7 Stunning Alternatives To Explore When Your Favourite Park Is Full

Algonquin. Killbear. Sandbanks. Iconic names that summon visions of serene canoe routes, idyllic campsites, rugged hiking trails and awe-inspiring landscapes. It’s little wonder Ontario’s most popular provincial parks fill up so quickly, with highly anticipated reservations more than 50 percent booked by March each year. But crowd favourites like Bon Echo and Pinery aren’t the only provincial parks with pristine lakes and spectacular beaches.

With the top parks booking up so fast, consider trying a “destination dupe” for similar scenery and vibes without the intense competition. I find getting off the beaten path can restore a wonderful sense of discovery that’s missing from the more congested parks. Ontario has over 300 provincial parks, and many offer superb camping and plenty of adventure without the crowds. From discovering hidden gems with trails, lakes and beaches every bit as beautiful as the famous five, to finding peaceful campgrounds that don’t require a five-month lead time, destination dupes are a fantastic way to explore Ontario’s wild side.

Instead of Algonquin Provincial Park…

What Makes Algonquin Famous: Everybody loves this vast park with over 2,000 pristine lakes, outstanding hiking trails and easy access for day visitors and vehicle campers from Highway 60. The park’s diverse wildlife, 2,100 km of classic canoe routes and backcountry campsites make it a magnet for adventure seekers. The popularity means campsites are often fully booked in summer and reservations are necessary, with day-use permits vanishing just as quickly during the park’s spectacular fall colour season. Winter in Algonquin is famous for snowy forests, wildlife viewing and cross-country skiing or snowshoeing the park’s trails.

Try This Recommendation: For backcountry adventurers, Quetico Provincial Park offers a landscape every bit as rich and compelling as Algonquin Park… minus the well-trodden campsites and portage traffic jams. Located in northwestern Ontario, a two-hour drive from Thunder Bay, Quetico enthrals with its rugged beauty, towering rock cliffs, enchanting waterfalls, and virgin pine and spruce forests.

Paddlers will discover spellbinding wilderness lakes equalling Algonquin in number, offering weeks of backcountry canoeing solitude. The park sees only a tiny fraction (about 3.5 percent) of the visitors Algonquin does, and you’ll often find yourself all alone with the loons and the setting sun. Visit in winter for epic snow and spectacular stargazing and aurora viewing. Cold season aficionados can enjoy groomed cross-country ski trails and winter vehicle camping.

• Quetico Provincial Park’s Dawson Trail campground offers year-round car camping sites and rustic cabins overlooking French Lake, along with swimming beaches, kayak and SUP rentals, and 35 km of hiking trails.
• Stay in rustic luxury on the edge of the park at Voyageur Island Ecolodge.
• For complete canoe trip outfitting—including equipment rental, route planning and guided trips—contact Quetico Outfitters, Canoe Canada Outfitters or Voyageur Wilderness Program.

Instead of Killbear Provincial Park…

What Makes Killbear Famous: This compact park on Georgian Bay is a favourite destination for families and lake lovers thanks to its inviting sandy beaches, easy trails and lakeside campgrounds. The blend of windswept pines and smooth rocky shoreline sloping into the bay’s clear waters creates a natural summer playground—and some of the highest campground occupancy rates in the Ontario Parks system.

Try This Recommendation: For a mesmerizing mix of beautiful bedrock shoreline and sublime sands with zero crowds, Neys Provincial Park gets my vote every time. This fascinating park is easily accessible from Trans-Canada Hwy 17 just west of Marathon, yet somehow retains a delightfully under-the-radar feel even in peak summer season.

Neys boasts one of the finest sand beaches on Lake Superior’s north shore, with piles of driftwood to keep kids busy building forts and fantastical sculptures. For tent campers hoping to score that dream beachfront campsite, try to reserve a spot in campground Area 2 or 3. While you’re here, don’t miss hiking one (or more) of Neys’ excellent trails; my favourites include the easy Point Trail or more challenging Under the Volcano Trail.

• Neys car campground has nearly 150 sites available for reservation.
• Bring your own kayak, canoe or paddleboard, or rent a canoe from the park office. When Lake Superior is calm, gliding across the translucent green water feels like gazing into another dimension.
• Lake Superior is notoriously chilly, even in July and August. If you can, bring a 2- or 3-mm shorty wetsuit for swimming.
• Adventurous travellers who want to see more remote corners of the park can join a guided 6-day sea kayak trip with Wawa-based paddling centre, Naturally Superior Adventures, or contact S.A.N.D. Adventures for custom kayak trips.

Instead of Bon Echo Provincial Park…

What Makes Bon Echo Famous: Best known for its striking views of mighty Mazinaw Rock, Bon Echo draws visitors from across Ontario—all eager to launch boats, climbing forays or sunset paddles to the park’s incredible cliffs. Based on the packed campgrounds and busy beaches, you could be forgiven for imagining this is the only place in the province to observe such a spectacular rock formation alongside timeless Indigenous pictographs.

Try This Recommendation: The captivating, centuries-old Anishinaabe imagery on display at Mazinaw Rock can be found replicated on dramatic cliff faces across Northern Ontario. For the Indigenous people, these sheer walls of ancient stone were sacred places. Rising from fathomless waters, the cliffs stood at the intersection of the human and spirit worlds, making them a powerful place to record visions or significant events. Agawa Rock in Lake Superior Provincial Park is one such place; visitors can venture carefully onto the ledge of sloping granite at the foot of the cliffs, but only on days when the mighty lake is calm. I especially love the short hike down to the rock through mossy forest and cool rock clefts.

