Montreal to Toronto by Train - The Busiest Train in Canada Reviewed
Вставка
- Опубліковано 31 жов 2022
- Heading to Canada and want to travel between Montreal and Toronto? Well, there is a 5 hour train you can take between the countries, and here is my experience on that 5 hour commuter train between two of the biggest cities in Canada with VIA Rail.
#trainsincanada #canada #viarail
Learn how to plan your travels like we do with our Travel Planning 101 Course: www.brighttrip.com/woltersworld
Copyright Mark Wolters 2022
Find us on other social media
woltersworld
woltersworld
woltersworld
jocelynwoltersworld
/ woltersworldeats
/ woltersworld
I'm surprised that you didn't know about the lounge in Montréal (and Toronto and Ottawa) that you can use with Business class tickets, and you would have priority boarding as well (and not have to wait in the main line-up). I gather you had the morning train, the lunch and dinner in Business class is better than the breakfast option. They also provide booze several times during the trip.... I think Amtrak gives one free non-alcoholic drink with a Business ticket, but VIA has a few servings of alcohol (wine, beer, mixed drinks, and more) or non-alcohol beverages throughout the trip. There's no lounge/bar car on VIA corridor trains, they roll a cart down the aisle airplane-style with various drinks, snacks and sandwiches for purchase in the economy cars.
Yeah, it was an early morning ride, so no fun spots to hang out in. THey did bring the trolly around a few times :)
Business lounge in Toronto is on the main floor, not the boarding level. And yes, they are not open for the early trains.
Dude, speaking of booze - back in the day on every ( not b4 noon ) mtl tor train there was a bar car . Hows that for cutting ur travel time
Nice review and yes on the transit / rail review. Bland option is for us heart patients who need no salt or have allergies. Come back in a year and try the new train sets on the 5 pm Montréal-Toronto route, and an evening meal. The discussion now is how to build brand new rail.
That's what I thought but it didn't explain the options. Thanks for the confirmation!
As a Canadian, I can say honestly, you review is too kind. Really. The rail system here is the worst! Glad new trains are coming. But thanks for your politeness 🙂
I only had this one ride and compared to my usual amtrak ride... you still win by a mile or 1.65 kilometers 😉
Inter City Rail transport in Canada in my opinion is much better than in US. Toronto - Montreal, for instance only 5 hours ride. For the same mileage San Jose - LA it takes 12 hours or so.
Yes your right it bad trains are always late
I totally agreee with you.
Back in the day the Canadian left Mtl and it arrived in Vancouver. In 4 days now they say it takes 4 days but that is rare .
We're getting 32 new train sets in the new year, you should come back for another review! It'll be a difference experience for sure!
OOOOO WEEEE ! Was on that train once upon a time, and went to use the nearest bathroom, and boy, oh boy, the bowl was out of commission, It was blocked like I never seen before, and with a foul stench from the bowels of hell itself !
I wondered if who ever or what ever made that mess was human or an animal !
Via is rolling out totally new rolling stock shortly. Currently in testing. They are a lot nicer than the train set you took.
I can only review the train I took.
@@WoltersWorldShorts take it again next year.... It will still be rocky on the freight tracks but the coaches and service will be dope! You missed this by a few months lol
@@Kiera_Jackson74 sounds like a plan :)
Hello from Kingston! Always a busy stop in Kingston because of the students heading to or from 2 Major Universities and 1 College.
Hope those Queen's kids are better behaved on the train 🚂than on the street during homecoming🥃🍺🤸🏃👮🙄😂!
@@Claudia-up6hr Who knows lol! They sure wreck Aberdeen Street and over the years it has spilled out to Johnson and Brock and closer to Princess. So many police forces from Ontario have to brought in. And they have an unofficial homecoming too lol
Also the 2 schools in Ottawa and another 2 in Montreal, going East its 3 in TO and UOIT. I went to one of the Ottawa ones.
Great video! I have been thinking of travelling a bit of the east of Canada by train, and this is certainly helpful just get an idea what to expect.
I lost a pack of smokes on one of these in 1986. I found it in 2021! We're still going diesel in 2022 lol!
My wife and I did this trip the week before Thanks Giving. Only difference we went economy. That was fine as the train was not busy so we had no problem with room. My only negative was we were to get off at Whitby which the ticket person said it would stop. No stop there so we had to do the next stop which I think was Oshawa. The train did stop, but our car did not open. So we had to get off at the next stop. So apparently there are carriages for specific stops. This you have to know before hand. Overall the trip was a pleasant one. Fall colours were starting to be displayed. I don't find the ride that rough as some people say it is.
I did that same trip in 1981!
That's a blast from the past. When I was an undergrad in the late 90s, I had a research position with the Canadian navy for three summers. I used to take the train from Toronto to Halifax and book a sleeping berth.
Tip from a talkative lady I shared a row with: don't try shaving your legs in the on-board shower.
