Regions

• National Capital Region -- the "NCR"
• Niagara Region
• Greater Toronto Area -- the "GTA"
• Muskoka-Haliburton
• Ottawa Valley
• Northern Ontario
• Central Ontario
• Eastern Ontario
• Southwestern Ontario
• Golden Horseshoe

Major Cities

Ontario has many cities. These are some of the major ones.

• Brampton
• Brantford -- Home of Wayne Gretzky and Alexander Graham Bell
• Cambridge
• Guelph
• Hamilton
• Kingston -- Historic and beautiful
• London
• Mississauga
• Markham
• Niagara on the Lake -- In the heart of Ontario's largest wine region
• Niagara Falls -- The Niagara Falls... one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the Word!
• Ottawa -- Canadian capital
• Oshawa
• Pembroke -- Historic town on the cusp of Northern Ontario.
• Perth -- Historic town 45 minutes SW of Ottawa
• St. Catharines
• Sault Ste Marie
• Stratford - Famous for the Shakespearean Festival
• Sudbury
• Thunder Bay
• Toronto -- Canada's largest city and capital of Ontario
• Kitchener/Waterloo
• Whitby
• Windsor -- across the river from Detroit

Talk

English is spoken throughout Ontario. Service is available in both English and French at all federal and provincial offices and corporations. The closer one gets to Quebec, the more likely one is to be able to receive service in French in stores. Some banks and ATMs offer service in Chinese, particularly in Ottawa and Toronto.

Get in

Get around

By car

Let's be realistic -- Ontario is a large province and, as a result, the car is nearly the most convenient way to explore it. If you are arriving by plane initially, cars are easily rented if you are over 23, but easiest if you are over 25 years of age. The train offers you too little flexibility, and planes often only take you to major centres. Despite what you may have been led to believe, there is more to Ontario than Southern Ontario and Toronto (or Hamilton, or Niagara, or whatever). Coming from the USA, your options are numerous.

Here's a brief rundown of some of the most common crossings from the USA: International Falls, Minn. to Fort Frances, Ontario; Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan to Sault Ste Marie, Ontario; Port Huron, Michigan to Sarnia, Ontario; Detroit, Michigan to Windsor, Ontario; Buffalo, NY to Fort Erie, Ontario; Niagara Falls, NY to Niagara Falls, Ontario; Massena to Cornwall

In Northern Ontario, the car is a must if you wish to get from place to place. In most cases, you will be driving the TransCanada Highway (a cross-Canada network of highways, often offering more than one route), either on Highway 17 or Highway 11. 17 follows a more Southerly route hugging Lake Superior, while 11 ventures Northward at North Bay and heads through a slightly less populous region of the province before heading southwards. Do note that 11 and 17 come together in the Thunder Bay region. To the west, 11 heads to its end at Rainy River and the USA, while 17 heads up to lead to Manitoba.

If you are coming from Quebec, the southern routes are TransCanada Highways 20 and 40. 20 connects to the 401 (a direct route to Toronto) and 40 connects to 417 (heading to Ottawa). If your intentions are Northerly, the Ottawa route is the most direct.

From Manitoba, there really is only one option by car (unless you are coming via the USA), and that option is TransCanada Highway 1, which connects to 17 in Ontario.

NOTE: Even by car, you will be unable to access the Northern half of Ontario. Roads are the exception, not the rule, and you will rely on plane and train nearly anywhere north of Lake Nipigon).

Speed limits are posted in Metric. Roadways are usually in good condition. On major highways, drivers routinely exceed the speed limit by up to 40 KM/h notwithstanding the threat of a $295 fine. Do not occupy the left lane unless you intend to pass everything else on the road.

By bus

Within the Greater Toronto Area (which includes a large portion of the area around Toronto), GO Transit is an option. The fees depend on distance to travel, but for the most part are reasonable. This is the best mode of public transit between cities and towns in this region. Unfortunately, government cutbacks have caused many direct buses to be done away with, so expect your bus ride to include numerous stops. GO also has train service in this area.

Greyhound Canada travels to nearly 1,100 towns and cities in Canada, via 400 coaches during peak travel periods. As well, Coach Canada is another big bus service that runs in partnership with Trentway Wagar Lines.

By boat

From outside of the province, the only boat options are between the USA and Ontario. Recently, a ferry service opened connecting Rochester, NY to Toronto, Ontario; the service has been suspended and it is unclear whether or when it might resume operations. To be honest, however, ferry service is only recommended when it poses a substantial reduction to driving time.

By train

Within Southern Ontario's Greater Toronto Area, GO Transit is a convenient and fast way to travel, if you can do so either in the early and late rush hour periods.

Within Canada, Via Rail Canada is the most common way to enter Ontario. It is not unheard of to enter Ontario from the USA by train, but the customs waits between the USA and Canada are no different than might be expected by car or plane, especially with the constant increases in Terror alerts south of the border.

The big exception to the above is if your destination is Northern Ontario (as in Fort Albany, Moosonee or Polar Bear Provincial Park). There are train services to these areas that are your only options, excepting planes.

By plane

Toronto's Lester B. Pearson International Airport, airport code YYZ, is the province's largest airport. If your ultimate destination is in Southern Ontario, you will likely end up at Pearson at some point. Many flights from overseas will land in Toronto, and daily flights are available from many Canadian cities and most American hubs.

