Amtrak resumes service to Vancouver, BC after 2-year hiatus due to border restrictions
Sep 26, 2022, 11:49 AM | Updated: 12:08 pm
(Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
(Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
The daily Amtrak train to Vancouver, B.C. is back up and running as of Monday after more than 2 years on hiatus.
Amtrak originally announced in August that they will be restarting their service to Canada on the Amtrak Cascades train.
The route was indefinitely canceled in 2020 with the closure of the U.S.-Canada border at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Canadian border will no longer require tests for vaccinated travelers
The first train will leave Seattle at 7:45 a.m. and stop in five cities on its first trip to Vancouver, arriving at 11:45 a.m., before making the return trip back to Seattle from 5:45 p.m. to 10:10 p.m.
Currently, this route is expected to run daily, but plans for a second daily route are in the works once staffing and equipment allow.
The Amtrak Cascades service also offers three daily round trips between Portland, Oregon, and Seattle and two daily round trips between Eugene, Oregon, and Portland.
Amtrak also offers two daily buses between Bellingham and Seattle, as well as four daily buses between Seattle and Vancouver.
For those looking to take the new train between Seattle and Vancouver, non-Canadian citizen passengers will have to wear masks in Canadian stations and on the trains themselves while traveling through Canada. They must also be fully vaccinated and carry the vaccination record that was uploaded into the ArriveCAN app.
Tickets can be purchased at Amtrak.com, AmtrakCascades.com, the Amtrak app, Amtrak ticket desks and kiosks, and by calling 1-800-USA-RAIL.
