Couchingching Beach is a nice spot to spend a hot summer day. On a Sunday, I was still able to find…read morea grassy spot to relax, under some shade. Parking is plentiful and close to the beach. There's change rooms, a clean washroom, and a place to buy diner-y foods. For kids, there's a nice play structure and a small train you can ride. Overall, this was a nice beach for those staying in or around Orillia.

The weather was nice, and we wanted to take a nice stroll before we went on our long drive home, so…read moreeven though it was dark, we decided to go for a stroll here. This is a really nice park to go walking at all times of the day. There's a nice boardwalk along the waterfront, and some sandy beaches (which our dog wasn't allowed on, but they looked nice. It was all nicely maintained, with lots of places for trash and recycling, and not much trash to be seen anywhere. There are also plenty of benches for sitting and watching people and the boats on the water. It's also well lit, so walking at night was pleasant. There's also a cycle path that goes through the park, it's part of a larger system of paths that go all the way to Barrie and Midland.

It's got a lot going on! Music on the barge, car shows, boat races. A baseball diamond, a tee-ball…read morediamond, a playground, volleyball net, beach, grass, food. It's everything you'd want in a park!

Gull lake Park is awesome. Lots of stuff to do, swim, walk, fish, watch sunsets, listen to music on…read morethe barge, movies on Thursdays (summertime) Baseball diamond, bike paths, snack bar! Its cleaner now since they got the business with the dog to chase away the ducks, and clean the duck poop away.

I'm not going to pretend that I am an expert at anything camping. This was a nice Saturday drive,…read moreright up to our reserved spot at Killbear, complete with a designated firepit and list of infractions to keep the place clean and safe. What a beautiful piece of country; Parry Sound and Georgian Bay. Trying to disconnect with the fam and enjoying some homemade burgers and roasting marshmallows, I cannot overstate the tranquility of nature and small slice of Canadiana here. Sure, we shleped to Tim's the next day for coffee and drove back, but enjoyed a long track to Lookout Point, with neither rattlesnake or Bear to be found. I guess it might be considered 'Glamping,' with restrooms and clean showers right across. But its definately a safe place for the kids to bike, hike and enjoy each other's company as a throwback to simpler times. Definately worth the 2 hour drive, but book in advance! -Zuk

From my 2019 review: This is one of my favourite parks, and as a veteran camper, who has many…read morepleasant memories of Killbear, I cannot reduce it's rating. I say this, because we had few unfortunate experiences on our last trip. First, the positives of Killbear: - beautiful, unspoiled, Canadian Shield scenery - spectacular rocky shores, which you can use as a swimming platform, and then you don't get sand in your tent - not one, but two, dog beaches; they love the doggos! - large campsites The downsides - the campsites are large, but choose carefully, as many lack privacy and are very exposed. The old growth forest means that there is little bushy undergrowth to hide you from your neighbours (I like privacy! My dogs need it or they just bark. Then we get in trouble, sometimes) - you can't buy ice in the park, but you have to drive out to get it Update 2020: Killbear is such a beautiful park, AND now you can buy ice there!! This time, we were in Lighthouse A, which I would highly recommend. Close to the beach and nice hiking trails, but choose your site wisely and pay attention to the descriptions on the website when you reserve. If it rates privacy as "poor", then be prepared for a fully exposed site. That said, there are many beautiful sites, and TWO dog beaches. This year, the Anti-Fun, Anti-Noise Police-like Neighbors did not appear (do I sound resentful? You bet I am. Last year we had to leave a day early because of these noise fanatics. Really, they should have gone on a yoga retreat. This is family camping, people, not a monastery. We paid a fee when we reserved; we did not take a vow of silence). OK, I'm done the rant. Now, back to how great this park is. It is simply beautiful. The lake is wonderful: not the Muskoka soggy bottom lake, but nice, hard granite of Georgian Bay. The granite itself is beautiful. We had such a great vacation! Go off the grid! Try it!

It's a beautiful day to spend at Awenda Provincial Park!…read more We walked while others were biking the trails enjoying the outdoors while not having to wear a mask but social distancing when encountering others. Remember to pay and display your park use permit on your vehicle dash; strictly enforced or you can pay a $30 parking ticket. The machine accepts cash or credit card. It was a $15.50 charge for day use since the machine didn't allow an hourly selection. Gorgeous and tranquil nature along the shores of Georgian Bay.

