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Dawson City, Yukon
The candy-hued, frontier-style buildings of Dawson City, Yukon, transport visitors back to the 19th century Gold Rush era, when the settlement in the Klondike Valley had its largest population. There’s a vibrant First Nations heritage and arts scene here, and visitors can enjoy immersive Indigenous experiences at the Dänojà Zho Cultural Centre, or the creative energy of the Yukon Riverside Arts Festival and Dawson International Short Film Festival throughout the year.
The natural beauty of the region offers fantastic outdoor activities, including dog sledding, gold panning and canoeing the Yukon River, while the clear skies provide one of the best opportunities to witness the Northern Lights.
Kinngait, Nunavut
This remote hamlet of Kinngait, formerly known as Cape Dorset, is surrounded by an otherworldly, snow-draped Arctic landscape offering a chance to spot herds of caribou, pods of beluga whales and the occasional polar bear. The region is also the ancestral home of the Inuit Indigenous community, with many world-renowned Inuit artists showcasing their artwork at the West Baffin Eskimo Cooperative.
During the spring and summer, spend long, sun-filled days among secluded waterfalls and glass-clear glacial lakes, or simply on the shores of the Hudson Strait.
Icefields Parkway, Alberta
You’d be hard pressed to find a route more picturesque than the Icefields Parkway, a 232-kilometer drive in Alberta through the Canadian Rockies, ending in Jasper National Park. Starting just a few kilometers past the majesty that is Lake Louise, the parkway winds through nearly too many viewpoints to count, including Bow Lake where you can dip your toes in the ice-blue waters, and the Saskatchewan River Crossing, an ancient mountain pass used by Indigenous traders.
The Columbia Icefields Skywalk is a must-stop for lunch with a side of adrenaline, where you can walk a curved, glass-floored observation platform perched 912 feet above the Sunwapta Valley. The parkway ends in Jasper, a charming alpine town where spotting moose and brown bears is the norm.
Lunenburg, Nova Scotia
Old Town Lunenburg is a coastal community so gorgeous and unique that it’s one of only two urban communities in North American designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Seventy percent of the pastel-colored buildings along the water date back to the 18th and 19th centuries, during the time of British colonial rule, and the narrow, winding streets are lined with pubs and cute boutiques.
Explore the town’s history at the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic, then indulge in famous Nova Scotian lobster at the Grand Banker Bar & Grill (you NEED their lobster-topped burger in your life).
Rocky Harbour, Newfoundland and Labrador
Home to Gros Morne National Park, the second largest national park in Atlantic Canada, Rocky Harbour is known for soaring fjords and cloud-draped mountains. Shaped by slowly moving glaciers over thousands of years, Gros Morne’s breathtaking landscape is a UNESCO World Heritage site defined by sweeping beaches, dense forests and jagged cliffs.
Head to Salmon Point Lookout for panoramic views of Boone Bay and Lobster Cove Head Lighthouse, or step inside the century-old lighthouse for a fascinating exhibit about lightkeepers.
Quebec City, Quebec
Though we’d never suggest a substitute for the magic that is France, if you can’t make it across the Atlantic, Quebec City is a close second to the old worldliness of medieval Europe. The more than 400-year-old city has been around longer than Canada has been a country, and you can feel its vibrant French heritage while strolling along bistro-lined cobblestone streets and colonial-style stone buildings.
Perched high above the city on a bluff overlooking the rushing St. Lawrence river is one of the most famous sites of the city, the Fairmont Le Château Frontenac, a grand dame hotel built in 1893 by the Canadian Pacific Railway.
Points East Coastal Drive, Prince Edward Island
Most people head to PEI in search of the wide green landscapes and wind-swept beaches of Anne of Green Gables, but the nearby region of Points East Coastal Drive deserves a visit too. This area is known for not five, but 50 beaches all within minutes of each other, and home to the warmest waters north of the Carolinas.
While here, make sure to join part of the PEI Island Walk—a 435-mile walking route that traverses across the island and is perfect for a leisurely stroll or bike ride on a boardwalk through lush green forests and near quiet ocean coves.
Eastern Townships, Quebec
Fans of prolific mystery writer Louise Penny can pretend to be a part of her fictional village, Three Pines, on a trip through the Eastern Townships of Quebec, a region filled with charming towns in southeastern Québec bordering Vermont at the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. The area is known as the birthplace of viticulture in Quebec, and the Route de vins Brome-Missisquoi is a beautiful route connecting 23 wineries and rolling vineyards.
Magog is a the perfect town for nature lovers—perched at the edge of Lake Memphrémagog and Mont-Orford, visitors can walk the Marais de la Rivière aux Cerises path, which traverses across wooden footbridges, boardwalks, and forest trails through explore well-preserved marshlands.
Tobermory, Ontario
The vivid teal waters surrounding Tobermory will have you wondering if you’ve ended up in the Caribbean, until you jump in of course. The harbor village on the Bruce Peninsula is known for Fathom Five National Marine Park, within Bruce Peninsula National Park, where you’ll find some of the best freshwater diving in the world.
