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Driving into Canada.
Lukin
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Did a board search on this and could only find a thread about driving into the US from Canada, and I imagine the same stuff applies, but just in case...
Yeah, my location says I'm in Georgia. It'll be a long drive but I hate A) Airports,
Airplanes and C) People in airports and on airplanes. I'd much rather drive. I'm heading to Toronto, if that's important.
So I did a little bit of research and apparently a passport isn't required either way, but I'm going to go ahead and get one anyway just in case it makes things easier. Apparently you need to get a tourist insurance card. Looked into this and it seems painless. So does a driver's license, passport, and tourist insurance card cut it as far as
Are the borders open 24/7? Seems like a dumb question, but I checked the Canadian Border Services Agency site and it doesn't say. So I assume I could roll in at 4am if I wanted... A simple Google Map directions request has me going through Detroit. Anything I need to know about this particular crossing?
Yeah, my location says I'm in Georgia. It'll be a long drive but I hate A) Airports,
Airplanes and C) People in airports and on airplanes. I'd much rather drive. I'm heading to Toronto, if that's important.So I did a little bit of research and apparently a passport isn't required either way, but I'm going to go ahead and get one anyway just in case it makes things easier. Apparently you need to get a tourist insurance card. Looked into this and it seems painless. So does a driver's license, passport, and tourist insurance card cut it as far as
Are the borders open 24/7? Seems like a dumb question, but I checked the Canadian Border Services Agency site and it doesn't say. So I assume I could roll in at 4am if I wanted... A simple Google Map directions request has me going through Detroit. Anything I need to know about this particular crossing?
Lukin on
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As for the rest, though, you're good to go. The borders are indeed open 24/7, and you're actually better off crossing in the wee small hours if you can - the lineups are a whole lot shorter, and the scrutiny doesn't tend to be as tight. (I crossed at Sault Ste.-Marie once at 3am during a raging blizzard, and the border guard didn't even glance at my passport, he just waved me on through then closed the window of his little booth again).
Crossing at Detroit is fine, but I would suggest making sure you have very clear directions through it, because that's just not a city you want to get lost in. Downtown Detroit is, to my sheltered Canadian eyes, a fucking terrifying place, and I just cannot comprehend how it was allowed to get and remain that way. There are entire blocks of burnt-out husks of buildings just standing there. Also, crazy bag ladies pushing grocery carts along the side of completely deserted freeways at night. Creepy. But just stay on the main interstate, and you should be OK.
Car insurance. Apparently all US insurance providers insure tourists in Canada, but they still make you get a card from the provider.
Cool, thanks. I'd be worried that they'd be MORE scrutino...scrutiniz... picky in the wee hours. Clearly only a terrorist would plan his ridiculously long car ride so he crosses the border at 4am!
Yeah, I've got a GPS, I'm going to update the maps and trust it.
Thanks duder!
Google maps, Atlanta to Toronto through Detroit (15h 3m): http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=3220158212585488933,43.107040,-78.989030&q=atlanta+to+toronto&sll=40.212441,-81.584473&sspn=6.400049,14.282227&ie=UTF8&ll=40.563895,-79.694824&spn=12.727455,28.564453&z=6
Atlanta to Toronto through Niagara (15h 44m): http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&saddr=atlanta&daddr=43.089827,-79.067445+to:toronto&hl=en&geocode=5316459685570814281,43.088200,-79.063160&mra=dme&mrcr=0&mrsp=1&sz=15&via=1&sll=43.088792,-79.059463&sspn=0.023913,0.05579&ie=UTF8&ll=39.044786,-78.618164&spn=13.009448,28.564453&z=6
Edit: updated to take the Rainbow bridge. There are several crossings near Niagara, while I believe there is only one at Detroit, so it may actually end up being faster.
Thanks for the tip... How do you make Google Maps do that? When I try to just drag a route to a different highway (such as turning onto 71 from Cincinnatti), it just reverts the the previous route at the first opportunity.