Day-by-day programme of this 14-day itinerary across Ontario and Quebec (Eastern Canada).
Day 1 â Arrival in Toronto
Landing in Toronto, Canada's largest city: a first taste of skyscrapers, multiculturalism and the great Lake Ontario.
- âïļ Toronto â Aeroporto Toronto Pearson (YYZ)
- ð CN Tower â The CN Tower is Toronto's symbol: for almost half a century the tallest free-standing structure in the world, 553 metres of concrete soaring above the skyline. A dizzying lift takes you to the observation deck, where the glass floor lets you look straight down at the city and the view runs all the way to Lake Ontario and, on clear days, to the mist clouds of Niagara. At sunset it is even better. Back on the ground, a short walk leads to the old distillery quarter.
- ð Distillery District â The Distillery District is a piece of Victorian Toronto that survived and was reborn: a pedestrian maze of red-brick cobbled lanes, where the 19th-century whisky distilleries now house art galleries, cafes, craft breweries and design shops. In the evening the fairy lights come on and the atmosphere turns magical. It's the right place for your first Canadian dinner and a local beer, before heading back to the hotel: tomorrow you explore Toronto in full.
- ðĻ Chelsea Hotel, Toronto â Downtown (Entertainment / Financial District), Toronto
Day 2 â Toronto, a mosaic of neighbourhoods
A full day for the most multicultural city in the world: historic markets, ethnic neighbourhoods, an oversized castle and a great museum.
- ð St. Lawrence Market â St. Lawrence Market has been Toronto's belly for over two centuries: under the brick vaults run stalls of cheese, fresh fish, bakeries and delis from every corner of the planet. Breakfast here is a must: the peameal bacon sandwich, a slice of cured back bacon in a bun, is the city institution. With a full stomach and the right energy you set off towards the bohemian Kensington neighbourhood.
- ð Kensington Market â Kensington Market is not a covered market but a whole colourful, rebellious neighbourhood: Victorian houses painted in bold hues, murals, vintage shops, Caribbean fruit stalls, Mexican taquerias and alternative cafes. It blends into neighbouring Chinatown in a single, vibrant melting pot of languages and aromas. It is the city's alternative heart. From here you head north, where an unexpected castle rises.
- ð Casa Loma â Casa Loma is a Gothic-Revival castle built in the early 1900s by an eccentric financier who made his fortune in electricity and lost it just as fast. Turrets, grand staircases, an Art Nouveau conservatory, secret passages and flowering gardens: it is the only true stately home in North America that looks straight out of a European fairy tale. From the terraces you survey the whole city. Back down towards the centre, you turn to the city's great museum.
- ð Royal Ontario Museum â The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) is Canada's largest museum, recognisable from afar by the 'Crystal', the futuristic glass-and-aluminium extension that bursts through the historic facade. Inside, dinosaurs, Egyptian mummies, Chinese art and a section devoted to Canada's First Nations all coexist. A journey through time and space under one roof. For the evening you treat yourself to a last dinner in Toronto, before heading tomorrow towards the great falls.
Day 3 â Niagara Falls
You head down to the US border for one of the most famous waterfalls in the world, then relax among the vineyards of Niagara-on-the-Lake.
- ð Table Rock - Niagara Falls â From Table Rock you stand just metres from the brink of the Horseshoe Falls: 2,400 cubic metres of water a second plunging fifty metres and throwing up a permanent cloud of spray. The roar is deafening, the power hypnotic. It is one of those places no photo truly captures. To grasp its scale you have to go right down below, and for that there is a boat that sails straight into the mist.
- ðŊ Niagara City Cruises â The Niagara City Cruises boat (on the Canadian side) takes you right to the foot of the Horseshoe Falls: you slip on a poncho and enter the amphitheatre of water, where the spray soaks everyone and the din drowns out every voice. It is the most adrenaline-filled, wettest experience at Niagara, worth doing at least once. Dried off in the sun, you leave the roar of the falls and drive up the river towards a village from another age.
- ð Niagara-on-the-Lake â Twenty minutes from the thunder of the falls, Niagara-on-the-Lake is the exact opposite: a pretty 19th-century town of wooden houses, immaculate flowerbeds, horse-drawn carriages and a main street full of bakeries and shops. All around stretches Ontario's wine country, famous for icewine, made from frozen grapes. A stop for a glass and a few photos, then back to the hotel: tomorrow you set off early eastwards, along the St Lawrence.
