Travel to Canada

A snowHead

Flew into YVR last night from Heathrow. Very few passengers were sent for a PCR test, and the staff at the airport were directing everyone through the right-hand ("exempt") lane. When I got my ArriveCan receipt before travelling, I noticed that Mrs. A aand I were nidicated as "Immunised", rather than "Vaccinated" - Neither of us have previously tested positive for Covid, so I can onlyassume that this was on the basis of our vaccination record upload providing the details of triple-vaccination.

Generally, the passage from aeroplane to exit was very smooth, and we were able to collect all our bags (including skis, via the oversize luggage route) much more quickly than I can ever remember.

The only downside for orselves, and several other UK passengers, was the difficulty in finding the location of the Whistler Connections shuttle bus. - We were able to receive a message on arrival asking us to text them on clearing customs, whereupon they'd provide directions, but unfortunately our phone contracts didn't cover Canada, and so we spent quite a bit of time wandering aimlessly around, until someone was able to direct us to the Shuttle information desk (in domestic arrivals......obviously). The bus now loads up on Level1 of the terminal building, at the far right-hand end (as you exiyt the terminal), in bay A on the opposite side of the road

Still, got here in the end and it's snowing (well, sleet and rain at the base, but it bodes well for what we'll find higher up).

Note: The transit workers are still in dispute, and so the shuttle buses around the village aren't running due to strike action. - Fortunately our accomodation is ski in-ski out.

A snowHead

Vaccinated vs Immunised on Arrivecan is down to whether the AI has recognised a valid QR code on your upload.

Pre-arrival testing dropped officially as per announcement this morning and on travel.gc.ca from end of this month

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

Hello all. Has anyone travelled through Calgary airport recently & able to give a view on the risk of being randomly selected for mandatory Covid testing?

In our household of five, two of us are currently testing positive and the other three probably have it coming. As pre-entry testing will be a thing of the past by 2nd April when we travel, our insurance company say that we will (probably) not be able to make a claim if we cancel due to testing positive at the time of travel. However, on landing at Calgary, if we get randomly selected for mandatory testing and one or more of us test positive, a 10-day isolation awaits...not quite the Canadian ski holiday of a lifetime we have been planning!

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Do you have NHS positive PCR tests? If so you will be exempt from arrivals testing still:

Who is exempt from arrival testing
Already recovered: Travellers who provide a positive COVID-19 molecular test result, conducted at least 10 calendar days and no more than 180 calendar days before entering Canada. Counting starts the day
for example, if your positive COVID-19 molecular test was taken on January 1, then January 11 would be the first day you could use it
January 11 would be the earliest scheduled departure date of your flight to Canada, or the first day you could use it to enter Canada by land or water
if your positive proof is accepted you won’t have to take arrival or Day-8 tests

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Thanks - I have ordered NHS PCR tests x 5 which we should be able to use in time to comply....so the 2 of us, as a minimum, currently testing positive will be risk-free and exempt from mandatory testing on arrival. It's the other 3 I'm worried about - there is a reasonable chance one of us could be testing positive at the end of next week when we go, and therefore at risk of the 10-day isolation should we be selected for a random mandatory test.

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@Trevskii, if the people in your party are testing positive any time after Wednesday defo no exemption, and should they really be travelling whilst knowingly contaminating the other travellers and staff involved in your transit and holiday , so shouldn't the best idea be to cancel and claim now whilst you still can , I know some countries are allowing restriction free travel , but canada has taken this pandemic really seriously and tried their best to control it and keep their population safe so respecting their rules is the right way forward . and then you can re plan ur trip of a lifetime for 2023

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@Dabber, I agree, hence my potential dilemma. This is all theoretical for now but the option to cancel and claim back the cost of the trip (probably) won't exist after the removal of pre-entry testing on 1st April, according to my insurance company. We now have a call next Wednesday, 3 days prior to departure, to discuss/argue the toss on a claim should one of the family still be testing positive.

I have since found a sentence on the Canadian govt website categorically stating that you are not allowed to enter if positive - if that text remains in place when the Canadian govt update the site to reflect the removal of pre-entry testing, I can't see that our insurer could expect us to travel. In the meantime, we will hope for the best and start packing.

After all it is free

@Trevskii,

My current trip to Canada is essentially based on my cancellation of our planned trip in March 2020, at just about the time that Canada was ordering its first travel restrictions and a couple of days before the resort company (Whistler-Blackcomb, so essentially Vail Resorts) closed the ski area. (I'd anticipated that this might happen imminently).

