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My reason for not visiting more is the annoying,and I think, increasingly burdensome ordeal of crossing the border. Not from the Canadians, but from U.S. customs. I only live a little more than 100 miles from the border and really enjoy Canada, but up until a few years ago, all I needed was a drivers license to go across both ways. Now I get more of a third degree from U.S. customs agents and I just get fed up with the hassle.
I do plan on getting a Nexis card soon which will take away some of the hassle and longer waits so maybe I will start going more in the future.
Northern Ontario is absolutely stunning. And OUR money looks funny. Come up and have some fun....to bad it is late in the season...still- the fall colors are worth it. Some day I am going to find a little place up north to hide- grow a long white beard and forget the world...
How come not that many Americans drive to Canada, especially those in northern states (10 hours or less drive to the border)? I can guarantee that 95%+ of Canadians living near the U.S. border in big cities, including small, have traveled/driven thru the U.S. for any reason.
Here in New York/New Jersey area, I see plenty of Canadian license plates (Mostly Quebec and Ontario).
Canada is a unique and beautiful place to visit... sad that not that many have been there despite being close to the country. Quebec being north of us is a taste of France!
I know many Americans who says that they never been outside the country.... well you have an easy option to travel north! It's affordable and easy. All you need is passport (Should be required but whatever).
Canada is a great country, slightly different from America, and is very diverse and has anything you want!
When I was fishing a tournament in the Thousand Islands area, with my then husband, we planned to camp on the Canadian side. We figured in the evenings we'd do some driving around Canada. We had a station wagon at the time full of fishing tackle, boating and camping equipment. We were stopped not by customs but by immigration. They said we had too much stuff in our vehicle just to be camping. They kept us for an hour checking this and that and finally let us go. So, I told them we would be coming back and forth over that bridge for the next 3 days to participate in the tournament and asked if they planned to stop us every time. They said they couldn't be sure. We decided to stay on the American side so we weren't late for the tournament. That was in the late 1970s.
Another time we decided to drive to Quebec after sightseeing in Vermont. We got lost and it was getting dark so we stopped in McDonalds to ask for directions and to get a burger. They refused to speak to us in English and we didn't speak French. Didn't leave a good impression.
We had also visited Toronto with a booster club to see a hockey game against our team. That trip was okay.
I'd like to drive to the northwest territories and yukon territory for photography but I'm older now and not so sure it's a road trip I should do myself.
I live in the southern US and have for most of my life. So to DRIVE to Canada is something that has very little appeal to me.
To FLY to Montreal would usually involve a layover, so it would take me approximately 8 hours. My gosh, I can be in England in that amount of time, to put things in perspective.
As others have pointed out, most people have limited vacation time available each year. Though I have more time than most, I have family scattered throughout the US - from Ohio, to northern Arkansas, to Virginia, and five hours south of me in Texas. They are my priority.
I love international travel and my husband and I travel outside the US every couple of years. However, Europe frankly interests me more than Canada, so that's our usual destination.
My youngest daughter is moving to England in a few weeks and will be there at least four years. So most of my international travel in the near future will be to the UK.
Finally, I am sure that Canada offers some stunning natural beauty - but so do so many places in the US. I have tons of interesting things to see in the US before I will feel an urge to go to Canada.
Don't feel too badly about it though - I live in Texas and I haven't even been to Mexico either! Simply put - I'm just not all that interested in Mexico either.
Another time we decided to drive to Quebec after sightseeing in Vermont. We got lost and it was getting dark so we stopped in McDonalds to ask for directions and to get a burger. They refused to speak to us in English and we didn't speak French. Didn't leave a good impression.
Refused to speak English or *couldn't* speak English? There is a difference.
Refused to speak English or *couldn't* speak English? There is a difference.
In my experience in the Montreal area, its almost always a case of refusing to speak english.
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