The flashy urban scene of Toronto’s Sankofa Square (formerly Yonge-Dundas Square) is reminiscent of New York City’s Times Square. More than 56 million people visit this iconic spot every year, making it one of the busiest intersections in Canada. This is where you find glowing billboards, Eaton Centre, Ed Mirvish Theatre, and great spots to people-watch.
The grand style of the Fairmont Empress hotel sets the tone for Victoria’s Inner Harbour, where boats tie up just steps from the city’s most historic landmarks. Visiting the Fairmont Empress is not just for overnight guests; afternoon tea here has been a Victoria tradition for more than a century.
Life revolves around the water at this laid-back coastal community north of Victoria. The action centers on the seafront where you’ll find a sculpture-dotted walkway, a beach scattered with sea glass, and a pier where locals crab and cast fishing lines, as well as an aquarium housing marine life native to the Salish Sea.
Early explorers named the glacier Crowfoot because its three sections of ice looked like a crow’s foot on the mountain. While one of the three “toes” has now receded and disappeared, the glacier is no less spectacular. The Crowfoot Glacier sits above Bow Lake, providing stunning photo opportunities for those traveling the Icefields Parkway.
From fairy-tale turrets to elaborate woodwork and colorful stained-glass windows, Craigdarroch Castle is one of Victoria’s most striking landmarks. Exploring the 4-story 1890 mansion is a fascinating glimpse into British Columbia’s Victorian era—and into the life of a man who was once the wealthiest person in western Canada. The furnishings are just as exquisite as the castle itself, with period pieces that give the property its time-machine feel.
Montreal's Place d’Armes, meaning parade square, is a major public venue in Old Montreal (Vieux-Montréal). The picturesque plaza is bordered by some of Montreal’s most notable architectural landmarks, including the 17th-century Saint-Sulpice Seminary, the Gothic Revival-style Notre-Dame Basilica, and the art deco Aldred Building.
A sacred site for Canadians—for whom ice hockey is a national obsession—the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto holds a treasure trove of the sport’s artifacts and memorabilia, including the original Stanley Cup. Housed inside a grand 19th-century Bank of Montreal building, the attraction also features a range of interactive games, including a virtual shootout where visitors can test their goalkeeping skills.
Located in downtown Toronto at the base of the CN Tower, the Rogers Centre is a sports and entertainment complex that is home to the Toronto Blue Jays baseball team. The Rogers Centre is a great place to catch a Major League Baseball (MLB) game or other event held under its fully retractable roof—the first of its kind in the world.
An alpine lake surrounded by the rugged mountains of Jasper National Park, Medicine Lake is not only a wildlife watching and recreation destination, it is also a geological anomaly. In summer, the pristine lake is brimming with glacial water. Come fall, sinkholes at the bottom of the lake drain the water, leaving nothing but mudflats.
Open to the public since 1867—the year Canada achieved confederation—the Halifax Public Gardens is one of the oldest Victorian gardens in North America. This National Historic Site of Canada was built on two formerly adjacent gardens, and today the idyllic urban green space is home to a variety of trees, flowers, and even tropical plants.
Situated at the northernmost point of Montreal’s Plateau, Mile End is known for its array of independent shops, cafés, and underground music venues. The vibrant neighborhood, a cultural hub since the 1980s, is teeming with highly-rated restaurants and historical landmarks, from classic bagelries to scenes from the novels of Mordecai Richler.
Built for the 1976 Olympic Games, the Montreal Olympic Park (Parc Olympique de Montréal) now houses several attractions that form Montreal’s Space for Life museum district. There’s the Rio Tinto Alcan Planetarium, the 56,000-seater Olympic Stadium, the Biodome, an indoor zoo with around 4,500 animals, as well as the Botanical Gardens and Insectarium in neighboring Maisonneuve Park.
Once home to Gooderham and Worts’ mammoth 19th-century whisky distillery, Toronto’s charming arts and entertainment district is now a popular strolling spot for off-duty creatives. The brick-paved streets and Victorian-era industrial buildings remain, but the old warehouses have now been repurposed into contemporary art galleries, coffee shops, and boutiques. Stick around to drink and dine at one of the many bars and restaurants.
Named after a 16th-century French explorer, Jacques-Cartier Square (Place Jacques-Cartier) is one of the main squares in Old Montreal (Vieux-Montreal). It was laid out in the early 19th century, and is lined with cafe terraces where visitors can watch as street performers and caricature artists vie for the attentions of passing tourists.
Built in the 1840s, this neoclassical silver-domed building has served as a farmers market, theater, and for a brief stint as Montreal's city hall. It was threatened with demolition before being converted into the current market complex, which contains cafes, restaurants, galleries, and shops selling Quebec-made crafts and design items.