Ottawa has another international airport for destinations in Eastern Ontario and the Ottawa Valley. There are fewer overseas flights terminating in Ottawa than in Toronto but this is changing. Many American hubs have daily direct flights into Ottawa.

If you plan to travel to Northwestern Ontario or the North of Superior region, then Thunder Bay International Airport would be your best bet. Air Canada has direct flights from Toronto and Winnipeg, to name a few, and Westjet has flights from Hamilton and Winnipeg.

See

• Old Fort William in Thunder Bay, a historical fort with the best historical reenactments available in Ontario
• Lake Huron Lighthouses along Southwestern Ontario's Lake Huron coastline
• the National Capital Region in Ottawa
• Take in the view from the CN Tower in Toronto
• Sainte-Marie among the Hurons , 1.5 hours north of Toronto on Hwy. 12, tel: +1705 5267838. French Jesuits settled here for 10 years until they fled in 1649 after attacks from the Iroquois.
• Explore the Historic Nipissing Road now part of the Trans Canada Trail. You can drive the road as well as hike it. Check the web site before you go for more information Magnetawan

Itineraries

• Rideau Canal — a scenic waterway linking Kingston and Ottawa

Do

• Hike the Sleeping Giant, a series of mesas that resemble a human figure, near Thunder Bay
• Visit and hike through Temagami's Old Growth Forest, climb the Fire Tower and canoe Lake Temagami
• Dive around or take a boat tour of shipwrecks at Fathom Five National Marine Park at Tobermory
• Camp at Bruce Peninsula National Park
• Visit Manitoulin Island, the largest freshwater island
• Visit one of Ontario's freshwater sandy beaches: Wasaga Beach, Sauble Beach or Grand Bend in Southern Ontario; Pancake Bay Provincial Park in Northern Ontario. Also visit these Ontario Parks for great beaches: Sandbanks, Lake Superior, Awenda, Charleston Lake, and the Pinery.
• Hike the Bruce Trail (or portions of it) from Niagara to Tobermory
• Visit Point Pelee National Park and Pelee Island, the Southernmost point in Canada
• Camp and canoe at one of the province's extensive Provincial Parks: Algonquin Park, Quetico
• Ride the South Simcoe steam train in Tottenham (Ontario)
• Follow the wine Road from Exit 78 on QEW to Niagara on the Lake and visit some wineries.
• Try Walleye and Bass fishing in Ahmic Lake

Eat

Drink

In Ontario, the legal drinking age is 19. In Southern Ontario, you will find a great variety of beer and spirits at your disposal, while in Northern Ontario your options are usually limited to the most common North American standards. Do take note that drinking in public is discouraged by law in Ontario and most parts of Canada, exceptions being licensed patios and the like.

Where

Beer is available from the Beer Store (run by Molson, Labatt and Sleeman), while beer, wine and other alcohol is available from the Liquor Control Board of Ontario, commonly called the LCBO, (run by the government). In Northern Ontario, you will typically only see the LCBO (and this will also be the case in some rural areas of Southern Ontario). The only time you will ever see alcohol in a grocery store is when that store has an internal LCBO. You can also buy wine at the Wine Rack in some areas.

Of course, pubs and bars are no rarity in Ontario. In nearly every community you will enter, you will be able to find at least one tavern or bar. A domestic bottled beer will typically cost around $3.50 and a cocktail-type drink around $4.50 or higher. Expect the prices to vary, with prices being much higher in urban centres.

Beer

Ontario has an active beer culture that has blossomed recently in Southern Ontario in particular. Below are some of the breweries you can expect to find:

• Amsterdam Brewing Co., based in Toronto
• Black Oak, based in Oakville
• Brick, based in Waterloo
• Cameron's Brewring, based in Oakville
• Creemore Springs, based in Creemore
• Kawartha Lakes Brewery, based in Peterborough
• King Brewery, based in Nobleton
• Labatt, a macrobrewery found across Canada
• Mill Street Brewery, based in Toronto's Distillery District
• Molson, a microbrewery found across Canada
• Northern Breweries, based in Sault Ste Marie
• Old Credit in Port Credit, Mississauga
• Sleeman, Canada's third largest brewery, based in Guelph
• Steam Whistle, based in Toronto
• Wellington Brewery, based in Guelph

Wine

The Niagara region, home to Niagara Falls and Niagara on the Lake, is Ontario's famous wine-production region.

The Vinters Quality Association (VQA) is an association of wineries that provide insight into the quality of Ontario wines. When purchasing wine made in Ontario, look for a "VQA" logo on the bottle - this tells you the wine has been approved by the association. Keep in mind that there are still many excellent wines that are not certified.

Get out

Quebec, to the east, is the nearest populated area of Canada and presents an interesting contrast to Ontario.

• Lake Erie Tour Route and Lighthouses. Go back to the mainland and see the shoreline. The drive (or boat ride) around Lake Erie takes you through the Working Waterfronts around Buffalo NY, Cleveland OH, Detroit MI, Erie PA, Toledo, OH, and southern Ontario and is intermingled with beautiful preservations of flora and fauna as well as the history of North America's first westward expansion, the Old Northwest Territory.