The Travel Blog by TravelPod

25 most popular Canadian attractions

starlagurl — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 20:06:47 +0000

If there’s anything more Canadian than a summer roadtrip, I don’t know what it is. Here’s the country’s top tourist destinations, based on the number of visitors to each place:

1. Niagara Falls, more than 12 million visitors

Andy, one half of Rahall, on a "Journey Behind the Falls"

We walked up to the top of the falls and went on the Journey Behind the Falls, which gets you behind the falls in tunnels to see the falls from a different perspective….so loud…and wet. – Rahall

2. Harbourfront Centre, Toronto, 12 million

Kitkatgo spent Canada Day at Harbourfront Centre in Toronto

We finally made it to the harbor. We got our Canadian flags and pins and went on a hunt for food. The best we could do amongst the throng of people and booths were free samples of milk and Fibre1 bars. Groan. – Kitkatgo

3. Granville Island, Vancouver, 10.5 million

Kwrona biking to Granville Island

We biked to Granville Island which has a huge public market. It’s full of stalls with food, produce, jewelers etc. Not much else to report but Jon wants me to let you all know that he’s appalled by the ridiculous beer prices, and astonished that they have dollar coins. . . – Kwrona

4. Stanley Park, Vancouver, 8 million

Thebardens biking in Stanley Park

We took a long bike ride around Stanley Park and the shoreline of the city. – Thebardens

5. Vieux Port (Old Port), Montreal, 6 million

Ashleekt got rained on in Old Montreal

So afterwards je continue to wander around vieux montreal. I learned that I should do two things while travelling and walking, a) check the forecast and b) carry my damned umbrella!! So it started a nice steady rain while I was still wandering, and it got a little chilly considering I was down at the port. – Ashleekt

6. Exhibition Place, Toronto, 5.2 million

Lightweight in Toronto at The Ex on his Canada tour

The Ex was a bit of a let down as it comprised of a fun-fair, stage shows and an indoor market. The fun-fair had all the staple rides; dippers, spinners, loopy-looper’s, along with the test your skill games that are so rigged their difficult to look at without feeling robbed. Saying this the Tom Bishop Trick Riders were impressive if brief and Alexander the Great was entertaining with his puppet show. – Lightweight

7. The Forks, Winnipeg, 5 million

Mady142 spent Canada Day at The Forks in Winnipeg

We walked around the zoo for the morning and took a train ride in the early afternoon. Cecile brought us back to her place where we did some of our laundry and just relaxed until it was time to go back to The Forks for fireworks. The sun doesn’t set very early in Winnipeg so the fireworks got underway around 10:45 until about 11:15. Very nice!! – Mady142

8. Banff National Park, Alberta, 3.3 million

2jgstl at Lake Louise in Banff National Park

By getting to the lake early morning, we beat the crowds. It was everything that it is cracked up to be – a beautiful green lake, perfectly reflecting the glacier on the mountain above. – 2jgstl

9. Canada’s Wonderland, Maple, Ontario, 3.35 million

Emmab's favourite ride at Wonderland was Top Gun

There were 2 highlights of the trip though. The first was a ride called Top Gun – and it really was like what you’d imagine flying a fighter plane would be like! – Emmab

10. Mont Royal Park, Montreal, 3 million

Rhender and friends at the top of Mont Royal

We hike through a pretty darn nice mountain-shaped park in the middle of the city. It was remarkably big and clean and covered with trees and not full of homeless people and beer cans. Stupid Canadians- having nicer cities than us is not fair! – Rhender

11. Le Vieux Quebec (Old City), Quebec, 2.8 million

Kalsi_kaur in Old Quebec City

The highlight of our Quebec City trip, other than of course the picturesque cobbled streets, artists and many cafes was the bike ride from our camp site to the old town. – Kalsi_kaur

12. Whistler Blackcomb, Whistler, more than 2 million

Thebardens in the mountains of Whistler-Blackcomb

A great day, pretty drive up to Whistler. Took the Gondola to the top and hiked for a couple of hours then took the new peak to peak longest, highest,newest etc Gondola across to Blackcomb. – Thebardens

13. CN Tower, Toronto, 2 million

Goldenfrog88 and his new friends at the top of the CN Tower

I went to the CN tower with my newfound friends Yana from Germany and Prue from down under. The sights were nice and in hindsight, $21 is too much to look at buildings from high up. – Goldenfrog88

