Vancouver and Whistler rank among Canada’s summer road-trip destinations

Vancouver and the Whistler area have appeared on Turo’s lists of leading Canadian summer road-trip destinations, according to the car-rental marketplace’s Summer Road Trip Report released July 21.

The report places Vancouver third among summer road-trip destinations, behind Toronto and ahead of Montreal. Whistler ranked seventh among Canadian outdoor road-trip stopovers, behind Tobermory/Bruce Peninsula and ahead of Banff/Jasper.

Turo said two-thirds of Canadians are planning domestic travel this summer. Bassem El-Rahimy, Turo Canada’s vice-president, said travellers are adapting plans in response to economic pressures rather than abandoning trips, with many planning several getaways and budgeting thousands of dollars.

The report says rising fuel costs, higher airfares and a softer Canadian dollar are reshaping how Canadians travel. Separately, Fairmont Chateau Whistler was named Canada’s top resort in Travel + Leisure’s 31st World’s Best Awards, which drew more than 661,000 votes.

A Zoocasa study cited in the report found Vancouver was Canada’s most expensive city for households trying to balance rent with an occasional vacation. The study used an average vacation budget of $2,278 and compared it with rents and after-tax family income in 28 Canadian metro areas.