Cities on eclipse’s path brace for tourist crush

TORONTO • Municipalities across Central and Eastern Canada have spent months preparing for an event that will last just three-and-a-half minutes: a total solar eclipse that will cast parts of the country into complete darkness.

Many cities and towns in Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island are gearing up to host thousands of visitors from across Canada and beyond hoping to catch a rare alignment of the sun, Earth and moon on April 8.

And municipalities are not missing this chance to welcome tourists. Visitors may feel like the busy travel season has come early, with hotels at capacity and seasonal attractions such as live music performances and food trucks available before their typical summer hours begin.

Niagara Falls and Montreal are the two most booked destinations for that weekend, a report from Airbnb said.

“This eclipse makes Montreal attractive, especially for those living north of the trajectory, so it’s this clientele that we’re expecting to see more of on April 8,” said Montreal public affairs spokesperson Aurelie de Blois in an email.

In the Niagara region, many hotels are booked to capacity, and some charged as much as double their typical price. The city is expecting upward of one million visitors over the eclipse weekend.

“We have 14,000 hotel rooms,” said Janice Thomson, president and CEO of Niagara Falls Tourism. “The hotels generally are almost completely booked up.”

The region invoked a state of emergency to prepare for the event. The declaration, announced Thursday, sets in motion some additional planning tools to cope with major traffic jams, heavier demands on emergency services and cellphone network overloads.

There will be additional GO Transit trains running to and from Niagara Falls that day as the regional transit operator expects the numbers to surge. It is also adding extra cars to its trains to accommodate as many people as possible.

Ontario is home to several other spots along the path of totality — where the full eclipse will be visible — including Hamilton, Belleville and Kingston.

A boat trip on Lake Ontario during the eclipse is one option for visitors to Kingston.

“The 1000 Islands Cruise does not typically open this early in their season,” said Ashley Bradshaw, destination development manager at Tourism Kingston. “We don’t usually see our major attractions open until late May and into the summer season.”

Bradshaw added Kingston hotels have also seen an uptick in bookings, and are expecting visitors from Japan, England and Finland.

Port Colborne on Lake Erie, about 30 kilometres south of Niagara Falls, has set up shops to make the day an educational expedition for visitors.