13 Best Sights in Side Trips from Toronto, Ontario

On a wide stretch of parkland south of town sits this fort that was built in the 1790s but lost during the War of 1812. It was recaptured after the burning of the town in 1813 and largely survived the war, only to fall into ruins by the 1830s. Thankfully, it was reconstructed a century later, and you can explore the officers' quarters, the barracks rooms of the common soldiers, the kitchen, and more. Staff in period costumes conduct tours and reenact 19th-century infantry and artillery drills.

You can glimpse the town's rich architectural history walking along this single street. At the corner of Queen and King Streets is Niagara Apothecary, a mid-Victorian building that was an apothecary from 1866 to 1964. The Court House situated across the street became the Town Hall in 1862. Presently, it houses a small 327-seat theater during Shaw Festival. At No. 209 is the handsome Charles Inn, formerly known as Richardson-Kiely House, built in 1832 for Charles Richardson, a barrister and member of Parliament. The 10 or so blocks of shopping include upscale restaurants and cafés, designer-label boutiques, old-fashioned ice-cream parlors, and a spa. You could easily spend an entire day in this area.

Founded in 1978, this is one of Niagara's first wineries, and one of the two largest family-owned wineries in Niagara (Peller is the other). Originally from France, the Bosc family were pioneers in cultivating European varieties of grapes in Niagara. Wines here consistently win awards, and the winery is particularly known for its chardonnay and Gamay Noir Droit, made from a grape variety that was accidentally created through a mutation. The wine is proprietary, and this is the only winery allowed to make it.

The 40-foot-in-diameter floral clock, one of the world's largest, is composed of 16,000 bedding plants. Its "living" face is planted in a different design twice every season—viola in the spring and Alternantheras and Santolina Sage in the summer and fall.

Ontario's first certified-organic winery is a small, family-owned affair with exclusively organic wines. The setting is truly farmlike: sheep and guinea hens mill about outside while you taste. With only eight varieties—all VQA and including a nice ice wine—you can become an expert in this label in one sitting. The wines are available on-site, online, and at selected restaurants in Ontario; many of the labels are available at the Liquor Control Board of Ontario.

An ultramodern facility, this famous winery blends state-of-the-art wine-making technology with age-old, handcrafted enological savvy, as evidenced by the stainless steel trough by the entrance. A multitude of tours, workshops, and events are offered. The hourly public tour is a great introduction to winemaking and includes three tastings and a mini-lesson in wine tasting. Its award-winning VQA wines can be sipped in the tasting gallery and purchased in the retail boutique.

An easygoing winery with a friendly staff and sociable tasting bar, Konzelmann has garnered praise for its fruitier wines in particular, and it's known for high-quality ice wines, one of which was the first Canadian wine to ever make Wine Spectator's top 100 wines list. Konzelmann's vineyards border Lake Ontario, and the winery has a viewing platform with vistas of the vines and water. The retail shop is well stocked with wine-related gifts.

Restored to resemble a circa 1869 pharmacy, the apothecary has glass-fronted walnut cabinets that display vintage remedies such as Merrill's System Tonic, which "purifies the blood and builds up the system." Among the boxes and bottles is a rare collection of apothecary flasks.

In connected side-by-side buildings—one the 1875 former Niagara High School building and the other the first building in Ontario to have been erected as a museum, in 1906—this extensive collection relates to the often colorful history of the Niagara Peninsula from earliest times through the 19th century. From June through September the museum offers guided walking tours of the town at 11 am on Saturday and Sunday.

One of Ontario's oldest Anglican churches, St. Mark's was built in 1804, and its parish is even older, formed in 1792. The stone church still houses the founding minister's original library of 1,500 books, brought from England. During the War of 1812, American soldiers used the church as a barracks, and rifle pits dug in the cemetery are still visible. The church is open for concerts, lectures, and weekly services.

Standing out from a vast landscape of single varietal wines, Stratus specializes in assemblage: combining multiple varieties of grapes to create unique blends. Established in 2000, and emerging on the Niagara wine scene in 2005, they continue to perfect what has traditionally been a recipe for disaster for winemakers. A fine example is the Stratus White, a mix of six grape varieties that's complex and unlike anything you've ever tasted (in a good way). Sip all three assemblage wines (white, red, and ice wine) and a handful of single varietals in the modern glass-walled tasting room, installed in the world's first LEED-certified winery. Tours must be reserved in advance and can include cheese and charcuterie.

With more than 300 wine awards, this winery—one of Niagara's first and largest—produces many excellent varieties. Its reds (especially Trius Red and Trius Cabernet Franc) are some of the best in Niagara, consistently taking top prizes at competitions; the Trius Brut is another gold medalist. The half-hour cellar and vineyard tour are set to the tune of bubbly social media--ready installations complete with generous complimentary samplings. Another dozen themed tours and regular events include a seminar where you can blend your own wine and an evening of chef-hosted meals at their terrific restaurant. Book in advance for tours.

An hour-long thrill ride, these tours veer around and hurdle white-water rapids that follow Niagara canyons up to the wall of rolling waters, just below Niagara Falls. Children must be at least six years old for the open-boat Wet Jet Tour and four years old for the covered-boat (dry!) Jet Dome Tour; minimum height requirements also apply. Tours depart from Niagara-on-the-Lake or Niagara Falls, ON (June to August only) and Lewiston, NY.