Like most ocean areas Nova Scotia has a thriving community of yacht clubs. Here is an abbreviated list:
D’Escousse CB, NS Lennox Passage YC
Halifax (North West Arm) Royal Nova Scotia
Musquodoboit Harbour Petpeswick YC
Shearwater (Canadian Forces Sailing Association)
* New: Jul 11, 2009 Regatta for the cure for Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation + dance
St. Peter’s, CB-NS Wallace MacAskill YC
A year ago I was pretty excited that Icelandair was coming back to Halifax, albeit on a part-time basis. This seasonal service worked out very well for the airline and provided another port-of-entry for European travelers into Canada and another foreign airline for Halifax.
Beginning June 4th the airline will fly into Halifax on Mondays and Thursdays until October 22nd. However, on July 11th, the airline will add Saturdays to the visits until September 3rd. Robert Keddy, the airline’s sales manager in Canada, remarked that Icelandair is till going over the feasibility of flying to Halifax all year round.
Like the rest the world, Iceland is going through rough financial times due to the sub-prime lending crisis. However, because of its small population the island nation does not have the reserves to weather a lengthy recession and this is causing political turmoil. This is remarkable because up until last year Iceland was called “the Nordic Tiger.” But recently the króna, Iceland’s currency, has fallen over 22% against the Euro and the banks are in deep trouble.
This was a bad break for both Canada and Iceland because in 2007 the Canadian government finally wised up and worked out a deal giving the airlines from each other’s countries unlimited access to the other’s airports. The hugh fuel costs and deepening recession has put this proposal back but the familiar Boeing 757’s will be back on Halifax’s tarmac, at least on a part-time basis.
During the past half-decade Nova Scotia has taken a big hit when it comes to transportation portals, especially the South Shore. The Prince of Fundy ferry from Maine set the schedules for many tourism events and room nights in the area. For example three-day tours were designed around the arrival and departure times of the ferry. So when the ferry service stopped this whole delicate balance was thrown to the wind and many tourism operators were hurt.
But what about the Cat ferry? Well, yes it does originate in Maine but the new schedules didn’t mesh with the established tourism market in southern Nova Scotia. Hotels, bed-and-breakfast establishments and other attractions suffered from the disruption of services and this financial downturn was deepened last year when oil reached record heights along with the soaring Canadian dollar.
The U.S. Transportation Department has given permission Quebec’s Starlink Airlines to run an 18-seat turboprop between Portland, Maine and Yarmouth, Nova Scotia on a twice-daily basis. Not only will the service extend to the main hub of Halifax, the other Starlink route, it will also be in position for Maritimers and Americans alike to connect with major airlines that fly into Portland like Continental, Northwest U.S. Airways, United Airlines, JetBlue and Air Tran.
What this means to Nova Scotia travelers is that they have an alternative to Newark, New York and Toronto as connecting cities for U.S. destinations like Florida. In return Americans from new England have a choice between a ferry ride and flying to Halifax via Yarmouth.
One-way fares are not cheap: $149 from Yarmouth to Portland and $249 from Halifax to Portland. However, the convenience, in many cases, is worth it. For an American it’s only $200 versus a bus ride from Halifax to Yarmouth and then a long ferry ride.
Bringing an airline into Yarmouth has been tried before. That’s why they have this great airport. However the air service was taken out and Yarmouth, the Nova Scotia port for the Fast Ferry, was left at the mercy of buses. So someone coming to Halifax would have to either have to bring a car or take the bus. Now, you can park your car in the U.S. walk onto the ferry and then, on reaching Yarmouth, fly to Halifax.
Now who would bring in an airline into a market that has seen two other airlines pull out, and during an economic downturn. Well, the answer comes right out of left field. Starlink, a Quebec-based regional airline, is specialized in serving small markets and is bringing in 15 -seat aircraft to accomplish this. In addition the service will extend to Portland, Maine, to grab those who do not want to take the Cat Ferry.
Glen Lynch is the CEO of Starlink and he has made his airline in such areas where the big guys have fallen on their faces. His company has studied the area well and, with commitments from the Nova Scotia government, is very excited about the new route.
The service is twice-daily, one in the early morning and the other in the late afternoon. The cost will be $159 + taxes, or about 2 1/2 times as mushc as the bus. This little airline could possibly expand into other areas of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick vacated by Air Canada’s regionals.
