maple syrup toronto

A maple syrup crawl outside Toronto is the ultimate spring road trip

When maple syrup season hits, it's time to hit the road to see the process of harvesting Canada's most precious national ingredient up close and personal. If you enjoy some of our local maple syrup traditions in Toronto, you'll love the adventures that await less than a couple hours outside town.

There are a whole bunch of farms and festivals near Toronto celebrating maple syrup in all its glory. Spring is usually the best time to visit these places and get in on all the prime sugar shack action.

About an hour's drive from Toronto lies Willowtree Farm in Port Perry, where you can take a wagon ride to the sugar bush. Watch an evaporator demo and sample sap, syrup and syrup products. The farm is open weekends in March.

Take train and wagon rides, guide yourself along an educational tour or indulge at a pancake house at Brooks Farms Maple Syrup Festival just an hour away from Toronto. There's also a cafe serving baked goods, preserves and breakfast. The festival is on during weekends and March Break.

Pefferlaw Creek Farms in Durham does the PC Farms Maple Syrup Festival starting March 14 and ending March 22. Hikes, horse-drawn wagons, scavenger hunts, tapping tours, pancakes and local sausages are all packed into just a few days at this destination an hour outside Toronto.

The Sugarbush Maple Syrup Festival was set to take place during the same time period but has now been cancelled.

About an hour away from Toronto, Oshawa has the Purple Woods Maple Syrup Festival that takes place from March 13 to April 5 at Purple Woods Conservation Area. See how maple syrup is produced fireside, warm up with cedar tea, and check out an historic cabin.

Lead photo by

Hector Vasquez


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