The Canadian dollar closed Wednesday at 98.44 cents, and went above 99 cents during the day on Thursday. The currencies haven't been equal since July 2008.
This is not so good news if you like traveling to Canada and getting bargains. And I have a trip or two to Canada coming up. But I still think it's worthwhile to go.
Canada is still cheaper than Europe or Great Britain, based on the strength of those currencies. And being closer to home, airfare is better. And those cities served by Porter have an unique option to get to the lakefront airport in Toronto (and switch from there to other Canadian cities).
Unless you are going for a short time, it is recommended to carry Canadian currency. Using an ATM in Canada is easy and convenient. And you won't get screwed over by bad conversion rates in business, especially if they only take cash.
Though it may be more crowded than normal with similar minded travelers, Vancouver is another great destination on the heels of the Olympics and Paralympics. The weather during the Olympics was nice except for the lack of snow, so summer could be even more fun as a result. If you want to visit Vancouver when it's not raining, summer is the best time.
The fond days of traveling for huge bargains north of the border are likely long gone, thanks to a weak U.S. dollar that won't get too strong any time soon. Getting 75 cents on the dollar, like I did in Montréal in 2002, seems like a long ago pipe dream. But Canada is still worth the effort.
Comments