20 Underrated Canadian Towns You Should Visit

About an hour and a half west of Toronto, Elmira is foodie heaven with the surrounding countryside providing a bounty of farm-fresh produce, much of which comes from the area’s Mennonite community.

Elmira is also home to one of the world’s largest one-day maple syrup festivals.

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The village of Tadoussac is a three-hour drive northeast of Quebec City and lies at the confluence of the Saguenay and Saint Lawrence rivers. The Hotel Tadoussac stood in for the Hotel New Hampshire in the 1981 movie starring a young Jodie Foster and Rob Lowe.

Tadoussac is a great whale-watching destination too, with beluga whales visiting the waters here in warmer months.

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Also called St. Andrews By-the-Sea, St. Andrews is a quaint little town full of beautiful historic architecture, colourful murals and attractions such as Minister’s Island and the Huntsman Aquarium and Science Centre.

The town lies on the border between Canada and the United States and is about two and a half hours southwest of Moncton.

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A little under five hours northwest of St. John’s, Twillingate is a former fishing community on the Twillingate Islands in Notre Dame Bay. The town is rich in tradition and in spring it’s one of the best places to watch icebergs float by.

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Close to Banff National Park and surrounded by snow-capped mountains, Canmore lies on the banks of the Bow River and is about an hour’s drive west of Calgary. The former mining town is now a vibrant playground for lovers of the great outdoors. It's a stop to make when on one of these Canadian road trip you need to take at least once.

Carcross lies where the Tagish and Bennett lakes meet, along the Klondike Highway and about an hour south of Whitehorse. Once known as Caribou Crossing, the tiny town is home to the Carcross/Tagish First Nation and offers a host of activities, including mountain biking.

Just outside of town lies the Carcross Desert, believed to be the smallest desert in the world.

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Located on Kaien Island in northern BC, Prince Rupert is a great base from which to go on fishing and wildlife-viewing trips. Among the animals you may spot in the area are grizzly bears, bald eagles and orcas.

The town itself is home to a substantial Tsimshian First Nations community and is known for its many totem poles.

Located on Cornwallis Island at the northern end of Resolute Bay, Resolute is one of the northernmost communities in Canada. As one of the world’s coldest inhabited places, this tiny Inuit community is the destination for you if you don’t mind the cold or 24-hour sunshine and want a possible glimpse of the Northern Lights.

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About two and a half hours west of Winnipeg, Minnedosa offers a unique look into life in a prairie community. There are plenty of hiking trails in the area, as well as Minnedosa Beach.

Two of the best seasonal attractions here are the fish spawning in Manitoba’s longest fish ladder and the newborn calves at the Bison Park.

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About eight hours east of Vancouver and three hours west of Calgary, Golden lies just to the west of Banff National Park. It’s a mountain-sports Mecca and in summer you’ll enjoy fishing, canoeing and kayaking, swimming, river rafting, or boating.

The town is also a base for hang-gliders, paragliders and skydivers.

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With its many lakes and hills, Huntsville is especially popular in summer, when outdoor enthusiasts descend on the town. If it’s still too chilly for boating or going to the beach, the town also has plenty of interesting shops and art galleries to explore.

Huntsville is about two and a half hours north of Toronto.

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Endless beaches and sand dunes make Bouctouche a stunning seaside destination with many hiking and cycling trails. The town, about 40 minutes north of Moncton, is also home to Le Pays de la Sagouine, a fun theme park celebrating Acadian culture.

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About thirteen hours northwest of Vancouver and twelve hours west of Edmonton, Smithers is an alpine-themed town in the Bulkley Valley of northwestern BC. The surrounding mountains offer good hiking, fishing and, in spring, some late-season skiing, while the town itself is renowned for its lively music scene.

About 45 minutes east of Vancouver, Fort Langley is a historic village on the Fraser River. It’s home to the former fur trade post now known as the Fort Langley National Historic Site and makes a beautiful base from which to explore the vineyards and wineries of the Fraser Valley.

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About two hours northeast of Toronto, Wellington lies on the north shore of Lake Ontario and boasts a spectacular beach, while nearby Sandbanks Provincial Park has the world’s largest freshwater sand dunes.

Wellington is home to historic architecture and its location in Prince Edward County means you’ll always be within easy reach of a winery.

Also known as Victoria-by-the-Sea, Victoria lies on the south shore of Prince Edward Island, about half an hour west of Charlottetown. In addition to the beaches, beautiful scenery and historic architecture, Victoria is also home to the Victoria Playhouse and interesting craft stores, including one that sells handmade chocolates.

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Waskesiu lies about two and a half hours north of Saskatoon and is the only town in Prince Albert National Park. You can go paddling on Waskesiu Lake, visit the Waskesiu Heritage Museum, browse the stores or play a round of golf at the acclaimed Waskesiu Golf Course.

Nicknamed the Port of the Privateers, Liverpool has a fascinating history filled with action and intrigue. You’ll find several museums telling Liverpool’s story while the pristine sandy beaches make for great hiking. Liverpool is about an hour and 40 minutes southwest of Halifax.

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The hamlet of Tuktoyaktuk, more commonly called simply Tuk, lies on the shores of the Beaufort Sea and north of the Arctic Circle. It’s known for its pingos, which are domes of earth-covered ice.

If you go in spring, Tuk hosts the Beluga Jamboree, a seasonal festival featuring activities such as igloo building and harpoon throwing. Tuk lies 124 km north of Inuvik and until the end of April, the towns are connected by ice road.

Kings Landing is actually a town within a town. Located in Prince William, a little over two hours west of Moncton, the Kings Landing Historical Settlement shows what rural New Brunswick looked like in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Most of the buildings here were moved from their original sites and meticulously rebuilt.

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