Oh man!!! TMI!!! But funny
I am surprised you were stopped for walking through the train. I have travelled in business class on Via before and was able to go wherever I wanted. Also, as a business class passenger, you could also tried to ask for snacks! Perhaps they didn't advertise this loudly, or maybe it's different because it was a morning departure but they used to have goodies in the first-class pantry - chips, chocolates, nuts, that sort of thing. I've never tried to order off the economy class menu as a business class passenger but the selection is wider, for sure.
Thanks for adding bumpy ride.
Beautifully edited & presented in a short duration.
Best wishes
Enjoyed your review. Thanks for talking about VIA. We do have good trains in Canada! But I have to agree with Bill. Absolutely do take advantage of the business/sleeper class lounge offerings if you're travelling in business class in the Windsor-Quebec City corridor. Makes for a much more relaxing and worry-free departure.
Wasn't an option sadly for my morning train. Otherwise I would have for sure. 😞
We rode the train from Montreal to Quebec City. Nice ride, done in couple hours. QC is a nice city.
I love QC
Thank You!
I travelled back and forth from Toronto to Montreal (Dorval) several times for work. I found it just as fast as the whole flying experience with driving to the airport, waiting, and so on. Since I got off at Dorval, I was next to the airport so I looked at train or airplane as relatively the same in terms of time and cost. They did have 'large' trays to fit over the fold-down tray to accommodate working on a lap-top. The wifi was good on all the trips I took. One time the staff if I would mind moving to the single seat, I was on the 'double' side as there wasn't anybody in the single for the entire trip. Very nice service. I highly recommend that trip by rail. One of the times I flew I got delayed by a snow storm and sat in the airport for an extra 4 hours.
My experience of boarding from Toronto with 2 extra large bags was kind off terrible, I come from a third world country but even there the platforms are the same or almost as high as the entrance of the trains but in Toronto it was like I was walking on broken asphalt and I had to lift my bags to almost 4-5 feet to put them onto the train.
Thanx & welcome to who they’re visiting my Montreal city, 🙏
The railway system in Canada is still that of the 20th century, not a joke.
We got it better in the US... 19th century railroads!!!! 😉
I hope to take that trip anytime in my life.
Train Service Norway 🇳🇴 in a Nutshell Some Deleys but made the other things just in Time this Summer on the Boat and going up the Steep Railway in Flam. I took it from Bergen to Voss and then Back to Bergen. It wasn't the Train all the way going to Oslo this one was. The other one going from Bodo to Trondheim Norway was Fine with very little Deleys. But very long 8 to 10 Hours but worth it. Via Rail is not bad in Ontario and Quebec but Sure beats the Busy Traffic.
Windsor to Quebec City is WAAAAAAYYYYYY overdue for a high-speed line. A good third of the country lives there.
Nice video
High quality video
Even thought I live in Toronto I find Union station really confusing and not well marked. I always wonder how travellers to this city figure it out. I find navigating train stations in other countries less confusing!
it is so confusing. i could imagine more than a few tourists getting lost looking for the UP express
@@woltersworld,
Considering that Union Station just had a major renovation and facelift which took years and tens of millions of dollars, I find this baffling and embarrassing, as a Toronto resident.
It's confusing for locals because it is always under construction and constantly changing.
You arn't the only person who finds Union Station confusing.
And I am not a tourist.
Its much worse after the renovation.
I'm in Kingston so seeing the mention was nice. Yes, it seems like the only major stop in between. Union Station can be confusing when leaving the train. Especially the first time. I don't understand all the people waiting in line to get on the train either. In Toronto I would just sit down at the side instead and wait till it's closer to departure.
There is a snack cart on economy class. You can buy stuff like ham and cheese croissant sandwiches (they have 2 or 3 sandwiches), chips, juice, pop, coffee, that sort of thing. I think you got the meal because you were in business class.
There is airplane option you do not have to fly into Pearson . You can fly into Billy Bishop airport from Montreal
Still nicer to take the train - less hassle.
Welcome to Toronto ❤ Visit Niagara Falls as well
Hello, from Pakistan
Hope you enjoy your journey
Thanks!
It was expensive as you booked last minute. I usually get a seat for about $300 round trip.
Pearson sucks, but If you need to travel from to Toronto from Montreal (or NYC, Boston, Quebec City or Chicago) try getting a flight into Billy Bishop airport (YTZ) which is on an island immediately adjacent to the downtown core. The flight will be 1 to 2 hours and exiting the airport is fast and easy.
Yep. The best is the flights to Billy bishop taunt you when you are downtown 😀
because of its role as a very busy corridor it is confirmed the new Siemens Charger will run this line
Can't wait to see them
I used to live in Toronto and travelled to Montreal by train on long weekends 20 - 30 years ago and it supposed to take only 4:30 hours, not 5; but of course, they were never on time. Usually it would stop somewhere for half an hour or an hour. They studied for 50 years on the possibilities of building a highspeed train between Montreal and Windsor but never toke off. Sad.
The LRC sets never matched the Turbotrain's 3h50 timing
They remodeled Union Station in Toronto just to make it more confusing to tourists
glad to see there some canadians that still have common sense .....
