Ontario's three biggest draws — Toronto, Niagara Falls, and Ottawa — form a natural triangle that can be covered comfortably in five days without feeling like you're rushing. The route connects Canada's largest city, its most famous natural landmark, and its national capital, each offering something entirely different from the others.
Fly into Toronto Pearson (YYZ) or Billy Bishop City Airport. Billy Bishop is on the Toronto Islands and opens directly into the waterfront — a far better arrival experience if your airline flies there. Take the UP Express train from Pearson to Union Station (25 minutes, $12.35) rather than a taxi. Check in and walk to the CN Tower area for orientation — the tower is visible from most of the downtown core and the surrounding lakefront is a good first impression of the city.
Kensington Market and the adjacent Chinatown are the best Toronto neighbourhoods for an informal first-night dinner. The density of independent restaurants from every cuisine is genuinely remarkable for a few city blocks. Baldwin Street is particularly good. Return via Queen Street West to see Toronto's arts district at night.
Book the CN Tower EdgeWalk in advance if heights don't bother you — it's 356 metres above the ground, hands-free, and genuinely unlike anything else in the country. Alternatively, the observation deck and glass floor are open from 9 a.m. and give excellent views in all directions; on clear days you can see Niagara Falls. Ripley's Aquarium next to the tower base is excellent for families — allow 2 hours.
Take the subway to Museum station for the Royal Ontario Museum. The dinosaur gallery on the third floor is the anchor attraction — the specimens are well-lit and the fossil quality is exceptional. Allow 2.5 hours. Walk south through the University of Toronto campus to Bloor Street for coffee before heading to the Distillery Historic District (20-minute walk or short TTC ride) for the evening.
The Distillery District is a Victorian-era industrial complex converted into restaurants, galleries, and boutiques — pedestrianized and well-lit, it's the best-looking neighbourhood in Toronto after dark. El Catrin for Mexican or Cluny Bistro for French are both reliable choices.
Pick up a rental car at Union Station Enterprise or at Pearson and drive the QEW west toward Niagara. Consider stopping in Grimsby or Jordan for a winery visit on the Niagara Escarpment — the drive south off the highway through vineyards before reaching the falls is a better approach than the industrial highway entry. Arrive Niagara Falls city by noon.
The Canadian side gives far better views than the American side — Horseshoe Falls accounts for 90% of the water flow and it faces you directly from Table Rock. The Hornblower (now Niagara City Cruises) boat tour takes you to the base of the falls; bring a dry bag for camera equipment. The White Water Walk boardwalk in the Niagara Gorge is excellent and far less crowded than the falls themselves — 365 metres of Class VI rapids at eye level.
Stay on the Canadian side. The illumination of the falls from dusk onward is free from any point on the parkway. The Niagara Parkway restaurant at the Whirlpool area is quieter and better value than anything on Clifton Hill.
Niagara-on-the-Lake is a 20-minute drive from the falls and one of the best-preserved 19th-century towns in Ontario. The Shaw Festival theatre town is worth a morning walk through. The Niagara Parkway north from Niagara Falls to NOTL passes wineries, orchards, and the Queenston Heights battlefield before arriving at the quiet heritage streetscape of Queen Street.
Drive to Ottawa (4.5 hours from Niagara via Highway 401 and the 416). The drive is straightforward but long — stop in Kingston for lunch at the waterfront (the 1000 Islands boat tour departs from Kingston if you have time). Arrive Ottawa by early evening and check into your hotel near Parliament Hill.
Parliament Hill opens for free guided tours — the Centre Block is under restoration so tours run through East Block. The Changing of the Guard ceremony on the front lawn runs daily from late June to late August at 10 a.m. and is worth timing your morning around. Walk the Ottawa River Pathway east to the Rideau Canal locks, where the canal drops 26 metres from the Ottawa River to lower Ottawa through eight manually-operated lockstations.
The ByWard Market neighbourhood has the best concentration of restaurants and café terrasses in Ottawa. The Canadian Museum of History across the river in Gatineau (5-minute walk across the Alexandra Bridge) has the most significant collection of Indigenous Canadian artefacts in the country and the architecture alone is worth the crossing. Return your rental car and fly home from Ottawa Macdonald–Cartier International Airport.
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