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MMDown Under Holiday Sharing Rare

MMDown Under

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I was very disappointed by my VIA rail trip from Toronto to Vancouver.  It tended to stop in the middle of nowhere then to rush past spectacular views and cut short scheduled stops in interesting towns.  Fortunately I had travelled across by Greyhound Bus so got to enjoy the scenery previously.
You might like to consider the train from

Sydney to Perth or visa versa during your travels Down Under.  I loved that train trip.

I used to catch the Sunlander to North Queensland annually, which is where I developed my love of train travel.

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lyndarra Holiday Sharing Rare

lyndarra

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Posted (edited)
7 hours ago, MMDown Under said:

I was very disappointed by my VIA rail trip from Toronto to Vancouver.  It tended to stop in the middle of nowhere then to rush past spectacular views and cut short scheduled stops in interesting towns.  Fortunately I had travelled across by Greyhound Bus so got to enjoy the scenery previously.
You might like to consider the train from

Sydney to Perth or visa versa during your travels Down Under.  I loved that train trip.

I used to catch the Sunlander to North Queensland annually, which is where I developed my love of train travel.

Your stoppages were most likely having to give way to freight trains - they have priority - then Vial Rail has to make up time where they can, e.g. cutting short on stops.There's nothing Via Rail can do about it.

I have done the shorter Via Rail overnighter Jasper/Vancouver and enjoyed it.

We travelled to Jasper by coach from Calgary. Very scenic and good stops along the way. Better than going by rail.

 

 

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Edited by lyndarra
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Aussieflyer

Aussieflyer

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7 hours ago, MMDown Under said:

I was very disappointed by my VIA rail trip from Toronto to Vancouver.  It tended to stop in the middle of nowhere then to rush past spectacular views and cut short scheduled stops in interesting towns.  Fortunately I had travelled across by Greyhound Bus so got to enjoy the scenery previously.
You might like to consider the train from

Sydney to Perth or visa versa during your travels Down Under.  I loved that train trip.

I used to catch the Sunlander to North Queensland annually, which is where I developed my love of train travel.

The Indian Pacific is a great trip though the section from Sydney to past Broken Hill has very poor rail beds and is both very bumpy and also a lot of stopping and starting for goods trains. The limited Adelaide - Brisbane and VV (for when the Ghan doesn't run) looks good and is on our agenda at some stage. I have travelled a lot for work in the NT and Centre so the Ghan holds less appeal for us.

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MicCanberra Holiday Sharing Rare

MicCanberra

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5 minutes ago, possum52 said:

Congratulations Mic. How's the achilles?

Cheers,  my lower leg, ankle and foot are still swollen and still a bit sore, I am hobbling along when I have to but am on the mend. Going into the game injured and then getting hit in the same spot again didn't help.

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possum52

possum52

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1 minute ago, MicCanberra said:

Cheers,  my lower leg, ankle and foot are still swollen and still a bit sore, I am hobbling along when I have to but am on the mend. Going into the game injured and then getting hit in the same spot again didn't help.

No, it wouldn't have helped at all. At least you won the GF. 🙂

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Mareblu Holiday Sharing Rare

Mareblu

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30 minutes ago, MicCanberra said:
31 minutes ago, MicCanberra said:

Cheers,  my lower leg, ankle and foot are still swollen and still a bit sore, I am hobbling along when I have to but am on the mend. Going into the game injured and then getting hit in the same spot again didn't help.

Ouch😫

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Mareblu Holiday Sharing Rare

Mareblu

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38 minutes ago, Aussieflyer said:

The Indian Pacific is a great trip though the section from Sydney to past Broken Hill has very poor rail beds and is both very bumpy and also a lot of stopping and starting for goods trains. The limited Adelaide - Brisbane and VV (for when the Ghan doesn't run) looks good and is on our agenda at some stage. I have travelled a lot for work in the NT and Centre so the Ghan holds less appeal for us.

Indian Pacific is on our agenda…one day😊

Years ago, when our children were very young, we did the Queenslander from Brisbane to Cairns, with our 4x loaded on the rear car trays.  A superb experience:  comfortable beds and seats, exquisite fine dining.  It was a relatively new service then, and I think has now evolved into a different offering.  Correction welcome, as I’m not sure of that.

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MMDown Under Holiday Sharing Rare

MMDown Under

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My favourite rail trip in Canada was from

Prince Rupert overnight journey to Jasper.  You book overnight accommodation in Prince George before getting back on train in time for breakfast.  We spent time in Prince Rupert

and Jasper.  We caught the scenic ferry to Prince Rupert from Vancouver Island.

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OzKiwiJJ Great Review Rare

OzKiwiJJ

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3 hours ago, Mareblu said:

Indian Pacific is on our agenda…one day😊

Years ago, when our children were very young, we did the Queenslander from Brisbane to Cairns, with our 4x loaded on the rear car trays.  A superb experience:  comfortable beds and seats, exquisite fine dining.  It was a relatively new service then, and I think has now evolved into a different offering.  Correction welcome, as I’m not sure of that.

We did the Queenslander in 2009. The Queenslander carriages - pullman sleepers, lounge/bar and dining - were attached to the Sunlander train. It was as good as the Indian Pacific was when we did that a few years earlier. 

 

They don't run the Queenslander anymore. I believe whatever has replaced it has airline-style reclining seats, rather than sleeper compartment carriages, which wouldn't be anywhere near as nice. 

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Blackduck59

Blackduck59

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We are home safe and sound but both have a nasty cold. I think Lynn is about over it but I'm still suffering. Hopefully I will be over it by Monday, I'm supposed to be back at work then.

It was a nice cruise, we look forward our next one but it is so far away. I have discovered one thing, we will not be able to do is an extremely long haul flight so it will be broken into stages. We will probably stop in Hawaii both directions. I'm also not sure I can handle the small commuter planes to get off the island, I had a very bad claustrophobic moment waiting for the rest of the passengers to board in Vancouver. The flight details are going to be critical for the down under trip.

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possum52

possum52

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7 hours ago, Blackduck59 said:

We are home safe and sound but both have a nasty cold. I think Lynn is about over it but I'm still suffering. Hopefully I will be over it by Monday, I'm supposed to be back at work then.

It was a nice cruise, we look forward our next one but it is so far away. I have discovered one thing, we will not be able to do is an extremely long haul flight so it will be broken into stages. We will probably stop in Hawaii both directions. I'm also not sure I can handle the small commuter planes to get off the island, I had a very bad claustrophobic moment waiting for the rest of the passengers to board in Vancouver. The flight details are going to be critical for the down under trip.

Sorry to hear you both came back unwell. We were away this week in country Victoria and came back with colds as well. 

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Blackduck59

Blackduck59

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16 minutes ago, MicCanberra said:

Scotch always helps me recover from colds quicker.

I'm starting to think that a hot buttered rum is in my near future because tea with honey isn't cutting it. I think I have some Appleton's I don't mind mixing, I never did acquire a taste for Scotch.

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possum52

possum52

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9 hours ago, lyndarra said:

First blow fly just buzzed in through the back door. 🪰

Seems like we missed spring and gone straight into summer.

 

We had one come in the front door this afternoon and it wasn't summer like in Melbourne.

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