Peggy’s Cove is one of the most famous lighthouse points in Canada, not only because it's close to the city of Halifax but also because it's so dramatically, breathtakingly beautiful. Waves crash on the rocks below the classic red-and-white lighthouse tower. The adjacent village, with wooden buildings jutting over the water and shops stuffed with fishing gear, adds to the area's charms.
Canada’s largest city displays one of world’s most impressive and instantly recognisable skylines. Toronto’s downtown soars proudly along the shore of Lake Ontario, with the CN Tower (once the world’s tallest building) standing out – in more ways than one – as the cityscape’s most iconic landmark. The best places to take in the entire skyline are Humber Bay or Toronto Island, across the water.
Just a short distance from Old Quebec, the dramatic natural beauty of Montmorency Falls looks all the more spectacular thanks to the narrow bridge that spans the 151-foot (43m) wide falls. Looking down on the 272-foot (83m) high cascade is both dizzying and deafening, especially during the summer months when the water is in full flow. It's also worth seeing in the dead of a cold Quebec winter, when the flow is frozen in a magnificent tumble of white ice.
Canadians often joke about how flat the province of Saskatchewan is, but the prairies’ vast expanses of farmland and impossibly big skies make for a uniquely breathtaking view. The seemingly endless fields of wheat, canola, barley and pulses (Saskatchewan is the world’s leading producer of lentils) are mesmerising, though the protected grasslands – part of the Great Plains, stretching all the way down to Texas – are of particular importance.
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One of Canada’s most sought-after views isn’t of a terrestrial formation or an architectural marvel. Many visitors head straight to the northernmost reaches of the country in the hope of catching a glimpse of the aurora borealis or Northern Lights. The celestial phenomenon is most likely to be spotted in remote areas like Churchill in Manitoba, a community on the Hudson Bay that's also famous for an equally beguiling sight: polar bears.
The Cabot Trail is a sweeping 186-mile (298km) highway that takes drivers around Nova Scotia’s picturesque Cape Breton Island. Named after Italian explorer John Cabot, the road was completed in 1932 and is paved with history. This was, and still is, an important link between otherwise isolated fishing communities. It also offers some of the best coastal views in the country, with the road wiggling between the rolling hills of the Cape Breton Highlands and the vast Atlantic ocean.
Canada’s grand railway hotels are among the most dazzling historical buildings in the country and Fairmont Le Château Frontenac in Old Quebec is arguably the grandest of them all. Completed by the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1893, the building overlooks the mighty St. Lawrence River and looks more like a castle than a hotel. Gorgeous from any angle, it’s one of the most recognisable buildings in one of the country's most magical cities.
Arriving at Long Beach, part of Pacific Rim National Park Reserve on the west coast of Vancouver Island, is a little like arriving at the very edge of the world. It has an untouched feel, gazing out at the grey-blue Pacific with nothing but the occasional brave surfer between you and the view. The sandy beach stretches between the small town of Tofino, surrounded by ruggedly beautiful landscapes, and Ucluelet, a small municipality with a pretty harbour.
People often view Parliament Hill, home of Canada's federal government, from the Ontario side of the Ottawa River. One of the best spots for gazing at the complex, dominated by the Gothic-Revival style Centre Block, is actually across the provincial border in Gatineau, Quebec. From here you can see the back of the complex including the round Library of Parliament and the steep tree-lined riverbank.
The province of Nova Scotia is known for its charming coastal towns and Old Town Lunenburg is perhaps the most picturesque of them all. One of only two urban communities in North America to be designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the port town still retains 70% of its original colonial buildings from the 18th and 19th centuries. Bright, bold and full of life, Lunenburg's vibrance is matched by its fun, welcoming atmosphere and colourful history.
Intricately carved over thousands of years by the crashing waves and gentle lapping of the Bay of Fundy, the sea stacks that make up Hopewell Rocks in Hopewell Bay demonstrate just how talented a sculptor nature can be. These 20-plus incredible formations actually offer two views for the price of one: visitors are encouraged to stay for a full tide cycle to see the rocks at both high and low tide.
Visitors driving south from Calgary towards the smaller city of Lethbridge are greeted by a staggering sight: the longest and highest trestle bridge in the world. The High Level Bridge or Lethbridge Viaduct was completed in 1909 as part of a railway line to facilitate the growing demand for coal in western Canada. Piercing the big skies of Southern Alberta, the bridge is still fully operational and lucky drivers might see a working train race over the track as if flying through the sky.
Downtown Winnipeg's already striking skyline became even more so in 2014 with the completion of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. Sitting at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers, the focal point of the building’s remarkable architecture is a glass spire that rises proudly above the city. The stories told within the museum, which focuses on human rights in Canada and beyond, are sobering, while the building itself stands as a beacon of hope and human achievement.
You don’t have to search for one particular vineyard to find an extraordinary view in British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley. There are close to 200 licensed wineries in the area. Many have hilltop tasting rooms with views of long and winding Okanagan Lake, which looks even more spectacular against the romantic backdrop of row upon row of vines. Several wineries have highly rated restaurants nestled within their grounds, again with glorious grape-soaked views.
Located between Montreal and Quebec City in the Laurentian Mountains, this vast national park is a glorious patchwork of deep-blue lakes and lush wooded areas. The park is particularly enchanting in the autumn months when Quebec’s famed fall colours turn it into a veritable jewel box. The leaves are best viewed from above after a hike or cycle up one of the park's many trails. People can also take a trip on a seaplane.
