Do you plan to visit a garden this summer? You're not alone!

 

MONTREAL, March 16, 2011 – People all around the world travel, very specifically, to visit gardens.  And Canada is no exception. 

In 2007, the most recent year for which statistics are available, this equated to a whopping 27 million adult Canadians and Americans visiting the spectacular gardens of Canada while on an out-of-town trip of one or more nights.

In fact, visiting a botanical or garden themed attraction while on a trip is among the top 10 cultural activities undertaken by pleasure travelers in Canada, according to the Travel Activity and Motivation Study.

“In recognition of the growing significance of garden tourism, VIA Rail Canada is pleased to sponsor Canada Blooms and to offer the VIA Rail Garden Route, Canada’s premier national garden tourism initiative, for the sixth year running,” said Steve Del Bosco, VIA Rail’s Chief Marketing and Sales Officer.

The VIA Rail Garden Route
The 2011 VIA Garden Route includes 19 magnificent feature gardens, 27 award-winning Communities in Bloom destinations and countless local garden attractions from Victoria to Halifax.

With such a spectacular and varied offering of gardens and communities from which to choose, travelers can enjoy Canada’s breathtaking scenery while taking a relaxing and comfortable train trip to their Garden Route destination.  Upon arrival, visitors can take a self-guided tour of the gardens and splendid communities or choose a Garden Route travel package from a number of VIA Getaways within the Windsor to Québec City corridor (/en/fares-and-packages/offers).
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New feature gardens on the 2011 VIA Rail Garden Route are Ottawa’s Central Experimental Farm and the Annapolis Royal Historic Gardens in Nova Scotia.

From June 3rd to September 5th, 2011, visitors to each participating feature garden along the Garden Route, as well as visitors to the websites of the 2011 Communities in Bloom destinations, can enter a contest for a chance to win a round trip for two with VIA Rail to Québec City in the summer of 2012 to visit the Roger-Van den Hende Botanical Garden and see the sights in this lively and historic city.

For a complete listing of feature gardens, local garden attractions and Communities in Bloom destinations, visit:  www.viarail.ca/garden.

About Communities in Bloom
Communities in Bloom is a Canadian non-profit organization committed to fostering civic pride, environmental responsibility and beautification through community involvement and the challenge of a national program.  For more information visit: communitiesinbloom.ca.

About VIA Rail
Serving over four million passengers annually, in both official languages, VIA operates 503 intercity, transcontinental and regional trains per week linking 450 communities across its 12,500-kilometre route network. The demand for VIA services is growing as travellers increasingly turn to train travel as a safe, hassle-free and environmentally responsible alternative to congested roads and airports.

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