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Ontario is a vast province containing one-fourth of the freshwater in the world. Over half the population lives in a small fraction of its geographical area; the four cities of the "Golden Horseshoe" at the western end of Lake Ontario. 90% of Ontario's 11.3 million people live within a narrow area just north of the U.S. border. The city of Toronto contains 4.5 million of them.

The landscape is the most varied of any Canadian province, with the northern 90% belonging to the Canadian Shield — worn-down mountain ranges with lakes and boreal forest. Climates range from sub-arctic in the north to humid-continental near Niagara Falls. The Niagara region along Lake Ontario's south shore boasts the perfect environment for Canada's largest wine-producing region.

Ottawa, the capital of Ontario, boasts many museums, performing arts festivals, and shopping, as well as tours of the neo-Gothic style parliament buildings and the Changing of the Guard ceremony. Other points of interest in Ontario are Kingston, Stratford, Prince Edward County (which has a distinctly New England feel), and Petroglyphs Provincial Park, which contains Canada's largest concentration of native rock carvings. Of course, what would a trip to Ontario be without a trip to the famed Niagara Falls? The falls actually consist of the American and Bridal Veil Falls in New York State, and the Horseshoe Falls in Ontario. The volume of the falls equals more than 700,000 gallons per second in summer.

Ontario is bordered on the east by Quebec, on the west by Manitoba, on the north by Hudson Bay and James Bay, and on the south by the states of Minnesota, Michigan and New York in the USA.

Winter is severe in Ontario, making travel difficult, but worth it to those seeking the world's best winter activities. Skiing, ice skating, snowmobiling, and ice fishing are hard to beat in Ontario. The mildest time weather-wise to visit Ontario is April through September; this is also when you will find plenty of festivals. Warm-weather activities include boating and hiking.

Ontario Government Links

• City of Toronto
• Government of Ontario
• Ontario Parks

Ontario Tourism Links

• Ontario - Yours to Discover
• Niagara Falls - Official Tourism Visitor & Convention Bureau