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A shopper's guide to border-crossing this weekend

Globe and Mail Update

Latest comment posted at 9:42 AM EDT 05/10/07

The Thanksgiving holiday and a strong dollar are expected to produce a crush of Canadian vacationers heading into the United States ...Read the full article

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  1. Upper Canadian born and raised in Western Canada from St Albert, Canada writes: How tragic. Thanksgiving used to be a time to get together with family members.

    Now it's just another cheap materialistic weekend for some. At least if people went and checked out the libraries, museums, zoos... with family...

    but shopping? what kind of insanitymakes someone think its a good idea to go travelling to conduct family shopping on a family weekend?

    The world has gone nuts, I say!
  2. Rollo Tomasi from Belgium writes: Imagine the disappointment when no one in the US accepts Canadian currency and everyone still charges at least a 4% discount on Canadian funds.
  3. Jimmy K from Toronto, Canada writes: Rollo, disappointed? You'll pay 1.5% extra to Visa (that will equal about 1:1), 14% for GST/PST to customs (as always), 10-15% avg duties if you buy too much, but 50% less on items. I'd say it's a good deal.

    I'll see you all in Buffalo this weekend! It will be a nice 30,000 Canadian middle finger salute to the Canadian retailing scene.
  4. Rollo Tomasi from Belgium writes: Yes, Jimmy K, Visa gives a fair exchange, but with greenbacks you can pay down the VISA receipt to mitigate those GST/PST border blues.
  5. Anthony B from Sydney, NS, Canada writes: Upper Canadian born and raised in Western Canada from St Albert, Canada writes: "How tragic. Thanksgiving used to be a time to get together with family members"

    Agreed, but at least they get to spend "quality time" together in those long line-ups:-)

    I guess the turkey in the oven has been replaced by turkeys in cars.

    Maybe they should rename the upcoming holiday "Giving (to retailers) Day."
  6. J Kooman from Canada writes: As a citizen, we vote.
    As a customer, we vote with our feet.

    When local auto dealers want an extra fat profit, we have ways to deal with that.
  7. Paul, Bytown, from Canada writes: Are you listening Canadian retailers? Up yours!!!
  8. Too Deep from Professor of Macro economics, Canada writes: Now lets see the logic of this. Our economy is doing well , we take all the currency and now spend it South , killing the retail sector, killing housing market and stuff like that. Why don't you basement shoppers head to Hong Kong , great bargains on electronics found there too- dirt cheap, a bit on the airfare , but great food and sightseeing, better than Upstate. But airfare who cares , its cheap goods. Consider the airfare to be the Canadian economy , the price we pay to be booming. We will all be heading South soon - literally.
  9. Aumharan G from Canada writes: I'll see you all in Buffalo this weekend! It will be a nice 30,000 Canadian middle finger salute to the Canadian retailing scene.

    Haha nice one

    I opted to avoid the long line ups and I went to the Fashion outlets (1900 Millitary St) and went yesterday but didn't find any good deals other than Banana Republic...who knows maybe the ones that go down there this long weekend might see better deals but be expected to receive the yellow ticket upon re-entry and directions to customs to pay your taxes. Actually when I went into customs I was in line for a little while because all 7 people in front of me had purchased brand spanking new cars and were paying the GST and border processing fees.
  10. dave ross from Canada writes: I go shopping when I need to, and when I do I normally take my time to actually shop for deals. Other than groceries and pharmacies and Christmas I may enter retail stores about 4 or 5 times a year.

    I guess I'm unpatriotic by not supporting the troops of Chinese and Malaysian and anywhere-but-Canada manufacturers and retailers.
  11. Seb D from Ottawa, Canada writes: Avoid cross border hassles: shop online, with US retailers, and still give Canadian retailers the finger.
  12. Vincent Clement from Windsor, Canada writes: Imagine the disappointment when Rollo realizes that you can exchange Canadian dollars to US dollars at these neat things called banks. Here in Windsor, TD Canada Trust has ATMs that allow you to withdraw US dollars from your Canadian dollar account. What an amazing world we live in.
  13. L F from Canada writes: I guess this must be another reaction from the close minded protectionist crown. If the retailers don't want to lower prices to match the higher dollar then just who is making a quick buck and who is stupid enough to allow them to.
    As far as comments about family time we will go and still be back to have thanksgiving with all our family. We can enjoy it and give thanks for health, love and for the extra money in our pockets.
    Cheers
  14. Canadian Eh from Canada writes: Canadian companies try to reap in all the extra profit they make right now but nobody's buying here. They're flocking to the US where goods are almost half the price and money's at 1% to buy at the bank. Apparently, Canadian companies haven't learned that if they lower their prices, people would stay in Canada.
  15. Confucious Smith from Canada writes: Too Deep from Professor of Macro economics, Canada writes: "Now lets see the logic of this. Our economy is doing well , we take all the currency and now spend it South , killing the retail sector, killing housing market and stuff like that...."

