If you’re keeping up with my insta stories, you know that my family is travelling across Ontario this summer to the best beaches this province has to offer this! And boy, are the beaches stunning! I was born and raised in Ontario and I had no idea these beaches existed so close to home. We are determined to expose our children to all kinds of outdoors experiences-we started with hiking and now we are on to beach getaways! Here is a list of the beaches we have been to so far this summer and some of my observations about them:
Crystal Beach
https://www.visitniagaracanada.com/do/crystal-beach/
- Sandy beach, comfortable to walk on and the kids can sit and make sand castles happily
- Shallow water for a good while before it gets deep
- Baby friendly beach
- Family friendly beach
- No beach amenities. Amenities like washrooms and food are across the street at the shops.
- Beach is a decent size but note that half the beach is for the private residences which is not open to the public (there’s a barrier). Seems like wasted beach to me as no one was on it when we were there!
- Parking is about a three minute walk from the beach – street parking and paid beach lots
- Don’t recommend bringing strollers- no paved walkway to beach and it is very hard getting the stroller though all of the sand!
Grand Bend Beach
https://www.ontariossouthwest.com/ways-to-play/beaches/grand-bend/
- Beach has lots of gravel mixed in with sand, very uncomfortable to walk on and kids can’t sit and play by the water because of this 🙁
- Deep water from the start
- Amenities are great- washrooms, outdoor rinsing stations, food, parasailing etc.
- Family beach
- Life guards on duty
- Paid beach parking about a two minute walk from beach
- I don’t recommend this beach for families like mine with young children. The beach is too gravelly and with the water being so deep I was constantly on edge as soon as my son attempted to run in
Long Point Beach
https://www.norfolktourism.ca/long-point/
- Sandy beach, comfortable to walk on and the kids can sit and make sand castles happily
- Shallow water for a good while before it gets deep
- Baby friendly beach
- Family friendly beach
- Beach amenities include washrooms
- Parking is about a three minute walk from the beach – Long Point Provincial parking was $14 for the day pass
- Can bring strollers- no paved walkway to beach just a mesh piece they’ve put on the sand which actually helps to get strollers across the sand!
- Beach is massive approx 40km long!
- My favourite Ontario beach (so far!)
Lake Kelso
http://www.conservationhalton.ca/park-details?park=kelso
- Sand is a mix of fine sand and gravel but it’s comfortable to walk on and suitable for kids to sit and make sand castles
- Shallow water for a good while before it gets deep
- Baby friendly beach
- Family friendly beach
- Beach amenities include washrooms, concession stands, feet washing stations
- Beach is about a 10 minute walk from the parking lot. Downhill if you have a stroller (but scary with a double !) and steep stairs to go down for everyone else
- Beach is big
- This is less than 10 minutes away from my house so it’s local and super convenient for us!
Wasaga Beach- Beach #1
https://www.ontarioparks.com/park/wasagabeach
- Sandy beach, comfortable to walk on and for the kids to sit and make sand castles
- Longest freshwater beach in the world!
- Shallow water for a good while before it gets deep
- Baby friendly beach
- Family friendly beach
- Easy accessible amenities- bathrooms, lots of variety of food, etc
- Parking is about a five minute walk from the beach – paid beach lots about $20 for the day pass
- Beach #1 at Wasaga is very busy and has always been busy every time we go. Most likely due to all of the restaurants being in this area. Here is a great breakdown of the different beach areas Wasaga has to offer: https://www.wasaga.com/beach-areas
I hope this list of Ontario beaches has been helpful! I will keep updating the list as we continue to explore. Stay tuned for my beach-must-haves blog post coming soon!
