Getting There

Getting to British Columbia is easy and safe.

In most cases you will fly from home to Vancouver International Airport (YVR) where you will clear immigrations and customs. From Vancouver you will take a relatively short domestic flight to Williams Lake, British Columbia your end destination before transferring to the lodge by auto.
You must claim your luggage on your first point of entry into Canada and clear immigrations and customs. Failure to claim your luggage will result in your luggage not showing up at your end destination.

Specific flight details for Northern lights Lodge

Fly commercially to the Town of Williams Lake, which hosts a commercial airport with 1-2 flights daily to and from Vancouver by Central Mountain. Round trip ground transport for the pleasant and scenic drive (approximately 75 miles) from Williams Lake to the lodge is included in your package, or if you prefer, you can rent a vehicle and drive yourself to Northern Lights Lodge.

IMPORTANT: All persons entering Canada by air are required to present a valid U.S. Passport when entering or re-entering the United States.

Reservations at a Vancouver, British Columbia hotel are not included in your package and should be made by you or your travel agent when you book your airline reservations:

Driving from Vancouver to Northern Lights Lodge:

Drive from Vancouver via the scenic Fraser Canyon on Trans Canada Highway No. 1 to Cache Creek, then north on Highway 97 towards Williams Lake or via Whistler on the Pemberton highway to the historic Hat Creek Ranch where it joins Highway 97 north. about 10 miles North of Cache Creek on Highway 97. Drive on 97 to 150 Mile House (which is approx 10 miles South of Williams Lake) then turn east onto the secondary paved highway which leads to the communities of Likely or Horsefly. At the top of the hill, about 3 miles from 97, the road "Y"s. Stay to the left on the paved road that goes to Likely. As you come into Likely, you will cross the Quesnel River & drive straight up the hill staying on this main road to Cedar Creek Road on the right & drive about 4 miles at which point you will see the Northern Lights Lodge sign on the Right hand side. Take this driveway approximately 400 yards to the Lodge.

The approximate distances to Williams Lake from Portland, Seattle and Vancouver, BC are as follows:

• Portland: 612 miles, 985 km
• Seattle: 439 miles, 706 km
• Vancouver: 341 miles, 549 km

Arrival Day at Lodge: Please plan on arriving into Williams Lake on an afternoon flight, before 6:30 p.m. The Lodge will pick you up in Williams Lake and drive you the 1.5 hour scenic route to the lodge. Your day of arrival is a non-guided fishing day. Please be aware that guests must arrive into Williams Lake before 6:30 pm, or plan on spending the night in town, and be picked up the next morning.

Full Fishing Days: Every day, each fisherman will have the opportunity to experience a different fishery, or return to their favorite spot, depending of course on current water and weather conditions. Breakfast is between 6:30 and 7:00 a.m., followed by a full day of exploring this amazing region's waters. Lunches are normally taken on the water, and you'll have plenty of time for a hot shower before diving into a delectable dinner later that evening.

Departure Day from the Lodge: Northern Lights Lodge will provide auto transportation to Williams Lake in order to catch your outbound flight to Vancouver and home. This is a non-fishing day.

Canada Travel Notes:

Entry/Exit Requirements: Entry into Canada is solely determined by Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) officials in accordance with Canadian law. Canadian law requires that all persons entering Canada carry both proof of citizenship and proof of identity. A valid U.S. passport, passport card or NEXUS card (see below) satisfies these requirements for U.S. citizens. If U.S. citizen travelers to Canada do not have a passport, passport card or approved alternate document such as a NEXUS card, they must show a government-issued photo ID (e.g. Driver’s License) and proof of U.S. citizenship such as a U.S. birth certificate, naturalization certificate, or expired U.S. passport. Children under sixteen need only present proof of U.S. citizenship.

All Americans traveling by air outside of the United States are required to present a passport or other valid travel document to enter the United States. This requirement will be extended to sea travel (except closed-loop cruises), including ferry service, on June 1, 2009. Until then, U.S. citizens traveling by sea may present government-issued photo identification and a document showing their U.S. citizenship (for example, a birth certificate or certificate of nationalization). Starting June 1, 2009, all travelers must present a Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) compliant document such as a passport or a passport card for entry to the United States. While passport cards and enhanced driver’s licenses are sufficient for entry into the United States, they may not be accepted by the particular country you plan to visit; please be sure to check with your cruise line and countries of destination for any foreign entry requirements.

Liquor: Canadian Liquor Laws are different than ours here in the States. Beer and wine must be purchased in special stores. These stores usually stay open well into the evening and are open on weekends. However, "spirits" or hard liquor must be purchased at a Government store. These stores do not stay open past 6:00 p.m. and are closed on Sundays. If you like your cocktail at the end of the day, plan on bringing your own from the states. You are able to bring 1.5 liters of wine, 1.14 liters of liquor or 24 x 355 ml cans or bottles (8.5 liters) of beer or ale. The lodge has wine, but no beer or spirits on hand.

Weight allowance: Due to safety measures, a maximum weight allowance of 70 pounds per person is very strictly enforced. If your baggage weighs more than the allotted amount, you will be asked to leave some articles behind in Smithers.

Inoculations and Health Concerns: There are no formal requirements, or recommendations for immunizations and very little risk of infectious disease in Canada. The risk would be about equivalent to what it would be for a trip to Colorado. You should check with your personal physician if you are concerned. We recommend that anglers be up-to-date on their Tetanus, Hepatitis-A and Hepatitis-B vaccinations.

Make it easy on yourself.

Alicia Regueiro and here expert staff at Holdy Tours (800) 446- 1111 or alicia@holdytours.com are a full service travel agency. They’ve been our first choice for ticketing for years because Holdy professionals are intimately familiar with the intricacies of travel to Chile, Argentina and all South America.

Holdy gets rave reviews from us for arranging reasonably priced flights as well as city tours, hotels, transfers, and optional add-on travel packages to our fly fishing trips. They know the best routes and connections for even the most complicated Patagonia angling destinations and they’ve teamed up with LA to offer the best airfares and service to South America. Make it easy on yourself and contact Holdy Tours for your flight accommodations to, from and within Argentina. www.holdytours.com