tour 2008
 

We have made our tentavie planning for our tour 2008 next September and would like your opinion.
Brussels-Toronto; 2 days
Kingston-cruise 1000 isles
Montreal 2 days
Quebec 2 days
Tadoussac 2 days
Saint Felicien 2 days- zoo
Shawinigan 1 day
Ottawa 2 days
Huntsville 3 days
Midland 2 days-cruise 30000 isles
Niagara falls 2 days
return to toronto and back to Brussels.

I think this is a pretty good basic plan if you are trying to see as much as possible of what was once known as 'Upper Canada' and don't mind a lot of shifting around. I am assuming you are renting a nice, comfortable car?

Personally, I would cut a bit of the Tadoussac/ Saint Felicien/ Shawinigan time and add to Toronto and Quebec City, both cities with much to offer. This would add a bit of down-time to a very travel-intensive schedule. (But perhaps you have strong personal reasons for wanting to spend so much time in this area of Quebec?)

The 1000 islands cruise out of Kingston is great and Kingston itself is a charming town and this is well worth a couple of days.

Huntsville and the Muskoka area in general is lovely that time of year. Do get a place on the water to truly get a taste of what is known as 'cottage country' to locals.

Midland is similar and I see you are taking the cruise-this is also very interesting stuff: the First Nations heritage is strong in this region and will give you insights into Canada's past.

I think you are doing fine and wait for others who know the Quebec part a bit better to give their opinion.

Have a wonderful time!

Thanks for the reply LJ. We want to get a general view of the major cities but want to add as much as possible the nature part of the trip.We live in Antwerp Belgium and have many beautiful art cities here so we want to keep museum visiting to a minimum and concentrated on the historic part also using a city tour the first day to get the lay of the land.Paul

Far from me wanting to start a feud with people from Shawinigan but I don't see what you would visit in this small town... Really...

Add a a day in Lac-St-Jean and do a horsebackriding tour of the region, instead, if nature is what you want to see. Or go kayaking on the Lac for 2 days. Lots of possibilities.

But Shawiningan?

The reason we choose Shawinigan is that according to the info we have it's nice to explore "La Mauricie National park" making hikes in the Laurentan mountains.Paul

I get it. I thought you wanted to visit shawinigan the city.

You will have more fun hiking in the Gatineau park (20 minutes from Ottawa) and you will save a day of traveling.

http://www.canadatrails.ca/hiking/qc/gatineaupark.html

http://www.out-there.com/gatineau.htm

http://www.ottawakiosk.com/adventure5.html

my 2 cents.

If nature interests you, while in Huntsville you will want to visit nearby Algonquin Provincial Park. Should be lots of information on the web if you google it. It offers great hiking from easy 30 minute nature walks to multi-day backpacking treks and everything in between. The Visitors Centre in the park includes a small but excellent natural and human history museum in addition to providing trail maps and information.

Other comments: I've done the 1000 islands cruises a few times, most recently about 3 years ago. I believe there are several cruises offered from Kingston, but only the longest one spends much time in the "islands" themselves, as they are a bit of a distance away. There are also cruises offered out of Gananoque and Ivy Lea, a relatively short drive from Kingston, which are located on the river right in the Thousand Islands region.

I took a cruise out of Midland years ago. I remember it as being enjoyable and informative, but the particular cruise we took didn't spend as much time as I would have liked in the uniquely scenic Canadian Shield section of Georgian Bay (maybe there are other longer cruises that do). Other options are cruises out of Parry Sound which is about 1 hour north of Midland (and 1 hour from Huntsville), or - if you're willing to drive farther (which I wouldn't suggest exept your itinerary suggests you don't mind lots of travelling) - Killarney Provincial Park - Killarney Mountain lodge - offers very unique and spectacular scenery and various activities including day cruises and hiking.

Thanks for all the good advice.Is it true that the best place to start the1000 islands cruise is not Kingston but Gananoque ?Paul

I prefer La Mauricie over Gatineau park. It's not a detour if you're coming back from St-Félicien via highway 155. If you spend a full day at the park, renting a canoe at lake Wapizagonke is a good idea. If you're a good hiker, the 17km trail "Les-Deux-Criques" is excellent.

That said, if you're going to Tadoussac, I would take highway 362 between Baie-St-Paul and La Malbaie, then go inland to Haute-Gorges park. It's spectacular. There's one steep trail there and a boat cruise on the river. I'm not familiar with the shorter trails. See sepaq.com for info.