Canada Family Holidays

Family Holidays in Ontario

Niagara Falls

Discover Canada’s most southerly region, home to a large proportion of the country’s 30 million people, its largest city, Toronto, and its biggest tourist site, Niagara Falls. The great waterfalls straddle the border between Canada and the States, and there is enthusiastic competition between the two to lay on the best tourist facilities – you can balloon over the falls, sail under them, or walk through behind or beside them. 

The famous Maid of the Mist boats operate from the USA but there are plenty of options on the Canadian side of Niagara, including helicopter rides, the Skylon Tower with its observation deck, the Skywheel and even zip-lining beside the Falls.

Toronto with Kids

Drive about 90 minutes from Niagara to Toronto, a great  family city-break destination as well as a launchpad for exploring further afield. The CN Tower, the world’s tallest free-standing building, has glass-fronted elevators whizzing you up to its viewing platforms plus the hands-free but harnessed EdgeWalk around its roof. 

The Royal Ontario Museum, Centreville Amusement Park and  outstanding theme park Canada’s Wonderworld are just some of the other things to do in Toronto with kids. Some of the city's attractions are on the Toronto Islands within Lake Ontario.

Georgian Bay

About 90 minutes north of Toronto, explore lesser-known Georgian Bay, a beautiful waterscape of islands and lakes.

Ottawa

Spend time in the Canadian capital Ottawa, about 450km north-east of Toronto. In the heart of the city is Mooney’s Bay, with a sandy beach with swimming in the river, volleyball, biking paths and cross-country skiing on illuminated trails, plus a ski school, according to season. In autumn people head here to see the beautifully coloured foliage.

Family Holidays in Quebec

Discover this vast province covering about a sixth of Canada’s total area, made up largely of forest, lakes and mining towns. Historic cities – some English-speaking, some Francophone – make up much of its charm, but there's also winter sports and summer activities galore amidst its epic landscapes, which include some spectacular National Parks.

Montreal Attractions

Immerse yourselves in Montreal, founded in 1642 as a fur-trading centre and retaining its historic centre and old ports, which you can explore on foot, by bike or by guided tour – the latter gives you a sense of the struggle the early settlers had, and tells of the people who were here before Europeans got involved. 

Other highlights of Montreal with kids are the Montreal Science Centre and the Montreal Biodome with its walk-through reconstructions of American eco-systems. The Biodome is in Montreal's Olympic Park, also home to the Montreal Tower – the world’s tallest inclined tower, leaning out at a 45° angle and accessed by funicular cable-cars – a stadium and a vast sports complex. 

Gatineau Hills and Winter Fun

Head for the Gatineau Hills, a popular skiing destination with nothing less, in winter, than the world’s biggest skating rink – the 2km-long Skateway on the UNESCO World Heritage listed Rideau Canal. The ski season in Quebec generally lasts from late November to early April. The city of Gatineau itself is home to the Canadian Museum of History, which contains the Canadian Children’s Museum, with permanent displays, temporary exhibitions and special events.

Mont Tremblant – Winter and Summer Activities

Or try out the ski resort of Tremblant (or Mont Tremblant) with its colourful, traffic-free centre built like a historic French town. It's very convenient for British families skiing in Canada and has low mountains that won’t give kids altitude problems. Other winter activities include snowshoeing, dog-sledding, snowmobiling, horse-riding across snow-covered fields, and ice-skating, and there are indoor and outdoor pools and hot tubs. There are frequent shuttle buses between Montreal and Mont Tremblant, taking about 90 minutes, or hire a car.

From mid-June to mid-September, come to Tremblant for summer activity holidays in lush surrounds, including the Mont Tremblant National Park with its watersports and cruises, quad-biking, calèche rides, via ferrata, canoeing, hiking and camping. Try alpine luge, take the gondola up for  views of the Laurentians, play at the water park, have a round of mini-golf, hire bikes/mountain-bikes, raft down the Rouge River and ride horses through the Laurentian Mountains. There’s also bungy-trampoline, paintball playgrounds, an aerial forest adventure, and two very good golf courses, and you can take a panoramic helicopter ride to see the Diable River, Lake Ouimet, Gray Rocks, Iroquois Falls and other local scenery.

Quebec City

Wander the cobbled streets of Quebec City in its spellbinding position beside the great St Lawrence River. This is the only walled city in North America and a World Heritage Site. Stop for a croissant and café au lait and listen to little old ladies talk French. Stroll along the Terrasse Dufferin, a wide, buggy-friendly boardwalk beside the river, lined with shops and ice-cream parlours, and through the Lower Town with its historic houses and sights.

