cruising from seattle

[martin jenkins]

hi all, am looking at adding the 15day cruise on discovery princess seattle to tokyo to my tokyo to singapore cruise next year, if wanting to visit vancouver what's the best way regarding visas for nz passport holder, have previously got an esta for the usa but how would it work going in and out of usa, thanks all

[MicCanberra]

Not sure about NZ citizens but we have previously had an Esta and currently have another and each time it has included multiple US visits as it lasts for 2 years.

[yarramar]

If you enter Canada by air you need an eTA but just your passport if coming by ship or car.

You can read what is required here.

With your US eta, you can come and go across the border by car, but need to pay each time you return to Canada. When we were at Niagara Falls, we crossed several times and the fee then was $5 either USD or CAD - go figure. I made sure that I had a CAD$5 note on me. Into the US there was no charge but much more scrutiny.

[martincath]

On 2/15/2024 at 1:05 PM, yarramar said:

If you enter Canada by air you need an eTA but just your passport if coming by ship or car.

You can read what is required here.

With your US eta, you can come and go across the border by car, but need to pay each time you return to Canada. When we were at Niagara Falls, we crossed several times and the fee then was $5 either USD or CAD - go figure. I made sure that I had a CAD$5 note on me. Into the US there was no charge but much more scrutiny.

That was the bridge toll, not a fee to enter Canada 😉 If you cross the Rainbow Bridge on foot, you pay leaving Canada; if you drive across you pay leaving the US; it's really common here for bridges and small, local ferry routes to only take fees in one direction as it cuts back on admin and infrastructure costs... these days the cost is different, CAD$6.50 but still US$5.

 

For our Kiwi OP, as long as your US ESTA has not expired you won't need to pay at any of the Vancouver-relevant land border crossings in either direction - unless you are over DutyFree allowances of course!

 

Personally I would fly into Vancouver - we have nonstops daily AKL-YVR, whereas SEA will need at least one layover for any flight from NZ - if you plan to visit before boarding a cruise in Seattle, so you would need to get a Canadian eTA for that, but just CAD$7 so not remotely significant compared to flight or cruise costs!

[willsaway]

On 2/17/2024 at 9:39 AM, martincath said:

That was the bridge toll, not a fee to enter Canada 😉 If you cross the Rainbow Bridge on foot, you pay leaving Canada; if you drive across you pay leaving the US; it's really common here for bridges and small, local ferry routes to only take fees in one direction as it cuts back on admin and infrastructure costs... these days the cost is different, CAD$6.50 but still US$5.

 

For our Kiwi OP, as long as your US ESTA has not expired you won't need to pay at any of the Vancouver-relevant land border crossings in either direction - unless you are over DutyFree allowances of course!

 

Personally I would fly into Vancouver - we have nonstops daily AKL-YVR, whereas SEA will need at least one layover for any flight from NZ - if you plan to visit before boarding a cruise in Seattle, so you would need to get a Canadian eTA for that, but just CAD$7 so not remotely significant compared to flight or cruise costs!

Hello @martincath.  Couldn't believe my eyes when I saw your profile on our local Aussie forum. You have been a phenomenal source of information all things Canadian for our two trips, 2018 and 2023. Cheers.