While we enjoy hopping on aircraft and flying across the globe, our favourite travel type is a good old fashioned budget road trip in Canada. There’s something unique about being in charge of your own travel and being able to go wherever you want, whether it’s a tiny town, a major town or an off-the-beaten-path treasure. There’s always something perfect about packing into a vehicle all you like and not caring about limits on luggage, missing bags and strangers tossing away your cologne and hand creams.

Road trips in many countries around the world are a popular mode of travel but there’s hardly a better place than Canada. Canada is better explored by a vehicle as it is the worlds second-largest nation. The Trans-Canada Highway runs from Newfoundland to British Columbia and paves a path of over 7,800 kilometres. Then there is the North, which is now connected by road all the way to the Arctic Ocean in Tuktoyaktuk, NWT. All along the way, there are major cities, small towns and breathtaking sceneries.

Also Read: Canada tourist visa for Indians – How to apply, tips, and visa requirements

Overview

Choosing your adventure will help you choose which places to stop. Knowing the main locations you wish to visit is a smart thing. This will help you schedule your energy, expenditure and events even as you want the final adventure. For example, kayaking Hopewell Rocks is perhaps your dream. Hopewell Rocks is an obvious stop in that respect and kayaking is a must.

road trip in Brûlé, Canada — Source: Unsplash

Budget Needed For A Budget Road Trip In Canada

Canada is known to be a quite expensive country, but that depends on where you come from. Because of the dollar exchange, Americans often find Canada quite cheap, as would people from Australia, New Zealand and many Western European countries. If you only want to roam around, sleep, and visit some world-class towns, you can do it on a budget.

Budgeting For Food

The cheapest way to eat is to get cooler and go to the grocery store for shopping. These are generally the “healthiest” fast-food options and cost less than $10 for meals. Thanks to all of Canada’s immigration you will find almost any kind of food you can imagine. There are also ways for restaurants to save money too. For example, at restaurants, you might find good “happy hour” deals as well as big pizzas for about $20, which can then serve 2-4 people. Nevertheless, seek to spend sufficiently to consume a couple of days a week at a nearby restaurant, so you can taste some really interesting cuisine from across the globe, as well as enjoy a break from the routine.

Budgeting For Accommodation

Another pillar of any good night-time budget road trip in Canada is having a spot to rest your eyes. There are all kinds of options in Canada, including hotels, motels, hostels, Airbnb, campgrounds, woofing, Couchsurfing, or just sleeping in your car, though you need to be careful with this option because it’s not legal to just park anywhere you like and spend the night. Camping and Couchsurfing are the cheapest choices, accompanied usually by hostels and rentals via Airbnb. In general, hotels and motels are the most expensive options but they are also the easiest and most abundant. Except for busy hours or popular areas (like Banff), though, regular hotels range from $75-$ 150 a night, which is fairly inexpensive. Campgrounds with an unpowered tent site typically vary from $10-$30 a night.

Budgeting For Activities

When you just decide to go hiking and camping, the prices should be fairly small. You might want a Canada Parks Pass that allows you to enter all Canadian national parks for as little as $80 for a whole year. The actual hiking trip would have been safe. Museums and city parks will bump up the prices at about $10-20 per individual stay, and exciting excursions such as helicopter tours, rafting and whale watching tours will also raise this.

Also Read: 5 Best roadways in the Canadian Rockies to encounter Wildlife!

Best Time For A Budget Road Trip In Canada

When it comes to Canadian road trips, it ‘s crucial to choose the dates. When the roads are clear, which is typically from May to October, the best time to do a budget road trip in Canada. You can be dealing with winter conditions including snow and ice from December to April which render driving more dangerous and unpredictable. It all depends on what things you are trying to do, however. If you’re going on some kind of ski road trip in Canada, then winter is when you go and you should plan accordingly. In general, the best ones are spring, summer, and fall. Spring and fall are less crowded and are usually also ideal for travel conditions while in terms of places to see, the summer is even busier.

road trip in Toronto, Canada — Source: Unsplash

Renting Wheels For Budget A Road Trip In Canada

You can rent one from a variety of locations across the country to do a road trip in Canada. It is recommended that you rent one at the airport so you can return it to the airport when you fly out. You may also be able to get the vehicle back to another location for an additional cost. If you travel in the colder months, the rest of the time either car would do. If you want to go off-road, or just need the room, you don’t need a large truck or an SUV. Most of Canada ‘s roads are extremely well maintained. Except in the is Yukon, a car is more than enough to bring you around, but if you follow the Dempster Highway up to the Arctic, a 44 / AWD would come in handy. As far as rental car costs are concerned, this depends largely on the season.

Plan Your Trip With Pickyourtrail

The amount of preparation you need to do depends in large part on the length of your journey. It is not, though, like you can’t just jump into a car and start driving. As long as you are very flexible, even without planning, you’ll be having a great time. However, whether you have a tight schedule or any of the stuff you really want to do, it can pay off doing some preparations in advance. This is where taking the help of a reputed travel agency will help. Log on to Pickyourtrail and start planning your guided budget road trip in Canada.