Head just out outside Quebec City's old walls to reach the historic battlefield of the Plains of Abraham, within the child-friendly Battlefields Park dotted with old artillery pieces and martello towers that you can discover on its walking trails. Also a short trip outside Quebec City, the Village Vacances Valcartier (home to an ice hotel) is Canada’s largest water park, transforming into a winter-sports resort in the colder months.

Tadoussac and St Lawrence Adventures

Further afield, experience Tadoussac on the St Lawrence – a village steeped in history, featuring a reconstruction of Canada’s first French trading post that allows a glimpse of what Canada was like at the time of the earliest settlers. Most people come here for the whale-watching, but you can also sea kayak, cruise on the awesome Saguenay Fjord, snowmobile and more.

Gaspé Peninsula

For something a little more rugged, head for Quebec's Atlantic Coast – the Gaspé Peninsula, where the Appalachian Mountains fizzle out. This is a sublime area of forests, cliffs and old fishing villages, with some great trips out to sea.

Family Holidays in Maritime Canada

Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island & New Brunswick

Venture into the Maritime Provinces – gorgeous, sleepy Nova Scotia, pristine Prince Edward Island and imposing New Brunswick. These areas are a bit more of a challenge (don’t come in winter), but those who appreciate spectacular natural beauty and don’t mind making an effort to find it will have a wonderful holiday here. 

Newfoundland

Base yourselves in Halifax and take a boat to remote Newfoundland, the setting for The Shipping News, to admire floating icebergs.

Family Holidays in British Columbia and Alberta – including the Canadian Rockies

British Columbia

Venture far west for the delights of British Columbia, an untainted wilderness of mountains, forest, coastal fjords, giant ranches, plains and immense lakes. Everything is on a large scale here, and there is more flora and fauna than the rest of Canada put together. Ski, hike or sail, or try your hands at salmon-fishing. 

Enjoy beautiful Vancouver with kids; most of the BC population is based here and it has lots of family attractions. It’s more or less all about the coast in BC: the interior is hard to get to, and it’s hard to find somewhere to stay when you do make it. 

Read more about British Columbia including Vancouver and Whistler, the latter one of the world's best ski resorts. If you want to discover the Canadian Rockies, which spread across British Columbia and Alberta, we recommend, and can book you on, an escorted family holiday.

Canadian Rockies in Alberta

Venture inland of BC to breathtaking Alberta to be bowled over by its Rocky Mountain landscapes and world-class ski resorts. Among its treasures are six UNESCO World Heritage Sites, five national parks, two of the biggest Dark Sky Preserves in the world and nearly 600 species of wildlife, including grizzly and black bears, moose and elk. Don’t miss Elk Island National Park, the only fully enclosed national park in Canada, with more than 700 free roaming bison.

Make urban discoveries galore in diverse, modern Calgary and the provincial capital Edmonton.

Skiing and Outdoor Adventures in the Rockies

Tour Alberta's section of the Canadian Rockies, perfect for winter adventures with the family. Banff, Jasper, Lake Louise and Kananaskis Country offer dog-sledding, snowshoeing, skiing, snowboarding and ice-skating. Banff National Park is a pristine wilderness great for walking, soaking in hot springs and riding a cable car for stupendous views, while the  Jasper National Park is good for short treks in Maligne Canyon and the Bald Hills. The Icefields Parkway is one of the world’s iconic road trips, with lots of glaciers to spot en route, or there's another spectacular drive past the turquoise waters of Lake Louise to enjoy an exciting ‘sno-coach’ ride on the glistening Columbia ice field. Mount Robson offers some of the most breathtaking views in the Rockies.

Check out the dinosaur-filled scenery of Alberta's Badlands with its unforgettable outdoors adventures.

Family Holidays in Yukon, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut

Northern Wilderness Adventures

Head into the Canadian north – the final frontier. Its reputation as a land of perpetual winter, a frozen wasteland, means few people visit, but come in summer and find it transformed into a sublime place of extraordinary sporting opportunities, fascinating cultures and breathtaking landscapes, flora and fauna. 

Visit the Skeena Valley or the archipelago of Haida Gwaii (formerly known as the Queen Charlotte Islands).  

Drive the 2240km Alaskan Highway, connecting the USA to its state of Alaska via Canada, camp out in the Nahanni National Park or take your kids glacier-hiking on Baffin Island in Auyuittuq National Park. If this sounds a little ambitious, we can book you on excellent organised tours.