Best Time To Travel To: Canada
Canada is the second largest country on earth. It stretches between 42° and 83° north with a north-south extension of up to 4,500km and an east-west extension of up to 5,000km. Large parts of the country are in the arctic zone, only a relatively small part of the country at the southern border towards the USA and the the west around British Columbia is in a somewhat moderate climatically zone.
It is said that the weather in Canada gets better and more pleasant from the 50th degree of latitude east and the 55th degree of latitude west. Winters in Canada can be really freezing cold, in the mid-east and east blizzards make it even more difficult. The coastal areas in the north are usually surrounded by ice all year round. An exception is Hudson Bay, which is usually surrounded by ice for only about 9 months. In contrast, the coastal regions of British Columbia on the Pacific, those of Newfoundland on the Atlantic, and the provinces to the south of the St. Lawrence Gulf (St. Lawrence Current) are considerably warmer.
Southern Canada is frequently affected by low-pressure systems. They pass over the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence valley areas and then continue toward the Atlantic Ocean. In addition to the Arctic cold still acting here, the low pressure areas bring further cold across the country. As mentioned above, the part to the west in British Columbia is influenced by the more pleasant marine climate of the Pacific. That means concretely: relatively mild winters with moderately warm summers. The influences here also extend somewhat inland, especially into the valley areas. Winters here are comparatively milder and summers pleasantly warm. Rain falls year-round, most of it in winter. Winter temperatures in the Atlantic area are also more pleasant than inland. However, the summers here are relatively cool overall due to cool currents from the Labrador Islands. Basically, though, you can already see how different the climatic conditions are by looking at the so-called Canadian West (The West). This West is roughly described as everything west of Ontario and includes the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. British Columbia, as mentioned above, is primarily oceanic with relatively mild winters and moderately warm summers. Alberta is under the influence of the Rockies. Winters are clearly pronounced with good snowfall, but they are not as harsh. This in turn usually allows for good winter sports conditions in Alberta. But the conditions are also very changeable. In January or February, for example, foehn warmth can quickly have a negative effect on the snow conditions, but it can suddenly snow heavily again in April or May. The conditions in Saskatchewan and Manitoba are completely different from British Columbia and Alberta. Here one must speak of a continental climate. This means: not infrequently bitterly cold winters, but also often very warm to hot summers.
In inland Canada, summers can often be surprisingly warm anyway due to the continental climate. But they are also often very short, in return the winters are quite long and usually cold. The same is true for the northern regions of Canada, which definitely know warm but quite short summers. Winters are even colder here, permafrost is quite common.
More detailed considerations to the regions of Canada
Eastern Canada (with Newfoundland, Labrador coasts, Nova Scotia, NewBrunswick and Prince Edward Island)
These regions are the parts of Canada that enjoy a comparatively pleasant climate under the influence of the Atlantic Ocean. Winters are usually not as severe as in other parts. On the other hand, summers are somewhat cooler than inland areas. The region is one of the areas in Canada that receives the least amount of sunshine during the year and it is also the region with the most changeable weather in Canada. In principle, one must expect relatively rapid climatic changes throughout the year, often from one day to the next. Even if the winters are not that cold, they are usually snowy and the snow can stay for some time. By the way, relatively often in the whole region you have to reckon with fog moving into the country from the sea. The reason is the clash of warm Gulf currents and cold Labrador currents. The Grand Banks area in southern Newfoundland is one of the foggiest areas in the world. Also not uncommon is the unmediated appearance of icebergs even in summer. Typical areas under the influence of the marine climate would include St. John's and Halifax. More typical of the inland region would be Chatham, for example.