14. Mont Tremblant, Quebec, 2 million

Mckelsos coming down the luge at Mont Tremblant

We decided to head out for the luge on the ski hill. The luge involves being brought to the top of a hill by ski loft and then riding down the hill on a weaving path on buggies. It was super fun! Dad and I went 4 times Heidi went 3 and Colette….went 0!!! She was too much of a wimp to go on the ski-lift…Heidi was making fun of her the whole way up haha. It was really cool and lots of fun. – Mckelsos

15. Jasper National Park, Alberta, 1.99 million

2jgstl on Athabasca Glacier in Jasper National Park

One of the must-dos is walking on Athabasca Glacier. You take a shuttle bus from the Icefield Centre to a transfer station close to the glacier, where you board the Ice Explorer. You immediately ride down a 32% grade, then up onto the glacier itself. At the turn around area, you get out and walk around for a little over 30 minutes. Then, it is back on the Ice Explorer and back up the 32% grade to the transfer station. – 2jgstl

16. La Ronde, Montreal, 1.3 million

Starlagurl (that's me!) at La Ronde in Montreal

When the gates opened, we headed straight to the Goliath coaster, which was awesome. Maybe the best one, there were lots of stomach gulping drops and heart pounding curves on that one, definitely a very unique yo-yo style rollercoaster, unlike anything I’ve ever been on before. And I’m quite the connoisseur. – Starlagurl

17. Centre Island and Centerville Amusement Park, Toronto, 1.2 million

Alicecrabtree's travel buddy on Centre Island

One afternoon we took the ferry over to Centre Island, a residential island known for its old and eccentric houses and fantastic views of the city and Lake Ontario. The weather was unusually warm and very pleasant, but I still couldn’t see the appeal in the beaches. – Alicecrabtree

18. Canadian Museum of Civilization, Gatineau, 1.3 million

Sanmutsch learning about the postal service at the Canadian Museum of Civilization

We had been warned to plan an entire day for this museum – no kidding! It’s in Gatineau, QC, just across the river from Ottawa. We arrived shortly before lunch and were rushed to get through by 5:00 p.m. I’m sure we walked MILES – it was a massive museum, which contains over 4 million items (not all on diplay). – Sanmutsch

19. Toronto Zoo, Toronto, 1.3 million

Adawn loved the Toronto Zoo

Toronto Zoo was the stop for today and it was totally worth the train and bus ride. The zoo is huge, just walking all of the trails you would spend 4 hours there. They have the zoo set up like most in areas of habitat. I finally saw a Beaver, but they were hiding the their burrow and I only got crap photos of them. The Gorillas were pretty cool but the Polar bear was not too impressed with the weather. – Adawn

20. Ontario Place, Toronto, 1.2 million

James24 went to a wedding at Ontario Place

We had a great day, both of them looking amazing, like straight out of the wedding catalogue. Brilliant! When I arrived at Ontario Place the venue of the wedding, I was greeted by the two of them, and WOW they both were fine! It couldn’t have been a better day, it went perfectly. – James24

21. Grouse Mountain Resort, B.C., 1.2 million

Laura-and-craig watched grizzly bears at Grouse Mountain

Then up to Grouse Mountain. No chance to join the Grouse Grinders (people that take the 1 hour hike up (1 km in height gained over 2.3 kms) as we took the cable car up. Checked out the grizzly bears up there, also saw a pretty cheesy lumberjack show, and then birds of prey show. – Laura-and-craig

22. Bay of Fundy, Nova Scotia, 1.2 million

Colin saw the tide go out at the "flower pot rocks"

The Bay of Fundy has the world’s largest tides, up to 16 metres (53 feet), depending on the phase of the moon and how close the moon is to the Earth, etc. They reckon 100 billion tonnes of water flow in and out of the bay during each cycle – more than all the world’s rivers. – Colin

23. Saguenay St. Lawrence Marine Park, Quebec, 1.07 million

Fwice went kayaking among the fjord in Saguenay

Gorgeous. – Fwice

24. Ontario Science Centre, Toronto, 990,000

Kitkatgo saw an indoor rainforest at the Ontario Science Centre

We saw bugs, illusions, a rainforest, a make-your-own tornado, everything you wanted to know about the human body (and more), and how annoying some of Toronto’s day care kids can be. – Kitkatgo

25. Vancouver Aquarium, Vancouver, 928,000

Janmalc enjoyed the Vancouver Aquarium

The aquarium was stunning, and had great displays to interest all – once again, for some reason, an unseemly display of cock-roaches – even larger than those we saw at the Dinosaur Museum! Revolting!!! No sharks, but frogs, tropical fish, the whales, otters, dolphins (doing tricks too), seals, small aligators, butterflies, turtles, birds, small monkeys and a sloth were all on display. It was a great way to spend the day. – Janmalc

10 best hostels in the world

starlagurl — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 17:01:30 +0000

There are all kinds of hostels to choose from around the world. Some of them are great, others are terrible. How do you know the one you are going to is a good one before you get there? Hostelworld.com puts together a list of the 10 best hostels every month. For some reason, most of them are in Portugal. Anyone know why that might be?

