Canada - Just went there and did that....

Well we just got back to the US yesterday from Canada. This was our first trip to Canada. We had heard that it was beautiful and the people are friendly.

We traveled through PEI, New Brunswick, Northern Nova Scotia and Southern Nova Scotia. We really had a great time and it was beautiful.

I would like to know a couple of things from those of you that have gone to Canada for a month or more. Before we left I had the international package added to our Cell Phones so it would cost us .59 per minute rather than $2.00 per minute. We wanted to use the phone mainly if there was an emergency.
So here is what I would like to know.

What would you do for Cell phone service, Internet access and TV.
We used a phone card at pay phones. Internet service at Campgrounds when it worked, information centers, public libraries. I had to drive 14km in one direction or 16km in the opposite direction to use the internet. People called us and we did not answer the phone but had to go to a public phone to return the calls. At one time for a week all we could get was channel 9 CTV and watch the Canadian Olympics.

Now I am not griping about Canada or what was available to me but how I could improve the services when we go to Canada again. I thought about using Satellite for Internet, get a chip for my Motorola Razor so I can make calls in Canada. Maybe see if I can get Canadian TV for a few months without costing an arm and a leg.

Sorry about my rambling but I want to see what some of you might have done when you went to Canada..


I would like to share a few pictures of this beautiful country with you.

Bridge to PEI


As we traveled down hwy 333


this is some of the things I saw.


Houses and boat everywhere along the way


quiet coves


Lighthouse at Peggy's Cove


And here are the two that had a great time in Canada.. Thanks Canada !!!

Sounds like you had a wonderful trip. As far as cell service - I have relatives who split the year - 50/50 state side vs home in canada, they use verizon (out of az) for provider. I believe the plan is northamerican plan - someting like 1000 minutes - includes long distance . Excellent coverage in Canada. Might be a option for you. Perhaps for TV, look into a sateliite service.

There are some like hughes i believe that can provide internet and satellite service. I'm sure someone on this site will have more info in that area for you.

we are from Vancouver, Canada and have tried various ways of saving when in your country as well. We tried to get a US verizon cell phone but couldn't buy minutes online or over the phone with a CDN credit card so it became very cumbersome. Luckily, our seasonal spot offered inexpensive internet for the summer so we took our Vonage (VOIP) with us and used that. As far as cable goes, I haven't been to the Maritimes, but almost everywhere we have camped at or looked up in BC offers full cable hookup, which would normally mean at least 12 channels. We don't have the choices in satellite that you do so I don't have any experience to share.

We are from Southern Alberta and use our satellite tv when we travel and want to get the news from home and use cable if available for the "local" news. We did this when we were in Arizona. The main tv had our satellite and our bedroom tv was on cable. For phone, my brother in-law has a Horizon? phone from in the States and it works for them whether they are in Canada or the States all for the same price. They live in Alberta too, at least for now, they are in the process of moving to Arizona.

Nice pics Bob. Looks like you and Pat (and Cowboy) had a great time.

Jim