Cruising Canada’s Thousand Islands: My Unfiltered Review & Tips

So, we were looking for a chill summer getaway and landed on the idea of seeing the famous Thousand Islands from the Canadian side in Ontario. Let me just say, it was such a great choice. If you’re planning a trip, here’s the full scoop on how we did it, what we thought, and the little things you’ll definitely want to know beforehand.

First Things First: Where to Even Start?

You’ve basically got three main towns to launch your boat tour from, going south to north: Kingston, Gananoque, and Ivy Lea. After doing a bit of research, we decided to book a hotel and stay the night in Gananoque (pronounced Gan-an-ock-way, you’re welcome) so we could catch the first boat of the day without a crazy early morning drive. And honestly? Best decision ever. Gananoque is this absolutely charming, super clean little town that isn’t swarming with tourists. It was the perfect, peaceful home base for our adventure.

Choosing Your Cruise: Don’t Get Overwhelmed!

Okay, this is where it gets a little confusing because there are a bunch of options. Here’s the basic rundown from what we saw:

• 1-Hour Tour: A quick trip, but you won’t get to see the famous Boldt Castle. Kinda defeats the purpose, in my opinion.
• 3-Hour Tour: This is the one we picked. The boat goes all the way to Boldt Castle, does a nice slow loop around it so you can get plenty of pictures, and then heads back. You don’t get off the boat.
• 5-Hour Tour: This is the big one where you actually dock and get to go ashore to explore Boldt Castle for yourself. You’ll need your passport for this since the castle is on the US side!

There are other options too, like a 2-hour tour from Ivy Lea that also gets you a view of the castle. But the 3-hour felt like the perfect sweet spot for us—we got to see the main attraction without dedicating our entire day to it.

The Onboard Experience: What It’s Really Like

We showed up at the dock about half an hour before our 10:30 AM departure on a Monday. Parking right at the pier was a flat fee of $9. I’d heard whispers you could park for free at a park nearby, but for nine bucks, we just went for the convenient option. The boat has three levels. The bottom deck has tables and a little snack bar selling drinks and sandwiches. The second deck is mostly bench seating with way better views. Then there’s the top deck, which is completely open-air—perfect if you’re not worried about getting a bit of sun. Even on a Monday, the boat was probably 80% full, but it never felt crowded.

A hot tip: a lot of people say to sit on the left side of the boat for the best view of Boldt Castle on the way out. Honestly, it doesn’t matter that much. You’ll be getting up and walking around the deck to take pictures anyway, so just grab whatever seat you can!

I’ll be real with you, the first hour of the scenery is just… okay. It’s nice, but it’s not mind-blowing. Then, the landscape starts to get more interesting with gorgeous houses and the huge bridge crossing into the US border. Finally, you reach Boldt Castle, and it is totally worth the wait. A couple of things to keep in mind:

• The Food Situation: The snacks on board are pretty basic. The sandwiches were… well, they were boat sandwiches. Maybe bring your own if you’re a foodie.
• For the Kids: Little kids might get bored on the 3-hour trip. It’s a lot of sitting and looking for them.
• Cell Service Warning! At one point, your phone will almost certainly lose its Canadian signal and try to connect to a US tower. Turn off your data roaming if you don’t want a surprise bill!

So, Was It Worth It?

Absolutely. The whole experience was so relaxing. It wasn’t packed and chaotic like some boat tours I’ve been on. Just cruising along, checking out the beautiful vacation homes on the water, with the blue sky overhead—it was the perfect, low-stress family outing for a summer day.