Anywho, here’s their list for this month:

1. Travellers House, Lisbon, Portugal

Jcharwell in Praca do Comercio, Lisbon

Travellers House is rated the #1 hostel in the world! The hostel is right smack in the middle of the best neighborhood in Lisbon, the Baixa neighborhood! After a warm welcome by the hostel staff, I was asked if I wanted to join one of the staff, Jeoarme, for a traditional Portuguese expresso, Bica, and the famouse Portuguese pastry, Pasteis, which is AWESOME! – Jcharwell

2. Rossio Hostel, Lisbon, Portugal

Pongpingjl and the view from his hostel room

Good food, friendly people and the best little pastry in the world! Its called a Creme du Belem. Its a little creme brulee tart. – Pongpingjl

3. Boomerang Hostel & Apartments, Budapest, Hungary

Promking22 at the Budapest Zoo

The Boomerang Hostel was brilliant. We were advised before booking not to let the name put us off, and contrary to what you’re probably thinking now there were no other Australians, it was run by an American and a Ukrainian. They gave us a city map when we arrived and described all the tourist attractions, dinner options, and were really so helpful. – Promking22

4. Gold Coast Hostel, Lagos, Portugal

Ryanandpatti with the Gold Coast's manager in Lagos

Food is cheap and delicious (we each ate a whole chicken, rice, and a liter of soda for only 8 euro each). The Beaches are gorgeous, the water isn’t too too cold, and everyone we have met here has been friendly and helpful. We highly recommend it! – Ryanandpatti

5. Living Lounge Hostel, Lisbon, Portugal

Painted on Jakester21's hostel door in Lisbon

My friends and I set out on this journey in order to celebrate the birthday of my good friend Amanda Glanz. We were rolling deep: 8 of us from Madrid and 1 kid named Nolan in London, a good friend of mine from Wash U. And we were all staying in the same hostel, which was just exquisite. It was sort of elegant in an excellent location but with a fun atmosphere and an international crowd. – Jakester21

6. Academy Hostel, Florence, Italy

Russza had only a few words to say for Florence

Love this country!

Love this country! – Russza

7. Hostel Majdas, Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Chan_hc loved his stay in Mostar

Mostar has a lot of history and interesting buildings, but to me, its main attraction is its friendly citizens.

They were everywhere: The staff in the hostel who took my luggage to my room and let me sample her dinner; the shopkeeper who rendered service with a genuine, heart-felt smile, the waitress who looked for me to return my money when I paid her too much; the brother of the hostel owner who gave me a free ride to the nearby village after I missed the bus, and then took me to a café there to show the proper way to drink Bosnian coffee; the Serb who gave me a ride back to the city when he saw me waiting at the bus stop. – Chan_hc

8. Goodnight Backpacker’s Hostel, Lisbon, Portugal

Shb103 stayed at Lisbon's Goodnight Backpacker's Hostel

Love the old town feel of the city. Love it even more that everyone speaks Portuguese with – duh! – a Portuguese accent. It almost feels like they are pretending and putting up an accent to fool us all. – Shb103

9. Riverhouse Backpackers, Cardiff, UK

(Sorry no blog available!)

10. Lisbon Lounge Hostel, Lisbon, Portugal

Kaylashoe and friends at her hostel in Lisbon

We stayed in a lovely hostel and had dinner with awful fellow tourists- one an avid Freddie Mercury fan who I offended deeply at the dinner table throwing out words like gaudy, cheesy, funny, very “Freddie Mercury” at his favorite musical, “We Will Rock You.” – Kaylashoe

50 places to see before you die

starlagurl — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 19:47:49 +0000

BBC came up with a list of 50 places to see before you die and see them you did! TravelPod bloggers have covered all of them. How many places have you seen? Will you see them all before you die? I’ve seen 11, how about you?

