Coach Hire Canada

Getting Your Wedding Guests There and Home

Your guests should spend the day celebrating, not hunting for parking or drawing straws over who drives. A shuttle keeps everyone together from the ceremony to the last dance, then gets them back to the hotel afterwards.

Map every movement of the day

List each leg: hotel to ceremony, ceremony to photos, photos to reception, reception back to the hotel. Many couples book a minibus for guests and an executive car for themselves, which seats one to three and keeps a gown out of a crowded aisle.

The late finish is the part people forget. Decide on one or two return runs, say 22:30 for families with children and 00:30 for the dance floor, and print the times on the reception card so nobody is left wondering.

Limousine interior with ceiling lights and a bar
Limousine interior with ceiling lights and a bar

Weddings out of town

Winery weddings in Niagara-on-the-Lake and mountain weddings in Banff each come with their own rules. In Niagara-on-the-Lake, buses may drop guests only at approved venues, and between runs they park at the motor coach lot beside Fort George. In the Town of Banff, coaches stop on the street only in the 15-minute bus zones next to most hotels.

Send the venue address early so the operator can check how close the vehicle you want can get.

Rules worth knowing

  • In BC, passenger-directed vehicles with 12 or more forward-facing seats need a general authorization licence
  • In Québec, limousine owners need a permit, registered vehicles and mechanical inspections; drivers need SAAQ authorization

Licensing, in plain terms

Wedding transport is licensed province by province. In BC, limousines and vans carrying 11 or fewer passengers need a special authorization licence, and larger passenger-directed vehicles a general authorization licence. Toronto limousines need a city owner's licence and their drivers a vehicle-for-hire licence, and in Québec limousine drivers must be authorized by the SAAQ. The operators we book through are licensed and insured for the vehicles they supply.

Your questions

The hotel and the venue are in different towns. Does that matter?

In Ontario, a paid passenger service that crosses a municipal boundary must meet provincial rules on seating, luggage and insurance. That's the operator's side, and one more reason to use a licensed service rather than a friend with a van.

Can we decorate the vehicle?

Ask when you book. The operator decides what, if anything, can be attached.

Do guests need to buckle up?

On a bus in Ontario, passengers must use a seat belt wherever one is available, and a minibus counts as a bus there.

What if the photos run long?

Build a buffer into the timetable. The driver waits at the agreed spot, and waiting beyond the booked hours follows the terms on your quote.

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