Canada Travel Guide - Original Travel

Canada at a glance

Discover a country that's as big as a continent. At nearly four million square miles, it's larger than China, but with only 36 million inhabitants the country has plenty of breathing space – perhaps one of the reasons why Canadians in general are so warm and welcoming. Whatever it is, with the natural beauty on offer here, visitors are in for a treat for the eyes and for the lungs. In summer everything is green, and in winter a blanket of white covers the country. To really experience Canada's wintry extremes, head to Nunavut, where you can feel the air at -40°C, sleep in an igloo as the Inuit did and go searching for the northern lights. Autumn is the best season to admire the fascinating, colourful forests in mild Indian summer-like temperatures.

If whale watching is on your wish list, visit the mouth of the Saint Lawrence River between May and October, when the plankton is plentiful and baleen whale species such as blue whales and humpbacks take centre stage. In the spring – not the best time to travel to Canada weather-wise – avoid the slush in Quebec and Ontario and focus your itinerary on Vancouver and the west coast, where the sun comes back out to play a month earlier. Here's our Canada travel guide to help plan your trip.