Getting Naked in Ontario and Quebec

Of course, the main goal of this trip up north was a search for the most wonderful places for Canadian naturists and tourists looking for a nude experience in Canada. Searching for everything about nudism in the country. Bare Oaks family naturist resort was a name that had been ringing in our heads for quite some time but we also wanted to find the other nudist resorts. We wanted to explore the greatest nude beaches in Canada. Toronto’s clothing optional beach Hanlan’s Point for example. Wandering without clothes through this fairy tale country was our main goal, but we had two other things we wanted to find during our time in Canada as well: Bears and moose. At least we found one of them.

 

Canada and its wildlife

Many Canadians we had met during our travels told stories that started with “that one time I rode my bicycle into a black bear…” or “after I chased a moose away from our garbage this morning…”. They gave us the impression that Canada was flooded with large impressive wildlife. We wanted to experience that as well, maybe not from too close by but a distant bear now and then was high on our wish list for Canada. After having spent more than a month in the country we joke about the “Great Canadian Scam”.

 

Well… joke…. we do have our doubts. Are all those talks about bears and moose just a way to attract unknowing Belgians to the country so they can charge them eight dollars for a beer? Are there really any bears or moose in the country? We surely haven’t seen a single one. Maybe they’re just hiding all the wildlife for first-time visitors so we would have to come back a second time. Those friendly Canadians eh…
The good news is that we did find some places to get naked and although the largest animal we’ve seen was probably a fat squirrel, we did have an amazing time!

Nudism in Canada: A naturist guide to Ontario and Quebec

Naturism in Ontario

Canada is an immensely huge country and a month is certainly not enough to see it all. Barely a fraction of it. We had decided to divide our time between two eastern provinces, Ontario and Quebec because those promised to have the most options for naturists.
In any case, although Canada is not exactly the world’s capital for naturist holidays, on our second day in the country we already had the chance to do something pretty unique. We joined the first naked cruise ever on Lake Ontario. Talking about a good start.
The cruise was a big success and will certainly be organized again next year, for more info please read our full review.

 

Naturist resorts in Ontario

We visited three naturist resorts in Ontario but the first one never made our review section because we’ve only been there with a day pass and can’t give you the full experience. This place was called the Pondorosa at about 45 minutes drive from Toronto. It’s a nice place, well maintained, very spacious with a large size swimming pool and swim-up bar, a restaurant, several volleyball courts, and camping spots as well as rental accommodation.

 

Our arrival at the Pondorosa was a bit weird, we went there with two male friends so basically we were 3 men and a woman. A company of strangers that clearly asked for some caution from the other visitors. Our moves were watched carefully and we felt quite stared at, to a point that we considered leaving. But then someone from the members recognized us, came over to have a chat and suddenly the tension loosened up. In the end, we’ve stayed until late in the evening having great chats with many of the other visitors.

Nudism in Canada: A naturist guide to Ontario and Quebec

 
The next stop was a resort to which we had been looking forward to a long time: Bare Oaks Family Naturist Park, also at about 45 minutes from Toronto. If you’re following what happens in the online naturist world a little bit, that name must certainly ring a bell. The owner Stéphane Deschênes has been very active in promoting naturism in general and Bare Oaks specifically and is also the voice of the Naturist Living Show podcast. Although we did have our expectations, we had never imagined a place like Bare Oaks. While other resorts around the world are struggling to gain new and younger members, Bare Oaks has one of the most varied crowds we’ve ever seen. The place is extremely well run, has a very European feel and is quite modern without losing the traditional naturist values.

 

Top activities in Ontario:

 

Our last place to stay in Ontario was something completely different: Sunward naturist resort at about an hour’s drive from Ottawa. We wanted to experience the Canadian nature and received exactly what we asked for: a place deep in the woods next to a magnificent lake. There’s no electricity and no noise. Just nature. Although the place could use quite some maintenance, this did add a bit to the experience. There’s no rental accommodation at Sunward so you’ll have to bring your own and we can strongly advise you to come by tent because then you can camp really next to the lake, waking up with an amazing sunrise over the water.

 

If you’re looking for a place to party, Sunward will not be your thing. If you like to fall asleep with the sounds of nature under a million stars, you’ll love this place.
There are several other naturist resorts in Ontario which we didn’t visit.

Nudism in Canada: A naturist guide to Ontario and Quebec

Nude beaches in Ontario

Honestly, we had expected a bit more when it comes to public nudity in Canada and were quite disappointed that the whole province of Ontario only happens to have one official nude beach.
At one of the Toronto Islands in Lake Ontario in front of Toronto is a place called Hanlan’s Point. The best way to get there is from the port in downtown Toronto, either by ferry or by water taxi. Once you arrive at the island, follow the signs “Clothing optional beach”.

