Trans-Canada Rail Guide (Trailblazer Rail Guides)

I put three books in my backpack, two travel guides from NELLES (guides to Atlantic and Pacific provinces) and this one. The guides from NELLES are good with lots of facts about the country and with nice photos, however I found "Trans-Canada Rail Guide" far more suitable for people traveling across Canada by train. Also the book is as valuable on board of the train as well in the downtown of the city. I rent the book to several fellow travelers in coach class and each one of them told me how great it is.

The organization of the book is simple but efficient, for example in PART 4 City Guides and plans you can find for all mayor cities short descriptions of the following: History, Arriving in...(by air, by train), Local Transport, Orientation and Services, Where to stay, Where to eat, What to see, Moving on (by air, by train). If you are real rail enthusiast you'll have fun reading PART 5 Route Guide and Maps with description of small stations and places marked with mile markers so you can be "smarter" then others guessing what it is or where you are. Some prices mentioned in the book are the same even today but in general are higher. My average expense for the mid-range hotel or B&B was 55 CAD per night (including tax), entrance fees for museums and other events are in general higher, anything from 10 to 50% higher, food 10-20%, buses and taxis 10-20% , train tickets 10-20% (the cost of my Canrail Pass was 408 CAD including tax). If you need any additional tips or information about the trip you can send me a message to my account on Yahoo (see member page). Today I found out that second edition of this book is published so check it out!


Read this book before you go!   March 19, 2000
 10 out of 10 found this review helpful

This book helped me prepare itinerary for my one-month journey from Halifax to Vancouver that I'm planning to take in May 2000. I checked prices and some telephone numbers mentioned in the book with those I found on different web sites and despite the fact that the book is four years old it's still useful and accurate. There is everything you need to prepare for such journey: routes and costs, facts about country, practical advices (transport, festivals, food, time, hotels,...), history about Trans-Canada railway, mayor city guides and plans and least but not last route guide and maps with short description about small towns along the routes.