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Sydney Morning Herald
4 days ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Everyone should have a white Christmas once – this place has my vote
From Calgary, I board the Brewster Express shuttle (where's the crystal chariot when you need one?) for the 130-kilometre drive along the Trans-Canada Highway to the Fairmont Banff Springs, my luxury home for the next three nights. Rising above the snow-dusted forest like a fantasy castle, its turrets stand stark against the looming mountain backdrop. As enchanting as it is, this grand old dame is distinctly Canadian, a testament to the nation's rail history. Built in 1888 by the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR), it was part of a strategy to boost tourism in the Rockies by creating luxury hotels in scenic spots along the rail line. 'Christmas at the Castle' begins on December 5, with an advent calendar of themed events including everything from campfire experiences to making toffee popsicles in the snow, bedtime stories with Mrs Claus to a private good night visit from Santa. Forget the Christmas card fantasy. This is a full-speed Polar Express into every storybook, Christmas movie and fairytale you've ever imagined, all wrapped in a bear hug only a Canadian can give. I enjoy maple cream cocktails beside a fire pit on a rooftop terrace, dine on prime rib Alberta beef in The Vermillion Room restaurant (the resort has 13 places to eat and drink) and soak in a thermal spa amid the snow. I could easily stay cocooned here forever, but an ice walk through Johnston Canyon – one of the signature attractions of Banff National Park – calls. It's minus 17 degrees. I have cleats strapped to my boots for grip and my new woollen thermal is making me itch like a bear in poison ivy. My progress is more awkward penguin shuffle than confident march. 'You need to show the cleats who's boss,' says our guide Neil Evans from Discover Banff Tours. We haven't even left the car park yet. We trek for an hour – past rock walls draped with icicles, over snowy bridges, and through a cave-like tunnel – to the 30-metre-tall Upper Falls, frozen in time like a winter masterpiece. At any moment, I half expect a raven to arrive with news of Winterfell. Back in Banff,the Christmas markets are filled with artisanal products and mulled wine, while the Hot Chocolate Trail leaves me buzzing from a sugar-rush. For this sweet-tooth, the winner is a toss between the toasted coconut hot chocolate served at Mountain Folk Coffee Co and the Bueno Smash at the Uprising Bake Shop. Across town, more than 30 restaurants and cafes are whipping up festive-themed hot chocolates. The highs continue that evening as I ascend Sulphur Mountain, the Banff Gondola whisking me to the summit to witness 'Nightrise', a dazzling multi-media show of lights, projections and soundscapes. Dinner at Sky Bistro is the icing on top, err, the mountain. It's under a cloud-free blue sky that I set off from Banff for the 50-minute drive to Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise, the second palace-like railway hotel in the Rockies to be built by the Canadian Pacific Railway. I've arrived early, but a Christmas miracle means not only is my room ready, but I've been upgraded to a junior lake-view suite. There's even a Christmas tree in my room. There are so many Christmas trees – standing tall in the lobby, sprouting along stairwells, forming festive forests in the hallways – each one dressed to the nines and sparkling like a Swarovski crystal. I'm torn between spending time in my room, mesmerised by the view of frozen Lake Louise, hiding out in the hotel's antiquarian bookstore or enjoying live music in the ballroom. But it's the lure of high tea in the Fairview Restaurant, with its sweeping views of the saw-toothed Rockies, that wins me over. Afterwards, I burn off the house-made scones and devilled egg sandwiches with a hike across the frozen lake, the sharp air filling my lungs as I crunch across the ice. Next, it's time for a snow-shoeing tour with a mountain guide, where we explore the hidden trails in the snowy slopes above the lake. Later in the season, sections are cleared and groomed to create a rink for ice skating and hockey. Complete with an ice bar, it's about as cool as it gets. And then there's the annual Ice Magic festival (a five-day event in late January, complimentary for hotel guests) where blocks of ice are transformed into whimsical sculptures by professional ice carvers. It's almost impossible to reconcile this frozen expanse with the emerald blue lake I've seen on summer postcards. On the way back from my snow-shoeing tour, I stop to watch a group of small children throwing snowballs – all ruddy cheeks and swaying pompoms – and for a moment, I feel the pull of my own grandchildren back home. I guess it's never too early to start planning the next festive escape. THE DETAILS STAY Fairmont Banff Springs is a landmark hotel in the heart of the Banff National Park. A Fairmont Mountain View King room starts from $C829 ($916) during December. Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise has 539 rooms and suites, with a Fairmont Mountain View King room starting from $C499 ($551) during December. The hotel is currently undergoing renovations, including a new lakeshore wellness centre due to open mid-September, 2025. See Loading TOUR Discover Banff Tours offers a four-hour Johnston Canyon ice walk, from $C99 an adult/$C62 a child ($109/68). See FLY Air Canada offers direct flights between Sydney and Brisbane to Vancouver with connections to Calgary. See
