Should I Travel Alone?

Is it better to travel alone or as part of a group?

That's a common question people ask when they first consider travelling.

And of course, the answer is "It depends!"

It usually is safer to travel as a group but safety shouldn't be your only concern. 

Travelling is supposed to be fun! 

Remember, you are on vacation, after all. 

So let's focus on yourself for a few minutes...

What's your temperament? 

Where do you stand on the introvert/extrovert continuum?

The what???

Extroverts are energized by the external world - by activities, people, places, and things. They are more likely to want to travel in large groups and meet new people.

On the other hand, introverts draw energy from their internal world of ideas, emotions, and impressions. They are more likely to prefer exploring on their own or with a very small group of close friends.

If you are an extrovert, you probably wouldn't have even considered travelling alone but if you're temperament is more inclined towards the introvert side of the scale, you might have a tougher time deciding. But don't worry. You are not alone!

Travelling alone has its advantages.

You can do things at your own pace with fewer distractions.
Squeeze into a busy restaurant.
Assimilate into the local environment more easily.

But it can also suck at times.
You'll need to rely on strangers to take your photo. (Joby can only help you so much).
And perhaps most importantly, there will likely be no one special to share those special moments with.

But if you are an introvert, you might be willing to accept these risks and see travelling alone as an opportunity to recharge yourself because travelling with others, even those you know and care about, may take you out of your preferred element. Combine this with the stress involved with travelling, and you may place your relationships into jeopardy.

With that in mind, here are two books I suggest both introverts and extroverts read to have a better understanding of how people with different temperaments perceive social situations. You'll end up having a better appreciation of those around you as you'll be less likely to make snap judgments of one's character which could lead to misunderstandings and lost opportunities.

So is it better to travel alone or as part of a group?
It depends but I think that deep down inside, you already know the answer.

Maligne Canyon

My stayover in Jasper was scheduled to be less than 24 hours. Not much time to spend exploring Jasper National Park in any great detail. So instead of renting a car, I ventured out on a guided tour of Maligne Canyon. A quick google search revealed that while the canyon could be explored on your own, many reviewers commented on the fact that it is better to go with an experienced guide, primarily for safety reasons.

After meeting up at the tour company's office, we were whisked away in a company van from downtown Jasper and made our way along the Parks Canada trail atop Maligne Canyon. From this perspective, you get to look down into the canyon while enjoying the view of the mountains in the distance. Nice but definitely not worth the price of the tour. Luckily, it did not end there. We slipped under a peeled back chain-linked fence and made our way into the canyon to explore this geological masterpiece from a level that would be underwater in just a few short weeks.

Not only did we get to see some unique ice formations,

touch frozen waterfalls,

walk behind frozen waterfalls,

but our tour guide snuck us into a "secret" cave that the other our groups in the canyon overlooked that morning...

We then continued our way up the canyon to explore the amazing rock formations

It's no wonder why some people get married in this natural cathedral...

Unfortunately, we reached a waterfall that blocked us ice walk rookies from going any further 

so we headed on back to civilization.

So were the reviewers right?

The Maligne Canyon is definitely worth visiting during the winter months but is it dangerous to explore it on your own? From what I witnessed during my visit, it's not dangerous as long as you use common sense. That being said, common sense doesn't appear to be that common so you'll have to use your own judgement as to how you would like to spend your hard-earned money. In my case, I chose to spend my money on the tour instead of renting a car, just because the cost was about the same and the tour included the ride to and from the canyon. If I have the opportunity to do it again, I'd try to head down to the canyon around the arrival time of one of the tour groups and explore the canyon at my own pace with the assurance that trained professional guides are nearby. But then again, that's only me and what I saw that day. For what it's worth, I felt that last spring's Athabasca Glacier Icewalk provided bigger bang for my buck. Nevertheless, the Maligne Canyon Walk was an interesting albeit short experience. I guess I'll have to leave the more advance ice climbing adventure for another time.

The Exclusive Panoramic Park Car on VIA Rail

When travelling in the Sleeper Plus Class of VIA Rail's The Canadian, not only do you have access to the Economy Class' panoramic Skyline Car but you also have exclusive accessibility to the Park Car.

Ooh, that sounds impressive! And yes, it does. Since you have access to the two panoramic observation decks available on the train, the probability of you having a chance to sit down and enjoy the 360-degree views of your surroundings on your way across Canada increases dramatically. This is a big deal, especially in the Rockies, where it seems as though almost everyone wants to grab a seat in the scenic dome section. The seats are on a first-come, first-served basis so depending on the ambitions of your fellow travelers, you may be out of luck if your timing isn't right.  Luckily, most people come and go, especially during meal times, when there is a steady rotation of seats as people head to the Dinner Car.

