Ontario is the southernmost of the ten provinces in Canada and is home to Ottawa, Canada’s capital city. It is a large province that borders four of the five Great Lakes in the south and Hudson Bay in the north. It is centrally located and is the most populous province with almost 15 million people calling Ontario home. Here are some of the many things to do in Ontario.
Blog Contents
Cities & Towns
The Best Things to Do In Toronto, Canada
There are a lot of interesting and unique things to do in Toronto, Ontario. There are beautiful parks, great restaurants, lots of shopping, and many attractions.
One of the most popular things to do in Toronto is to take a short ferry trip to the Toronto Islands. Once there, you can enjoy the beaches, walking, biking, an amusement park, and much more.
Of course, the main attraction of Toronto is the Entertainment District. This area is downtown but spread out along the lake. Here you will find the best shopping in the city and the most exquisite restaurants.
Take a trip up the CN Tower, visit Ripley’s Aquarium or enjoy the Royal Ontario Museum. Take a tour through Casa Loma – a 98 room castle right inside Toronto. If you love sports, why not check out Canada’s favourite game at the Hockey Hall of Fame?
Toronto has something for every tourist. It’s very easy to spend a weekend or a week and still not run out of things to do.
What to Do In Ottawa, Canada
With approximately 1.5 million people living in the metropolitan Ottawa area, a holiday in Canada’s capital city can provide a unique experience. Here are some things to do in Ottawa:
If you’re looking for a great family event that’s unlike anything else, make sure you tour Canada’s Parliament Buildings. Also, consider a trip to the Byward Market, an open-air market that features local street performers as well as international vendors. Why not try taking a fun Amphibus city tour with Lady Dive Tours? The amphibus takes you on a 1 hour tour combining both land travel as well as cruising the Ottawa River.
Among the many other attractions in Ottawa are the National Gallery of Canada, the Canadian War Museum, the Canada Aviation and Space Museum, and the Royal Canadian Mint.
In addition to a number of great museums, you’ll also find many parks and trails, especially along the Rideau Canal. These offer a great place for kids to run around and play.
If you are a nature lover, don’t miss the Canadian Museum of Nature which has many great exhibits including mammals, birds, insects, and more.
Things To Do In Collingwood Ontario
The Westin Trillium House photo by S. Rae under CC Licence https://www.flickr.com/photos/35142635@N05/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/
This wonderful town is just 2 hours north of Toronto, and for many years was known mainly for building ships and skiing.
Collingwood is on the shore of Georgian Bay, which allowed the newly built ships access to the Great Lakes waterways. Although the shipbuilding ended in 1986, you can see some exhibits of the ship launching days at the Collingwood Museum.
Just 15 minutes northwest of Collingwood is Blue Mountain Village. This has become a hub of tourist activity year-round. The village is modelled after Whistler-Blackcomb in British Columbia. The mountain, although much smaller than the Rockies in the west, still has very good ski facilities in the winter and in the summer it is also used for downhill mountain biking and the Ridge Runner Mountain Coaster. When you are not engaging in the many available activities at Blue Mountain Village, you can enjoy the many shops and restaurants.
When you visit it during summer, the beautiful Collingwood Bay is always filled with lots of sailboats, yachts, and fishing boats. There are also lots of waterfront parks and trails if you love walking or biking. Downtown, you will find many wonderful shops and restaurants.
Nature & Parks
Point Pelee National Park
Marsh Boardwalk, Point Pelee National Park, Leamington, Ontario, Canada photo by Ken Lund under CC Licence https://www.flickr.com/photos/kenlund/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/
When you go to Point Pelee National Park in southern Ontario you will get to experience some great nature adventures that will leave you with lots of wonderful memories. It is located one hour away from The Detroit/Windsor border and is situated along the shores of Lake Erie. The tip of the park is the most southern land point in all of Canada. It is just as far south as northern California.
The park is also one of the most visited tourist spots in southern Ontario. This is mainly due to its unique ecosystem which makes it a migration hub for many species of birds and butterflies. It is famous for the thousands of Monarch butterflies that gather there in late September as they prepare to migrate as far south as Mexico.
One fact that you should know about Point Pelee National Park is that the majority of the park is located on a peninsula of marsh and forest lands. There is a 1 km boardwalk that loops through the marsh. This makes for a great walk as well as a good place to spot wildlife in a natural habitat.
There are a variety of things to do at the park such as camping, fishing, canoeing, boating, swimming, and hiking. The beaches are beautiful and the water is quite warm in summer. For more information check out the Point Pelee National Park website.
Fresh Water Beaches In Ontario Canada
Wasaga Beach 2019 photo by Chris under CC Licence https://www.flickr.com/photos/chrismcphee/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/
One of the things that Ontario has to offer is some of the best freshwater beaches in the world. For those who are used to swimming in the salty ocean, taking a dip in a freshwater lake is a must.
Only 15 minutes away from Collingwood Ontario is Wasaga Beach. On the shores of Georgian Bay, this is the longest freshwater beach in the world, with a continuous sandy beach for 14 km (8.7 mi). This beach is great for families with kids because the water depth is shallow, getting deeper very gradually. This also makes for nice warm water in the summertime.
Sandbanks Provincial Park has 3 beautiful sandy beaches on the shores of Lake Ontario. Dunes Beach is famous for the vast hills of sand that surround the beach area. It makes for a really fun beach experience.
