5 Reasons to visit Canada in 2026

As the country hosts the FIFA World Cup, the energy of Vancouver and Toronto takes centre stage. At the same time, a renewed commitment to protecting public lands places equal emphasis on what lies beyond city limits, celebrating the vast and precious wild landscapes that define Canada just as powerfully.

With a run of landmark anniversaries unfolding across the country too, 2026 offers a rare convergence of global attention, cultural reflection and compelling reasons to travel. Here’s what you shouldn’t miss in Canada this year.

As a host of the FIFA World Cup, Canada will stage matches in both Vancouver, British Columbia and Toronto, Ontario: two cities where stadium visits dovetail easily with neighbourhood exploration. In Vancouver, fans can eat their way through the city’s Pacific-facing food scene, from the Chinese and Cantonese kitchens of Richmond to Japanese spots around Mount Pleasant, before heading to the revitalised waterfront districts of Coal Harbour and False Creek.

Meanwhile, Toronto’s matches place visitors close to the city’s diverse creative districts – from multicultural Scarborough to Little India along Gerrard Street East, the Korean enclave of Koreatown and the revitalised arts and design corridor of West Queen West.

Both cities also work as natural springboards beyond the urban core – Vancouver to coastal temperate rainforest and the Sea-to-Sky Highway leading to Whistler; Toronto to Niagara wine country and the Great Lakes shoreline.

Summer 2026 also debuts “Passage to the Peaks” – a new, limited-edition route by Rocky Mountaineer, a luxury rail operator carrying passengers deep into the Canadian Rockies.

The great spine of the Rockies, glacial-blue lakes, temperate rainforests and whale-visited coasts – Canada’s wilderness is fabled. And with Parks Canada planning up to ten new national parks by 2030, its protected landscapes are set to expand further still. Among the most recent additions is Nibiischii National Park in Québec, a newly protected landscape of lakes, boreal forest and waterways, stewarded by the Cree Nation of Mistissini. Its name means “Land of the Water” and it reflects a growing emphasis on Indigenous-led stewardship in Canada’s growing park system. Elsewhere, long-discussed proposals such as the South Okanagan-Similkameen National Park Reserve in British Columbia are edging closer, signalling a future shaped by Indigenous leadership.

Meanwhile, one of Canada’s most perennially popular national parks adds a new wellness highlight with the luxurious BASIN Glacial Waters at Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise, in Banff, Alberta.

In 2026, Ottawa marks 200 years since the founding of Bytown – the work camp that grew around the Rideau Canal and ultimately became Canada’s capital – with a city-wide Ottawa Bicentennial celebration running throughout the year.

The programme of festivities will span history, art and culture, with signature events planned at venues including the Downtown area’s Marion Dewar Plaza and City Hall. Other highlights will include a dedicated Ottawa 200 celebration at Ottawa Bluesfest in July, featuring Canadian musicians such as The Guess Who. Meanwhile, special exhibits and guided historical walks will illuminate the city’s earliest beginnings and its journey to becoming a global capital, offering underrated Ottawa a rare moment in the spotlight.

In the days following the attacks of 11 September 2001, the small town of Gander in Newfoundland became a perhaps unlikely refuge. When US airspace closed, 38 transatlantic flights were diverted to Gander International Airport, bringing almost 7,000 unexpected passengers to a community of fewer than 10,000 residents. With no warning and limited resources, locals opened their homes, schools and community halls, providing food, beds and reassurance to complete strangers – a spontaneous act of hospitality that has since become one of the most enduring human stories to emerge from 9/11.

In 2026, Gander offers a rare, meaningful reason to visit Newfoundland. Twenty-five years on from 9/11, the town’s story of generosity feels more resonant than ever. You can learn more at the North Atlantic Aviation Museum and pay your respects at the Compassion Monument too.

In 2026, the Yukon marks a pair of meaningful milestones. Kluane National Park and Reserve – filled with wildlife-rich boreal forest and the nation’s highest peaks – turns 50, spotlighting one of North America’s greatest landscapes and representing a model for how First Nations partners work alongside Parks Canada.

Further north, Dawson City marks 130 years since the Klondike Gold Rush reshaped the region – the summer calendar for 2026 will be anchored by Discovery Day celebrations in August and the Dawson City Music Festival. You can also learn more at the Dawson City Museum, which explores the Klondike Gold Rush and its impact on the region, and the Jack London Museum, devoted to the author whose time in the Yukon during the rush inspired works such as The Call of the Wild and White Fang.