Canada by province: taxes, roads, rules and parks
The reference tables for travelling Canada: sales tax and hotel levies, road reports, winter tire law, fire bans, camping systems, alcohol rules and time zones, province by province.
7 min read 6 sections 5 questions answered
Canada runs its practical machinery province by province. Tax, road reports, fire bans, park bookings, winter tire law, drinking age and time zones all change at a border you cross without slowing down. These tables are the one-glance version; each province has its own guide underneath.
Taxes and what lands on the bill
Prices are quoted before tax almost everywhere in Canada. Hotels add a lodging levy on top of sales tax, so a room quoted at 200 dollars usually settles nearer 230.
| Province | Sales tax | Added to hotel bills |
|---|---|---|
| British Columbia | 12% (5 GST + 7 PST) | 8% room tax plus a 2 to 3% municipal levy |
| Alberta | 5% GST only | 4% tourism levy, plus a marketing fee in the big cities |
| Saskatchewan | 11% (5 GST + 6 PST) | PST applies, plus destination fees in Regina and Saskatoon |
| Manitoba | 12% (5 GST + 7 PST) | 5% accommodation tax in Winnipeg |
| Ontario | 13% HST | Municipal accommodation tax, commonly 4%, Toronto 6% |
| Quebec | 14.975% (5 GST + 9.975 QST) | 3.5% lodging tax |
| New Brunswick | 15% HST | Up to 3.5% municipal accommodation levy |
| Nova Scotia | 14% HST | 2 to 3% marketing levy in Halifax and most regions |
| Prince Edward Island | 15% HST | About 3% tourism levy in some municipalities |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | 15% HST | Municipal room tax in St. John's and several towns |
| Yukon | 5% GST only | Nothing extra |
| Northwest Territories | 5% GST only | 4% hotel levy in Yellowknife |
| Nunavut | 5% GST only | Nothing extra |
Rates checked August 2026. Levies are set locally and change without notice, so the property's own confirmation is the number that counts.
Road reports and driving law
| Province | Road report | Winter tires | Top limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| British Columbia | DriveBC | Required Oct 1 to Apr 30 on most highways | 120 km/h |
| Alberta | 511 Alberta | Not required | 110 km/h |
| Saskatchewan | Highway Hotline | Not required | 110 km/h |
| Manitoba | Manitoba 511 | Not required | 110 km/h |
| Ontario | Ontario 511 | Not required | 110 km/h on signed stretches |
| Quebec | Quebec 511 | Required by law Dec 1 to Mar 15 | 100 km/h |
| New Brunswick | 511 New Brunswick | Not required | 110 km/h |
| Nova Scotia | Nova Scotia 511 | Not required | 110 km/h |
| Prince Edward Island | PEI 511 | Not required | 90 km/h |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | NL 511 | Not required | 100 km/h |
| Yukon | 511 Yukon | Not required, carry them anyway | 90 km/h |
| Northwest Territories | DriveNWT | Not required, carry them anyway | 100 km/h |
| Nunavut | No highways between communities | Not applicable | Community roads only |
Every 511 site carries highway webcams. Looking at the pass beats any forecast.
- Handheld phone use is banned in every province, with fines from roughly 300 dollars to over 1,000 and demerits on top. Mount it or leave it alone.
- Right on red is legal countrywide except on the Island of Montreal, and anywhere a sign says otherwise.
- 0.08 is the criminal blood alcohol limit nationwide, but most provinces suspend your licence roadside at 0.05, and new drivers are at zero everywhere.
- Tolls are rare. Ontario's Highway 407, two Montreal-area bridges, the Halifax harbour bridges and the Confederation Bridge are most of the list. Ferries are the real recurring cost.
Fire bans and road hazards
| Province | Fire and wildfire source | Main road hazard |
|---|---|---|
| British Columbia | BC fire bans | Mountain passes, black ice, deer and elk |
| Alberta | Alberta Fire Bans | Chinook glare ice, wildlife in the park corridors |
| Saskatchewan | SPSA wildfire status | Blizzard closures, deer at dusk |
| Manitoba | Manitoba fire status | Blizzards, spring flooding, moose in the north |
| Ontario | Ontario fire restrictions | Whiteouts on the 401, moose north of Sudbury |
| Quebec | SOPFEU | Winter storms, potholes, moose in Gaspé and Abitibi |
| New Brunswick | NB Fire Watch | Moose, even along the fenced highways |
| Nova Scotia | BurnSafe map | Coastal fog and nor'easters |
| Prince Edward Island | Canadian wildfire map | Wind restrictions on the Confederation Bridge |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | NL fire hazard | Moose, about 110,000 of them, and Wreckhouse winds |
| Yukon | Yukon wildfires | Gravel highways, wildlife, long fuel gaps |
| Northwest Territories | NWT wildfire update | Ferry and ice-crossing gaps, bison on the road |
| Nunavut | Canadian wildfire map | No road network to speak of |
Bans are issued by region and change with the weather. Check the day you light a fire, not the week you planned the trip.