South and Central Quebec and Ontario
This region is located in the south of Canada, where it borders the United States and the Great Lakes. It is the warmest part of Canada, which is probably why it is also the most densely populated area in Canada. Even though it is quite warm here, you have to expect crisp winters every now and then. It is warmer in winter in Toronto, for example, than in Ottawa and Quebec. The precipitation in winter normally comes down as snow. Interestingly, this is one of the snowiest areas in North America. You can expect a good snowpack from mid-December to mid-March. Summers are generally pleasantly warm with up to new hours of sunshine a day. Overall, however, conditions in the south are also very changeable. Cold periods can start or end sometimes earlier or sometimes later. Likewise, one must expect considerable amounts of precipitation throughout the year. Typical for the region would be e.g. the climate tables of Ottawa, Quebec and Toronto.
The Prairies
The Prairies are usually the Canadian provinces of Alberta (with Edmonton and Calgary), Manitoba (with Winnipeg) and Saskatchewan (with Saskatoon and Regina). They are often combined politically with British Columbia as the West of Canada (The West). The Prairies lie between the western shores of Lake Superior and the Rockies. This region has a predominantly continental climate (especially Saskatchewan and Manitoba). Winters here are usually quite severe and long. Summers are quite short, but very warm. Rain does not actually fall much in summer - if it does, then in fairly short and heavy bursts. The absence of inter-seasons is striking, i.e. there are practically no seasons between summer and winter. After nice summer weather, winter can suddenly start. Likewise, winter can be replaced by summer weather from one moment to the next. In contrast to Winnipeg, Saskatoon or Edmonton, Alberta with Calgary is often under the influence of the foehn wind Chinook. Thus, it can always be warmer there in January and February than anywhere else in the Prairies. Above all, the Chinook can melt away snow relatively quickly.
Canada's West
The west is a relatively mountainous region, plus there is a coastline on the Pacific Ocean. The highest peaks reach up to 4,000 meters. They are located mainly in the coastal mountains and the foothills of the Rockies. Between the coastal mountains and the Rockies are some valleys and plateaus. Because of these different locations, one has to expect very different conditions in the region. The mountains of the coasts have quite high precipitation. Above 1,200 meters it often comes down as snow. On the other hand, the valleys usually have quite low precipitation. On the coasts of British Columbia and the islands in front of it, there is an oceanic climate with mild winter weather. In winter, however, one must always expect cloudy days, and on the coasts fog. It is not very sunny then. In summer, however, you can expect nine hours of sunshine a day in the west. Regardless of the often changing conditions, the west is considered a climatically pleasant region. Especially the coasts often have very good conditions with mild winters and summers that are not too humid. Typical of coastal conditions would be Vancouver's climate table, for example. Prince George would be an example of a place in one of the inland valleys.
The North of Canada
The North with the Yukon, the Northwest Territories as well as the northern parts of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and Québec covers almost two thirds of Canada. Climatically, it is arguably the cold chamber of Canada. Due to the harsh climatic conditions, the country is not very suitable for agriculture and not least because of this, the north is quite sparsely populated. In the south of this region you find a lush forested area, in the north there is a kind of tundra. Here, snow normally lies for a good nine months of the year. Then in the far north are the year-round snow and ice covered islands of the Arctic Archipelago. Typical of the harsh conditions would be, for example, the climate tables of Churchill, Norman Wells and of Arctic Bay. From the tables of Churchill and Normal Wells one can also see that summer temperatures can rise relatively sharply for short periods. However, it must be said that the conditions in summer are also always accompanied by quite changeable weather. And basically, snow and frost can always come when cold polar winds blow across the country. In the north, you basically have to expect permafrost anyway. While the upper layers of the ground are covered with snow, the layers below are usually frozen. This permafrost region extends to an imaginary line from northwest to southeast from the Yukon to the southern shores of Hudson Bay and then east to coastal Labrador.
When is the best time to go to Canada
For many visitors, the best time to visit Canada (excluding the north) is in September and October, when the Indian Summer colors the landscape. However, many travelers also recommend May and June as the best time to travel to Canada. For winter sports enthusiasts, the best time to travel is probably between November and March, similar to Central Europe. The North can be interesting in the period of the the short warm summers between June and August (though mosquitoes may be a problem). September in the north can be interesting but sometimes it's somewhat cool then.