The largest natural lake in Canada’s Rocky Mountains, Maligne Lake is ringed by towering, snow-capped mountains and evergreen forests. This Jasper National Park sight makes for excellent paddling, but visitors also flock here to hike, fish, camp, and snap photos of tiny Spirit Island. Maligne Lake is known as Chaba Imne (Beaver Lake) to the Stoney Nakota First Nation and other Indigenous peoples for whom the lake is ancestral territory.
One of Canada’s most-visited shrines, the Shrine of Saint-Anne-de-Beaupré (Sanctuaire de Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré) near Quebec City, attracts nearly a million pilgrims every year. Though its origins date back to the 17th century, the twin-spired basilica that stands today—and dwarfs the modest village in which it sits—is much newer, and was only completed in 1946. It’s a popular devotional destination, as well as an architectural and historical highlight.
This location in Banff National Park is far more than a place to enjoy the scenery: The First Nations who discovered the cave consider the hot springs a sacred site. Along with exploring the boardwalks along the steaming waters, visitors can engage with interpretive exhibits that tell the story of the birthplace of Canada’s national parks system—known today as Parks Canada—which began right here.
Eclectic, diverse, and graffiti-slathered, Toronto's Kensington Market neighborhood is one of the city’s most distinctive enclaves. The district is packed with produce vendors, food sellers, vintage clothes shops, bric-a-brac boutiques, buskers, cafés, and restaurants, and attracts a steady stream of bohemian types.
Nestled on the shores of Bennett Lake and surrounded by rugged mountains, Carcross is a hub of gold rush history, First Nation culture, and outdoor adventure. The small town is a popular stop for visitors who come for gold panning, totem poles, world-class mountain biking, and relaxing on the lake’s renowned beaches.
Houseboats bob alongside shops, food kiosks, and commercial fishing vessels at Fisherman’s Wharf near Victoria’s Inner Harbour. A former hub of the city’s once-industrial shoreline, the wharf is now a popular hangout.
First opened in 1933, Jean-Talon Market (Marché Jean-Talon) is a local institution. Montrealers come to shop farm-fresh ingredients, from Quebec-reared pork and seafood from the country’s east coast to colorful vegetables, everything from purple carrots to orange cauliflower and strangely shaped gourds—all of which are artfully stacked in sellers’ stalls.
An outstanding feat of engineering, the Spiral Tunnels in Yoho National Park were the ingenious early–20th-century solution to climbing or descending the impossibly steep 4.5-percent grade to cross Kicking Horse Pass by rail. Watch long freight trains cross themselves as they travel the tunnels in different directions at the same time.
Artsy and laid-back, Plateau-Mont-Royal, aka the Plateau, captures the spirit of Montreal perhaps more than any other neighborhood. Spiraling iron staircases crawl up Victorian-era residences on tree-lined streets, while magnificent street murals add color to commercial thoroughfares. Restaurants, cafés, bars, and boutiques abound.
Just offshore from downtown Toronto, the Toronto Islands are a chain of small islands beside Lake Ontario that feel a world away from the buzz and high-rise skyline of Toronto. Once part of a single peninsula, the islands were separated from the mainland by violent storms in the 19th century. Today, visitors come here to enjoy sandy beaches, car-free areas, and beautiful parklands that are ideal for walking, cycling, or having a picnic.
Toronto’s Entertainment District lives up to its name with a variety of performing arts venues, clubs, and live sporting events. From symphony to jazz and blues, theater, and baseball games, it’s all happening. Other options for entertainment in the area include Canada’s iconic CN Tower and Ripley’s Aquarium of Canada.
Montreal Chinatown was established in the late 19th century with the arrival of Chinese immigrants from western Canada who came to work on the Canadian Pacific Railway. Though just a couple of blocks long, the district offers a wide selection of Asian eateries and shops selling traditional handicrafts and souvenirs.
The Scotiabank Arena (formerly the Air Canada Centre) is Toronto’s major concert and professional sports venue. The facility clocks in at 650,000 square feet (60,387 square meters) and seats nearly 20,000 event-goers. The adjacent Maple Leaf Square hosts a variety of shops and restaurants, plus a hotel and condominiums.
When you picture a lighthouse, you probably imagine the one in Peggy’s Cove—even if you don’t realize it. With its bright red roof and white walls, the main landmark in this Nova Scotian fishing village looks straight out of a postcard. While its focal point is the lighthouse, Peggy’s Cove entices visitors to linger with shops showcasing local artisans, lobster rolls on every menu, and hiking trails offering views of the bay and windswept hills.
The St. Lawrence River flows 743 miles (1,196 kilometers) across a vast chunk of North America, from the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean. A lifeblood for Ontario and Quebec, the river has long sustained communities, from native tribes to European colonizers. Its waters host wildlife, including whale species and endangered belugas.