How about backup to get it started? Yes the province is helping there. Richard Hurlburt, MLA for Yarmouth announced that the province would commit $2 million to the service for the next five years. This is a draw against bad times and the airline would dip into it. However, it is just a draw and subject to repayment.
They even have their ticketing site up. Click on Starlink.
The year 2008 will not go down in history as a banner year for nova Scotia tourism activity. Record-high gas prices , a strong Canadian dollar and the introduction of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI), an American program that requires everyone entering into the U.S. to have a passport. Many operators were left in the red.
However, this was not true of those who benefit from the cruise ship industry. In fact Nova Scotia enjoyed a record year in this capacity as more than 125 cruise ships including the Queen Mary 2 docked in Halifax and another 50 in Sydney – and that’s a lot of people taking in the sights on tours and buying merchandise. The total came to over 228,000 visitors in Halifax and almost 77,000 in the Cape Breton port.
The tourism authorities announced that the total was over $25 million not including what the crew spent with another $8 million going to Sydney. Three other ports – Louisbourg, Baddeck and North Sydney – also had a total of 5 ships.
The season starts in mid-April and goes until the leaves are gone in the fall. The starting points are usually new York and Boston and the ships will visit Quebec City, Montreal and St. John’s, Newfoundland as well as Charlottetown, PEI
For 2009 the prospect is rosy as well. Predictions are that this year will top last year in terms of ships site explorations and dollars spent.
As I said in yesterday’s blog one of the worst things that can happen during a holiday is to be stuck at an airport. And besides a death in the family or being severrly injured th thrid worst thing is having to stay fo almost a week. That is what travelers stuck at the Vancouver International Airport are going through right now. One of them is a singing group from a country in Asia.
A great thing about Twitter is that the posts are in real time. You can read about what people are actually thinking as it happens. In this blog I have included some of these posts – without the names of course.
“We felt like hostages’: Passengers on delayed Vancouver-Toronto flight : Passengers on Air Canada Flight 156.”
“You’ll be amazed to find that like Santa, your mail actually travels by air. Yes, (Name), I may get it sooner than April. Yay!
“I’m in a really narky mood. It would help if the guy next door STOPPED SHOUTING for five **** seconds. Seriously? He doesn’t stop for air.”
“12 hour delay sitting on Air Canada plane = $500 voucher’
“. . . .is heading out to pick up sis Sarah who got stuck in STL last night. Poor girl needs some good travel luck! Woot Xmas!”
“. . . .arrived safe and sound in western minnesota. no travel problems or delays. crh was up at 6 am to play in the snow, about 60 cm on the ground”
“The travel gods have smiled. Aisle seat in an exit row.”
“O the joys of air travel.”
“Enjoying my dad’s curiously strong coffee while devouring a travel blog that’s new to me. Not a bad way to start the day!”
“Wow, feeling sorry for people trying to travel today. The entire airline system is wedged, sounds like. But the storm was days ago.”
“Someone needs to build a travel site with ratings for airlines built in. Unfortunately air travel is not quite commoditized.”
So, there you have an up-to-date Twitter report from those who are still stranded and those who are finding out other things about Christmas travel.
Cheers and Merry Christmas,
Kim
Every year the Christmas season brings with it weather conditions that may transform a fun journey into difficult time. Here are a few sites that you can access directly for flight delays in your area. Maybe you can avoid these crunches in the future.
Federal Aviation Administration: This is a great map with all the major airports. Just click on the green spots and you will get an airport update. Regional maps are also available through this site. In this way you can see smaller airport like Bangor, Maine.
Flight Stats: This gives similar information to the FAA but you can see the weather maps at a glance.
Weather.com: What I like about this site is that it gives you the complete forecast for your whole trip. Just fill in the blanks with all the legs of your journey and you have an up-to-date forecast.
Flight Arrivals.com: This site is a comprehensive information center for both the U.S. and Canada, not only for getting weather but for all year service. Any schedule changes will show up here.
AvoidDelays.com: For you pessimists out there here is a site that actually rates the airports. It will give you live, up to the minute details of delays and also will tll you how many flights were delayed on a certain day at a certain airport. In addition, on a month-by-month basis it will list:
- Top 10 Most Delayed Departure Airports
- Top 10 Most Delayed Arrival Airports
- Top 10 Worst Times to Fly into Most Delayed Airports
- Advice From Air Traffic Controllers
- Report Your Complaint
- Tips and Tricks for Avoiding Delays
There you have it. Now you never have to sleep in an airport again.
