Canada chill
Head to eastern Canada for winter with a difference.
15 September 2024
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Winter in eastern Canada is not just a season, it’s an invitation to a world draped in frost and wonder, a landscape where the cold is something alive, something electric.
The provinces of Ontario and Québec transform as snow begins to fall, cities and small towns becoming stages for ancient festivals, bustling markets and adventures you won’t find anywhere else. It’s more than just cozy fires and skiing down powdered slopes; winter here is a season of discovery, a celebration waiting for those who dare to step into its chill.
Wander through enchanting Christmas markets
Imagine stepping into a fairytale as Québec City’s cobbled streets become adorned with twinkling lights and the scent of mulled wine fills the air. The German Christmas Market transforms Old Québec into something out of a storybook, where wooden stalls spill over with festive treats and hand-crafted treasures. It’s a scene suspended in time, a bridge between Europe and the New World, and from late November through December, it invites you to get lost in its magic.
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For a larger feast of senses, venture to Le Grand Marché de Québec. The Grand Christmas Market isn’t just a marketplace – it’s an experience. Over 200 vendors gather beneath its festive arches, offering everything from gourmet foods to intricate, artisanal crafts. This isn’t just shopping; it’s hunting for memories in a wonderland.
Break the ice
Québec City’s Port becomes an ice-bound playground in winter, where the ancient art of ice fishing meets modern luxury. Picture yourself sitting in an inflatable igloo, waiting for a tug on the line, or venturing onto the ice itself, surrounded by the stark beauty of the frozen landscape.
If your pulse craves something wilder, try ice canoeing on the St. Lawrence River – a ballet of paddles and crushed ice, where the tides turn the river into a white labyrinth.
Indulge in thermal therapy
There’s a quiet magic in slipping into steaming waters while snowflakes swirl in the air. At Strøm Nordic Spa in Québec City, the cold becomes a distant memory as you sink into marble steam baths and thermal pools, the St. Lawrence River just a breath away.
The ice baths shock your senses awake, only to be soothed again by a massage that seems to steal time. It’s winter, yes, but here it’s a cocoon of warmth, a place to rest your spirit after a day spent chasing adventure.
Seek out winter thrills
In the heart of Québec City, a century-old toboggan slide on Dufferin Terrace offers an exhilarating ride down to the city’s iconic Château Frontenac.
The wind whips past as you race at speeds that steal your breath, the thrill of winter rushing through your veins. And in Montréal, La Grande Roue rises like a sentinel over the city, offering a view of snow-dusted rooftops and the frozen St. Lawrence River from the cozy warmth of its climate-controlled cabins.
Further west, Ottawa’s Rideau Canal Skateway becomes a ribbon of ice cutting through the city – a place where winter skates beneath your feet and the horizon feels endless. Here, skating is more than just an activity—it’s a tradition, a love song written on ice.
Explore ice hotels and savour ice wine
Hôtel de Glace in Saint-Gabriel-de-Valcartier is more than a hotel—it’s a palace carved from winter’s very bones. Intricately sculpted rooms gleam in frosted hues, an ice bar serves up cocktails colder than the night air, and a chapel waits for those seeking a once-in-a-lifetime moment. It’s open from January to mid-March, and every corner feels like a dream half-remembered, half-lived.
Meanwhile, in Ontario’s wine country, the cold works a different kind of magic. Ice wine, made from grapes harvested at their frost-kissed peak, becomes the centrepiece of the Niagara Icewine Festival. Each sip is a reminder of winter’s bounty, a luxurious indulgence wrapped in the crisp bite of the season.
Revel in winter festivals
Eastern Canada knows how to celebrate the cold. Montréal en Lumière, held each February, is a carnival of light and sound, where illuminated trails wind through the city and gourmet food stalls offer the best of winter’s fare.
In Niagara Falls, the Winter Festival of Lights turns the night into a living canvas, with over three million lights stretching along eight kilometres of wonder. And in Ottawa, Winterlude transforms the city into an icy playground, where sculptures gleam beneath the sun and night falls with fireworks.
Immerse yourself in culture
When the chill seeps too deep, eastern Canada offers warmth in the form of culture. Montréal’s Museum of Fine Arts is a treasure trove of 43,000 works, each piece a story waiting to be told. In Ottawa, national museums like the National Gallery of Canada and the Canadian Museum of Nature open windows into the past and future, filling cold days with the warmth of discovery.
Winter in eastern Canada is not a season to endure – it’s a wonderland to explore. From the frozen rivers to the glowing markets, from the thrill of speed to the hush of thermal baths, this corner of the world invites you to experience the magic of winter in all its forms. Are you ready to answer the call?
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