to the 2011 census, the province of Prince Edward Island has 145,855 residents. It is located about 200 km north of Halifax, Nova Scotia and 600 km east of Quebec City. It consists of the main island and 231 minor islands.

The main island is 5,620 km in size, which is slightly smaller than the U.S. state of Delaware, is the 104th-largest island in the world, and is Canada's 23rd-largest island.
According to the 2011 National Household Survey, the largest ethnic group consists of people of Scottish descent (39.2%), followed by English (31.1%), Irish (30.4%), French (21.1%), German(5.2%), and Dutch (3.1%) descent. Prince Edward Island is mostly a white community and there are few visible minorities. Chinese people are the largest visible minority group of Prince Edward Island, comprising 1.3% of the province's population. Almost half of respondents identified their ethnicity as "Canadian." Most readers will not know that Prince Edward Island is by a strong margin the most Celtic and specifically the most Scottish province in Canada (often thought to be Nova Scotia) and perhaps the most Scottish place (ethnically) in the world, outside of Scotland. 38% of islanders claim Scottish ancestry, but this is an underestimate and it is thought that almost 50% of islanders have Scottish roots. When combined with Irish and Welsh, almost 80% of islanders are of some Celtic stock, albeit most families have resided in PEI for at least two centuries. Few places outside Europe can claim such a homogenous Celtic ethnic background.

 

Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia  is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and constitutes one of the four Atlantic Canada provinces. Located almost exactly halfway between the Equator and the North Pole (44º 39' N Latitude), its provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the second-smallest province in Canada, with an area of 55,284 square kilometres , including Cape Breton Island and another 3,800 coastal islands. As of 2011, the population was 921,727, making Nova Scotia the second-most-densely populated province in Canada.

Nova Scotia's tourism industry showcases Nova Scotia's culture, scenery and coastline. Nova Scotia has many museums reflecting its ethnic heritage, including the Glooscap Heritage Centre, Grand-Pré National Historic Site, Hector Heritage Quay and the Black Cultural Centre for Nova Scotia. Others museums tell the story of its working history, such as the Cape Breton Miners' Museum, and the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic.
Nova Scotia is home to several internationally renowned musicians and there are visitor centres in the home towns ofHank Snow, Rita MacNeil, and Anne Murray Centre. There are also numerous music and cultural festivals such as theStan Rogers Folk Festival, Celtic Colours, the Nova Scotia Gaelic Mod, Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo, the Atlantic Film Festival and the Atlantic Fringe Festival.
The province has numerous National Historic Sites, the most notable being the Habitation at Port-Royal, the Fortress of Louisbourg and Citadel Hill (Fort George)in Halifax.
Nova Scotia has two national parks, Kejimkujik and Cape Breton Highlands, and many other protected areas. The Bay of Fundy has the highest tidal range in the world, and the iconic Peggys Cove is internationally recognized and receives 600,000 plus visitors a year.
Cruise ships pay regular visits to the province. In 2010, Halifax received 261,000 passengers and Sydney 69,000.
A 2008 Nova Scotia tourism campaign included advertising a fictional mobile phone called Pomegranate and establishing website, which after reading about "new phone" redirected to tourism info about region.

Halifax

The Halifax Regional Municipality  is the capital of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The Regional Municipality had a population of 390,096 in 2011 Canadian Census and the urban area had a population of 297,943. Halifax is the largest population centre in Atlantic Canada and largest in Canada east ofQuebec City. Halifax was ranked by MoneySense magazine as the fourth best place to live in Canada for 2012, placed first on a list of "large cities by quality of life" and placed second in a list of "large cities of the future", both conducted by fDi Magazine for North and South American cities.

Halifax is a major economic centre in eastern Canada with a large concentration of government services and private sector companies. Major employers and economic generators include the Department of National Defence, various levels of government, and the Port of Halifax. Agriculture, fishing, mining, forestry and natural gas extraction are major resource industries found in the rural areas of HRM.

The urban area of Halifax Regional Municipality is a major cultural centre within the Atlantic provinces. The municipality's urban core also benefits from a large population of post-secondary students who strongly influence the local cultural scene. HRM has a number of art galleries, theatres and museums, as well as most of the region's national-quality sports and entertainment facilities. The municipality is home to many performance venues, namely the Rebecca Cohn Auditorium, the Neptune Theatre, and The Music Room. HRM also is the home to many of the region's major cultural attractions, such asHalifax Pop Explosion, Symphony Nova Scotia, the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, The Khyber, the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic and the Neptune Theatre. On special occasions, the city will put on a fireworks display which is best viewed from a boat. The region is noted for the strength of its music scene and nightlife, especially in the central urban core. See List of musical groups from Halifax, Nova Scotia for a partial list.

HRM plays host to a wide variety of festivals that take place throughout the year, including: The Atlantic Film Festival, The Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo, The Halifax Busker Festival, Greekfest, The Atlantic Jazz Festival, The Multicultural Festival, The largest Canada Day celebration east of Ottawa, Natal Day, periodic Tall Ship events, and Shakespeare by the Sea, to name a few. Many of these celebrations have become world renowned over the past several years.

HRM has also become a significant film-production centre, with many American and Canadian filmmakers using the streetscapes, often to stand in for other cities that are more expensive to work in. The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation has its Atlantic Canada production centres (radio and television) based in Halifax, and quite a number of radio and television programs are made in the region for national broadcast.

HRM is considered by many to be the cultural centre of the Maritimes. The municipality has been able to maintain many of its maritime and military traditions, while opening itself to a growing multicultural population.