Canada Travel Guide

Most shops and supermarkets open from about 9am to 5.30pm Monday to Saturday, though in bigger towns and cities supermarkets and malls may open as early as 7.30am and close around 9pm. Enforced Sunday closing of shops, bars and restaurants operates over much of the country, but a growing number of provinces now have limited Sunday hours, usually 9am to 5pm, particularly in touristy areas. As a general rule, between BC and Québec there are limited Sunday opening hours; and east of Québec shops will be shut on Sunday. Many retail shops open late on Thursday and Friday evenings. In cities you usually find a pharmacist open 24 hours and there's often a convenience store like Mac's or 7-11 that's open around the clock.

Time of year makes a big difference to opening times of information centres, museums and other attractions, most of which, particularly in remote areas, have shorter winter hours or close altogether from late September to mid-May. In cities, more upmarket restaurants usually open from around noon to 11pm, longer at weekends; many diner-type places, however, close around 8pm, and small-town restaurants tend to close early too. Opening regulations for bars - often part of a hotel or restaurant - vary tremendously from province to province; most open daily from 10am to 1am, but in certain areas all bars except a few hotel lounges are shut on Sunday.