ezbordercrossing

Guide to Crossing the US Canada Border

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Expect Heavy Border Traffic During The Canada Day and July 4th Holidays

You should be prepared for much heavier traffic at most border crossings between June 28th and July 8th.  During this 10 day stretch Canadians celebrate Canada Day and the War of 1812, while Americans get days off work for the 4th of July.   This is also the unofficial start of the summer vacation season when traffic volumes rise significantly.

Holiday Dates

  • Canada Day – Monday July 1st is a national day off.  Much like America’s Independence Day, Canada Day is celebrated across the country with fireworks, picnics and travel. Government offices and most businesses are closed for the day.
  • Fourth of July – Wednesday, July 4th with most people having a 4 day weekend.
  • War of 1812 Celebrations – Spread out over the entire weekend

Peak Wait Times

In general, the larger border crossings can see huge delays during this holiday period.  Border crossing in Washington such as Peace Arch and Pacific Highway frequently see backups of up to 2 hours.   New York ports such as the Lewiston Bridge and Peace Bridge have had delays of up to 3.5 hours in some years.

The Province of British Columbia has a wait time projection tool showing you typical wait times at Peace Arch, Pacific Highway, Sumas / Huntingdon, and Lynden / Aldergrove on this Thanksgiving holiday weekend when traveling either north or south.

Your Traffic Avoidance Game Plan

Make sure you are prepared for your border crossing by reviewing ezbordercrossing.com pages on the border crossing experience, prohibited items, and required documentation. You should always check our page for the specific port you are going to use to see if there are any traffic alerts or updates on wait times.

One other tip – before you hit a 2 hour line at the border make sure you have a reasonably full tank of gas and have used the restroom recently.

  • Your best chance to avoid traffic is to arrive at the border before 7 am or after 8 pm.  Simply put, leave early or late.   As a general rule, traffic is lighter in the mornings and tends to build throughout the day.
  • If possible, use a smaller alternative border crossing rather than the major ports.  Of course, smaller ports may have fewer lanes and officers so you will have to weigh your choices.
  • Be aware that traffic is especially heavy when it mixes with normal commuter traffic.
  • Some ports will open extra lanes at earlier times than usual. You should be prepared to move into lanes that might not normally be open.
  • Think about making an overnight stay to avoid fighting peak periods.
  • Use NEXUS if everybody in the vehicle is a cardholder
  • You will want to keep an eye on our road conditions page as you near trip time to make sure you know what you will face on the roads.
  • Work at most construction sites will stop for the holiday but drivers should watch for shifted lanes, detours, and reduced-speed zones.

Increased Canada Day / 4th of July Police Enforcement

You should also be aware that there will be heightened police activity in both Canada and the U.S. with special focus around the international border.   One initiative, called “Safety Without Borders,” will target traffic violations such as speeding, failure to wear seat belts, impaired driving and use of hand-held electronic devices on roads around border crossings in Ontario, Quebec, New York and Vermont.

Across both countries, you should expect to see an increased police presence including many more unmarked patrol cars and random roadside drunk driving stops.  The bottom line: drive safely, don’t drink and drive, no texting while driving, and make sure you know if you are travelling in a province or state that requires hands-free cellphone use.

Bringing Fireworks Across the U.S. Canadian Border

Simply put – you can’t bring fireworks across the border into either the U.S. or Canada unless you have an import permit.   Border inspection officers are always on the lookout for fireworks hidden in sleeping bags, trunks, and other places in the vehicle.

Ferry Service During the Holiday Period

Ferries will sell out their spaces on many routes during any holiday period.  If you don’t have a reservation you should get to the terminals good and early and expect to wait.

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Easter Traffic at the U.S. Canada Border

Even with the Covid-19 travel restrictions still in place, the long Easter weekend is celebrated in both the United States and Canada, producing much higher travel volumes at most border crossings between the countries. Easter is one of the 10 heaviest travel days in the U.S. Generally speaking, the delays entering the U.S. are longer than the delays entering Canada.