I was able to have our accommodation payment held over by the rental agency to (initially) 2021 and subsequently until 2022, and get a voucher for future travel from the airline (BA). No financial loss to me and no insurance claims were needed.

It might be worthwhile getting in touch with your accommodation and airline companies to see if you can get a similar holdover to 2023 (though the very best of luck to you if you can actually get through to someone at BA, if that's your carrier!).

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Flying out Tuesday to Calgary after cancelled January trip. Can’t wait.
And pre testing is relaxed.

2 weeks skiing hopefully weather is great. Been snowing up at Sunshine so long May it continues.

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Spring Skiing @ Banff has been amazing.
Fresh snow most nights.

Yesterday was more like January @ -16 with a windchill on top.

And so quiet up the hills.

Thanks for the information re spring skiing.

snow reports

Don't know what Banff was like in Jan, but it was -35 with a windchill on top in Fernie.

First week of Jan in Banff was around -35 for a couple of days when we first got out there but on average it was around -17.

The snow has looked amazing in Banff, even in the last week. Can’t wait to get back out there, planning for Jan ‘24 Eh oh!

You know it makes sense.

Just got back.
Conditions were excellent and very quiet even for Easter weekend.

Yes January was cold last time we were there 20, but for it to drop as it did 10 days ago was a surprise.

Wouldn’t hesitate to go back first two weeks of April again.
Booked for next year end of February early March due to work commitments.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

Off to Banff in Jan, didn’t go in 2022 or 2021 because of Covid restrictions/travel faff getting into Canada. Will be nice not to think about any of that this year! I only went to Canada for the first time in 2020 so I’ve wanted to go back since, really enjoyed it, mainly because of the cold powder snow.

Anyone else going to Banff/Lake Louise in January 2023?

A snowHead

Not specifically, but live in Calgary. Think daughter is racing at Norquay in mid jan

A snowHead

I see that this week Banff Sunshine and Norquay have had the/some lifts closed for a couple of days due to extreme cold. Has anyone had lift closures happen in mid Jan in that area? Dec and Jan are the coldest months so I presume so?

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

Yep, I had a couple of days at the end of Jan 2019 where all Banff ski areas were closed- I've skied in some cold temps (-31 in Jasper), but for a couple of days of that holiday in 2019 you could barely stay outside for any length of time. We'd actually booked a night at the Sunshine Mountain Lodge and they let us move the stay by a couple of days due to the skiing being closed! Don't worry about it too much - they'll do everything they can and if they have to close the lifts, you'll find ways to entertain yourself (Park Distillery always a favourite for me !!)

We're off to Jasper at the end of Feb so not expecting quite the extreme cold temps of Jan, but you never know!

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Banff town is the coldest place ive even been to! Very Happy

Ive been 3 or 4 times over the years, but one year it was -12, with wind chill factor taking it to -22 Shocked

Me and a mate were in full snowboard gear (including boots & balaclavas) just to walk from our hotel to Bumpers for dinner Laughing

Great place though with the best steaks!

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

Live in Calgary.

Trust me - if the lifts are closed it's too cold to really enjoy the skiing. It's -34C right now at my house and that's cold enough that if you go outside you shouldn't touch metal with bare hands including the door handle on the house. Temperatures this low are pretty rare but it does occasionally happen and you really wouldn't want a lift to stop and leave you hanging. In general they'll try to have a few lifts running but it'll be the fixed grip (i.e slow) and possibly the tow's first because there's less to go wrong and you can easily bail from a tow. I was out on Saturday at Sunshine (-21C) and the snow was already so slow it was a real effort to get going.

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Oh I absolutely agree it’s too cold to enjoy it @sweaman22. Dangerous like you say if a lift stopped or someone had an accident and was laid down for 15 mins or so not moving, could easily get frostbite/nip
I just wondered if it was common as I’ve only been once before and that was late Feb, I found it quite cold then to be honest as it was -17 so I must be nuts going in the January!

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We were there a few years ago when it was -35 on the drive out to Sunshine. When we got there a chappie on the gate ( Shocked

!) told us that although we were allowed in the car park station they wouldn't let us on the gondola up to the bottom of resort until it warmed up to -30, even then the lifts wouldn't open until it warmed up a bit more to -28 or so. "WARMED UP TO -30!" Laughing

Piggin' cold doesn't even begin to cover it. We were doing two runs then in back inside to thaw out. The worst thing,...guess which pillock left his normal boots in the car instead of leaving them in the warm lockers provided? They were solid, couldn't even begin to put them on! Laughing

After all it is free

Ah okay - -30C is not common by any means but it does happen for a few days every year. Temperatures of -15C to -20C though are pretty normal and everything should be running so dress warm.

