480 Cool and Unusual Things to Do in Canada - Atlas Obscura

Unusual Attractions in Canada

Toronto, Ontario

The Monkey's Paw

A book collector's dream, The Monkey's Paw in Toronto has the world's first "Biblio-Mat", a random book vending machine.

Malakwa, British Columbia

The Enchanted Forest

An old world fairytale-land with over 350 fairy folk figurines hidden amongst 800 year old cedars.

Toronto, Ontario

Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library

One of Canada's most incredible rare book collections holds hundreds of thousands of gorgeous tomes that the general public can touch.

Vancouver, British Columbia

VanDusen Garden's Elizabethan Hedge Maze

This Elizabethan hedge maze is one of only six in North America.

Toronto, Ontario

Casa Loma

A 98-room castle in the middle of Toronto that bankrupted a 19th century electricity multimillionaire.

Qualicum Beach, British Columbia

Free Spirit Spheres

Sleep snuggled in a sphere suspended atop the forest canopy of Vancouver Island.

Toronto, Ontario

Winter Garden Theatre

A botanically themed auditorium blooms within the world’s last operating double-decker theater.

Montreal, Québec

Biosphere of Montreal

Designed by Buckminster Fuller, this relic of the 67 Expo survived fire and ice.

See All 480 Things to Do in Canada See All 480 Places

Unique Food & Drink in Canada

Sugar on Snow

Where maple sap flows, all one needs to make taffy is snow.

Snow Cream

Ice cream made with fresh snow is a beloved Southern tradition.

Spruce Beer

This Christmas tree elixir kept Vikings and Captain Cook alive.

Tiger Tail Ice Cream

This orange and black licorice flavor is kind of a big deal in Canada.

See all 21 things to eat in Canada See all 21 things to eat in Canada

Atlas Obscura Trips

Mysterious Manitoba: Ancient Ceremonies, Masonic Secrets, and the Unexplained

Explore the hidden wonders of a place considered to be the spiritual heart of Mother Earth, and a city steeped in mystery, myth, and mysticism.

Community Forums / Canada

Top Discussions in the Canada Travel Forum

Post	Replies	Views	Activity
The Alcan Highway	10 May 10, 2019	2044	May 10, 2019
Crystal Beach Sugar Waffles	11 November 14, 2019	2599	November 14, 2019
One Hour in Vancouver	5 June 13, 2019	1210	June 13, 2019
Labrador	0 May 6, 2019	587	May 6, 2019
Niagara Falls interesting things to do / places to eat	2 May 12, 2019	964	May 12, 2019

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Stories About Canada

Whisky writer Davin de Kergommeaux at the Highlander Pub in Ottawa.

Why the World Overlooked Canadian Whisky

A preference for blending put the Great White North on the wrong side of industry standards.

by Dan Nosowitz

The Man Who Went to War With Canada

For centuries, the United States and Canada’s only remaining land border dispute has been kept alive by a single family.

September 29, 2019

Every curling club in Thunder Bay includes a Chinese restaurant.

The Canadian Town Where Chinese Food Comes With a Side of Curling

Regional Chinese-Canadian cuisine is flourishing in some unlikely places.

A grape meets a hydrogel bead, and sparks fly.

These Physicists Finally Figured Out Why Microwaved Grapes Ignite

They're raisin hell.

February 20, 2019

Stefansson was a famed explorer and proponent of Inuit foodways.

The Arctic Explorer Who Pushed an All-Meat Diet

Vilhjalmur Stefansson wanted to prove a point.

August 28, 2018

Windfall apples inspired this design.

Meet the Artist Making Delicious Food Quilts

Japanese sweets, turkey dinners, and produce alike are immortalized in fabric.

August 21, 2018

Chef Rich Francis at his home in Six Nations, Ontario.

How an Indigenous Chef Is Decolonizing Canadian Cuisine

Rich Francis is reclaiming and reinventing an erased food culture.

by Gautham Krishnaraj

A photo of one of the footprints (left) and a digitally enhanced image of it (right). The toe impressions and arch indicate that it is from a right foot.

Found: 13,000-Year-Old Human Footprints Off Canada's Pacific Coast

They support a hypothesis that early people followed a coastal migration route into North America.

by Christina Ayele Djossa

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