Ontario Fall Bucket List: 18 Things to do in Ontario This Fall

So while fall is technically considered from September 21st to December 21st if you live in Toronto or Ontario or even Canada you know that’s not even remotely true. In a good year we may have 6-8 weeks of fall but in a bad year we have at most a month. It’s a very short time compared to our incredibly long winters that can last like 6 months some years and it’s even short compared to our Ontario summers! All that means is that your Ontario Fall Bucket List needs to be done fast and luckily this list of things to do in Ontario this fall will give you a list of where to start. I love exploring during the fall and try to squeeze in as many activities as I can every fall so make sure to come back every year to see what we have added to the list.

Go Apple Picking

I don’t know why but even more so than pumpkins, I find apples to be so quintessentially fall! From the smell, to the crispness to the colours, apples are just the best. Plus it’s quite accomplishing having to reach out and actually pick them yourself! You can go all out and spend all day filling multiple bags or you can just take your time walking around and seeing the different kinds and filling a bag or two. Either way, taking home a bag of your own picked apples and then spending an evening making a pie or something out of it is quite satisfactory!

There’s a number of farms you can pick at around the Greater Toronto Area and this is a pretty comprehensive list of some of them! I like exploring new flavours and sizes you wouldn’t come across in grocery stores.

See the leaves change colours

Ontario has a mind-blowing amount of parks, conservations areas, ravines and green spaces in general. While you can of course check out the best fall colours in Toronto I would urge you to get outside the city and see some of the other places with beautiful colours.

You can use Ontario Parks website to decide where to check out fall colours across the province by tracking how much has changed – there’s lots of areas to check out so try for as many as possible. Alternatively a quick search for conservation areas near you will find you some good locations to check out too. I will remind you that the more popular a location is the busier it will be and some of the provincial parks at the 1-2 hour mark from Toronto get very, very busy and require reservations in addition to paid admission.

Take in the mother of all colour changes at Algonquin Park

Algonquin Park is one of the most well known of the Ontario Provincial Parks. It’s located about 3-4 hours northeast of Toronto and is home to the spectacular 2.1 km lookout trail which includes the below stunning viewpoint. It’s a steep hike but the view will honestly take your breath away. This technically falls into both hiking and leaves spotting but Algonquin Park is just such a must do in the fall it has to earn its own spot on the list.

Take a scenic train ride

Ontario is a giant province and some of the best ways to explore the province is by sitting on the inside of a train. There are a number of scenic train rides across the province but one of the arguably most scenic ones is the Agawa Canyon Train Ride. I have yet to be able to go on one as we tend to travel in October and we always miss the dates but it’s absolutely part of my own bucket list and maybe this is the year I’ll get to do it.

Hike Hardy Lake Provincial Park

You’ve probably come across Hardy Lake Provincial Park on Instagram with the iconic wooden bridge leading to the little island with trees. This one is especially lovely in the fall with the colours so would highly recommend saving it for then. There is limited parking so come early if you’re going on a peak weekend. We somehow picked a thunder and rainstorm weekend so pretty much felt like we had the park to ourselves.

I would recommend paying attention to the map cause there are two different ways to get to the island. We did not pay attention and just started hiking around 10:45 am. We reached the bridge around 12:40 pm so just under 2 hours (I will say we typically walk slowly and really take our time enjoying hikes). We spent about 20 minutes taking pictures and exploring the area right by the bridge and across the bridge. We headed back around 1 pm and found a different route back that got us to the parking lot by 2:10 pm. We got back to the car in essentially 1 hour versus the almost 2 hours it took us to get to the bridge.

Visit Johnston’s Cranberry Marsh and do the Cranberry Plunge

Muskoka Lakes Farm & Winery is home to Johnston’s Cranberry Marsh where you can participate in the annual cranberry plunge.

There’s plenty of other activities you can participate in so my recommendation is to head over in the morning and get the cranberry pass which let’s you do the plunge, hike the trails, participate in a wine tasting and get a tour of marsh on a tractor!

You can check out more details on their official website.

Visit the Pumpkinferno in Upper Canada Village

Pumpkinferno is a giant pumpkin event that takes place in Upper Canada Village which is located close to Ottawa, about almost 4 hours from Toronto. The event takes you through a 1-km path with 7,000 carved pumpkins that are all lit up. Quite far for a day trip but you could combine it with a trip to Ottawa for a great fall weekend away.

