Arrival

1. Arrive in Canada at an airport.
2. Follow the "new student" sign. If you cannot find one, ask a staff member and tell them you are a first-time student.
3. Go to a kiosk and fill in your information. The important thing is that you do not bring raw meat or vegetables into Canada. If you have any, throw them away before you approach the kiosk. Take the receipt (important)
4. Take a seat and wait to be called.
5. Get your study permit from the immigration officer.
6. Collect your checked luggage (if any).
7. Go to the customs and report the high-value items you have.
8. Return the receipt.
9. Get out of the controlled zone.
10. If you have a connecting flight, drop off your luggage and do a regular boarding process. Do remember to tell the staff that you are transacting from another flight.

Please follow the suggestions prepared by CrySP. Additionally, if traveling with Air Canada, you may take their bus from YYZ (Pearson) to YTZ (Waterloo Regional). In most cases, do not set your destination to YTZ while booking. Instead, call the customer support and ask them to add this segment (cost: $20). Please note that you must wait a long time to talk to them. Follow the instructions to let them call you back instead.

After you pick up your WatCard, you may use public transportation around the KW region for free (yes, you paid this through the segregated fees). Note that it may take some time to update your profile. You may try using the reader in the ION station near DC to verify your status.

All the blue buses are Grand River buses. They only operate within the KW region. When boarding, tap your WatCard. 

ION is the train-like thing on the track near DC. You do not need to tap your WatCard. The scanner on the station is for verification purposes only (to be confirmed). Occasionally, one of their employees will check for tickets. Simply tap your WatCard on their scanner.

Presto cards work with the Go Bus, Go Train, Toronto Bus, Toronto Subway, and most other local transportation connections in the GTA. You may get a free Presto card from a local library and apply for a student discount (-40%). However, Go provides a day pass that may be cheaper than the student discount.

If one Go bus is full, do not worry; they will dispatch another for you :)

The only thing to note is to tap your card both boarding and leaving.

Do not forget to tap your card on the station (on and off). Always use a map app instead of your intuition (or memory) cause the schedule always changes.

Most of the buses can be paid through Presto. Again, tap on and tap off.

Private companies provide buses that travel directly from UW to common destinations (e.g., the airport). You can buy the ticket from the box office in DC or SLC.

It is generally highly recommended that you visit physically. However, in most cases, you need to secure your position by May or June. In this case, you may ask your supervisor to see if someone in your research group can help (don't forget to pay them). More information can be found in our housing recommendation page.

If you are visiting Waterloo for the first time, it is recommended that you go to a comprehensive department store to gather essentials. However, please note that it is very busy when a new term starts. We do not endorse any specific vendor.