After handing over our immigration and customs slips from the automated kiosks to the customs agent, we followed the signs out to the main arrivals hall. I lead the way following the posted signs for the UP Express train. When we arrived at the UP Express platform, I purchased tickets for the three of us which came out to $24.75 CAD. My adult ticket cost the most at $12.35CAD and my parents senior tickets cost $6.20CAD each. The next UP Express train was already sitting on the platform and boarding passengers, so we jumped on and stowed our luggage in one of the luggage racks closest to where we were sitting. Inside of our UP Express train looked immaculately clean but also had some lingering aroma of hospital style disinfectant in the air.


I didn't check the time but after what I am assuming to be 15 minutes at the YYZ station, based on the information that I read, the doors closed and the train pulled out of the platform. There was a conductor aboard who came by to check everyones tickets after departure from each station. One group of passengers boarded the train without a ticket and had to purchase them from the conductor via her handheld device. I'm not sure if the group boarded with the wrong type of ticket or no ticket at all but all I saw from my seat was a member of the group handing over a bank card and the conductor processing the card on her device. Our train made two intermediate stops at Weston and Bloor before finally arriving into Toronto's Union Station. The whole journey look about 30 minutes from YYZ to downtown Toronto.

The UP Express train itself was really quiet for a Diesel Multi Unit train. For those of you who live in the SF Bay area, SMART uses a similar train set that UP Express does but with some modifications.


The platforms for UP Express does not share platforms with GO Transit or Via Rail, but are connected to the rest of Union Station and other downtown Toronto attractions via the SkyWalk. We could have walked to our hotel via the SkyWalk but having had no sleep on the flight from LAX, I really didn't want to navigate the SkyWalk maze, and instead headed out onto Front St W and walked the half a mile to our hotel. Again with the lack of sleep, what should have been a easy .5 mile walk to our hotel felt more like a 3 mile walk to our hotel, the Residence Inn Toronto Downtown/Entertainment District. I was worried that we would have to drop our luggage at the hotel and figure out how to kill time until check-in time but during the train ride from the airport, I received a message via my Marriott App that our room was ready around 9:00AM-ish local time. While free early checkin is not a guaranteed or listed benefit of Marriott Rewards Gold, I've been granted early check-in every time I've requested it so far. I have noticed though that the rooms I'm given for early check-in are not always the best, but I'll gladly trade an upgrade at normal check-in time for a less than stellar room at 9:00AM in the morning, especially after a sleepless flight.

More pictures from the UP Express