- ðĻ Crowne Plaza Niagara Falls-Fallsview â Fallsview, Niagara Falls
Day 4 â The Thousand Islands
Transfer eastward along the St Lawrence River to the Thousand Islands archipelago and the historic town of Kingston.
- ðŊ Thousand Islands - Gananoque â The Thousand Islands (in fact over 1,800) dot the St Lawrence where the river leaves Lake Ontario, on the Canada-US border. The cruise sets off from Gananoque and threads among islets large and small, each with its wooden cottage, its jetty, sometimes a single tree: there is even the island with the fairy-tale Boldt Castle. A gentle, unexpected landscape. Back ashore, you reach nearby Kingston for the night.
- ð Kingston â Kingston, the first capital of a united Canada, is a genteel limestone town on the lake: that is why they call it the 'Limestone City'. The waterfront, the neoclassical old city hall, the imposing Fort Henry and the downtown streets full of pubs and cafes make it a perfect stop. In the evening you dine by the water. Tomorrow you continue to the country's capital, Ottawa.
- ðĻ Holiday Inn Kingston Waterfront â Downtown waterfront, Kingston
Day 5 â Ottawa, the capital
Canada's federal capital: elegant, orderly, crossed by the historic Rideau Canal and facing the linguistic border with Quebec.
- ð Parliament Hill â Parliament Hill dominates Ottawa with its neo-Gothic buildings in green-grey stone, its spires and the Peace Tower rising over the river. In summer, in front of the building, the Changing of the Guard takes place in red full dress, very British. You tour the interiors and climb, if open, the tower for the view. From here it is a short walk to the city's historic canal.
- ð Rideau Canal â The Rideau Canal, a UNESCO site, cuts through central Ottawa for almost eight kilometres: in summer it is a waterway where you cycle and paddle along the banks, in winter it freezes and becomes the longest natural skating rink in the world. The historic locks step down right below Parliament Hill. A relaxing stroll before diving into the city's most delicious quarter.
- ð ByWard Market â ByWard Market is Ottawa's liveliest historic quarter: fruit and flower stalls, bars, breweries and the bakeries that turn out BeaverTails, the sweet fried pastries coated in sugar and cinnamon that were born right here. It's the right place for lunch and to soak up the capital's atmosphere. In the afternoon you cross the river and, with it, the border between English-speaking Ontario and French-speaking Quebec.
- ð Canadian Museum of History â Just across the river, in Quebec, the Canadian Museum of History is the country's most visited museum. The Grand Hall, with the world's largest collection of Pacific Coast First Nations totem poles, is breathtaking; the rest traces a thousand years of Canadian history. From outside, what's more, you get the finest view of Parliament Hill on the opposite bank. Back in Ottawa, you enjoy your last evening before entering the French heart of Canada.
- ðĻ Courtyard by Marriott Ottawa Downtown â Downtown / ByWard, Ottawa
Day 6 â The Laurentians and Mont-Tremblant
Into Quebec through the Laurentians, the mountain region beloved by Quebecers, with a stop in the alpine village of Mont-Tremblant.
- ð Mont-Tremblant â Mont-Tremblant is Quebec's most famous mountain resort: at the foot of the peak spreads a pedestrian village of colourful French-style facades, with cafes, restaurants and shops. In summer it is a base for hikes and lakes, in winter a skiing capital. The air smells of resin and boreal forest. After lunch you ride up high to take in the rolling hills as far as the eye can see.
- ðŊ Mont-Tremblant Gondola â The scenic gondola climbs in minutes to the summit of Mont-Tremblant: from up there, at 875 metres, the Laurentians open out in their full extent, a rolling sea of forests and lakes that blazes red and orange in autumn. Short trails let you walk on the summit. You come down refreshed and take the car south-east, heading for Canada's great French-speaking city: Montreal.
- ðĻ AC Hotel Old Montreal â Downtown / Vieux-Montreal, Montreal
Day 7 â French Montreal
The second-largest French-speaking city in the world after Paris: cobbled lanes, a spectacular basilica and the hill that gives the city its name.
- ð Old Montreal â Old Montreal is the city's oldest quarter: paved streets, grey-stone buildings of the 18th and 19th centuries, squares enlivened by street performers and the old port facing the St Lawrence. There is a European air that closely recalls France, but with signs in French and English and North American proportions. Strolling on, you arrive in front of the most astonishing church in Canada.
