Got a grand? See a live World Cup game starring Canada travelling on a budget

Local soccer fans of all backgrounds are cheering for more than just Canada in the upcoming FIFA World Cup. CTV News Edmonton's Nahreman Issa has the story.

So you’ve caught the fever. Or maybe you’ve had it all along but wondered if indulging your passion would financially ruin you.

But here we are. Canada is hosting the FIFA World Cup for the first time, alongside Mexico and the United States, starting this week and into July.

There will be 13 matches staged on our home and native soil: six in Toronto and seven in Vancouver. The Canadian Men’s National Team will play in at least three of them. Three of the games set for Toronto Stadium and BC Place Vancouver Stadium will be played during knockouts.

So let’s say you, a fan in Edmonton either new to or long schooled in soccer/football, are caught up in the idea of attending a game. And while it’s not being held here in the Alberta capital, it’s in Canada, your home.

And you want to go.

You can. It will cost you. But you can get there and attend a live game involving the Maple Leaf-brandishing squad for a little more than $1,000.

Now, this is for the budget-minded supporter. I’m not going to send you to Lotus Land or the Big Smoke to sample culinary delights, doze in 10,000 thread-count cotton, be carted around in a limo, or fly anything more than economy class. And I’m sending you solo.

You could drive to Vancouver, sure, but have you seen gas prices lately? Wait until you see them in B.C. ...

Are you ready to ... not pack your bags?

What to bring

Not a backpack but a 12-inch-by-12-inch-by-6-inch clear plastic bag, if you must. Because FIFA stadium rules prohibit bags that don’t meet that criteria.

Maybe throw in a toothbrush and a toothpaste tube sized 100mL or less (anything more and you’ll have to discard it while going through airport security.)

And if you plan to stay overnight, toss in a change of clothes. Wrap them in paper, if you must, to hide your delicates from the prying eyes of fellow travellers and spectators.

What do you mean ‘if’ I stay overnight?

Since you’re flying within Canada and the potential games I’ll send you to start at 3 p.m. local time, you can get from Edmonton to your destination and back inside 24 hours and not need a hotel. However, it might make more sense to stay overnight in either city. More on that later on.

Which game(s) are you sending me to?

This is for the patriot who wants to watch the Canadian men in action. Both Toronto and Vancouver will host other matches not involving them. This guide involves either flying to Toronto this Friday for Canada’s opening match against Bosnia-Herzegovina or to Vancouver next week for Canada-Qatar.

Tickets

Chances are that prices for the tickets I found via FIFA’s own portal have changed, but here’s what I found Wednesday morning:

• Friday, June 12 in Toronto: $862.50 in Section 203.
• Thursday, June 18 in Vancouver: $575 in Section 402.

Tickets are the easy part.

It’s when you want to stay overnight that it gets a little more complicated.

Accommodation

I get it. You’re getting up early to fly to either city for a mid-afternoon game. Then you’re watching the game itself, what an experience! You’re wiped. You want to bask in the glow of your adventure, not rush to the airport. OK. Prices below don’t include fees and taxes.

Stay in Toronto

I’ve got you staying in a residence at the University of Toronto, the Wilson Hall Residence. Just $72 for the night!

You’ll be staying in your own 178-square-foot, air-conditioned room featuring a twin bed, desk, chair and wardrobe/closet (not that you’ll need it). You’ll have to share a washroom with others on your floor. Towels are included, though. It comes with free WiFi.

Stay in Vancouver

You’ve got options for B.C.: a shared dorm or your own hotel room.

Hostel: A dorm room shared with four others in Burnaby’s Vancouver Backpacker House will run you $85. You’re sharing a bathroom with your roommates but you’ll have to bring your own towel. Bed sheets included.

Hotel: A room at the 2400 Motel on Kingsway is $182. It includes a double bed, your own bathroom, blackout curtains, an electric kettle, free WiFi and cable TV.

Flights

Like I’ve mentioned, you don’t have to stay overnight in either city. Fly from Edmonton to and from your destination in a day.

I’ve got to admit, though, unless you’re a night owl or like sleeping on planes, that red-eye to Toronto will be a mindbender.

And once you get downtown and/or the stadiums, it’s up to you to decide how to kill time. Pick a restaurant if you must. Buy a coffee. Gawk at skyscrapers. Because, really, you don’t have a lot of time to kill before gates open at the venues. There are sponsored FIFA Fan Festivals in both cities, but you might be cutting it close to game time if you decide to check it out. If you can even get a ticket for them.

Below are your flight options out of YEG as of Wednesday morning:

Toronto

• Getting there: $378 on Flair Airlines - 12:55 a.m. MT departure, 6:50 a.m. ET arrival.
• Friday, June 12 return: $280 on Flair - 9:40 p.m. ET departure, 11:55 p.m. MT arrival.
• Saturday, June 13 return: $300 on Flair - 10:40 a.m. ET departure, 12:55 p.m. MT arrival.

Vancouver

• Getting there: $187.91 on Flair - 10:05 a.m. MT departure, 10:50 a.m. PT arrival.
• Thursday, June 18 return: $190 on Air Canada - 8:40 p.m. PT departure, 11:14 p.m. MT arrival.
• Friday, June 19 return: $70.05 on Flair - 8:30 a.m. PT departure, 11:05 a.m. MT arrival.

