END Your Summer with a Visit to One of the Province’s Many Parks and Attractions
It’s not too late to plan a Labour Day weekend excursion. Whether you’re interested in food, culture, wildlife or history, Ontario’s provincial parks and other tourist attractions have something for everyone this long weekend.
* Experience Onguiaahra: Thunder of Waters Sound and Light Show in Niagara Falls
* Check out the Science of Rock ‘N’ Roll at the Ontario Science Centre in Toronto, and get a fresh look at the history of rock music from a science and technology perspective
* Visit the Royal Botanical Gardens’ Earth Art Exhibition in Burlington to see art created using natural elements — earth, stone, trees, plants and ice
* Celebrate the noble horse at Upper Canada Village in Morrisburg, with auctions, a parade and riding demonstrations
* Explore The Forbidden City exhibit at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, and see over 200 national treasures from Beijing’s Palace Museum
* Listen for the hauntingly beautiful howl of wolves at Bonnechere Provincial Park in Renfrew County
* View sunspots and the night sky through telescopes at Bon Echo Provincial Park in Lennox and Addington County
* Encounter hundreds of species of plants, fungus, butterflies, moths and mammals at Quetico Provincial Park
* Walk through time with historical figures and displays from as far back as the 1680s at Port Burwell Provincial Park in Elgin County
* Plan a Labour Day picnic or barbecue using fresh, local ing! redients purchased from your community’s local farmers’ market
* Visit a farm with your family and meet with the farmers who grow your local food
* Enjoy nature by running, walking or cycling Ontario’s beautiful trails — stretching over 80,000 kilometres
* Learn about Ontario’s most popular flying mammal – the bat – at Kettle Lakes Provincial Park near Timmins
* Watch living history performances at Huronia Historical Parks’ Discovery Harbour and Sainte-Marie among the Hurons on Georgian Bay
Quick Facts
* Ontario tourism generates more than $28 billion in economic activity and supports over 347,000 direct and indirect jobs.
* There are over 330 provincial parks in Ontario, covering over eight-million hectares — larger than Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island combined.
* In 2013, Ontario’s provincial parks received more than 8.5-million visits from people around the world, bringing in $69 million in revenue and supporting jobs and businesses across the province.
* VQA wines are now available at over 100 farmers’ markets in the province. Use the new online map to find a market near you.