Make sure you are prepared for your border crossing by reviewing ezbordercrossing.com pages on the border crossing experience, prohibited items, and required documentation. You should always check our page for the specific port you are going to use to see if there are any traffic alerts or updates on wait times.

One other tip – before you hit a 2 hour line at the border, make sure you have a reasonably full tank of gas and have used the restroom recently.

Your Easter Holiday Traffic Avoidance Game Plan

  • As a general rule, traffic is lighter in the mornings and tends to build throughout the day. As always, your best chance to avoid long border wait times is to arrive at the border before 7 am or after 8 pm. For example, the U.S. CBP has typically opened up all lanes at Peace Arch starting at 6:00 am on Good Friday (the Friday before Easter).
  • If possible, use a smaller alternative border crossing, rather than the major ports.
  • Traffic around the Easter holiday is especially heavy when it mixes with normal commuter traffic, so avoid rush hour if you’re traveling on a weekday.
  • Use NEXUS if everybody in the vehicle is a cardholder.
  • Always check out the current border wait times for the port you plan to use before hitting the road.
  • Winter driving conditions can change rapidly, so you will want to keep an eye on our road conditions page as you near trip time.

Special Customs Inspection Tips for Easter

Being prepared can make a big difference in how quickly you get through the border inspection.

  • Do not try to bring any Kinder Surprise eggs into the United States. U.S. Customs considers these chocolate treats a dangerous choking threat because of the small plastic toy inside. In prior years, U.S. Customs has seized more than 60,000 Kinder Eggs from travelers’ baggage and from international mail shipments.
  • Cascarones (confetti-filled eggshells) are restricted to quantities of 12 per passenger when entering the U.S. The shells may be decorated, but they must be clean and free of any egg residue.
  • As of 4/1/21, fresh eggs, raw chicken, and live birds or poultry cannot be brought into the U.S. from Mexico.
  • If you are carrying plants or flowers, be sure to declare them. Plant material is specifically subject to inspection, and some plants popular during Easter may not be allowed into either the U.S. or Canada.
  • Be prepared to detail any gifts you are bringing with you and, on your return, those you have have received. You may have to pay duty on gifts if they exceed your personal exemption. Bring gift receipts with you. Read through our pages on “Clearing Customs” and “How Much You Will Owe.” We also have a Duty Calculator for Canadian residents.
  • Do not wrap your gifts before you cross the border! The border inspection officer can make you unwrap them for inspection. One thing you can try is to leave one end open for inspection, but it is better to wrap gifts when you arrive at your destination.
  • Prohibited Items – make sure you read through our material on prohibited items. During the holiday season, border inspectors seizes higher quantities of foreign fruits, vegetables, meats and animal/plant products. Fresh fruits and vegetables grown outside of the U.S. or Canada are typically prohibited. However, even some Canadian and U.S. grown fruits and vegetables may not be allowed. For example, Mandarin or “Christmas” oranges, lemons, limes, grapefruit and pomelo cannot be brought into the U.S. Failure to declare prohibited agriculture products or food items can result in fines up to $1,000, so be careful.
  • To avoid potential delays at the border, any foreign travelers requiring a visa waiver entry document should obtain this essential document as much as one week in advance for faster and more convenient processing.

Peak Easter Weekend Traffic Periods

Many Canadians have either 3 or 4 day holidays, depending on which province they reside in. Many businesses are closed on Good Friday, so that’s the start of the heavy traffic. Noon on Friday is the peak for many ports, but traffic will be much heavier than usual throughout the entire weekend and on Monday.

Thousand Islands Bridge in New York has seen vehicles backed up to Highway 401. Travelers entering the U.S. have had to wait up to two hours on Friday and Saturday because of heavy southbound traffic from Canada.

Lewiston-Queenston bridge – at times on Friday mornings and afternoons wait times into the U.S. have been up to 2 1/2 hours.

The Peace Bridge and Rainbow Bridge have seen wait times of up to 1.5 hours on Good Friday. There are fewer delays heading into Canada than into the U.S.

