Travel to Canada. Picturesque places to visit in winter in Canada and plan an itinerary for future trips.

Canada is a country full of natural places and urban delights, where visitors are wowed by both wildlife and cultural treasures. Whether you're a first-time visitor or returning to experience something new, these are the top 10 places to visit in Canada. But be sure to plan ahead, because being in the second largest country in the world, you simply can't do it all in one trip.

Read the top 15 myths about immigration to Canada here.

CRS system: how many points do you need to move to Canada under the Express Entry program read here.

Canada's Rocky Mountains 

Canada's Rocky Mountains are on the border of British Columbia and Alberta. Most people fly in by plane to Edmonton or Calgary, then travel through the Rockies by rented car.

The Rocky Mountains of Canada include: Banff, Jasper, Kootenay and Yoho National Parks, as well as Mount Robson, Mount Assiniboine and Hamber provincial parks.

These mighty mountains are one of Canada's top tourist attractions. With their craggy snow-capped peaks, wide valleys, hot springs and cosy hotels, many of the Rocky Mountain peaks and the land over which they extend have been converted into protected areas in the form of national and temporary parks, some of which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Tourist season is late June to mid-September: high hotel prices, lots of cars and people. All activities are open (rafting, tours, etc.), the weather is fine, camping, hiking and water activities. The mountain lakes have already melted and taken on their famous turquoise colour. July and August sometimes bring the smoke from the fires.

Planning tip: You can also take the train and see the beauty of all the places without getting off your train. glowing lakes, riotous fields

Whistler is the best place to ski in Canada 

Whistler is a few minutes from Vancouver by road or air. Stunning scenery, a walkable village and an authentic, hands-on mountain culture make Whistler an unforgettable year-round destination. Winter provides reliable snow for skiing, snowboarding and Nordic sports, while golf, mountain biking and hiking fill the warmer months. Festivals, spas, restaurants and bars combine with endless outdoor activities to make Whistler the perfect place to escape and relax.

This alpine village and venue for the 2010 Winter Olympics is one of the largest, best-equipped and most popular ski resorts in the world. With over 200 pistes descending from two towering mountains, Whistler and Blackcomb, it's a paradise for skiers of all levels.

Skiing may be Whistler's raison d'être, but there are more summer visitors with their mountain bikes here than during the ski season, making the resort a year-round destination for locals and visitors alike.

Montreal Jazz Festival

This famous festival is an important attraction in Montreal, the oldest of Canada's cities. For over thirty years, the beautifully restored 17th and 19th century French Quarter, with its many restaurants and outdoor cafés, has for several summers been transformed into a one-night-only concert venue featuring the world's most famous jazz bands and attracting thousands of visitors each year.

The Montreal Jazz Festival is now considered one of the largest music festivals of all genres in the world. It lasts for about 10 days and more than 300 concerts take place in its main 20 major venues. Hundreds of thousands of jazz fans from the United States, Europe and Japan attend the shows, making the Montreal festival the most visited in the world.

The festival is also a unique combination of great music, beauty and identity of Montreal itself with its restaurants and museums. During the festival days, you can wander around the city from morning to night, moving from one venue to another, mingling with people who are always friendly and discreet even in large crowds, and having a lot of fun doing so.

Quebec Old Town

The Citadel and the Fortification are two of the city's most prominent features. It is also home to the Cathedral of Notre-Dame-de-Québec. Not far away is the Presbyterian Church of St. Andrés, the Jesuit chapel and the Holy Trinity Cathedral. There are several museums in Old Quebec in Canada.

Quebec's capital city is over 400 years old, and its ancient stone walls, gleaming cathedrals and jazz-filled corner cafés fill it with atmosphere, romance, melancholy, eccentricity and intrigue on a par with any European city. The best way to soak it all up is to walk the labyrinth of old city lanes and get lost amongst the street performers and cozy inns.