    Please tell us where you work Professor.
    Don't want to send any kids to you by mistake!
  16. s c from Canada writes: I like to support good made in Canada. But when I can buy a made-in-Canada item for less in the US than in Canada, I will pick it up in the US.

    A Thanksgiving weekend trip to the US (or any other weekend for that matter) for us is a great get together for our family. We spend the entire weekend together (eating, playing, shopping) and that sure doesn't happen very often when we "stay home". It's a mini-vacation.
  17. Stan L from Canada writes: Here's a tip I have been using for the past year. where there is a US retailer operating in Canada. I use the prices listed on the American site and ask them to price match against themselves. Works well when a) they have a US site with prices but only an 'infomational' Canadian equivalent b) have a posted price match guarantee. I am not saying it always works but I have gotten what I want for the cheapest price on many occasions....and kept my money in Canada.
  18. Greg Calgary from Canada writes: Given a choice I'd rather shop in Canada but if the retailers in Canada are going to try and take advantage of me I'm going south or on line. Screw me ? No screw you ! Besides the Us economy needs a boost.
  19. Dave Herzog from Iowa, United States writes: I would have thought that with global warming that you would have delayed Thanksgiving a few weeks. Anyway if you can save some $ come on down and have some fun.
  20. Michael LeBlanc from Halifax, Canada writes: For a look from the "other side", read James Suroweicki's article "Greenback Blues" in the New Yorker:

    http://www.newyorker.com/talk/financial/2007/10/08/071008tatalksurowiecki

    Surowiecki says that US consumers are being protected from their devalued dollar and are "living in a kind of cocoon." He quotes a Federal Reserve study that indicates that "changes in the value of the dollar today have half the impact on American prices that they did during the eighties." So it appears that the problem is on both sides of the border: our prices are high, and their prices are low.
  21. Bake McBride from vancouver, Canada writes: As much as I like Vancouver it's good to get away when you can & Seattle is pretty cool. While you're there you might as well grab some bargains. To hell w/Cdn retailers if they can't compete.
  22. Let's Be Prudent from Toronto, Canada writes: I cross the border at Lewiston and Fort Erie in Ontario frequently and can suggest for one-day trips: Cross early. Last time at 7:15 am on Saturday it took 10 minutes to cross at Lewiston, NY. Coming back at 10:30 am the line was over the bridge and back 500 metres on the 405, so leave early and get back early. Take your passport. Even if you do not need it for land, it is the "gold standard” to clear both US and Canadian customs. If you don't have passport, get it now. I just applied and the time for pickup is 2 weeks. For your picture, wear a jacket and tie for males and equivalent for females. Do not go unshaven or in an old t-shirt. Never fib or avoid a US Homeland Security officer's questions. Lying to a US federal official is a felony as Martha Stewart found out. Don't try to edit the information or give anything BUT THE COMPLETE TRUTH!! Look your best. Clean clothes. If you normally shave, be sure to go shaven that day. Clean out your car. Get rid of extra stuff in your car. It makes it easier to clear secondary inspection if you are sent for it on either side of the border. Also, it improves your gas mileage so you can be "green" while saving green! Forget booze, cigarettes and "duty free" on same-day unless you want to go to secondary inspection, pay the duty, tax and so on. Take USD in cash; the credit card companies add 2.0-2.5% to your purchases. It's cheaper in the long-run. Declare everything coming back. I came back last time with $100 in items from a grocery and Target and declared it. I was asked about booze etc. and then I was waved through. My stepdaughter and I came back earlier this year with $250 for the two of us on a same day and we declared everything. I know that if you under declare you can HAVE YOUR CAR CONFISCATED IF YOU ARE CROSSING BACK TO CANADA THAT WAY. Also, if you under declare and get caught, you will be on Canada Revenue Agency's dirt lost for years to come. Bon voyage!
  23. Let's Be Prudent from Toronto, Canada writes: Other items to consider once you are over - - - - - DISCOUNT PROGRAMS. Many stores offer them with a convenient key tag that gives you a lower price. It can make a 10% difference at Topp's or Wegman's in the Buffalo area. Other programs are the Borders bookstore and VanHeusen shirts factory discount mall stores and PetSmart are on my keychain. - - - - - CHECK PRICES BEFORE YOU GO. Make a Canadian list and know the Canadian price If it is competitive, then you can buy in Canada knowing it will be at home when you get back - - - - - CONSIDER NEW HAMPSHIRE, MONTANA AND DELAWARE. No sales tax in these states. That makes it fun to shop as you pay no tax – a great feeling!!. Delaware seashore on the Atlantic is worth the drive as Rehobeth and Lewes have great locales and beaches and wonderful shopping for tourists from Baltimore Maryland and Washington DC where it is much more humid in summer- - - - - - KNOW YOUR NAFTA DUTY-FREE RULES. Know that NAFTA-produced items are duty free. That means a "Made in Mexico" shirt is duty free and you only pay sales tax on it, no duty. GROCERIES WITH NO GST OR provincial sales tax (except fortunate Albertans). For groceries, if you buy food which has no GST or PST in Canada then it is duty-free coming back. But there are limits on meat and dairy products you have to follow. BATHROOM BREAKS GOOD IDEA BEFORE CROSSING. Given the possibility of a long line going over or coming back (see the note about crossing very early –before 7:30 am), be sure to have a bathroom break just before doing so. The cameras for border security will record you relieving yourself and that may not be your goal. HAVE ALL RECEIPTS READY. If you have all your receipts ready and organized for inspection, you will get waved through more easily than if you are not organized. We take one envelope for our “goods” and one for our “services” (i.e. tolls, lunch, tickets to attractions etc.).
  24. Winifreed Pugnacio from Canada writes: The amount of disconnect in people's everyday lives is truly staggering.