- ð Notre-Dame Basilica â Montreal's Notre-Dame Basilica takes your breath away the moment you step inside: the neo-Gothic interior is an explosion of midnight blue studded with golden stars, carved wood, polychrome statues and a monumental organ. Light filters through stained glass that, unusually, tells the story of Montreal rather than biblical episodes. In the evening it hosts the AURA light show. Outside, you head for the hill that overlooks it all.
- ð Mont-Royal - Kondiaronk Lookout â Mont-Royal is the wooded hill that gives the city its name: a great park designed by the same landscape architect as New York's Central Park. From the Kondiaronk lookout, in front of the chalet, you enjoy the classic view over all of Montreal, the downtown skyscrapers and the St Lawrence shimmering in the distance. You climb on foot through the trees or by car. For the evening you drop into the liveliest neighbourhood for dinner.
- ð―ïļ Schwartz's Deli â At Schwartz's, on Saint-Laurent Boulevard, since 1928 they have served Montreal's signature speciality: smoked meat, spiced and smoked beef brisket, sliced thick into a rye sandwich with mustard. The queue outside is part of the experience; inside you eat elbow to elbow at the old tables. Full and content you head back to the hotel: tomorrow you discover Montreal from the side of its markets and creative neighbourhoods.
Day 8 â Creative Montreal
A second day for Montreal's bohemian, foodie side: the great market, the creative neighbourhoods and a major art museum.
- ð Jean-Talon Market â Jean-Talon Market, in the Little Italy district, is one of the largest open-air markets in North America: mountains of Quebec fruit and vegetables, local cheeses, maple syrup in every form, foie gras, chocolate and stalls for tasting on the spot. It is the best way to understand the region's cuisine. With a few tasty purchases in your bag you move to the nearby bohemian neighbourhoods.
- ð Plateau Mont-Royal â The Plateau Mont-Royal is Montreal's most photographed neighbourhood: rows of colourful houses with their iconic outdoor spiral staircases, huge murals, independent cafes and nearby Mile End, cradle of the Montreal bagel and of artists and musicians. You wander on foot, stopping for a hot bagel fresh from the oven. In the afternoon you head back towards the centre for a dip into art.
- ð Montreal Museum of Fine Arts â The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts is Canada's oldest art museum, spread over several pavilions on both sides of Sherbrooke Street: from European masters to Inuit and First Nations art, through design and major international exhibitions. A cultural finale before saying goodbye to Montreal. In the evening, a last dinner in the city: tomorrow you follow the St Lawrence to the cradle of New France, Quebec City.
Day 9 â Towards Quebec City
Transfer eastward along the river, with a stop in Trois-Rivieres, to the only walled city in North America north of Mexico.
- ð Old Trois-Rivieres â Halfway between Montreal and Quebec, Trois-Rivieres is one of the oldest towns in French Canada: the small old centre, gathered around Rue des Ursulines, keeps stone houses, convents and a quiet riverfront where the St Lawrence broadens. A short stop, just time for a coffee and a stroll. You set off again eastward and, on the horizon, perched on a cliff, the unmistakable silhouette of Quebec appears.
- ð Chateau Frontenac â The Chateau Frontenac is the most photographed hotel in the world: a castle with green turrets and copper roofs that dominates Quebec's Old Town from the top of its cliff, above the St Lawrence. Even without staying there, it is worth stepping into the sumptuous lobby and walking around the terraces. From here begins UNESCO Quebec, the most European corner of the continent. You walk down towards the oldest and prettiest quarter.
- ð Quartier Petit-Champlain â The Quartier Petit-Champlain, at the foot of the cliff, is the heart of the Lower Town: the oldest pedestrian street in North America, very narrow, with its 17th-century stone houses, craft shops, restaurants and the famous Fresque des Quebecois, the mural that recounts four centuries of history. The evening lights make it fairy-tale. You dine here, then head up to the hotel: Quebec is to be savoured slowly, and tomorrow the whole upper town remains.
- ðĻ Hotel du Vieux-Quebec â Vieux-Quebec, Quebec City
Day 10 â Quebec City, New France
A full day in the only walled city north of Mexico, between river terraces, a waterfall taller than Niagara and a rural island.
- ð Terrasse Dufferin â The Terrasse Dufferin is the long wooden boardwalk that runs in front of the Chateau Frontenac, sheer above the St Lawrence: from here the view sweeps over the river, the boats and the Levis shore opposite. It is the city's open-air drawing room, perfect in the morning. From one end the stairway climbs to the Citadel and the ramparts. Having breathed the river air, you delve into the city's history, on the battlefields.