Take in the fall colours in the capital and watch them blend with Parliament

Piggy backing on the above point, you may as well pop by parliament to take in the fall colours as well. While you can no longer tour the main building of the Canadian Parliament, you can still wander around the buildings and take in the stunning colours. The backdrop of the architecture and the river make for some unbelievable pictures.

Visit somewhere haunted

Given that fall coincides with Halloween, it’s only appropriate that we put some spooky things on this list as well right? There are a number of places in Ontario that are abandoned or ruined and many of these are said to be haunted. You’ll be able to find haunted spots in many of the major cities as well as small towns. A famous example is Camp 30 in Bowmanville. You can’t actually go into the buildings, even though many people do, but you can walk around the exterior and pick up on the spooky vibes.

Visit Belfountain Conservation Area

Belfountain Conservation Area is located less than 1 hour from Toronto and it’s a stunning Conservation Area with lots of trails, beautiful bridges and of course some fantastic nature. It’s an area that’s incredibly photogenic and one that becomes almost magical in the fall.

The conservation area does not allow walk-in entry and only has vehicle access. You can pre-book your vehicle fee and admission online. Currently the price is $5.65 for an online reservation and $11.30 for day of first come, first serve entrance. Admission for each individual is on top of the vehicle fee. Updated fees and making a reservation can be accessed here. The conservation area is one of the more popular places for fall day trips from Toronto so depending on when you go you should expect some crowds.

Treat yourself to an outdoor spa

Is there really anything better than sitting in a heated pool among stunning nature while the leaves are changing? The below pictures are from Nordik Spa in Gatineau (just outside of Ottawa) but there are a fair amount of options within a few hours from the Greater Toronto Area. Now that Thermea opened up in Whitby we have a fairly central location for this as well.

Go for a drive

Sometimes there’s nothing better just getting in your car and driving along the roads outside of the city. Yes, stopping for pictures will be difficult but you will see some absolutely spectacular colours. Anywhere along the major highways is pretty much guaranteed colours.

Visit Monster Month in Elora

Elora is one of the most popular day trips from Toronto and there are plenty of things to do in Elora year-round. The town generally puts on lots of festivals and events and in the fall they host the Monster Month which comes with giant monster art installations all over town. It’s free to stroll around and view them and a great way to take in the town if you haven’t visited before.

Visit a Pumpkin Farm for a day trip

Pumpkin farms are similar to the apple farms in the sense that you can really find them all over the province. This is a really comprehensive list of them. I would say to be warned that the ones within the hour driving distance of Toronto are just automatically going to be packed and to just be aware of that going into it.

Select your own pumpkin for all your fall activities!

When you’ve visited one of the pumpkin farms you do have to make sure to bring one home! They make for beautiful decorations and if you go for a bigger one you can do some carving for Halloween as well.

Check out Cheltenham Badlands

The Cheltenham Badlands are a stunning natural formation in Ontario. It’s a 91-acre site where the most well-known part is the actual badland. Badlands are essentially dry terrain that has been eroded and now displays stunning colours. The badlands are open year around but personally I think they are way prettier in the fall hence they’re on this list.

Because of the popularity of the Badlands over the last few years, reservations are now required. You can reserve in 90-minute slots or 3-hour slots with the longer slots being more expensive. The reservation time slots are available between 8 am and 7 pm daily and can be made 2 weeks in advance of the visit.

Hike Dundas Peak

Dundas Peak is located approximately 1 hour outside of Toronto (in the Hamilton area) and is arguably one of the best of the shorter hikes you can do in the area to get some stunning views of fall colours. The hike is incredibly popular so pre-booking your ticket is a must do. Given it’s proximity to Toronto this one is a super easy one to cross off your Ontario fall bucket list. We’ve visited a few times so I’ve put together a little guide for hiking Dundas Peak to help you in planning your visit.

Most importantly – spend time outdoors

While all the things on this list are in my opinion must-do fall activities in Ontario, the important thing is to get outdoors and enjoy the crisp air and soak up as much sun as possible because if you work 9-5 like me, you’ll be seeing very little sun as soon as the clocks move forward!

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Take in the views at the Dorset Lookout Tower

Get scared at Fort Henry in Kingston

HOW MANY OF THESE ITEMS HAVE YOU ALREADY MANAGED TO CHECK OUT IN ONTARIO? WHAT’S ON YOUR LIST FOR THE FALL? LET ME KNOW IN THE COMMENTS AND PIN THIS POST FOR YOUR OWN TRAVELS!