Getting around town

Once you’ve landed, this adventure getting to and from the stadium you’ll take, no matter the city, will be much like the movie Planes, Trains and Automobiles, minus the Planes and Automobiles parts.

Remember, I’m being cheap. Your fares in Vancouver will be about $20, while in Toronto, I’ll give you $40 to navigate the TTC and GO trains.

Toronto

After you arrive

To Union Station - 48 minutes

Your flight is scheduled to land at 6:50 a.m. I’ll give you an hour to get off the plane, grab your luggage if you dared to check any, and head for Kipling Station, where you’ll ride the 900 Airport Express for 16 minutes to Kipling Station. There, you’ll jump on the GO train for a 20-minute ride to Union Station downtown.

To Toronto Stadium - You’ll have a couple of hours to kill before the gates at the stadium open four hours before the game. You’ll be getting to the game via the GO train to the Exhibition stop, about an 8-minute journey.

Stay overnight

To Wilson Hall - 47 minutes

Leaving the stadium at 6:15 p.m., walk from Gate 1 down Nova Scotia Avenue to Manitoba Drive, where you’ll turn right and walk to the Exhibition Loop, about a six-minute walk. There, you’ll catch the 509 Harbourfront Union Station bus to Queens Quay West at Lower Spadina Avenue, walk for a minute to Queens Quay Loop, then take a 21-minute ride on the 510 Spadina to Spadina Station bus to Spadina Avenue at Willcocks Street, site of Wilson Hall Residence.

The next morning at 7:30 a.m., take the No. 510 bus heading west on Spadina to Spadina Station, where you’ll transfer to the northbound Kipling train on the Bloor-Danforth subway line. Take it to Pearson Terminal 1, where you’ll grab the 900 Airport Express bus for a quick ride to Terminal 3. Trip time: one hour.

Same day return

To airport - one hour 13 minutes

Leaving the stadium at 6:15 p.m., walk from Gate 1 to the Exhibition GO Station, where you’ll ride the 6:26 p.m. train downtown to Union Station. There, you’ll catch the 6:45 p.m. UP Express Pearson Airport to Pearson Station at Terminal 1. To get to Terminal 3, from where your flight will depart, take the 900 Airport Express from Terminal 1. You’ll get to Terminal 3 at 7:34 p.m.

Vancouver

After you arrive

To BC Place - 33 minutes

An hour after your flight arrives, catch the Skytrain on Metro Vancouver’s Canada Line from the YVR-Airport stop downtown to Yaletown-Roundhouse Station. From there, take the northbound No. 23 bus to the intersection of Cambie and Robson, or walk 12 minutes to the stadium, where the gates will have opened at noon.

Stay overnight

After the game, I’ve got you leaving the stadium around 6 p.m. and hoofing it to the nearest SkyTrain station for a southbound train on the Expo Line.

To 2400 Motel ($182) - 30 minutes

To Vancouver Backpacker House ($85) - 34 minutes

Whether you like sharing a room with other people and are OK with bunk beds or you want your own room, getting to your accommodations apres your FIFA experience is as easy as jumping on the King George train at Stadium-Chinatown station heading southeast.

To get to the 2400 Motel, get off at the 29th Avenue Station and walk for 14 minutes to the hotel, located at 2400 Kingsway.

For the Burnaby option, get off at Metrotown and walk 12 minutes to the backpackers’ paradise on Gray Avenue.

Return bright and early Friday

To keep costs down, you’re leaving soon after sunrise. No cappuccinos on Granville Island for you, sorry.

From 2400 Motel - 50 minutes

From Vancouver Backpacker House - 57 minutes

You’ll be departing for home at an ungodly hour no matter where you choose to stay.

From the motel on Kingsway, where you’ve dragged your butt out the door at 5:29 a.m., you’ll walk seven minutes down the road to Nanaimo Street, where you’ll catch the westbound No. 025 bus to King Edward Station. There, you’ll transfer to the SkyTrain’s Canada Line heading to the airport. Total commute time: 45 minutes. Check in and get into that security line already.

From Burnaby, you’ll be getting up almost a half hour earlier to get out the door by 5:07 a.m., walking to the Metrotown SkyTrain station and catching the northbound train to Waterfront station, where you’ll transfer to the Canada Line for the southbound train to the airport. You’ll get to YVR in just over an hour, by 6:15 a.m.

Same day return

A reverse of how you got to BC Place. Once the game is over, you’ll jump on the southbound No. 23 bus at Cambie and Robson, take it to Yaletown-Roundhouse station and catch the airport-bound SkyTrain on the Canada Line. A 30-minute jaunt.

Food

Whether you dare to buy stadium grub at what’s sure to be eye-popping prices or find fare outside the stadium, I’ll give you $50 to fill your gullet. That’s more than enough, but I recognize some people will insist on sipping on a $25 beer. Good luck.

Final costs

Vancouver is the easier, more affordable option because of distance and because its first Canada game is a week away. But if you just gotta be there for the very first home game, Toronto it is.

Toronto

• In a day: $1,610.50
• Overnight: $1,702.50

Vancouver

• In a day: $1,012.91
• Overnight hostel: $1,007.96
• Overnight hotel: $1,104.96

Budget winner

It’s the June 18-19 overnight option to Vancouver. Hostel life! Bring earplugs!