The Age
4 days ago
- The Age
Everyone should have a white Christmas once – this place has my vote
From Calgary, I board the Brewster Express shuttle (where's the crystal chariot when you need one?) for the 130-kilometre drive along the Trans-Canada Highway to the Fairmont Banff Springs, my luxury home for the next three nights. Rising above the snow-dusted forest like a fantasy castle, its turrets stand stark against the looming mountain backdrop. As enchanting as it is, this grand old dame is distinctly Canadian, a testament to the nation's rail history. Built in 1888 by the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR), it was part of a strategy to boost tourism in the Rockies by creating luxury hotels in scenic spots along the rail line. 'Christmas at the Castle' begins on December 5, with an advent calendar of themed events including everything from campfire experiences to making toffee popsicles in the snow, bedtime stories with Mrs Claus to a private good night visit from Santa. Forget the Christmas card fantasy. This is a full-speed Polar Express into every storybook, Christmas movie and fairytale you've ever imagined, all wrapped in a bear hug only a Canadian can give. I enjoy maple cream cocktails beside a fire pit on a rooftop terrace, dine on prime rib Alberta beef in The Vermillion Room restaurant (the resort has 13 places to eat and drink) and soak in a thermal spa amid the snow. I could easily stay cocooned here forever, but an ice walk through Johnston Canyon – one of the signature attractions of Banff National Park – calls. It's minus 17 degrees. I have cleats strapped to my boots for grip and my new woollen thermal is making me itch like a bear in poison ivy. My progress is more awkward penguin shuffle than confident march. 'You need to show the cleats who's boss,' says our guide Neil Evans from Discover Banff Tours. We haven't even left the car park yet. We trek for an hour – past rock walls draped with icicles, over snowy bridges, and through a cave-like tunnel – to the 30-metre-tall Upper Falls, frozen in time like a winter masterpiece. At any moment, I half expect a raven to arrive with news of Winterfell. Back in Banff,the Christmas markets are filled with artisanal products and mulled wine, while the Hot Chocolate Trail leaves me buzzing from a sugar-rush. For this sweet-tooth, the winner is a toss between the toasted coconut hot chocolate served at Mountain Folk Coffee Co and the Bueno Smash at the Uprising Bake Shop. Across town, more than 30 restaurants and cafes are whipping up festive-themed hot chocolates. The highs continue that evening as I ascend Sulphur Mountain, the Banff Gondola whisking me to the summit to witness 'Nightrise', a dazzling multi-media show of lights, projections and soundscapes. Dinner at Sky Bistro is the icing on top, err, the mountain. It's under a cloud-free blue sky that I set off from Banff for the 50-minute drive to Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise, the second palace-like railway hotel in the Rockies to be built by the Canadian Pacific Railway. I've arrived early, but a Christmas miracle means not only is my room ready, but I've been upgraded to a junior lake-view suite. There's even a Christmas tree in my room. There are so many Christmas trees – standing tall in the lobby, sprouting along stairwells, forming festive forests in the hallways – each one dressed to the nines and sparkling like a Swarovski crystal. I'm torn between spending time in my room, mesmerised by the view of frozen Lake Louise, hiding out in the hotel's antiquarian bookstore or enjoying live music in the ballroom. But it's the lure of high tea in the Fairview Restaurant, with its sweeping views of the saw-toothed Rockies, that wins me over. Afterwards, I burn off the house-made scones and devilled egg sandwiches with a hike across the frozen lake, the sharp air filling my lungs as I crunch across the ice. Next, it's time for a snow-shoeing tour with a mountain guide, where we explore the hidden trails in the snowy slopes above the lake. Later in the season, sections are cleared and groomed to create a rink for ice skating and hockey. Complete with an ice bar, it's about as cool as it gets. And then there's the annual Ice