Vancouver Island

Vancouver Island is the heart of British Columbia. It is an unexpected discovery for most tourists coming to Canada. For the most part, they only know about the city of the same name and often think of it as being on the same island. The administrative centre of the province, Victoria is fascinating with its beautiful architecture and green areas as well as the atmosphere of old England. Majestic whales and killer whales arrive on Vancouver's shores almost daily and are astonishingly large. Vancouver Island is an incredible place to enjoy the benefits of civilization, and in an hour you can enjoy being one with nature away from people.

Vancouver Island captivates visitors with its natural treasures, incredible architecture and gastronomic traditions. There are also numerous opportunities for extreme sports.

The island has a temperate climate, with mild winters and warm summers. January has an average temperature of +5ºC and July averages +21ºC. Average annual rainfall ranges from 6650 mm on the west coast to 610 mm in the east. In January, Victoria hosts the International Whisky Festival. This elite whisky festival features tastings, dinners, workshops and celebrations.

From July to August, the city of Parksville hosts the Parksville Beach Festival. During the first four days, sculptors compete to create sand sculptures. This is followed by a month of concerts, sporting events and a variety of shows.

Rideau Canal 

This is a cherished part of our national heritage and a world-class destination for travellers. It was built for conflict but thrived on hospitality. Today, people come from all over the world to visit this UNESCO World Heritage Site and experience its utterly unique blend of nature, history and outdoor entertainment. The Rideau Canal National Historic Site is a 202-kilometre waterway that connects Canada's vibrant national capital of Ottawa with Kingston and Lake Ontario to the south. Travel the canal by boat, canoe or kayak and experience the historic lock system operated by Parks Canada. You can also drive or bike to many great spots along its length. Fun can be found at any time of year. In the warmer months it's: cycling and walking the coastal trails, cruising the canal with the family or paddling to the next great fishing spot. When the locks are closed you can do: ice skating, snowshoeing and cross-country skiing.

Manitoulin Island

Manitoulin Island, located in Georgia Bay on Lake Guron, is the world's largest freshwater island. There are many things to do on Manitoulin Island, and here are the best ideas to help you plan your trip.

Just think of exploring 2766 km2 (1167 square miles) of unspoilt landscape. Manitoulin Island, part of the Niagara Escarpment, offers an amazing natural experience, and here are our top picks of what you can't miss.

Manitoulin Island is the world's largest freshwater island. It's also home to the largest freshwater island lake in the world.

Bay of Fundy

It is located in north-eastern Canada between the provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. And it starts right near the US border at the Gulf (and state) of Maine.

Fundy is known for having the highest tides in the world. Every day the water here rises up to 16-17 metres. Twice a day, an estimated 160 billion tonnes of seawater from the Atlantic Ocean rises in and out of the Bay of Fundy. And that's more than the combined volume of all the world's rivers. 

Tourists can see one extraordinary ebb and flow every 24 hours. The time gap between these events is 6 hours and 13 minutes.

Thus, one tide and one high tide can be seen in a day. Their timing varies by about an hour. The height of the tide varies considerably from place to place in the bay.

In some places, the ocean water reverses the course of the river - the reversing rapids at St John's. Or create a tidal wave that spreads against the current.

Drumheller

Drumheller is located on the banks of the Red Deer River in the heart of the Canadian Badlands in south-central Alberta. It is the "dinosaur capital of the world" and is well known for its dinosaur history, historic fossil finds and canyons. 

The most popular activities for tourists in Drumheller include golfing, hiking, touring, cycling, canoeing, horseback riding, sightseeing, collecting antiques and art tours.

Churchill

The area around Churchill, Manitoba, has a lot to offer. The area is often referred to as the polar bear capital. They have lived here since the town was founded in 1771. From October to early December, up to 1200 polar bears congregate near where the Churchill River flows into Hudson Bay, waiting for the bay to freeze to resume their seal hunt. During this time, many tourists flock here to see these magnificent animals. The town's population increases more than tenfold. There have been occasions when some of the more curious animals have entered the town!

Note that for over 300 days a year you can see the Northern Lights here. The easiest way to get to Churchill is by plane, but if you want to see from the ground the plains and lakes of Manitoba, once traversed by fur traders, take a 36-hour "excursion" on the VIA train from Winnipeg.