Canadian market towns off the beaten path.
What are some less-touristed market towns in Canada, for travelers seeking beautiful places with fewer crowds? Answer
Options include Rivière-du-Loup, a Saint Lawrence River town with whale watching tours; Stratford, an Avon River city home to the Stratford Festival; and Terrace, a regional hub where the Kitsumkalum River meets the Skeena. This page includes 17 options. Click here to see which are close enough to be day trips from major cities like Toronto or Montreal.
Stratford
Named after Stratford-upon-Avon and home to the Stratford Festival — a major theatre event running Shakespearean plays and other genres from May to October —…
Cowansville
A compact Quebec town built around Lac Davignon, Cowansville sits in the Eastern Townships region of south-central Quebec, with a central core of cafés and r…
Terrace
Regional hub in British Columbia's Skeena valley where the Kitsumkalum River meets the Skeena, Terrace sits close to mountains with cafés and restaurants con…
Cobourg
A lakeside town on the north shore of Lake Ontario in southern Ontario, Cobourg has a walkable centre with cafés and restaurants and sits roughly midway betw…
Farnham
Small city in Quebec's Brome-Missisquoi region, Farnham sits on the water with a central core of cafés and restaurants, and the mountains of the Eastern Town…
Rivière-du-Loup
A town on the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River in Quebec's Bas-Saint-Laurent region, Rivière-du-Loup offers whale watching tours on the river, a compa…
Simcoe
The county seat of Norfolk County in southwestern Ontario, Simcoe is a pocket-sized town near Lake Erie with a central core of cafés and restaurants and an u…
Pembroke
A tiny city on the Ottawa River in Eastern Ontario, where the Muskrat River meets the Ottawa, Pembroke has a café and restaurant scene and a concentration of…
Lethbridge
A city in southern Alberta with a walkable centre full of cafés and restaurants, Lethbridge serves as the commercial hub of the region and sits on the Oldman…
Lindsay
A pocket-sized Ontario city on the Scugog River, Lindsay sits along the Trent-Severn Waterway — the canal system linking central Ontario to Lake Ontario and…
Port Perry
A pocket-sized Ontario town on the shore of Lake Scugog — one of the province's largest man-made lakes — Port Perry sits northeast of Toronto and offers a ca…
Ancaster
Founded in 1792, Ancaster is a community within the city of Hamilton, Ontario, that briefly ranked as Upper Canada's largest industrial and commercial centre…
Mont-Joli
A pocket-sized town on the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River in Quebec's Bas-Saint-Laurent region, Mont-Joli sits at the gateway to the Gaspé Peninsula.
Lachute
This modest Quebec town on the Rivière du Nord in the Laurentians, Lachute has a café and restaurant scene that is unusually rich for its size, with mountain…
Brandon
Known as The Wheat City, Brandon is Manitoba's second-largest city, sitting on the banks of the Assiniboine River in western Canada.
Regina
Saskatchewan's provincial capital, Regina sits at the centre of a café and restaurant scene that punches well above its size, with a heritage-dense downtown…
Summerside
Summerside sits on the Northumberland Strait in western Prince Edward Island, a heritage-dense modest city with a real café and restaurant scene and many his…
Canadian market towns: quick answers
Which Canadian market towns can you visit on a day trip from Toronto or Montreal?
Port Perry, Lindsay and Ancaster are among 5 market towns on our day trips from Toronto. And Farnham, Lachute and Cowansville are among 3 market towns on our day trips from Montreal.
Which are the highest-rated?
2 are rated gold, including Lethbridge and Pembroke.
Which can you reach by train?
5 of the 17 have a railway station within a 10-minute drive, including Cobourg, Stratford, Rivière-du-Loup and Mont-Joli.