1. Grand Canyon

Willandluce on Guano Point in the Grand Canyon

We woke up just in time to catch our transfer to Boulder City from where we boarded a small prop plane and after a bumpy flight over the Hoover Dam, landed at the West Rim of the Grand Canyon. There waiting for us was a helicpoter which then took us down the 4,000 foot drop into the pits of the Canyon and landed us on the banks of the Colorado River. – Willandluce

2. Great Barrier Reef

Stevenmoody snorkeling in the Great Barrier Reef

We had a total of 3 stops each with about an hour to an hour and a half free time to snorkel around the area. It was amazing to think I was 60 km away from land and I was snorkeling in the ocean which was only 10 meters deep where we were! Saw so many amazing things in the water including the Nemo and Doris fish! A turtle and a Shark!!! I tried to swim close enough to shark and got within about 15 foot of it and just about got a picture. – Stevenmoody

3. Florida

Lgthib at Sanibel Island, Florida

While walking over the inland waterway to get to Bowman Beach, the girls spotted a manatee and watched it amble under the foot bridge we were on and swim off into the distance. The tide was too high for great shelling today on the sand, but Bri & Gabi went in the water and dove for shells, finding lots of nice treasures. Squadrons of pelicans flew low across the waves, and groups of White Ibises marched along the wet sand probing for food with their long, downward curving bills. – Lgthib

4. South Island, New Zealand

Leehorscraft and friends on the South Island

We arrived at Lake Rotoiti, which was mind blowing, possibly my favourite bit of scenery in NZ. The lake is beautiful, surrounded by gorgeous snow-capped mountains. It took my breath away. – Leehorscraft

5. Cape Town

Horvathck1 climbing to the top of Lion's Head Mountain

Today after work the interns arranged a hike up Lion’s Head mountain because of the full moon. It is apparently tradition here in Cape Town. The trail wraps around the whole mountain, beginning as gravel/clay paths, and ending with large boulders you must climb with ladders, chains, and just your bare hands and feet (with shoes, of course). It was a challenging but REALLY fun hike, and the view from the top was my favorite thing I’ve seen yet!!!! There was a group of South Africans singing at the top–it was an incredible experience. We just sat, talked, and watched the sun set and the full moon come up, while eating some bread and cheese, and some brought wine. To be sitting at the edge by myself, thousands of feet above the city, legs dangling, and watching the golden/orange ball sink under the horizon of the ocean was probably a highlight of my life so far — a moment I will never forget. The beauty of God displayed in his creation tonight honestly left me speechless. I wish I could wallpaper my room with that 360 degree view. – Horvathck1

6. Golden Temple

Nomadic1 at India's Golden Temple

Once you enter the complex you find yourself in a massive high walled courtyard with a huge, square pool of water in it that takes up all but the edges of the courtyard. In the center of that pool sits the aptly named Golden Temple. It was just after mid-day and the sun was shining brightly causing the gold covered temple to gleam. Supposedly, the temple is gilded with over 750 kilograms of pure gold. It certainly looked it from where I was standing. – Nomadic1

7. Las Vegas

Kirstine of Andyandkirstine outside her hotel in Las Vegas

It’s entertainment at its most vulgar. It’s the only place I have ever visited in the world where it seems you can get anything you want at any minute of the day. Just walking up the street slurping on our yard of frozen margarita in novelty glasses, we saw a midget elvis shaking his pelvis in the street and a rap-off eight mile style which was being filmed..awesome. – Andyandkirstine

8. Sydney

Tracymiller visited many of the sights in Sydney

I made my way to the water where there are an array of different harbours. I found myself in Darling harbour to start which is quite touristy but very pleasant and picturesque. This is where i spent most of the day, just taking in the sights such as the Maritime museum, the aquarium…which i usually don’t bother with but was well worth it with a grand display of sharks, dugong, sting rays, plethora of fish and what not…all in a huge walk-in aquarium, so that itself took 2 hrs. And the rest of the time just took pictures of the harbour, and enjoyed the sun and the waterside cafes. Then i walked to Port Jackson harbour where the iconic Sydney Opera House is, for dusk to get some pictures…was a bit slow as it was dark by the time i found it. – Tracymiller

9. New York City

Pelooyen under the Brooklyn Bridge

Sitting under the Brooklyn Bridge on the Brooklyn side. The view is PHENOMENAL. I have always wanted to be here and now I am here. I just sit and soak up the view, as well as take lots of artsy photos. I am amused and fascinated by a orthodox jewish school excursion who are taking the kids to see the bridge for the first time. – Pelooyen

10. Taj Mahal

Martininindia in front of the Taj Mahal

I’m not exactly the most euphoric person out there, but the Taj Mahal is simply marvelous. We went at 6am before the tourist crowds arrived. The white palace looks exactly like on pictures, but there is something hypnotizing about the monument that doesn’t let you take your eyes off it. Kipling called it “the embodiment of all things pure”, for me it’s more the emanation of perfect harmony. No matter from what angle or distance you look at it, it always looks balanced and never overbearing or pretentious. Anyways, in the morning light, you can see the countless nuances of the white marble; every single building block and every gem in the marble inlay unique, but as a collective the perfect unity – ‘e pluribus unum’. I don’t want to push the analogies to far, but I get a similar sense when I look at an Indian bazaar or busy street: ordered chaos. – Martininindia