- ð Plains of Abraham â The Plains of Abraham are Quebec's great historic park: here, in 1759, the battle between French and English decided the fate of Canada, which passed to the British crown. Today it is a green expanse where Quebecers jog, picnic and cross-country ski in winter; the old defensive towers and cannons recall the past. You leave the old town and head out to the river, where water plunges from a surprising height.
- ð Montmorency Falls â Montmorency Falls, a quarter of an hour from the centre, are higher than Niagara: an 83-metre drop, where the Montmorency River throws itself into the St Lawrence. A suspended footbridge crosses the brink, a cable car climbs the cliff and the boldest can zip-line over the void. You feel the spray from afar. You carry on a little further to cross a bridge and find yourself on an island of old-fashioned countryside.
- ð Ile d'Orleans â Ile d'Orleans, in the middle of the St Lawrence and reached by a bridge, is considered the cradle of French-speaking civilisation in America: a loop of the island among farms, vineyards, orchards, roadside strawberry stalls, 17th-century churches and makers of cider and maple syrup. A plunge into rural, gentle Quebec. You return to Quebec City for your last evening; tomorrow the journey heads north, on the trail of the whales.
Day 11 â Charlevoix and the whales of Tadoussac
You drive up the spectacular Charlevoix coast to Tadoussac, where the river becomes the sea and the whales come to feed near the shore.
- ð Baie-Saint-Paul â Baie-Saint-Paul, set between the hills of Charlevoix and the river, is a charming artists' town: the main street is a row of art galleries, studios, cafes and brightly coloured houses. It was right here, from a group of street stilt-walkers, that Cirque du Soleil was born. A stop for lunch and a few canvases. Then the scenic road carries on north, where the St Lawrence meets the Saguenay fjord and the ocean.
- ðŊ Tadoussac whale watching â At Tadoussac the St Lawrence widens into a salty estuary where cold currents bring a banquet of krill and fish: it is one of the best places in the world to see whales. From zodiacs or boats you spot white belugas, minke whales, humpbacks and even the gigantic blue whale. Watching them surface a few metres away is breathtaking. You sleep in the little village overlooking the bay; tomorrow you explore the fjord that opens up behind it.
- ðĻ Hotel-Motel Georges â Centre du village, Tadoussac
Day 12 â The Saguenay Fjord
A day devoted to the Saguenay Fjord, one of the southernmost in the world: rock walls hundreds of metres high and villages overlooking the water.
- ðŊ Saguenay Fjord â The Saguenay Fjord is a spectacular inlet carved by the ice: rock walls dropping sheer for over three hundred metres into the dark water, where fresh and salt water meet. By cruise or kayak you sail beneath the cliffs, among lonely headlands and the white statue of the Virgin watching from a rock. The silence is broken only by the blow of a whale. In the afternoon you reach the fjord's most photogenic village.
- ð Sainte-Rose-du-Nord â Sainte-Rose-du-Nord is considered one of the prettiest villages in Quebec: a handful of houses overlooking a bend in the fjord, a wooden jetty, the little church and mountains all around. It is the right place for a slow walk and a postcard photo, far from everything. Back in Tadoussac for your last night on the river, tomorrow you begin the return towards Quebec City.
Day 13 â Back to Quebec City
You return along the Charlevoix coast to Quebec City for the last evening of the trip, within the walls of the Old Town.
- ð La Malbaie - Pointe-au-Pic â On the way back, La Malbaie is the fashionable heart of Charlevoix: here stands the majestic Manoir Richelieu, a grand castle-hotel overlooking the estuary, and all around scenic roads rise and fall between hills and bays. A stop for a last look at the great river that has accompanied the whole journey. Then you head down to Quebec City, where a final Quebecois dinner awaits in the evening.
- ð―ïļ Aux Anciens Canadiens â For the last dinner you choose traditional Quebec cuisine, in the city's oldest house (1675): tourtiere, the meat pie; pea soup; caribou in sauce; and above all sugar pie and maple-syrup desserts. A toast to the journey, from Niagara Falls to the whales of the St Lawrence. Tomorrow morning you leave Canada on a flight from Quebec airport.
- ðĻ Hotel du Vieux-Quebec â Vieux-Quebec, Quebec City
Day 14 â Departure from Quebec City
Last day: transfer to Quebec airport and the return flight, your luggage full of forests, falls and whales.
- âïļ Quebec City â Aeroporto Quebec Jean-Lesage (YQB)