    When you shop in America you are funnelling your dollars into an economy that practises murder, kidnapping and torture as routine, business as usual.
    When you shop in America you support their war for oil and profit, their undermining of legitimate science, their stated desire to conquer the world and control all its resources.
    When you shop in America you support American exceptionalism and Imperialism and give approval to the notion of "might makes right."
    When you shop in America you support sweatshop labour, the rape of the earth's resources, investor-class profit at any human and environmental cost.

    In travelling to America, you voluntarily abdicate all your legal and human rights, you voluntarily agree that these things are for Americans (of a certain colour and monetary disposition) only.
    In travelling to America, you give support to a country that is more concerned with building tanks than in feeding their people, providing health care to children or providing for their victims of natural disaster.
    In travelling to America, you agree that statements of high intent, such as the US Constitution, the Geneva Conventions, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights express quaint and meaningless concepts, to be routinely circumvented or ignored.

    People with conscience will realise that spending money in the USA directly supports the brand of international terrorism that cloaks itself in the American flag.
    Instead of being so eager to give the Americans your money and fund American Imperialism in order to save fifty cents on bum wad, people with conscience should actively boycott travel to the United States, should boycott the purchase of any product being produced, sold or marketed by an American company. It is time that such a rogue nation be censured, sanctioned and boycotted.
  25. Winifreed Pugnacio from Canada writes: @lets be prudent:

    in your helpful tips on crossing the border, you forgot to mention the number one tip for ease of crossing: Do not, under any circumstances, be, or appear to be Muslim.
  26. Debbie Jones from Hamilton, writes: Lewiston crossing - one small but valuable tip. When crossing at Lewiston to the U.S., stick to the right lane and then keep pressing right as soon as you can. As you get near the US inspection, a bunch of lanes open up. You'll save about 30 minutes on your trip. Trust me, I go over all the time.
  27. Jasper the Black Lab from Port Moody, Canada writes: Shopping on a holiday weekend? Ugh!
    Bad enough I have to buy food every week and clothing a couple times a year.
  28. Upper Canadian born and raised in Western Canada from St Albert, Canada writes: Anthony B: Nice one. It truely is sad that some Canadians think this represents Canadian values - what ever happened to old fashioned family get togethers at a loved one's home? ah.. but I suppose that was back in the day before people worried about 'how much' they could get, or 'how consumerism' could impact the world for the better (sic). I'm not sure the first settlers would have had access to a mall..... ;) "As a liturgical festival, the Canadian Thanksgiving corresponds to the European harvest festival, during which churches are adorned with cornucopias, pumpkins, corn, wheat sheaves and other harvest bounty. English and other European harvest hymns are customarily sung on the Sunday of Thanksgiving weekend, along with scriptural lections derived from biblical stories relating to the Jewish harvest festival of Sukkot. While the actual Thanksgiving holiday occurs on a Monday, Canadian families might eat their Thanksgiving meal on any day of the three day weekend. * The holiday can also be a time for weekend getaways for couples to observe the autumn leaves, spend one last weekend at their summer homes, or participate in various outdoor activities such as hiking, fishing and hunting. * "
  29. Let's Be Prudent from Toronto, Canada writes: Winfreed says "don't appear to be Muslim". However, a friend of mine from South Africa who happens to be Muslim and was viusiting Toronto for a course flew to New York from Toronto with no difficulty.

    However, he had his documents, including visa for US in good order, he had his invitations in shape and he got to airport early as it is a differnt lines for US/green card, Canadians and other nations.

    I agree it can be more difficult for some Muslims, just as Canadians with criminal records may have problems, but that may change as America gradually reevaluates its posture in the world and seeks to restablish friendships.

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