In the New York Niagara Area, your best bet is generally to use the Whirlpool Bridge if all passengers have a NEXUS card. Second choice is usually the Rainbow Bridge.

Major ports such as Peace Arch in Washington State have traditionally experienced peak wait times longer than 3 hours. The Peace Arch and the Blaine Pacific Truck Crossing are typically the busiest border crossings in Washington State. Consider using the Lynden / Aldergrove or Sumas / Abbotsford-Huntingdon ports. In past years, travelers have waited more than 3 hours and 20 minutes at noon on Good Friday at Peace Arch. However, as wait times at the Peace Arch and Pacific crossings decreased during the day, they got longer at Lynden and Sumas. These smaller ports have fewer lanes. At 3pm, Peace Arch reported a 50-minute delay and the Pacific crossing wait was just under two hours. Lynden and Sumas crossings were both reporting waits of more than three hours.

Special Law Enforcement at Easter

Many border states step up law enforcement over long weekends such as these. Police in New York, Ontario, and Quebec usually coordinate an extensive traffic enforcement initiative called “Safety Without Borders” all around the U.S. / Canada border. They will be focusing on violations such as speeding, cell phone use, texting, impaired driving, and failure to wear safety restraints. Prior years have seen as much as 1,100 tickets issued during a single day. There will be special attention around the New York ports in Buffalo, Niagara Falls, Thousand Islands, and Blackpool / Champlain. Commercial vehicles will also be subject to heightened inspection activity to ensure they are in proper working order.

Ferry Service on Easter

Ferry services also experience heavier traffic during the Easter holidays. Washington BC ferries have traditionally been busy on Good Friday, with delays reported throughout the day. You should consider making advance reservations, or plan to show up about an hour before departure time. Foot passengers should be at the terminal about 40 minutes ahead of departure.

According to BC Ferries, the historically busiest sailings over the Easter long weekend are:

  • Vancouver-Victoria: 7 a.m. to noon Tsawwassen-Swartz Bay on Friday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tsawwassen-Swartz Bay on Monday, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Swartz Bay-Tsawwassen on Monday.
  • Vancouver-Nanaimo: 3:15 p.m. Duke Point-Tsawwassen on Monday.
  • Horseshoe Bay-Nanaimo: 6:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Horseshoe Bay-Departure Bay on Friday, 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Departure Bay-Horseshoe Bay on Monday.
  • Horseshoe Bay-Sunshine Coast: 12:20 p.m. to 8:20 p.m. Langdale-Horseshoe Bay on Sunday, 10:20 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Langdale-Horseshoe Bay on Monday.

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Traffic on Victoria Day and Memorial Day

Victoria Day in Canada, and Memorial Day in the United States, are on two adjacent weekends and they bring much heavier traffic to the border crossings between the two countries for pretty much the entire period between the start and end of the May holidays.   Many resort destinations promote the Victoria Day Weekend as their official re-opening for the summer vacation season and develop special packages to entice travelers.  For many Canadian ports, Victoria Day is the heaviest traffic day of the year.

Make sure you are prepared for your border crossing by reviewing ezbordercrossing.com pages on the border crossing experience, prohibited items, and required documentation. You should always check our page for the specific port you are going to use to see if there are any traffic alerts or updates on wait times.

One other tip – before you hit a 2 hour line at the border make sure you have a reasonably full tank of gas and have used the restroom recently.

Your Traffic Avoidance Game Plan

  • Your best chance to avoid traffic is to arrive at the border before 7 am or after 8 pm.  Simply put, leave early or late.   As a general rule, traffic is lighter in the mornings and tends to build throughout the day.
  • If possible, use a smaller alternative border crossing rather than the major ports.  Of course, smaller ports may have fewer lanes and officers so you will have to weigh your choices.
  • Be aware that traffic is especially heavy when it mixes with normal commuter traffic.
  • Some ports will open extra lanes at earlier times than usual. You should be prepared to move into lanes that might not normally be open.
  • Think about making an overnight stay to avoid fighting peak periods.
  • Use NEXUS if everybody in the vehicle is a cardholder
  • Always check out the current border wait times on ezbordercrossing.com before hitting the road.
  • You will want to keep an eye on our road conditions page as you near trip time to make sure you know what you will face on the roads.