 

We arrived there on a beautiful Sunday in the late afternoon, the sun was already pretty near the horizon but yet the beach was packed. People were relaxing, drinking, swimming, and having a wonderful time. Although the clothing-optional beach is just a part of the complete beach, also on this side the clothing option was represented. A wild guess would say that the number of nudists vs textiles was about 60 – 40, counting topless to textile. Nevertheless, it’s a wonderful place to escape the city on a sunny day and relax naked on the beach. If you leave after dark, you’ll also get to see the Toronto cityscape by night. Very impressive.
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Another stop along our way was Sandbanks provincial park near Kingston (Ontario, not Jamaica). This beach used to be popular among naturists but the government disapproved and tries to chase away anyone looking for a skinny dip. Big signs have been put up along the beach and we’ve heard that the police regularly comes around. But some people told us that it’s still possible to get naked there, so we decided to have a look.

 

Sandbanks beach is really long and that makes it actually an ideal spot for naturists, even today. Once you arrive on the beach you just turn right and keep walking until you’ve passed by the last swim shorts and bikinis and there you are, you have the place all by your naked self. How far you actually have to walk will depend on how busy the beach is. We were there on a sunny day in August and had to walk 2.3 kilometers to get away from the crowds.
 

 

Be careful: Sandbanks provincial park has 3 beaches, the one you’re looking for is called “Lakeshore beach” on the maps but is often referred to as “Sandbanks beach” as well.
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Nudism in Canada: A naturist guide to Ontario and Quebec

 

Naturism in Quebec

Ontario was beautiful and in terms of naturism, it was quite diverse. The weather had been on our side and gave us plenty of opportunities to get naked. But it was time to move on, weeks had passed by and we still had another province to explore: Quebec.

 

Naturist resorts in Quebec

Although Quebec has several naturist resorts, they all seem to be in the area of Montreal. Which is not really a coincidence, the naturist season in Canada is already pretty short and the more north, the colder it gets and the shorter the summer will be. If you’re planning to make big bucks in Canadian naturism, northern Quebec is probably not where you want to be.

 

Anyway, we decided to visit two of the resorts in Quebec. The first one was Centre Naturiste Oasis just north of Montreal. A nice and very well maintained campground, friendly people and quite some things to do. We missed a bit the “naturist feel” though, it looked too much like a textile campground where people can be naked. Especially if we compared it to our last stop in Canada…

 

Top activities in Quebec:

 

Save the best for last… Our last stop in Canada took us to southern Montreal, near the USA border, to naturist resort La Pommerie. If you remember French class, the name already gave away that it has something to do with apples. In fact, it’s an enormous naturist domain, complete with orchards and vineyards and forest and everything else you need to get back in touch with nature. This place is truly impressive and certainly a recommendation. The diversity in landscapes (within the resort), the things to do, the nice walks you can make, it’s all part of the experience. And they have probably the best restaurant we’ve ever visited at a naturist campground.
There are several other naturist resorts in Quebec which we didn’t visit.

Nudism in Canada: A naturist guide to Ontario and Quebec

Nude beaches in Quebec

Just like in Ontario, the number of places to get publicly naked is very limited, also in Quebec, there’s only one real nude beach: Oka beach just outside of Montreal. The beach is part of Oka provincial park and is very easy to find. There’s only one beach in the park when you arrive at the water you just turn left and start walking, you’ll find some green bushes, pass by them until you encounter a yellow pole. From there nudity is allowed.

 

We didn’t actually need to search for the pole, although we were there on a Tuesday afternoon in September, we could see the nudists from far away. For a regular working day, the place was pretty crowded, we would guess about a hundred-something people. We can only imagine what this must be for a weekend or the summer holidays. Anyway, if you’re in the Montreal area, a visit to Oka beach is much recommended. It’s a nice beach, there’s a good vibe and you have beautiful views of the lake shores while skinny dipping.
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Another place we found online where nudity is tolerated (not legal) was Meech lake, about half an hour north of Ottawa. The internet told us that there were two sections of the lake which were frequented by naturists, one section was rather a gay scene where the other one was more hetero. From the parking lot, search for trail 36 and keep walking until you find a wooden bridge. For the gay section turn right and follow the main path until you notice a side path on your right. Keep following that one next to the waterfront. You’ll end up by a small pond with views of the ruins, that’s where you want to be. There are several spots cleared in the high grass where the nudists tend to hang out. When we were there, there were two single men.

