The best Bed & Breakfasts in Canada

Road trips are one of the best things about the summertime, but for those of in the over-thirty category (ie: those of us who aren’t willing to just pull over and sleep in our cars if it gets too late), having somewhere awesome to lay your head at the end of the day is as important, if not more so, than planning the driving—or the snacks.

In the last few years, my wife and I have taken a bunch of road trips around the country and south of the border. We also did a bit of road tripping in Europe a few years ago, and that’s where we got onto an idea that we haven’t been able to shake since: forget the cheap-o hotels and motels on highways across Canada. Go for the B&B.

In Europe, there are not very many hotel/motels to speak of. There are definitely some inns on the sides of roads, and these can be charming (or in one case leaky, as we found out). But the bed and breakfast became our bread and butter on that trip, and since then we always do the B&B route when we’re traveling.

This takes a little advance research, but in the day of smart phones it’s definitely not as hard as it once was. You can pull over at most diners across Canada and find a nearby B&B online in less than 10 minutes. Some of them are amazing and super unique. Here are three I really like.

• Treehouse Bed & Breakfast, Galiano Island

A treehouse-like B&B right on the Pacific. What more do you need me to say?

• Quirpon Lighthouse Bed and Breakfast, Quirpon, Nfld.

This one’s in a lighthouse (!!), and it’s on an island off the coast of friendly Newfoundland. There’s whalewatching as far as the eye can see, and the food is delicious. The boat trip there alone is worth your while. Mmm.

• DownHome Bed and Breakfast, Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON

The most “bed and breakfast-y” of the bunch, this one also happens to be minutes from the falls. Reasonably priced and cozy, with great hosts, to boot.

Do you have a favourite Canadian B&B? Let us know in the comments.