Heaviest Traffic Periods

In general, traffic entering the U.S. on the Victoria Day holiday is expected to peak on Saturday morning, while traffic heading back to Canada is expected to peak on Monday night.  The Blue Water bridge has seen traffic spikes of 80% during Canada’s Victoria Day.

Traffic for the U.S.  Memorial Day holiday will begin to build early Friday.  The heaviest traffic entering Canada should be on Friday and Saturday.  The biggest backups into the U.S. will likely appear on Monday.

Traffic Delays Entering the U.S. on Memorial Day

Peace Arch – Just because your GPS say to go straight up or down the I-5 Corridor you should give some thought to using the Pacific Highway Truck Crossing which is only a mile away and always has less wait time.

Peace Bridge and Queenston-Lewiston Bridge traffic typically backs up by more than an hour late on Monday afternoon.  The wait time for trucks entering the U.S. from Canada via the Peace Bridge typically reaches around 1½ hours.

The Rainbow Bridge delay tends to be shorter with 20 to 30 minute delays reported.

Delays are usually minimal at the Whirlpool Rapids Bridge.

Traffic Delays Entering Canada on Victoria Day

Below are past years advisories for Victoria Day issued by the Canadian Border Services Agency.  We cannot say if past trends will hold up, but these serve as a useful guide.  All of these peak periods are for traffic entering Canada.

For Frances – Peak traffic – between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. on Thursday and Friday when border wait times may exceed 30 minutes; and between 2 p.m. and 9 p.m. on Monday, when border wait times may exceed 45 minutes.

Pigeon River – Victoria Day weekend marks the start of the fishing season in Northwestern Ontario, which means there are likely many people from the United States who will be headed to Canada.  Peak traffic –  Friday evening, and on Saturday morning.  Also between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Sunday,  and between 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. on Monday , when border wait times may exceed 30 minutes.

Baudette / Rainy River – Peak traffic  – Thursday and Friday between 12 p.m. and 6 p.m.

Sault Ste. Marie – Victoria Day peak traffic volumes are anticipated to be between 11 a.m. and 8 p.m. on Friday, May 17, between 6 p.m. and 10 p.m. on Sunday, May 19, and between 11 a.m. and 9 p.m. on Monday, May 20, when border wait times may exceed 45 minutes.

Thousand Islands Bridge – This port typically has the heaviest traffic of all border crossings in this area.  Peak traffic is anticipated between 11 a.m. and 11 p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, when border wait times could exceed 30 minutes. On Victoria Day Monday between 10 a.m. and 11 p.m., border wait times could exceed 60 minutes.

Ogdensburg-Prescott International Bridge –  This has been a decent alternative to the Thousand Islands Bridge.  Delays are  expected between noon and 7 p.m. on Saturday, Sunday and Monday.

Seaway Bridge – Victoria Day weekend peak traffic volumes are anticipated between 3 and 7 p.m. on Sunday and 11 a.m. and 10 p.m. on Monday.

North Portal – Peak traffic volumes are generally between 2pm and 6pm over these 2 holidays with Monday being the heaviest day over the Victoria Day weekend.

Increased Holiday Police Enforcement

Police across Canada and the U.S. will be out in force to target unsafe driving this entire 2 week period.  Canada kicks off “Road Safety Week” and many American jurisdictions match this with  “Operation C.A.R.E. (Combined Accident Reduction Effort) and the nation-wide two-week “Click It or Ticket” safety mobilization.  You should expect to see an increase police presence including many more unmarked patrol cars and random roadside drunk driving stops.   Bottom line:  drive safely, don’t drink and drive, no texting while driving, and make sure you know if you are travelling in a province or state that requires hands-free cellphone use.

Ferry Service

Ferry services will experience heavier use during these holiday weekends.   You should consider making advance reservations, or plan to show up about an hour before departure time. Foot passengers should be at the terminal about 40 minutes ahead of departure.