We are staying in Niagara Falls for a few days, then driving to the 1000 Islands via NY. Then we are heading up to Montreal for a few days. Our thoughts is to drive back to Buffalo via the Canada side and stay in Belleville for a night as the halfway point. Any thoughts? I have read that 401 is boring, is there a more scenic route from Montreal?

I'd stay in Kingston, rahter than Montreal, if you want to stay in a city. Kingston has a great harbour area, nice parks, etc., right downtown, near several decent hotels.

If you are willing to take most of a day from Ontreal to Kingston, you can stop and watch ships int he St. lawrence Seaway, and, near Gananoque, you can take a few hours for a trip on a tour boat through the Thousand Islands.

LEaving Kingston (there's another thred nearby about this same route) take the raod along the shore line, the Glenora Ferry to Prince Edward County, cross this county that is an island, and then takehighway 2 into Toronto, through Port Hope and Cobourg.

BAK

If you want a break from the tedium of the 401 (and it's not all that bad) and enjoy driving through small towns consider doing part of the drive on hwy 2 which is the old road between Toronto and Montreal. The problem with the 401 is that it, like all highways of its type, is that it is not an organic part of the landscape. The farms and towns are oriented to the older roads, hwy 2 in this case. The trade off is of coarse time.

Going through Ontario on your way back means going through Toronto traffic, one way or another. Do you actually want to see the city? If not, then drive back through NY.

Amere,

I think BAK meant to write "I'd stay in Kingston, rather than Belleville", at least I'm hoping that's what he meant. I have no comment about Belleville but will say that I find Kingston a charming town with lovely walks through historic neighborhoods and attractive waterfront parks. There's a tourist info centre in Confederation Park (next to City Hall) that had some walking tour suggestions. If you double-click on my name in blue underline, you can see a trip report that I recently wrote on Kingston.

Cheers, DAN