To provide you a better idea of what to expect, here are a couple of photos of the observation deck of the Park Car...

and its older, non-renovated sibling that I rode on the way back...

Interestingly enough, the differences between the two Park Cars appeared to be simply cosmetic with reupholstered seats and walls, and newer finishes as opposed to one car being newer than the other from what I could gather. Based on the date stamps on the corners of the windows, both cars seemed to have windows from the same era so if you could care less about looks, they're practically the same.

Now heading downstairs, you have access to two lounges serviced by the bar.

Other than taking the photographs below, I spent no time in the Mural Lounge since it was an enclosed area with no large, exterior windows to view the great outdoors but I suppose this would be a decent place to chill and play cards or chat once darkness hits.

I never saw the television actually playing anything other than a blue screen or TV noise during the trip so I can't comment any further on its functionality but don't forget to head down to the bar upon your departure from Vancouver for a glass of champagne!

A better place to mingle would be to hang out in the Bullet Lounge where you have slightly better views despite the fact that the seats are angled towards the centre of the room.

This is also the place to grab some coffee, tea, water, juice, fruit, and the occasionally served cookie, biscuit, or muffin in between meals. Just remember, if seating is full in the upstairs dome, you can always try your luck closer to the front of the train at the Skyline Car.

Eating on the Train

One of the perks of travelling in the Sleeper Plus Class on VIA Rail's The Canadian train is the food. Delicious meals are prepared on-board and served in the Dinner Car so there is little need to worry about food but more on this later. As mentioned in the previous post, my train was delayed so I unfortunately missed out on the on-board dinner, much to my disappointment, thus it is still a mystery to me.

There are a number of tables set up in the Dinner Car, and upon your entry, you'll be asked for your party size and seated accordingly. While the Car's interior could have been more grandiose, like one would imagine it was back in the railway's glory years, it was more than adequate for its intended purpose.

If there is less than four in your party, the dining room set-up takes you back to a more social era when strangers got together to share thoughts and experiences while dining on fine cuisine in a relaxed, peaceful environment. Reminiscent of the good old days, you would take part in typically conversations about the beautiful scenery, your travel experiences, and the weather, in addition to timely and potentially heated debates about politics, the future of energy, and the upcoming water crisis. Yes, those were all topics that came about when four strangers got together for lunch at my table. Those of you who know me will know that most of the time, I'm a man of few words but as much as these opinionated discussions intrigued me, I excused myself from the table as soon as possible to spend as much time as possible enjoying the majestic scenery of the Rocky Mountains from the SkyLine Car. While the Dining Car has windows like the other cars on the train, it cannot compare to the viewing possibilities from the SkyLine Car. Not that I'm anti-social but I did spend good coin for this trip and I was going to enjoy it on my terms as much as possible.

Anyways, back to the food.

If you're like me, you value a good, quality meal, and if you're a picky eater like me, you're always fearful of what weird, mushy concoction you'll get when you're stuck with no cuisine alternatives. To my surprise, the meals were tasty, well presented, and offered over several sittings so that not everyone would be in the Dining Car all at once.

The breakfast menu offered some interesting options:

including the Banana Pecan Pancakes:

Served with real Canadian maple syrup, of course.... Scrumptious indeed!

The Lunch menu looked just as interesting, if not more so:

with the Angus Burger in fresh form

with the dessert option of ice cream or layered cake:

As previously mentioned, there are no dinner photos to show since I didn't get to eat dinner on the train. Since the train was late, I received a $25 voucher to use at a local restaurant in Jasper. But the voucher had several catches. You could not get any cash back, the voucher could not be used to purchase any alcoholic beverages (fine with me) or cover gratuities. It also didn't help that most things on the menu were over $25 but I guess it was a small price to pay to get to spend extra time in Jasper.

That being said, the train trip back to Vancouver ended up including only one meal despite the fact that we didn't arrive at our destination until 5 pm. Instead of serving breakfast, "brunch" was served from 7am to around 1:30 pm with several of the menu items not available.

Being told that we arrived in Vancouver by 2pm at the latest, I sprang up early for breakfast / brunch.  Too bad, you could only go for "brunch" once because I was starving by the end of the trip. Apples can only take a man so far over the rest of the day! So be sure to pack something a little extra for your trip as an emergency food ration in case you get in a similar situation.

VIA Rail Sleeper Plus Class - Cabin for One

Upon boarding the train, I was informally offered an upgrade to a private cabin by a VIA Rail crew member.  Of course I'll take it! After trying the Upper Berth on my trip to Jasper and the almost 11 hour departure delay, I was more than willing to accept the offer.