The water is unbelievably clear, perfect for viewing submerged geological formations like cliffs, caves, and overhangs, alongside more than 20 historical shipwrecks. At night, visit the Bruce Peninsula Dark-Sky preserve for a chance to see the northern lights over Georgian Bay.
Ottawa, Ontario
Ottawa is a beautiful city year-round but it shines during winter when the historic Rideau Canal—Ontario’s only UNESCO World Heritage Site—freezes over and becomes the world’s largest skating rink. Picture it: snow-dusted trees surround an expansive skate way stretching 7.8 kilometers (4.8 miles) through the heart of downtown past the castle-like Parliament of Canada on one side, and the Fairmont Château Laurier (an actual castle) on the other. Stay warm at a rink side BeaverTail stand with a cup of hot chocolate and the famous fried dough pastry.
Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario
Not to be confused with that famous eponymous waterfall, Niagara-on-the-Lake is on the shores of Lake Ontario and known for its historic old town filled with English countryside-inspired B&B’s, boutiques and bakeries serving sweet chimney pastries and piping-hot apple fritters. Often described as the prettiest town in Ontario, the well-preserved 19th-century village is also the heart of Ontario Wine Country, where icewine (known as “liquid gold” among these parts) is especially popular.
Almonte, Ontario
Have you ever wanted to live in a Christmas movie? Us, too. There’s a good chance your favorite Christmas film was shot in the “Mini Hollywood of the North”: Almonte. Featured in made-for-TV movies like Lifetime’s “Christmas Around The Corner” and Hallmark’s “Unlocking Christmas,” Almonte often plays the idyllic all-American backdrop thanks to a 1950s style diner, beautiful stone 19th-century buildings and warmly lit shops. Live out your own romantic Christmas movie dreams with a stroll along the Almonte Riverwalk and a southern Italian dinner at Café Postino.
Vancouver Island, British Columbia
There’s no shortage of beautiful vistas across Vancouver Island. Whether you want the sleepy surfer village vibes of Tofino, or the whale-rich waters of the North Island region, you’ll never run out of all the ways nature’s beauty shines in this place. Pacific Rim National Park is a must-see, where ancient cedar and Sitka spruce trees stretch to the heavens, and the sheltered bays of Barkley Sound are ideal for afternoons spent kayaking through the Broken Group islands.
As the ancestral land of Kwakwaka’wakw, Nuu-chah-nulth, and Coast Salish communities, you can experience First Nations culture through sites like I-Hos gallery and Klahoose Coastal Adventure tours.
Winnipeg, Manitoba
Often referred to as “the culture cradle of Canada,” so much of Winnipeg’s beauty lies beyond its pretty skyline (especially the very cool Provencher suspension bridge). The vibrant city has a rich mix of cultural attractions, like the Canadian Museum for Human Rights and the Winnipeg Art Gallery centered on Indigenous art, helping to showcase its diverse heritage. There’s natural beauty too of course, including Assiniboine Park, rivers, and scenic walking trails that make it ideal for year-round activities.
Banff, Alberta
Strolling down Banff Avenue, the main thoroughfare of the resort town, is like walking through a post card. The adorable main street is lined with kitschy boutiques, art galleries, cozy restaurants and alpine-style hotels, all leading toward the majesty that is Cascade mountain.
Banff absolutely shines in winter when the fresh powder seems to make everything glow, but if you can’t make it then, try to time your visit for September and October when the larch trees turn an impressive golden yellow. The shimmering yellow trees combined with the luminous blue of Bow River that runs through Banff is awe-inspiring.
Lake Louise, Alberta
If this lake isn’t on your bucket list, it should be. Though Canada has no shortage of stunning lakes, something about the vivid turquoise, glacier-fed waters of Lake Louise surrounded by aspens, larches and the vast Canadian Rockies makes this place feel like heaven on earth. In our humble opinion, the best way to experience this lake is during summer and early fall, when you can witness the glittering waters up close from one of the iconic red canoes at the boathouse.
Charlevoix, Quebec
Painters Vladimir Horik, Jean-François Racine, Laurent Lafleur; these are just a few of the renowned artists that credit the Charlevoix region of Quebec as their muse. The area’s mountainous landscape is unique thanks to a meteorite that hit Earth 400 million years ago, leaving the 11th largest crater in the world. You can explore it on your own in the Grands-Jardins National Park on an 8.6-kilometer round-trip hike to see the crater from the peak of Mont-du-Lac-des Cygnes.
Winter is when the region’s beauty is at its most raw and rugged, with the mountains blanketed in thick snow and the St. Lawrence river dotted with frozen waterfalls.
Whistler, British Columbia
Whistler Blackcomb is arguably one of the most famous ski areas in North America, mainly due to its history as the site of the 2010 Winter Olympics. Although winter is one of the most popular and extraordinary times to visit, Whistler is a bonafide four-season destination, and during the summer season you can enjoy the great outdoors hiking, bike riding, ziplining and swimming in Alpha Lake from sunrise to sunset.
To see it all from above, hope on the PEAK 2 PEAK glass-bottom gondola between Whistler and Blackcomb mountains for a birds-eye view of Whistler Village, glaciers and forests.
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