One of the easiest ways to get around Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island is Acadien Lines buses. For many years travel throughout Nova Scotia was hampered by inefficient sub-lines that rarely corresponded with the major carriers. This scared off bus travelers because the time and money spent did not equal the expectations of the sightseer.
For example, 10 years ago ferry travelers who took the bus to Yarmouth from Halifax were subject to a wild ride in an old coach. Upon their arrival they dumped off at a gas station almost a mile from the Prince of Fundy ferry terminal.
The bus service in Nova Scotia has been dramatically changed since then and Acadien Lines has played a big part. Th company dates back to 1937 when its buses were under the name SMT (Eastern) Ltd. In 1995, SMT acquired the trans-provincial Acadien Lines Ltd. and Nova Charter Services Ltd. which enabled the bus lines to offer its customers traditional shuttle transportation, package delivery, and charters for large groups.
In March 2004, Acadien Lines joined with Quebec-based Groupe Orléans Express, allowing complete coverage of eastern Canada. This means that travelers to Montreal can be connected to Halifax in a wide variety of routing including the townships and Gaspé regions of Quebec and rural New Brunswick.
Activity Sectors
The main activities of Acadien lines now includes:
- Intercity passenger transportation throughout eastern Canada
- Specific charter transportation including sightseeing tours
- Intercity courier and baggage services
- Bus station management
- Coverage of New Brunswick, PEI and Nova Scotia as well as Quebec
- Passport program
So if you don’t want to rent a car take the bus!
When train travel is all but extinct compared to what it was 50 years ago the Montreal-Halifax route is a real crowd-pleaser. ”The Ocean” is a passenger train that runs 6 times a week each way between Montreal and Halifax.
On the Montreal-to-Halifax leg, “The Ocean” leaves Montreal in the evening and the traveler gets to see the townships along the St. Lawrence before drifting off to sleep. In the very early morning Chaleur Bay comes into view as the train heads south across New Brunswick. It stops in Moncton just before noon and arrives in the historic Halifax train station in mid-afternoon. Going back the “The Ocean” leaves Halifax in the afternoon and arrives in Montreal the next morning.
Economy Perks
Comfort Class: Economical. You can stretch out your legs, lean back into the headrest and at night, a service attendant will offer you a pillow and blanket.
Service Car: A service counter where all passengers can order refreshments, snacks and sweets. Also, there is a baggage compartment where extra or bulky items can be stored. In addition there is a special suite where persons with reduced mobility can travel in an environment specially designed to make their journey pleasant. As well, it serves as a lounge area.
Easterly Class
Passengers on Easterly Class have dinner in the evening and breakfast the next morning. Also included is entrance to the dome car for sparkling wine. Examples of the dining includes tasty Nova Scotia smoked salmon and crab appetizers as well as chicken breast with berry sauce, Prince Edward Island potatoes and Maritime vegetables. Dessert has been known to be scrumptious apple caramel cake topped with whipped cream. There is also a sleeper arrangement but it is rather spartan and this was the only part where we were disappointed.
VIA 1 Lounge: This is for 1st Class passengers. Dome Car: See the sights in a 360 degree view.
It is a great trip and many Americans can take it by first jumping the Amtrak from New York to Montreal.
As I have put in other posts Canada has a deficit in rail travel compared to countries in Europe, Asia and much of the rest of the world. Only North America is rail-deprived when it comes to passenger transportation.
Via Rail Canada is Canada’s national passenger-carrying is an independent Crown corporation. The company operates 480 trains in eight Canadian provinces. Only Newfoundland and Labrador and Prince Edward Island do not have the service. In all, over 8,700 miles of track criss-cross the country from east to west and from the Great Lakes to Hudson Bay.
In all Via Rail carries approximately four million passengers annually but the majority of its routes are between Windsor, Ontario and Quebec City, Quebec on the Quebec City – Windsor Corridor commonly known as “The Corridor.”
Canadian National Railway began VIA service in 1978 replacing its old lines of passenger service. Ridership increased an it became a profitable line. However, increased passengers would not be help VIA in the eyes of the government at the time. In 1981, Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau’s government went along with Minister of Transport Jean-Luc Pépin’s plan to cut Via Rail’s budget 40%. Throwing the baby out with the bathwater were frequently sold-out trains such as the Super Continental and this reduced Via to operating only one transcontinental train. This included the The Canadian and the popular Atlantic, among others.
Besides the military and other great traditions Trudeau’s regime wiped out the last gasp of a great supercontinental rail line.