According to the VIA Rail web site, a cabin for one on The Canadian has the following features:

Room size: 6 ft. 5 in. x 3 ft. 7½ in. (196 cm x 110 cm)
Mattress size: 5 ft. 11 in. x 2 ft. 6 in. (180 cm x 76 cm)
- Room from mattress to partition when bed is down is 2 in. (5 cm)
- Bed narrows down from 23 in. (58 cm) wide to 14 in. (36 cm) at the foot of the bed
Private toilet (bed covers toilet at night)
Sink over toilet and full mirror
Access to shower at the end of the car
Daytime: sofa chair
Night-time: lower bed pulls out from wall and upper bed pulls down from wall
Door locks from inside only (no individual keys)
Baggage space is a small area
Window with blind
Other amenities: fan, shoe closet, air-conditioning, drinking water, paper and towels, pillows, sheets and blankets supplied, 110 VAC outlet.

Here's how it looks in the "daytime" configuration:

but when you pull out the Murphy bed,

your room automagically turns into a bedroom,

 Waking up in the morning's pretty sweet...

If money isn't an object, this would be the way to go. Viewing the early spring mountain scenery under the clear starry sky and full moon was surreal, especially if you could take it all in while lying on a relatively comfy bed.  (Disclaimer: The train left Jasper after 1 am so the regular train schedule wasn't followed. This part of the trip would usually take place during afternoon and evening hours)

If you're looking for a cheaper option, I would assume the lower berth would provide a similar viewing experience with its available window but the ample height and ability to quickly convert the room between daytime and night-time configurations without crew member assistance put the private cabin option over the top. That being said, you should be aware that the bed drops down and covers your private toilet so if you want to use the toilet in the middle of the night, you'll have to release the Murphy bed back into the wall to take a leak or head down the train car to the shared washroom. 

Anyways, time to visit the Dining Car for breakfast!

VIA Rail Sleeper Plus Class - Berths, Shower, Washroom

In the last post, we had a glimpse of VIA Rail's Economy Class offering on The Canadian.

So is it worth paying extra for VIA's Sleeper Plus Class?

Let's have a look and you can be the judge...

First off, there are a number of available accommodation options. I was fortunate enough to personally try two of them so I'll be focusing on those two plus the amenities they share.

In this post, I will showcase the berth configuration that is suitable for one person.

According to the VIA Rail web site, a berth features:
A mattress approximately 5 ft. 10 in. x 3 ft. 7 in. (178 cm x 109 cm) in size
- Room from mattress to partition is 5 in. (152 cm)
- Foot end of mattress has 10 in. (12.7 cm) radius
Public washroom facilities in same car
Access to shower facilities
Daytime: one wide couch-style seat facing another seat (other berth's seat)
Night-time: folds out into bed at night, with heavy curtains for privacy
Other amenities: pillows, sheets and blankets, table available from on-board personnel.

That's all fine and dandy but what does it really look like?  Well, let's sneak a peek:

Here's the daytime configuration:

and then when it's time to go to bed, the crew member transforms this area into two beds, one above the other, and the hallway ends up looking like this...

Yes, those are ladders to reach your bed (if you're in the Upper Berth):

while the Lower Berth looks like this:

Those plastic bags contain towels, shampoo, and soap

for your showering adventure in the on-board shower room

While the shower facility is a nice to have, especially on the longer trek from Toronto to Vancouver, it isn't all that easy to use for the taller people on the train. I'm around 6'1" and the shower head was below my shoulders. Not very useful for such a confined space.  Someone made the comment that VIA Rail should have showers at its train stations as an alternative which seems like a good idea considering the train stops at some stations for an hour or more.

Don't worry. That creepy camera guy hiding in the shower stall won't be there!

At this point, you're probably wondering how the washroom stacks up against the one found on the PeruRail train to Machu Picchu. Well, luckily for you, I took a few pics of the shared washroom facility to quell your curiosity!

And yes, you've come to the right spot: A shot of one of the toilets on board the VIA Rail The Canadian train.

So which berth would I pick if I were to do it again?  The Upper or Lower Berth?

The Upper Berth offers a convenient stretchy catch-all mini-hammock where you can store things (like books and eyeglasses) and provides you with more privacy and less interruptions from people passing by. That being said, there was no window so you have no idea what's going on outside.


While I did not have the opportunity to sleep in the Lower Berth, I think the convenience of not worrying about using the ladder in the dark along with the ability to look out the window more than compensates for the unique features of the Upper Berth. That probably explains why the Upper Berth is the cheaper of the two berths but yeah, if you can spare the few extra bucks, you might want to splurge on the Lower Berth if these two things are important to you as you otherwise have equal accessibility to the train's amenities.

In the next post, I'll show you what a private cabin looks like...

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