Generally speaking, I'd consider myself a budget-friendly traveler. If there's a bus or train I can get instead of an Uber or going to the hassle of hiring a car abroad, I'll choose public transport every time. So, when I was planning my trip to the Pacific Northwest, I immediately looked into the Greyhound routes between Vancouver and Washington State.
My itinerary had me staying with a friend in Washington State's capital, Olympia, also the gateway to Rainier National Park. At the time, there was a direct bus between the two, but nowadays, you'd have to change buses in nearby Seattle. The Vancouver to Seattle bus takes anywhere from three and a half hours to four and a half hours to complete, and that's including the time it takes to cross the US-Canadian border.
However, when I booked my ticket and boarded the bus in Vancouver, I wasn't sure what to expect at the border crossing. Having grown up in the U.K. and traveling by coach in a pre-Brexit Europe, border crossings were largely fine and didn't require excess thought. However, with the U.S.'s strict border control and growing tensions with its neighbor, this would be another experience entirely.
What Happens At The U.S. & Canada's Greyhound Border Crossing?
While some experiences vary, the process is pretty much the same whether you're coming into the U.S. or going back north to Canada. Once you arrive at the border crossing - in my case, the Peace Arch crossing just outside Blaine - you need to gather up all your stuff and take it inside, including hand luggage and luggage under the bus. There are some crossings into the U.S. where they tell you to leave your luggage in the underside of the bus and your hand luggage onboard, as they scan the bus as a whole. However, we had to take our stuff with us.
You walk together to a small building where the border crossing runs a lot like it does at an airport. You get your bags scanned and your documents checked. If you have any additional visas or paperwork that you need to exit and enter the U.S. or Canada, you'll need to bring it with you. You'll also be asked a couple of questions about your purpose in the country, where you're staying, and when you're leaving if you're not a resident or citizen.
Even if you're traveling between a state where cannabis or marijuana is legal and a province in Canada where it's also legal, you still cannot take these products across international borders; this is illegal, and you will be detained if you're caught.
I printed all my confirmations for my onward travel and had my friend send me her address in advance for this section. I'd highly recommend doing this, as mobile data at these locations can be spotty if you have to look it up while you're there. It's worth noting that officials process one bus at a time, so if there are a couple of buses in the queue, you might be waiting on board at the border for longer. You also need to make sure you eat all of your fruit and veggies before you get off the bus, as you can't bring fresh produce with you. This includes raw meat or any products that could contain pests.
What Documents Do I Need At The Border?
At the border, you'll be asked for a few different documents. Of course, you'll need your in-date passport. If you're visiting, you'll need your visa, ETA, or ESTA details. ESTAs are needed for land or air entry into the U.S., while ETAs are needed for entry into Canada. Both ETAs and ESTAs work in the same way; you apply online and pay a small amount to stay as a tourist. For the U.S., this is up to 90 days per stay, while for Canadian ETAs, it's up to six months per stay.
While many places will take your biometric data to check your visa and ESTA status, it's worth bringing a paper printout as a backup, just in case. On my bus, there were people and families with whole binders of documents. You'll also need proof of onward travel, and you may need proof of where you're staying while in the U.S. or Canada. Essentially, anything you'd usually require when going through airport border control, you'll need here.
Some border crossings are more stringent than others and may ask for more documentation, and others will take your word for it if you know your dates and addresses. It's best to have printed proof just in case. Much like at the airports, you'll get your passport stamped and your entry into the country will be registered. The documents you need for a Greyhound or FlixBus road crossing are pretty much the same. I've been on border crossings in the Eastern U.S. and Canada on a group trip, and there were people with J1 visas for summer camps, and they were sitting in a private room going through their paperwork for about half an hour.
How Long Does It Take To Cross The Border?
In all, it took around half an hour for our bus to get through the Peace Arch border control. However, it depends on the traffic, time of day, and the number of people and luggage pieces on your bus. Of course, if there are any issues with people's baggage or paperwork, this can impact the travel time of the bus. Common delays often result from passengers with more complex visa paperwork or restrictions, such as J1 visas, which allow you to work for a set period of time at a particular organization.
You usually get a few weeks after to explore as an add-on. In these cases, the border patrol wants to make sure you're not likely to overstay your visa. However, most people say that it only takes around 30 minutes to cross the border between Canada and the U.S. With growing tensions between the two nations, this might increase as there's more scrutiny on border crossings at the moment.
What Are The Procedures For Amtrak Border Crossings
With 21,000 route miles in 46 states, the District of Columbia, and three Canadian provinces, Amtrak is quite likely a preferred mode of transport for many between the U.S. and Canada. If you're traveling between the U.S. and Canada by train, the Amtrak border crossing procedure works a little differently from that at Greyhound crossings. Instead of stopping the train near the border and letting border agents get on, which is the case in many regions around the world, you get your documents and luggage checked at the station before you depart.
This is similar to the Eurostar in the U.K. and Europe, where you arrive around an hour before your train is due to depart to go through all the necessary checks. This will involve checking your passport, visa documentation, and scanning your luggage. For Vancouver departures, Amtrak suggests arriving an hour before departure, and for Toronto or Montreal departures, it recommends arriving 30 minutes before. Keep in mind that this border check system closes 15 minutes before departure, so don't leave it too late.
So, if you're looking to take a Greyhound bus or FlixBus across the US-Canadian border like I did, make sure to give yourself plenty of buffer time and have all your documents to hand for the border crossing. Realistically, it's no different from any other border, except it happens in the middle of the journey, rather than checking before you depart.
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