Magic festival (a five-day event in late January, complimentary for hotel guests) where blocks of ice are transformed into whimsical sculptures by professional ice carvers. It's almost impossible to reconcile this frozen expanse with the emerald blue lake I've seen on summer postcards. On the way back from my snow-shoeing tour, I stop to watch a group of small children throwing snowballs – all ruddy cheeks and swaying pompoms – and for a moment, I feel the pull of my own grandchildren back home. I guess it's never too early to start planning the next festive escape. THE DETAILS STAY Fairmont Banff Springs is a landmark hotel in the heart of the Banff National Park. A Fairmont Mountain View King room starts from $C829 ($916) during December. Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise has 539 rooms and suites, with a Fairmont Mountain View King room starting from $C499 ($551) during December. The hotel is currently undergoing renovations, including a new lakeshore wellness centre due to open mid-September, 2025. See Loading TOUR Discover Banff Tours offers a four-hour Johnston Canyon ice walk, from $C99 an adult/$C62 a child ($109/68). See FLY Air Canada offers direct flights between Sydney and Brisbane to Vancouver with connections to Calgary. See
National Post
5 days ago
- Politics
- National Post
Raymond J. de Souza: Via Rail's Toronto-to-Vancouver line tells the story of Canada
Article content Having never been north of Lake Superior, the beauty of the vast forest and innumerable lakes was entirely new to me. The reality of that Shield is omnipresent; it seemed that every half-mile or so the train slipped through narrows opened by massive blasting of the rock. Article content The political challenge required a bit of blasting too. Article content 'In the Canada of 1871, 'nationalism' was a strange, new word,' wrote Berton. 'Patriotism was derivative, racial cleavage was deep, culture was regional, provincial animosities savage and the idea of unity ephemeral.' Article content Macdonald and his allies had to promise, persuade, cajole, bully, threaten and fight their way through obstacles as tough as the rock and as high as the mountains. That they did so — and quickly, within a decade — remains improbable at 150 years distance, even though now it is a historical fact. Article content The greatness of the task summoned greatness in the men who would execute it. The cars on The Canadian are named for various heroes of our history, not limited to the CPR. There is General James Wolfe of course, with his plaque including a favourable mention of Louis-Joseph de Montcalm. Joseph Brant. David Thompson (The Canadian follows the Thompson River into the Rockies.) Article content Article content And to my delight, George Munro Grant, the 19th-century principal who made Queen's University what it became, but earlier was a protégé of Sir Sandford Fleming, who was a chief visionary for the CPR project. Sir Sanford, for good measure, developed Canada's first postage stamp and invented Standard Time — a necessity once railways sped up travel across longitudes. Article content Via Rail is bedevilled by delays as it uses the CN track, and CN's freight trains take priority. Pulling over to a siding to await a passing freight is annoying between Toronto and Ottawa. On board The Canadian it was a matter of wonder at the astonishing bounty of Canada's resources — potash, wheat, lumber, coal, oil and shipping containers, sometimes stacked one atop another, of all kinds of goods — would pass in seemingly interminable chains. Continental passenger rail may have seen its day; freight has not. Article content The traditional telling of the Canadian story is peaceable compromise, contrasted with the warmaking American character, which birthed its project in violent revolution and rebirthed it in bloody civil war. Yet when the Canadian Pacific Railway bill finally passed Parliament in 1881, Berton characterized what was to follow in martial terms. A war to liberate a country from the supremacy of the land itself was declared. Article content Article content 'Within one year an army of twelve thousand men would be marshalled to invade the North West,' Berton would write of Macdonald's great political triumph. 'Other armies would follow: ten thousand along the Fraser, twelve thousand attacking the mountain crevices, fifteen thousand blackening the face of the Shield…. The granite shield of Canada has to be cracked open to let the railway through. The mountain barrier must be breasted and broken. But the great adventure was launched.' Article content
CBC
7 days ago
- Business
- CBC
Ministers Island is latest tourist site planning to hand keys back to province