You are correct 😀
...and semi-locals
The bland meal option is there for visitors from the UK.
David spitting 🔥
Need new trains, more lines, more service and ditch the cars! Chicken and egg problem .. maybe put a bar car and slot machines on the trains and see what happens. 🤔
Nothing like a european train stations - you go to the ACTUAL platform, sit wherever you want. You board WHICHEVER car you want and then you search for best seat. Here in Canada you can't even get close to the train before they allow you... And like you said, you can't even walk between cars :D
because canadians are sheep to say the least
@@TheSchiffReport 100% And I can agree with you, as a Pole, I know what freedom really mean.
It used to be any seat you want and sometimes they even had standing (commuters who had passes). Pretty sure they changed to an assigned seats thing for the convenience of passengers. As for "board when you want" pretty hard to do that when the train hasn't arrived yet! The turnaround time between trips is often quite tight.
Most of the tracks that Via and Amtrak use get beat to death with very long and heavy freight trains so, unfortunately, bumpy track is rather the norm.
Never use big bins at end of train if at all possible. I had my bag ripped on there on train from Munich to Berlin First Class! I bring these free “gun locks” that you can hook cases together but be careful with stuff over your head. They have teams that hit you. Always take option of getting on train first or get a porter.
The big bins on Via's corridor service are very deep, it's unlikely your bag will be damaged, unless you mean ripped off, as in stolen? Also unlikely as the car attendant has to manually open the exit door for you.
You came to Montréal and didn't go to Exporail ?
Megabus is even easier, same time basically. Yeah a lot less stretching room and luggage but if you just going for a few days then back bus is the way I go. And no one buys the food or drink on via its insane for the junk the serve.
❤
Why didn't you use the Business class lounge in Central Station? If you buy it way in advance you can get it for about $125 plus tax.
It was the like 6am train
You were unlucky in getting a mixed consist, the stainless steel cars don't play well with the LRC cars and you get an extra bumpy ride from it
There was a bump or 3 😀
confused at Union were we? LOL its suppose to be a lot better now after a revamp in recent years, imagine what it was 10 year ago
Oh wow. It must have been a dungeon
As somebody who uses via a lot and i do mean a lot and has taken business class, honestly its really not worth the price point for the microwaved food and the few alcoholic drinks they give you unless you ask for more.
How was is for people of size?
I went business and I had space fine
As long as not too ample it should be ok, everything in Canada tends to be on the large side.
Fly Porter to Bishop next time.
Its soooo bumpy worst train experience! I don't know why they cant improve the rails. Also economy is really tight! By the looks of your trip business class is the way to go! impressive it was on time. My experience its always been 30-45 min late. Yea toronto is really compact to get up and out when you arrive they def need to fix that. I had similar experience. Next time tho I am flying too bumpy!
yeah, it was tight to say the least :)
They use tracks made for freight and freight trains have priority.
They will be rebuilding the century old platforms to much wider platforms and they're started construction first on building an entirely new south platform and concourse.
The High Frequency Rail project is in very early procurement stage. This (hopefully) would bring dedicated tracks separate from freight, as well as more frequent and significantly faster trains to this corridor.
The reason why VIA trains currently share the tracks with freight is because the private railway companies in Canada (as in the US) used to own both the freight and passenger rail service and ran them both on the same tracks. VIA and Amtrak were created by their respective governments after passenger rail became unprofitable for the private railway companies with the growth and popularity of travel by car.
@@pauly5418 great info 👍
@@pauly5418 Came here to say this. I can't wait for the high speed rail project - already decades too late!
I took it before. Was alright.
Better experience than Amtrak?
yes
Definitely. He didn't go in afternoon / evening when the food and wine is pretty good, or on the new trainsets which are a big step nicer and starting to come in on the Montreal-Ottawa route at the moment.
Train: 50 minutes until departure
Passengers: Let's line up!
That sounds about right! But if you don't want to wait you can board in the last 5 minutes without any real disadvantage.
That's exactly what I ended up doing :) I was the 2nd to last person on or at least one of the last 5
We Canadian like to queue, it is the Britishiness in us. LOL
It's better than driving if the tickets are cheaper than 100$
True
Tickets mostly go for 70$ if you buy on time
7:22 - 7:34 that sucks ...
Montreal is the best city in Canada
Never
51/2 hours ? Not a acceptable
And it is greener to travel by train . North Americans should think more about the earth not only about our little comfort.
The distances to cover in North America are much more vast than in Europe and aside from the Northeast Corridor in the USA, they are all Diesel services. The train is usually the greener choice if you are using a day service, if your journey is long enough for sleeper service on the train, then the diesel emissions start to compare with flying.
THE BEST TRAIN SYSTEM IS ONLY IN FRANCE AND JAPAN---REST OF WORLD TRAIN IS JUST SO SO.
An old train that should have been replaced years ago.Horrible.
No joke. I boarded a train once that was a different design than I was used to so asked one of the staff if it was new. When he finally stopped laughing he told me it was from the 1930s!