The Great Lakes are very large, and with four of them accessible from Ontario, it’s no wonder that there are many great beaches. Some of the best beaches are along the coast of Lake Erie. With south-facing beaches in Canada’s most southern area, Erie’s beaches are amongst the best and the warmest. Most Provincial Parks as well as many Conservation Areas have freshwater beaches to enjoy on those hot summer days.
Attractions
Things To Do In Niagara Falls Ontario
Niagara Falls, Ontario, is the most famous natural tourist attraction in the world. It’s one of North America’s favourite places for waterfalls. The impressive Horseshoe Falls are internationally recognized as one of the greatest natural wonders. It is easily accessible from Toronto, making it an easy commute for many visitors. The Canadian side of the falls has a very extensive walkway with a safety railing. This makes it possible to simply walk to great viewpoints and see Horseshoe Falls as well as American Falls on the other side of the river.
Other great ways to experience viewing the falls include taking the Journey Behind The Falls tour, which does exactly what the name suggests. Why not go up the Skylon Tower for a great view from the observation deck, followed by a wonderful dinner with someone special? For the more adventurous, you can also take a ride on the Wildplay Zipline or take one of the sightseeing tours by helicopter.
Once you have enjoyed your time visiting the attractions at the falls, you may want to take in some other attractions in the region before heading back to the hotel.
If you didn’t already know, Niagara Falls is also a city. There are lots of things to do in the area including indoor waterparks, Marineland, Safari Niagara, a Butterfly Conservatory and so much more. If you just want to shop and dine, there is plenty of that as well.
There are lots of hotels and other accommodations. Some have rooms overlooking the falls. I believe everyone needs to experience Niagara Falls at least once.
For more information about things to do at the falls Click Here
Go For Dinner At The CN Tower Restaurant
The CN Tower 360 Restaurant has long been a favourite among locals, tourists, and those who frequent the area. There is nothing like experiencing dinner at a height of 1,151 feet above the city. The restaurant overlooks the Toronto Harbor and offers spectacular views of the city of Toronto. You get to see the whole thing because the restaurant rotates fully every 72 minutes. There are many events held at the top of the Tower, including the Canada 150th anniversary celebrations.
The elevators run at high speed on the outside of the tower, which is an experience in itself. At 1,122 feet, you can experience views while standing on the original Glass Floor level, which was built in 1994. The next level is the LookOut Level, which is at 1,136 ft. It has more recently been renovated to also have a glass floor looking down at the Glass Floor level below it, as well as full panoramic Window Walls for an incredible view.
For the daring, get strapped up in a safety harness and try the EdgeWalk. Walk a complete circle around the CN Tower on a 5-foot platform. You will be on the outside with nothing but air between you and the ground 1,168 feet below.
If you want the absolute highest view, go right up to the SkyPod observation platform. It is situated at 1,465 ft. above the ground. You can get all of the information directly from the CN Tower website.
Visit The Stratford Festival
Tom Patterson Theatre, Stratford, Ontario photo by Ken Lund under CC Licence https://www.flickr.com/photos/kenlund/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/
Stratford, Ontario headed in a new direction on July 13, 1953, when The Stratford Festival hosted a production of Richard III, on its brand-new theatre stage. Today they are the largest theatre company of its kind in North America. They do performances of the classics, musicals, and more, however, their primary focus has always been the plays of Shakespeare.
The festival has expanded to four theatre venues and many different performances that usually run from April to October. When you are in between shows, Stratford has many nice shops and restaurants.
Ontario Road Trips
Drive Old Hwy 2 from Toronto to Quebec
Today you can take Hwy 401 to travel between Windsor, Ontario, and the Quebec border. This modern freeway can get you there in 8 hours with the speed limit of 100km/hr. Before the 401 was completed in 1968, the main route was Hwy 2. This was a 2 lane, much slower route that passed from town to town the same way some of our smaller highways do today.
A fun road trip is to take part of that route, starting in Toronto, and ending in Cornwall near the Quebec border. As you head east from Toronto on Kingston Rd., it becomes County Rd. 2. This was all part of the old Hwy 2 route. It eventually passes through many towns and cities including Bowmanville, Port Hope, Belleville, Kingston, and Cornwall. You can still see some of the old motels and businesses that once were popular stops along the way.
The route follows the shore of Lake Ontario. Once you hit Port Hope, much of the trip is quite close to the lake, so you can take a few side trips and check out the water from time to time. By the way, the road changes to Hwy 338 in Quebec if you wanted to keep going.
Take Hwy 11 North from Barrie to Thunder Bay
Experience some of the beauty of Northern Ontario. As you leave Barrie you are heading towards Muskoka, one of Ontario’s most popular cottage areas. Hwy 11 is a 4-lane highway until you get to North Bay. If you want to see some of the beautiful lakes and smaller communities, you will have to take some side trips off of the main highway.
Once you pass North Bay, you will see the landscape become much more rugged, and the population density decrease substantially. The north is very beautiful and highly recommended for a road trip.
One thing to note – during the winter months, this route can become treacherous due to snowy weather. This is Canada after all.
In Summary
Ontario is a large and diverse province in Canada. From the snowy north to the US border in the south, from the hundreds of small lakes to the great lakes, and from small towns to large cities, Ontario has lots to offer.
Although I’ve already covered 10 great things to do in Ontario, I could do many posts like this one, and each would have its own wonderful things to see and do. There is way too much to write about in one blog post, which simply means that Ontario is a fabulous place to visit.
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