Parks and camping
| Province | Provincial system | Free or Crown land camping |
|---|---|---|
| British Columbia | BC Parks, booking opens 4 months out | Free on Crown land, 14 days at a spot |
| Alberta | Alberta Parks, 90 days out | Random camping 14 days; pass in the busy foothills zones |
| Saskatchewan | Sask Parks, vehicle entry permit required | Crown land camping broadly allowed |
| Manitoba | Manitoba Parks, vehicle permit required | Crown land and the canoe-route tradition |
| Ontario | Ontario Parks, 5 months out | 21 days free on Crown land for Canadian residents |
| Quebec | Sépaq | Public land, plus cheap rustic sites in the ZECs |
| New Brunswick | Parcs NB | Patchy; the parks are the dependable answer |
| Nova Scotia | NS Parks | Crown land is scarce; the park network is dense |
| Prince Edward Island | PEI provincial parks | Effectively none; book a campground |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | NL Parks | Gravel-pit camping, a genuine local institution |
| Yukon | Yukon campgrounds, mostly first-come | Widely accepted on public land |
| Northwest Territories | NWT Parks, reservable online | Allowed on public land |
| Nunavut | Nunavut Parks, no campground network | Land is largely Inuit-owned; ask first |
National park campgrounds are separate everywhere: they all book through Parks Canada, which opens in January.
Alcohol, cannabis and clocks
| Province | Alcohol | Cannabis age | Time zone |
|---|---|---|---|
| British Columbia | 19, government and private stores | 19 | Pacific; Mountain in the east and Peace |
| Alberta | 18, all retail is private | 18 | Mountain |
| Saskatchewan | 19, SLGA and private stores | 19 | Central all year, no clock change |
| Manitoba | 18, Liquor Marts and beer vendors | 19 | Central |
| Ontario | 19, LCBO plus grocery and convenience | 19 | Eastern; Central west of Thunder Bay |
| Quebec | 18, SAQ for spirits, grocery for beer and wine | 21 | Eastern |
| New Brunswick | 19, ANBL stores | 19 | Atlantic |
| Nova Scotia | 19, NSLC stores | 19 | Atlantic |
| Prince Edward Island | 19, PEI Liquor stores | 19 | Atlantic |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | 19, NLC and licensed convenience stores | 19 | Newfoundland, 30 minutes ahead of Atlantic |
| Yukon | 19, Yukon Liquor stores | 19 | Yukon time, no clock change |
| Northwest Territories | 19, government stores; some communities restrict | 19 | Mountain |
| Nunavut | 19, restricted; many communities are dry | 19 | Eastern, Central and Mountain across the territory |
Checked August 2026. Cannabis is federally legal but sold only through the province's own channel, and carrying it across the international border is a criminal offence in both directions.
Health cover, phones and emergencies
- 911 works nationwide except in parts of the far north, where you call the local RCMP detachment instead. Program the number before you leave pavement.
- Canadians travelling in another province show their health card and are billed province to province, with one exception: Quebec is outside that agreement, so pay up front and claim back at home.
- Visitors from outside Canada get no public cover at all. Travel insurance is the whole safety net, and an air ambulance out of the north is a five-figure invoice.
- Cell coverage follows highways, not maps. Download offline maps before the mountain passes, the Superior shore, the Trans-Labrador and anything north of the 60th.
The national layer
- Parks Canada reservations One account for every national park campground, shuttle and permit. https://reservation.pc.gc.ca
- Canadian Wildland Fire Information System National fire danger and active-fire map, all provinces at once. https://cwfis.cfs.nrcan.gc.ca
- Environment Canada weather Forecasts and warnings for every community in the country. https://weather.gc.ca
- Alert Ready The emergency alerts that reach your phone: fires, floods, evacuations. https://www.alertready.ca
- Travel advice and advisories Federal travel pages, including entry rules for visitors. https://travel.gc.ca
Common questions
- What is 511 in Canada?
- Nearly every province runs a 511 service: a website, map and phone line showing road conditions, closures, construction and highway webcams in real time. British Columbia calls its version DriveBC; the rest are 511 plus the province name.
- Do Canadian prices include tax?
- Almost never. Shelf and menu prices are quoted before sales tax, which is added at the till and runs from 5 percent in Alberta and the territories to about 15 percent in Quebec and Atlantic Canada. Hotel bills add a further lodging levy on top.
- Which provinces require winter tires?
- Only two mandate them. Quebec requires winter tires on Quebec-registered vehicles from December 1 to March 15, and British Columbia requires winter tires or chains on most highways from October 1 to April 30. Everywhere else they are strongly advised and not enforced.
- How do I find out if there is a fire ban where I am camping?
- Check the provincial fire page for your region on the day you plan to burn, since bans are issued by region and move with the weather. The table on this page links every province's official source, and campground offices post the current status at the gate.
- Is my provincial health card accepted in other provinces?
- Yes, for physician and hospital services in every province and territory except Quebec, which sits outside the reciprocal billing agreement. In Quebec you pay the provider directly and submit the receipts to your home plan, which reimburses at its own rates.
Tip
These guides pair with the parks pages: Canada's national parks covers the Discovery Pass and the January reservation scramble.