# VIA Rail – The Canadian — user reviews

> 69 indexed App Store user reviews of VIA Rail by AeonVirtual, rated 1.60/5 from 46 ratings.

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/via-rail-the-canadian/id1341888935/reviews
- App overview in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/via-rail-the-canadian/id1341888935.md
- Rating breakdown: 5★ 5 · 4★ 3 · 3★ 0 · 2★ 0 · 1★ 38

## Newest reviews (16 of 69)

### 1/5 — Pourri

*2024-09-22, version 1.2*

Je ne comprend pas pourquoi dans les pays en développement la technologie est tellement avancée et au Canada on fait vraiment pitié?
Effectivement c’est application est useless

### 1/5 — So bad

*2024-09-18, version 1.2*

What was wrong with the old app?
Hope you got your money (our money) back!
Wow!

### 1/5 — Poor app

*2024-09-17*

Absolutely useless!!!!!!

### 1/5 — This is not an Application it is only a video

*2024-09-13, version 1.2*

Nothing in this application, just a video.

### 1/5 — Really

*2024-09-05, version 1.2*

I couldn’t even figure out how to make a reservation.   Just train details as far as I could find.   Not user friendly at all.

### 1/5 — What the?

*2024-09-03, version 1.2*

I don't even know how to get off the page with the train on it. The words are so tiny that I can't see them at all! How do you book?

### 1/5 — Asking for human rights law suit

*2024-08-12, version 1.2*

Not accessible for users who are blind and using VoiceOver.  This app is garbage. Don’t download.

### 1/5 — This app sucks!

*2024-08-08, version 1.2*

Apparently, when they created this app, they didn’t think of people using it on their phones. you can’t even read the menu titles or headings.

### 1/5 — What have you done?

*2024-08-02, version 1.2*

What have you done with the Via App? I can understand that you wish to advertise your new trains, but this is not what we need.

### 1/5 — Swindled

*2024-07-30, version 1.2*

Who ever tendered the contract for the development of this app got swindled hard. Embarrassing for VIA. It’s like if you posted a nsfw photo on your facebook page by accident and then you couldn’t figure out a way to take it down - cringe

### 1/5 — Can’t work with IPhone ???

*2024-07-28, version 1.2*

The app would not configure for IPhone.

### 1/5 — App has no use.

*2024-07-26, version 1.2*

Can’t book, look up schedules or anything else useful.

### 1/5 — Useless app

*2024-07-20, version 1.2*

Can’t do anything on it what is the point?

### 1/5 — A pretty picture

*2024-07-19, version 1.2*

… that freezes my iPhone 13

### 1/5 — Totally useless

*2024-07-12, version 1.2*

Wow - pictures of train but app is useless. Can’t look up schedules. Can’t see fares. All you can do is watch the train move across the screen and see the inside compartments. Can’t even close app without powering off phone.

### 1/5 — Really bad app

*2024-07-10, version 1.2*

Whoever approved this app needs to be fired. The menus (assuming that is what they are) are unreadable. Deleted it.

## Most critical reviews (10 lowest-rated)

### 1/5 — Unusable

*2025-07-22*

This app opens to a screen saver of a train with text that is completely unreadable on a phone.

### 1/5 — Useless and boring

*2025-02-26*

Also download this by accident. I might like it more if you could actually navigate through the app, but none of the options seem to work. It’s really annoying that it presents itself as Via Rail when it’s just a game of sorts

### 1/5 — Not an App — Just Obstructive

*2024-12-29*

This app is totally unusable. It will not work on an iPhone and appears to just be a very old-school screensaver with some unreadable buttons along the bottom. You cannot exit out of it without shutting down your phone and rebooting it. The Via Rail desktop site has no mobile functionality either. I cannot believe a national rail service has such an appallingly bad digital presence.

### 1/5 — Don’t!!!

*2024-11-27*

Absolutely useless app.  It blocked my screen and I had to shut down my phone twice before deleting it.  This is nothing but an infomercial and screen saver.   There are no discernible schedules or booking tools.   What an absolute embarrassment to VIA Rail!

### 1/5 — NOT for booking trips

*2024-11-15*

Downloaded expecting a convenient app to book a trip and maybe even explore (destinations, routes, scenery, etc) but not the case.  I have too many apps as it is and this one adds zero value IMHO.

### 1/5 — The worst travel application in the world

*2024-11-11*

First thing in my mind once you downloaded app related to Travel is the trip that I purchased. 
This one is not, and it seems like junior high school project. Waste my time!!

### 1/5 — Useless App

*2024-10-27*

There is nothing worthwhile in the app.

### 1/5 — Utterly useless app

*2024-09-25, version 1.2*

Don’t bother downloading not useful at all

### 1/5 — App is virtually non functional

*2024-09-25, version 1.2*

All sizing is off. Its like its meant for a desktop. Can’t read headings since they are miniature. Doesn’t move out of landscape. Stupid graphic looks nice but wastes time to get to booking. You would think that after replacing an outdated app (tho functional) they would have tested this app so it would at minimum be functional. Once again the VIA train world cant seem to embrace anything modern in any way that improves things and still stay competitive.

### 1/5 — Horrible

*2024-09-23, version 1.2*

I can’t but tickets, I can’t navigate anything anywhere, it’s completely unusable, unless you want to see an over 3d animation of the train.

## Most praised reviews (6 highest-rated)

### 5/5 — Great car layout and service summary

*2025-02-01*

It’s sad the bad reviews are because folks can’t read. This isn’t an official Via Canada app and so, of course, you can’t book travel on it.  But it’s the best thing I’ve found yet for seeing car and cabin layouts. Much better than just photos. It will be wonderful to get familiar with the train before going. Thank you for developing this. I had no trouble figuring it out.

### 5/5 — this isnt the correct app guys chill out

*2024-12-17, version 1.2*

if you guys used your eyes youll see its not the right app

### 5/5 — People are confused about this app

*2024-12-05, version 1.2*

It seems like a lot of people think this is the official “VIA Rail App”.  It is not.

It clearly states that it is the VIA Rail “Canadian” train app.  For those that don’t know it, The Canadian is the train that runs 2 or 3 times a week from Toronto to Vancouver Canada.  It is world renowned!

I think that this app will give people who would like to travel on that train a good idea of what to expect from the layout of the cars (those single rooms are small but cozy) to the food (fabulous!) to the amenities..

You need to put in way more pictures of the scenery… in all the seasons… to improve it but it is fun to look at.

It is what it is.  Pretty good, in fact.  All of those 1 star people should learn to read and not assume they know everything.  I hope I don’t run into them on the train.

### 5/5 — This is awesome

*2024-06-23*

We are booked on the Canadian...Vancouver to Toronto...in mid-2025, and are very excited about the trip. I wanted to understand a little better what we have in store. I had no idea this app existed...just stumbled across it a few days after we booked the trip.

People rate apps based on lots of things. I care about whether the app does what it advertises. This doesn't claim to be a booking site, and it's not, so I don't hold that against it. Rather, this app claims that you will get to know the Canadian train. Which you absolutely do. So, five stars.

### 4/5 — Good Description

*2025-06-06*

This app is as it is described. It’s a bit clunky to maneuver on the iPhone screen but once you get used to it, it works well. It is a description of the Canadian train on the different levels of service. It is not a reservation or a tracking app. I was able to acquaint myself to my sleeper cabin and all the features that come with it.

### 4/5 — Need a little improvement

*2021-11-21*

U need to be able to enter all cars and the locomotive.    

And I think there are 24 cars on the Canadian 
 -trainsforroobert

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-06-10.*