11. Canadian Rockies

Mady142's three sisters in front of the "Three Sisters" mountain range

We drove to Canmore so that I could get a photo I’ve wanted to get since I was in Banff with Mike in 2004. The 3 sisters in front of The Three Sisters mountain range. – Mady142

12. Uluru

Kkherbst and friends at Uluru

Then we checked out the cultural center briefly before doing a very short into walk at Ayers Rock. That’s the large rock you always see when they advertise Australia. We watched the sun go down on it while drinking some beers and having some quality relaxation time before heading to the local grocery store to pick up candies for the night. – Kkherbst

13. Chichen Itza

Claraz8's family at Chichen Itza before her wedding

Leading up to our wedding celebration we had a week packed with amazing adventures. Friends and family began arriving on Saturday the 20th and we had a blast. From scuba diving off the Isla reef, to dinner in Playa del Carmen, to Chichen Itza and cenotes on Wednesday, and good old fashioned lounging around at the beautiful Le Meridien pool the week could not have been any better. – Claraz8

14. Machu Picchu

Codownsean at Machu Picchu

It is breathtaking and awe inspiring and I really just cannot beging to take in what I’m looking at. The sense of expectation after the 4 day hike and the sense of reward are conflicting and I just find it so hard to take in. We carry on down the trek – stopping at every corner for a different photo. Truly unbelievable and already – this has become the new highlight of the trip. Surely nothing else can surpass this. – Codownsean

15. Niagara Falls

Reneltrek enjoying the sunshine in Niagara Falls

The Canadian side has the best views. The city is one big roadside attraction. I have not seen so many people since Mardi Gras in New Orleans. It was an international crowd; we didn’t hear a lot of English. The Falls are a natural spectacle surrounded by a carnival. At night they had fireworks and a light show. It was a fun 4th. Niagara Falls should be experienced once in a life time. – Reneltrek

16. Petra

Richymariner at the monastery in Petra

Today the tour took us to the insanely vast site of Petra. The place is huge, and walking through the Siq tothe treasury is worth the price of admission alone! It is very popular and as such the best photos without too many people can be obtained later in the day (when the light is better anyway). Also took in the Royal Tombs (had a geek out moment with the scene from Mortal Kombat 2!) and took the long (but definitely worthwhile) walk up to the monastery and sacrificial high places. – Richymariner

17. The Great Pyramid of Giza

Kmidgette on the Great Pyramid

Giza was amazing! The site contains the Pyramids of Menkaure, Khafre, Khufu, and six smaller Queens pyramids. I was able to climb all the way up to the sarcophagus rooms of both the Great Pyramid of Khufu and the Pyramid of Khafre. Giza also includes some smaller tombs including the Tomb of Seshemnufer IV and Senegemib. This is also were you find the Sphinx. I hired a camel so that I could go off into the desert for a great view back at the pyramids! What an awesome experience! – Kmidgette

18. Venezia

Jamierand enjoying the canal views in Venezia

We spent most of our time just wandering the streets on foot. We walked across the Rialto Bridge to the Rialto district where we found the outdoor markets. That is where we did most of our shopping, and enjoyed some excellent dinners of homemade basil ravioli, and excellent fresh produce. There are also a lot of fish vendors selling pretty much anything you can imagine. It’s a little tough to look at the waters around Venice and then go eat seafood. Not exactly the crystal clear seas we saw on the other side of the country. – Jamierand

19. Maldives

Eastcoastrod and his wife in Maldives

The resort was spread out over two islands, consisting of a combination of beach and water villas, six restaurants, two bars, two spas and Maldives finest underwater wine cellar. There is also a diving and sea sports centre, a gymnasium, an inviting swimming pool, and beach chairs and hammocks set up all over the two islands; all this in the middle of the Indian Ocean with an endless horizon of sea, sky and clouds in sight. Indeed, Robinson Crusoe would have been so green with envy. – Eastcoastrod

20. The Great Wall of China

Maaske and her family spent a year on the road, stopping in China

Admittedly, we can’t say we can recite the historical significance of each part and how, when and why a particular section was built but we stare in amazement at the sheer enormity of the Wall and see not stone placed upon stone but the story it tells. When I walk the Wall I know that far more than we think is possible is actually possible. The Great Wall was built 400-2000 years ago over 5000 km long on top of mountain ridges that you and I would not normally even hike. The wall is an inspiration to me that great things are possible when we work together. – Maaske