Ministers Island is the only tourist attraction in New Brunswick where visitors can drive across the ocean floor, but the tides of change threaten to overtake the historic site in Saint Andrews. The board of the charity that runs Ministers Island says it is unable to keep the popular attraction going with the $100,000 it receives for from the province for its operations budget. "We've tried everything and we've tried everything for 17 years," said John Kershaw, chair of the board of the Van Horne Estate on Ministers Island. "We've decided as a board that unless we get additional investment from the province, we are going to, in August, give six months' notice that we will not operate next year." Ministers Island, accessible only at low tide, was once owned by Sir William Van Horne, who was famous for getting the Canadian Pacific Railway built. With an admission ticket, visitors get to explore the island Van Horne once called his summer home. Popular attractions include the mansion, bathhouse, livestock barn, windmill and walking trails that cross the island from shore to shore. It is one of many historic attractions in Saint Andrews. Kershaw argues that similar historic sites in the province, including Kings Landing, receive significantly more provincial funding even though they attract comparable numbers of visitors. According to its annual report, Kings Landing gets $3.7 million as a provincial operating grant on top of other non-recurring grants from the province. "We just feel that that level of difference is just not fair," Kershaw said. These historic sites are both owned by the province and operated by external boards. Kings landing saw 34,000 visitors last year and Ministers Island saw 24,000. Does 10,000 more visitors justify millions more in funding? The New Brunswick government bought Ministers Island in 1977, and the island was declared a national historic site about 20 years later. Ever since the Van Horne Estate on Ministers Island was set up this century, every chair of the board "has been calling on the government to enhance our level of funding," Kershaw said. The board functions as a custodian for the island, overseeing operations for the province. Operational funding to the island increased to $130,000 from $33,000 in the 2019-2020 fiscal year, then moved down to $100,000 in 2020-2021, where it has stayed each year since. Funding for the island also comes from various donations and non-recurring grants. WATCH | 'We're not fiscally sustainable' Uncertain future for Ministers Island 35 minutes ago The board is only able to hire one full-time paid employee to oversee operations on the island. The rest of the work is stretched among volunteer board members and seasonal employees. Kershaw said this is not enough help to sustain the island. The Department of Tourism, Heritage and Culture did not allow CBC News to interview Tourism Minister Isabelle Theriault and sent a statement instead. Despite the board's concerns, the statement said, the department is "committed to ensuring the continued conservation and public enjoyment of Ministers Island." "We renewed the funding that had been provided in previous years that Ministers Island received in the past," Premier Susan Holt said at a recent news when asked about the site's predicament. "At this point in time, the government doesn't have additional money to put more money into those heritage sites." Holt said that "the cost to operate is going up and that's leaving them with shortfalls. About $900,000 was cut from the provincial tourism budget in March. Not the first historical site to speak out The island's board is not the first to speak out about a lack of funding in New Brunswick. MacDonald Farm in Miramichi had to close because it didn't have the money to stay open. This historical site is also owned by the government but run by the Highland Society of New Brunswick at Miramichi. "We are a completely volunteer committee that operates this site and we just felt that having to fight to keep this site open is not something that we have the energy to do anymore," said society president Dawn Lamkey MacDonald. Impact on Saint Andrews tourism The lack of funding isn't just a worry for the Ministers Island board but also for the Explore Saint Andrews, the town's tourism marketing board. "Heritage and tourism is a big part of what draws people to Saint Andrews," said Explore Saint Andrews board member James Geneau. "I would argue that Minister's Island is an attraction that has lots of opportunity with a huge audience." Ganeau said that closing the island to tourists would have a significant impact on tourism that Saint Andrew's economy desperately depends on. "Losing that is going to be significant in terms of the overall offering that Saint Andrews can provide to tourists," Geneau said. "It's part of a broader offering which makes the area a destination for not just a night, but multiple days." Saint Andrews tourism works as a collective cluster with neighbouring sites such as the Huntsman Marine Science Center, Algonquin Golf Course, and the Blockhouse supporting each other, drawing visitors to stay in town for longer.