Alternatively, make the journey to Missinaibi Provincial Park, a one-hour drive north of Chapleau, to witness the more than 100 pictographs at Fairy Point. Like Mazinaw Rock, the name Missinaibi comes from the Ojibwe word muzzinaw or Cree masinâpôy sîpiy, meaning “painted waters.” Base camp at the park’s Barclay Bay car campground and boat into the site, or better yet, plan a multi-day canoe trip taking in multiple pictograph sites, including Whitefish Falls and Fairy Point. Enjoy 20 beautiful, canoe-in campsites dotted around the perimeter of Missinaibi Lake, which is also renowned for its outstanding fishing.

• For the ultimate adventure, Missinaibi Lake is the headwaters of the legendary Missinaibi River. MHO Adventures’ fully guided nine-day Upper Missinaibi Whitewater trip combines lake and river landscapes and is perfect for those new to paddling rapids.
• Don’t expect swanky showerhouses or electrical hook-ups in Missinaibi’s Barclay Bay Campground—this is a true northern camping experience with basic amenities only. Do expect large, well-treed sites that seldom reach 40 percent capacity all summer long.
• Canoe and kayak rentals are available on-site at Barclay Bay Campground.
• Naturally Superior Adventures offers rentals, route advice and a guided six-day sea kayaking trip of the Lake Superior Provincial Park coastline, including Agawa Rock.
•  S.A.N.D. Adventures also offers kayak trips in the park
• The campsites at Lake Superior Provincial Park’s Agawa Bay Campground fill quickly in summer—reserve early to avoid disappointment.

Instead of Pinery Provincial Park…

What Makes Pinery Famous: Nestled along Lake Huron, Pinery Provincial Park’s 10 km sand beach, rare coastal dunes and oak savanna forest, and tranquil river make it a top pick for nature lovers. The park’s diversity of year-round activities—including hiking, cycling and cross-country ski trails, camping, birding and paddling—plus its easy accessibility from southern Ontario mean Pinery receives nearly half a million visitors each year.

Dupe Recommendations: If you’re looking for a scenic park that’s just a three- to four-hour drive from the GTA and has plenty of fun options for an active weekend getaway, Restoule Provincial Park is one of the best-kept secrets in Ontario’s near north. Readily accessible from Highway 11, Restoule encompasses a stunning landscape of clear lakes and hardwood forests that are nothing short of spectacular in autumn. Even better, the park is laced with hiking and mountain biking trails to breathtaking lookouts, and there’s amazing waterfront camping with access to canoeing, kayaking or paddleboarding on three interconnected lakes. My perfect Restoule stay includes hitting the swooping singletrack on the Angel’s Point Trail, hiking the must-do Fire Tower Trail, and paddling to the 60-metre bluff on Stormy Lake.

Okay, I can hear you saying, but where’s the beach? If tossing a towel on the sand and splashing in the waves is your idea of the perfect park weekend, escape the crowds by heading even further south to the sweeping sands of Rondeau Provincial Park. This peninsula park boasts 11 km of Lake Erie beaches, and there’s also extensive hiking and cycling trails through old-growth Carolinian forest and coastal wetlands. And if you thought the birdwatching at Pinery was good, Rondeau’s avian attractions are world-renowned. Visit in spring for the park’s annual Festival of Flight.

• Simplify grab-and-go weekend logistics and rent mountain bikes, canoes, kayaks and paddleboards on-site at Restoule Provincial Park.
• Reserve a campsite at one of Restoule’s three car campgrounds, or plan your first paddle-in camping trip to the park’s easy-access backcountry sites.
• The 306 campsites at Rondeau’s campground are located a short walk from Lake Erie.
• Rondeau Park is minutes away from Chatham-Kent’s fresh farm-to-table dining, breweries, patios and ice cream trail. Get a taste here.

Instead of Sandbanks Provincial Park…

What Makes Sandbanks Famous: In a word: beaches. Three expansive beaches with fine sand, shallow water and gentle drop-offs make this Ontario’s most popular park for beach-loving campers. With over 800,000 annual visitors, it’s second only to Wasaga Beach for sun-worshipping crowds. During peak summer season, Sandbanks’ more than 500 car camping sites are fully booked and it can be hard to find an empty patch of sand amid the bodies and beach towels.

Try This Recommendation: For a wonderfully chill beachgoing experience that feels like Sandbanks in the ‘80s, you don’t need a time machine. Instead grab a reservation at Pancake Bay Provincial Park. Just a one-hour drive north of Sault Ste. Marie, the park’s 3 km floury soft sand beach curves around Lake Superior’s aquamarine waters like something out of a Caribbean travel guide. Over 300 large, well-spaced campsites are strung along the shoreline with beachfront sites boasting sensational views. During summer, the sun sets well past 9 p.m. up here, so be sure to save some energy for an after-dinner stroll or spin along the campground lanes to enjoy the endless evening sunshine.

• Pancake Bay Provincial Park sees less than 10 percent of the annual visitation of Sandbanks, but you’ll still want to reserve a campsite in advance to avoid disappointment (and score the best sites).
• Stock up on camping supplies and snag a unique souvenir at Agawa Crafts and the Canadian Carver in Pancake Bay.
• The “world-famous” apple fritters at The Voyageur’s Lodge & Cookhouse in nearby Batchawana Bay are truly worthy of global recognition—and they’re served hot and fresh everyday.

Plan Your Trip Now

Whether you love beaches, canoe trips, hiking or just relaxing in nature, it’s still possible to enjoy a spontaneous, uncrowded camping getaway. When your favourite Ontario Parks are feeling too crowded, get off the beaten path at these destination dupes.

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