Texas to Canada -- Help!

[Road Bebe]

Hi y'all --

Me and my friends are planning a (short) trip in August to Canada from Houston. Possibly Toronto or Montreal. I'm a total newbie when it comes to roadtrip so I'm looking for suggestions on the route to take. I used Yahoo! Maps to chart directions, and it asked me to go east to New Orleans and all the way up...does this route have anything to offer?

Any suggestions would be welcome. We look to make the trip in 4-5 days. Thanks and happy raod trippin'!

-bebe

I have driven from Victoria, TX to Toronto area twice so far. I don't think it is possible to do in 4-5 days. The drive itself usually takes 28-30 hrs. It can be even more depending on construction. Both times we went there was an accident closing (completely) the 401 into Toronto. Montreal is quite a bit further than Toronto. My daughter and I are driving to Toronto this summer and are going to try going through Dallas/Chicago this time. Anyway, if you have more time it is a great trip. You really should see Niagara Falls if you haven't before.

[Quebec Gen]

Hi,
If I were you, I would go to Montreal instead of Toronto, Montreal is a very ecclectic city and you will experience a lot more variety than in Toronto. Montreal is very open-minded, you can dance 'til you drop from 11 a.m. to 8 the next morning, you can visit the Latin quarter and try speaking french, people are usually very comprehensive, friendly...and bilingual:-)) It's also so much cheaper than Toronto! You can dine in nice restaurants from as low as 10CAN$ and sleep in a cute B&B for 45CAN$. There's also less traffic approaching Montreal, even in rush hours (which are approx from 6:30-8:30a.m./4:00-6:00 on weekdays). It's not that Toronto is not nice (I wouldn't want to offence my beloved neighbors:-)), but I think it's not that different from United States (language, people, food) and I enjoy a little change sometimes don't you?

To come to Montreal, you have many options, but I would suggest you avoid Upper NY State and take a little detour by Vermont, there are so many beautiful sceneries and less traffic.

Have a nice trip,
Gen:-)

I drove from Barrie (1 hr north of Toronto) by myself to Texas a couple years ago. Definitely CAN be driven in 4-5 days. That's plenty of time. Especially if you have more than one driver.

I came through Detroit & went over to Oklahoma City & down to Carlsbad Caverns before entering Texas, so my route wouldn't be quite the same as yours.

Toronto & area has a lot to do & see. Montreal is another 6 - 9 hours from Toronto (for us) depending how fast you "speed".

Let us know how much time you have altogether for the whole trip & what your interests are... then we can help you more.

[Mark Sedenquist]

Gen,

We are still waiting for your final trip report!