Montreal Gazette
22-07-2025
- Politics
- Montreal Gazette
Opinion: What a family vacation taught me about Canada's strength under fire
This year, our family holidays took us to places my children had never visited before. We live in Alberta and set out to explore Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, and Quebec City. My youngest was especially eager to see the sites of battles from the War of 1812, particularly around Niagara, where American forces were halted. Meanwhile, my high-school-aged daughter was interested in visiting the universities in those cities. By chance, we joined a campus tour, and most of the prospective students were American. Some parents shared that they were encouraging their children to study in Canada due to growing concerns back home. I became a Canadian citizen through marriage just three years ago, and I'm constantly learning something new about my adopted country. This trip prompted me to reflect more deeply on Canada's past, its current challenges, and its future. While biking around Ottawa, we came across the locks of the Rideau Canal, where recreational boats moved gracefully between different water levels. I assumed most Canadian children learn about this in primary school, but I had never heard of the canal before. I was fascinated to learn how and why the 202-kilometre waterway was built. After the War of 1812, the British feared another American invasion and recognized that relying on the St. Lawrence River, running along the U.S. border, was too risky for transportation. The Rideau Canal was constructed as a secure inland route linking Lake Ontario to the Ottawa River, completed in 1832. Nearly 1,000 workers died during its construction, mostly from disease. Another aspect that left a strong impression on me was learning about the history of French Canadians, as recounted by a tour guide in Quebec City. She described the deep grievances that many Québécois still hold toward English Canada. The stories included examples of political, cultural, and economic repression following the British conquest. Let's just say that the complaints from some in my home province about being mistreated by the federal government seem minor by comparison. I enjoyed the surroundings of the iconic Château Frontenac. Built by the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) after Confederation, the Château was designed as a luxury hotel and was part of a broader strategy to promote tourism and national unity. At the time, English-speaking Canada was heavily focused on westward expansion, aiming to connect the country from coast to coast and secure British Columbia's place in Confederation amid fears of an American invasion. However, many in Quebec were skeptical of the project, raising geographical, cultural, and economic concerns. To gain support in the province, the CPR made strategic decisions, one of which involved extending the railway to Quebec City and constructing the opulent Château, which opened in 1893. The hotel became both a symbol of the railway's ambition and a political gesture to more closely integrate Quebec into the new Canada. It may have even provided a job for our guide, though she didn't mention this during the tour. The Rideau Canal and the Château Frontenac are more than just beautiful landmarks. They remind us of a time when bold decisions were made to secure Canada's future. These projects can still inspire us today to modernize our national innovation system — from infrastructure and regulation to how the public and private sectors, along with society, collaborate. We need to take a clear-eyed look at the real risks we face and act accordingly. Accelerating progress was no easy feat for early Canadians; nonetheless, they managed to set priorities and get things done. Perhaps it's just a coincidence, but since the completion of the Rideau Canal and Château Frontenac, Canada has not faced a direct attack from the United States. Today, there are no muskets or cannons, but we are in a serious struggle to defend our economy and sovereignty. The challenges are different, but the need for bold, co-ordinated action is just as urgent.