@sweaman22, ok good to know. It’s just coming from the UK is an expensive trip and to then find you can’t ski as it’s too cold would be a bit gutting, with that said you can’t control the weather wherever you go.

Last time I took some of those HotRox which double up as power banks. They aren’t cheap but as I said you can use them to charge devices also. One of them in each of my mid layer jacket pockets were just right and I didn’t feel I needed to go in for a warm up (-17 ish)
I do wear a balaclava as well and that made a big difference.
This time I’ve got some Sidas Merino insoles in my ski boots which are the same brand and arch height as my regular insoles.

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@sweaman22, which mittens (?) do you use out of interest when it’s -20 to -30C?

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Arc'teryx Fission SV.

However it's all about the layers as well - This is by no means a cheap get-up but I ski enough to justify it (at least that's what I tell myself...). I have a Patagoina 120 baselayer, then a mid-weight fleece, then a Patagoina Micro Puff jacket then a Spyder Vanquish Primaloft insulated jacket. All of that is pretty much the same for the legs (baselayer, fleece, insulated trousers). A warm core is fundamental to warm extremities. It's enough that you have to be careful not to sweat at all when gearing up...

Then Full faceMasks, buffs to make sure no exposed flesh... Embrace the stormtrooper look..

snow reports

@sweaman22, ok I’ve just bought some new mittens as the airline has lost my luggage again on my most recent trip so in case I don’t get the bag back for weeks I’ve gone for new mittens!

I wear liner gloves/running gloves under my mittens. Usually in the Alps where it doesn’t really go below -10 C generally, I wear a thermal base layer, a light down gilet, a light puffa jacket then my hard shell jacket. Bottoms-just thermal base layer and hard shell trousers.
I think for Banff I will wear insulated trousers plus possibly a second pair of thermal leggings and an insulated jacket over the top of the light puffa jacket instead of the hard shell.

Can anyone recommend somewhere to service skis in Banff/Sunshine area?
Reason I ask is I had them done in Lake Louise last time and as soon as I skied on them I knew they weren’t right, had to get them re-done in Kicking Horse and got my money back from LL.

You know it makes sense.

VolklAttivaS5, Best guy in the area is Mike Lindesy, ex Pro Ski Tech but now based in Canmore rather than Banff - ok if you have transport. Next places were Monod Sports - along Banff Ave down towards the river end, or Unlimited again on Banff Ave, central near the corner with Elk St. I wouldnt touch Ultimate if they still operate, used to do all hire skis and not really very good.

There maybe others but we always used Mike when in the area.

Enjoy the trip

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

Loads of choice in Banff town center surely.

A snowHead

A snowHead

VolklAttivaS5, No probs things may have changed as I said, but those were pretty good before. It also depends what you need, always go for the hot wax rather than machine if you can. On hill places as you have found can be hit or miss.

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

@Bones, meanwhile, having done my own ski tuning and repairs before years ago now on a Black and Decker workmate (and why I got fed up with doing them after about 20 times so I stopped) I decided to get myself a decent bench and some ski vices so I’m just going to do them again myself before I go!
Saves money in the long run when you ski a lot.
Even if I do say so myself the skis felt good too!
Takes away less material each time too compared to shop jobs.
Thanks anyway though.

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In Banff now
Best flight yesterday in ages, bags dropped and through security within 30 mins at Heathrow and at Calgary was landed, processed and luggage collected again about 30 mins.
Not been here in Jan before, seems very mild temperatures for the time of year it was much colder when I was here last time in late Feb. River Bow in town is frozen but not completely, still some water flowing.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

@VolklAttivaS5, hotel in Vancouver airport say the hotel and airport require masks in public spaces. Did you notice any of that in Calgary airport or elsewhere?

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@Grinning, actually I was expecting to wear a mask on the flight as I thought I’d seen that written somewhere and as such I had an FP3 mask with me. I did wear it a bit. Didn’t see anyone wearing masks on the plane apart from one or two of the airline staff.
At Calgary Airport no I didn’t notice anyone wearing masks apart from a few of the staff.

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

@VolklAttivaS5, WE're setting off in February for three weeks and we haven't been to Banff since 2019 for the same reasons as everyone else. So looking forward to returning - we've been every year (and sometimes twice in a year)since 2005 and we've really missed it. It's great to hear your report of the trip across. We're hoping everything will be back to as close to normal as possible (normal being pre-pandemic). We are really relieved to be going back after a three year gap. Keep the updates coming!

After all it is free

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@Mistress Twerkle, thanks, reassuring.

Help!!

Travel to Canada

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