Victoria’s Inner Harbour is one of the loveliest – and often busiest – areas of British Columbia’s capital city. The Vancouver Island harbour was initially used as a hub for indigenous Coast Salish people and is now a popular meeting place as well as a mooring point for boats. The sparkling view also encompasses some of Victoria’s most famous buildings such as the fortress-like Empress Hotel (now a Fairmont) and the Royal British Columbia Museum, founded in 1886.
Nahanni National Park Reserve, in the Dehcho Region of the Northwest Territories, is a pristine wonderland that attracts visitors looking to hike or paddle along the South Nahanni River. One of the river’s most prominent features is Náįlįcho or Virginia Falls, which leads into one of the deepest canyons in Canada. The rapids of the waterfall crashing against the rocks of the canyon is awe-inspiring, and it’s little wonder this land is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a sacred place for the Dehcho First Nations.
Glaciers are incredibly important to the ecology of Canada’s north and one of the most extraordinary is Kaskawulsh in Yukon’s Kluane National Park. The glacier is part of the St. Elias ice fields, a source of water that feeds rivers flowing towards the Gulf of Alaska and the Bering Sea. With the jagged St. Elias Mountains providing the backdrop, the glacier creates a wonderfully wintry scene.
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The prettiest lighthouses enhance already lovely views, and that's certainly the case with West Point Lighthouse in Prince Edward Island’s Cedar Dunes Provincial Park. The five-storey cedar structure pops against the sandy beach and ocean views with its black-and-white stripes and squared-off sides. There's a campground nearby for those who want to stay a little longer.
The remote location means relatively few people make the journey to Auyuittuq National Park on Baffin Island to see Thor Peak. Those who do are rewarded with striking, silencing views. The mountain's west face boasts the greatest vertical drop on Earth at 4,101 feet (1,250m), which attracts some of the world’s most ambitious climbers.
St. John’s Signal Hill offers remarkable views whether you’re looking at it from the water or gazing down after climbing up. At the top is Cabot Tower and panoramic views of the city of St. John’s and the mighty Atlantic ocean. Those viewing from a boat, with tours available from the harbour, get to see the city’s famously colourful homes nestled into the rocky base of the hill.
Vancouver’s Stanley Park and its seawall pathway are among the city's most popular and scenic attractions. This collection of totem poles, at the park’s Brockton Point, is one of the most memorable sights along the path. The nine intricately carved and painted poles represent the work of First Nations artists from Alert Bay, a village on Vancouver Island, and Haida Gwaii, a British Columbia archipelago also known as the Queen Charlotte Islands. The poles are particularly magnificent amid the park's natural splendour.
The badlands of Alberta feature some of the strangest and most interesting terrain in all of Canada, from hills enriched by dinosaur bones to Drumheller's alien-looking rock formations or hoodoos. Created over millions of years due to erosion caused by wind and water, the sandstone pillars are surprisingly fragile – which is why there's a strict “look but don’t touch” policy when it comes to this particular view.
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The Vancouver skyline is a glistening stack of modern glass-and-steel buildings but the view towards False Creek, the inlet that runs right between the city’s downtown and West End, brings a little calm to all that glitters. Depending on the time of day and where you stand, you might glimpse boats, Granville Bridge (pictured) and Granville Island, home to a popular market and breweries.
The legendary Niagara Falls straddles the border between the US and Canada, but it's the Canadian side that (arguably) offers the most thrilling views thanks to the picture-perfect curve of Horseshoe Falls (pictured). Visitors can get a good look at the falls from just about anywhere along the waterfront. The best way to take in one of the world's most spectacular sights, though, is on a helicopter ride or boat cruise, or from the high-perched observation deck at Skylon Tower.
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Newfoundland boasts some of Canada’s most ruggedly gorgeous landscapes, including the ancient fjords, cliffs and gorges of the remote Gros Morne National Park on the west coast. The most celebrated view here is of Western Brook Pond, which is only accessible via a hike followed by a boat trip through a fjord, with the option of either a day hike or a multi-day backcountry hike for the truly adventurous.
Percé is rather charming in its own right but the main reason visitors head to the tiny town on Quebec’s Gaspé Peninsula is to catch a glimpse of the mighty Percé Rock or Rocher Percé, backed by the fortress and seabird haven of Bonaventure Island. The rock’s name means “pierced”, a reference to a hole in the formation that sits just above the water. There are plenty of vantage points to view the rock from, including a suspended glass platform at the Percé UNESCO Global Geopark.
It’s not often that you find a 450-foot (137m) long suspension bridge, strung 230 feet (70m) above a lush forest floor, right in the middle of a major city. The view of the bridge itself is wonderful but walking over it is the way to get a squirrel’s-eye view of the Capilano River and the verdant mass of indigenous trees. For a more stable and less vertiginous view, visitors can also catch a glimpse of the forest from the park’s Cliffwalk platform.
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The journey from Lake Louise northwards to the town of Jasper involves heading up a highway that takes drivers along the Continental Divide and past the Athabasca Glacier, Peyto Lake and other extraordinary natural beauties. The best view, however, might just be the road itself. The quiet two-lane highway twists, turns, slices and soars through some of the most breathtaking mountain terrain in the world.
Views of Moraine Lake come with an alpine-forested shoreline and the picture-perfect peaks of the Rocky Mountains in Banff National Park. Its incredible hue, which can appear anything from sapphire to turquoise depending upon the time of day, is the result of light bouncing off fine particles of rock flour picked up by the glacier run-off that feeds the lake.