Riding the rails
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 01/05/2004 (8077 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
Getting there
This was an 11-day, 10-night journey from Winnipeg to Halifax and back. Because there is no single Via Rail train that runs from Winnipeg to Halifax, there are overnight stops along the way in Toronto and Montreal, Matapedia, Que., and Halifax.
The connections
Day 1 – The Canadian departs Winnipeg at 12:25 p.m.. Overnight on the train.
Day 2 – The Canadian arrives in Toronto at 8 p.m. Train 50 – the overnighter from Toronto to Montreal — departs at 11:30 p.m.
Day 3 – Train 50 arrives in Montreal at 8:10 a.m. Overnight in Montreal.
Day 4 – The Ocean and The Chaleur leave Montreal at 7 p.m., overnight on the train.
Day 5 – The Chaleur splits from The Ocean and Matapedia and arrives in Percé at 10:40 a.m. The Chaleur arrives in Barachois at 3:27 p.m. It arrives in Matapedia at 9:55 p.m. Overnight in Matapedia or continue on to Rimouski, and catch the eastbound Ocean at 2:46 a.m.
Day 6 – The Ocean leaves Matapedia at 5:12 a.m., arriving in Halifax at 4:10 p.m. Overnight in Halifax.
Day 7 – Had enough of the train? Fly back to Winnipeg. You will be home in six hours. Real train buffs will stay another night in Halifax and explore the city.
Day 8 – The Ocean departs Halifax at 1:05 p.m. Overnight on the train.
Day 9 – The Ocean arrives in Montreal at 8 a.m. Train 57 departs Montreal at 9:40 a.m., arriving in Toronto at 3:09 p.m. Overnight in Toronto.
Day 10 – The Canadian leaves Toronto at 9 a.m. Overnight on the train.
Day 11 – The Canadian arrives in Winnipeg at 3:45 p.m. Home at last.
Where to stay
The great legacy of the rail era was the hotels the CPR and CNR built across the country to accommodate its passengers. Toronto, Montreal and Halifax all boast hotels attached to their train stations — the Fairmont Royal York in Toronto, the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth in Montreal and the Westin Nova Scotian in Halifax. Watch for profiles of these historic railway hotels in the Travel section soon. In Matapedia, the Motel Restigouche is the only option. It’s a five-minute walk from the train station.
More information
Rail Travel Tours, a Winnipeg travel company specializing in train travel, offers this journey in its Ocean’s Explorer package – which includes train tickets, sleeping car accommodations, overnight hotels and air options back to Winnipeg. Call 897-9551 or toll-free outside Winnipeg, 1-866-704-3528 ; e-mail railtraveltours@mts.net; website www.railtraveltours.com
Via Rail – www.viarail.ca
Fairmont hotels – www.fairmont.com
Westin Hotels – www.westin.com
Restigouche Motel, Matapedia – www.quebecweb.com/matapedia
Pier 21 – www.pier21.ca
Percé Tourism Bureau – www.perce/info; Percé tours — 1-418-782-2102
Canadian Railway Museum — www.exporail.org
–Paul Pihichyn