 

If you turn left at the bridge and keep following the path, you’ll end up at the hetero nudist section. We don’t know where it starts exactly, we just kept walking, passed a lot of textiles and one nudist and then walked a bit further until we found a place for ourselves. By the end of the summer, the lake temperature had gotten pretty comfortable and Meech lake is a very nice place to spend the afternoon. Just don’t expect a lot of social interaction.
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Nudism in Canada: A naturist guide to Ontario and Quebec

Extra: Tadoussac

Okay, we lied about the fat squirrel in the introduction. We have seen a much larger animal. In fact, we’ve seen the largest ones in the world: Whales. Tadoussac is one of the world’s top places to go whale watching.
The naturist opportunities in Tadoussac are none and there’s no reason at all to include this tiny town at the St-Lawrence river (which is way too cold to swim in by the way) in this article except maybe because the name in Montagnais translates to “nipples” or “breasts”. But if you have the chance to visit the place, please do. It’s one of the most wonderful sceneries we’ve seen in the whole country.
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Other tips for Canada

When to go: Late June to early September
What to eat: Poutine (french fries with gravy and cheese, delicious!)
What to drink: Local craft beer
What not to drink: Blue (really, it tastes like Heineken with extra water)
How to travel: Rent a car and camp
Words to learn to impress Canadians: “Eh” and “awesome”.
What to put on your playlist: If I Had 1 000 000 $ (originally by the Barenaked Ladies but the version of Bare Oaks Chris is better)
What to expect: Extremely beautiful nature
What not to expect: Bears or moose

 

 
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20 thoughts on “Getting Naked in Ontario and Quebec”

  1. Im still amazed that there is naturism in Canada..
    Simply when someone says Canada, the first thing that comes to my mind is cold and snow lol.
    Its like when someone says Australia the first thing u think of is tons of beaches and very hot weather.

    Reply
    • You’re right Iceman, just south of the border from Canada I’ve been asked not once “if there’s snow in August” … my reply “of course it is, all year round at the North Pole” ?

      Reply
  2. Can’t stop laughing at: “no bears nor moose are in Canada, what to eat: poutine”.
    Glad that you had a good time while in Canada and I promise that next time I’ll take you to a place where’s full of ? and we might be able to see moose as well.
    So that’s for next time, eh!

    Reply
  3. You’re right Iceman, just south of the border from Canada I’ve been asked not once “if there’s snow in August” … my reply “of course it is, all year round at the North Pole” ?

    Reply
  4. I lived in New England (USA, just south of Canada) for ten years, and I did see a moose walk past my front door. Once. In ten years. So I guess you didn’t visit Canada on Moose Day! 🙂

    Reply
  5. There are many, many places to be nude in Canada. They just aren’t official. The country is so large that it is easy in most of the country to find a bit of lake or beach and be totally alone. Here in BC there is a nude section of Lost Lake in Whistler for instance. Unofficial, but tolerated. Vancouver has the largest nude beach in North America, Wreck Beach. Thousands visit on a summer weekend. You can actually be nude around the whole point. A distance of 8 km. Right in the city.
    Wildlife is in the wild mostly. Bears can be seen going through garbage is some suburbs that are next to woodland. Locals know to not to approach them. I do hope when you visit next time that you do get to see some bigger wildlife, but do some research first. Bears and moose can kill you.

    Reply
  6. You missed the really nice club at Rimouski, Quebec
    There’s a beautiful beach near Port Burwell on L. Ontario
    You really should have had a local guide, Canada is too large to explore alone.

    Reply
  7. The Scarborough Bluffs in Toronto is another unofficial place that is really nice and secluded for nudity.

    Matti Charlton
    Electronic Musician and Nude Model

    Reply
  8. We were really surprised that Ontario does not have more nude beaches also, I e-mailed the FCN to see if the Provincial parks could designate a part of their vast beaches to be Nude or clothing optional, The President said they were working on it and that the Parks say it is illegal to be naked in the public park, WHY NOT change this??? And what is taking so long to do this. Many of the Provincial Park beaches and large and do not get used making those areas ideal for nude sunbathing and swimming…Moving here to Ontario I thought the nudity rules were more relaxed as Europe is, But I guess not..

    Reply
    • The park will always ask “what’s in it for us?”. If it attracts 1000 visitors a year now, how many people will it still attract if a part of it becomes naturist? What if there will be fewer people, how will they be able to pay their staff? Etc. Those are the questions a federation needs to find a reply on. We know several cases of public nude beaches where a local naturist club takes the responsibility to maintain the beach. Now and then, a couple of volunteers will do a clean-up and stuff like that. But only if they can use it nude, of course. This gives the local government something less to worry about and less to invest in. Governments like that 🙂

      Reply

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