I pulled a 'walk in' at Awenda park last weekend (July 1st long weekend). Have never been to Awenda…read morebefore, but read stellar reviews so my friends and I thought we'd give it a try. I knew we could only get walk in, but I didn't realize that if they have sites available, you can only have it for one night. They keep approx 60 sites each night for walk ins. Since we wanted to stay for two nights, we had to put our name on a 'roll call' list for the 2nd night. We also had to be at the office for 1pm SHARP and if our name was called, we got a 2nd night. I don't understand how, if they have 60 sites on Friday, they don't have 60 sites on Sat, since you can only stay for one night without getting on the list. But the next day they only had 5 sites available. Luckily we got there early enough and we got 2nd on the list, and got a site across the road (still in Turtle). A short move. The park itself is huge. There are 5 campgrounds in the park I believe. We chose Turtle. There are also 4 beaches, one dedicated to the fury friends. YOU WILL NEED TO DRIVE TO ALL THE BEACHES. If you try and walk, be ready for 45 minor 1.5 hr walk. They are not close. If you have bikes, the ride is nice, but also a bit far... and there's a steep hill on the way to the beaches so be ready to walk or I hope you're cardio is good :) I can only speak for Turtle... it was lovely, sites spaced far apart and heavily shielded above from the sun. Large, tall hardwood trees cover the park. There is warning of lots of poison ivy. Even though they have a plant at the office, I still couldn't spot it in the forest. Thankfully I didn't run into any. Bathrooms were relatively clean, till of course the next morning when there's flies and moths flying about. They close the bathrooms from 11:50-12:10 daily to clean them. The beaches are ROCKY. VERY VERY ROCKY. On beach 1 there is a sandy part on the FAR left (when looking at the water) that has been cleaned up a bit so you can walk on the sand. Otherwise, if you try to walk out in the middle, you will be stepping on rocks and it friggin hurts. Ladies: do not get a pedicure before you go to the beach. You'll be severly p-o'd if you did. I never do, but just a word of advice. I would definitely go back, try the other campgrounds. I hear there are some nice trails for hiking... the road to the beach is a hike itself.. It's nice and only 2hrs from Toronto. Great getaway!

The good: Playground is really creative him for the kids…read more Pirate ship, lighthouse climbing tower to a slide and a zip line next to it. There's a small water pump play area into sand which gets super muddy, great for sensory play and bad for parents when they get back to the car. There's a board walk that you can easily stroll a sleeping tot around into the forested area that has beautiful fairy lights changing colour. There's shade brings relief in the heated summer. Lots of fun for kids. The long board walk beside the waters edge is a nice way to enjoy the afternoon. It slopes towards an unpatrolled beach where the waves roll in. Small restaurant has fast food on one side and ice cream on the next. Decent prices still considering there's nothing around by foot. Washrooms are clean but need a facelift. The bad: PARKING! Locals have a parking pass to avoid stress and get better spots. The town seems to not encourage outsiders with their hefty downtown Toronto parking prices. There's no street parking now and signs everywhere, so you're forced to pay at the meter and scan your license plate and QR code or the meter maid will be looking for you.

One of the most beautiful places in the Collingwood and Blue Mountains. Great place to just relax…read morein a quiet atmosphere. We went there for just about an hour. There is a view of the mountains as well but not really that amazing. When we went, it was cloudy and windy as well. I guess due to no structures blocking it, generally, it may be very windy here which might need to be factored in before going there (clothing etc).

The parking lot is a short walk to the sandy beach. There are some rocks when entering the lake but…read morethey aren't a problem if you wear water shoes. The water is shallow and safe. In June the water is cold but your body will adapt quickly on a warm day. Power boats aren't allowed in the roped off swimming area. There are picnic tables and a general store that sells fast food and souvenirs. The bathrooms are fairly clean with flush toilets, sinks and mirrors. The park also has change rooms. They offer educational sessions for children at certain times. The only thing keeping me from giving this provincial park 5 stars is the reservation process. Once you reserve a day pass, you can't get a refund if the weather forecast changes to cold or rainy and you can't even move your reservation to another date. So your money is lost. But if you don't reserve in advance for a Saturday or Sunday in the summer, there's a chance they will be full. The website doesn't give a price for seniors. There is a discount but it's well hidden.

Sibbald's provincial park is a great place for families. They have activities throughout the summer…read moreteaching kids and families about the different things around the park. A few walking trails. Some nice little fishing holes close by.

We recently visited Arrowhead Provincial Park for their Fire and Ice skating nights. What an…read moreamazing experience! The skating trail is a 1.3km loop that goes throughout the forest and is lit at night with tiki torches on both the trail and the paths between the trail and parking. Beautiful surroundings, fire pits to stay warm, storage area for your belongings while you skate. Very family and community friendly. Both bathrooms and change rooms are available, along with skate rentals if needed. You do need to book in advance. Highly recommended!

Arrowhead Provincial Park is a nice medium-sized park with a few hiking trails and a great place to…read morecome see the Fall colors. Entrance into the park is easy to find, but entry is a bit slow because not everyone reserved a day pass and had to turn around. So don't forget to make a reservation ahead of time. Once you're in the park, drive to the visitor's center to get a printout of your day pass. I'm not sure why we're asked to print out the day pass only to also get another copy. The visitor's center is a good place to start as it's close to most place you'll want to see. Within a short distance walk is the Big Bend lookout. There's a small parking lot there, but it was a little flooded and park employees weren't allowing cars through. There isn't any hiking in this area, so snap that photo of the iconic landmark and go on your merry way. The lookout is fairly small and crowded with maskless visitors. On the other side is Stubb's Falls, which is an easy 2.6km loop trail. It's 1.6km to the falls on the side closest to the vistor's center, and 1km on the other side. The 1.6km trail is fairly dry, but the 1km side is very muddy, so make sure to bring waterproof hiking shoes. The falls themselves are very touristy and the majority of people who visit don't wear masks or keep their masks wrapped around their wrists. After the falls, you can head straight across to view a bridge and Arrowhead Lake. The beaches are pretty nice, but there are lots of mosquitoes here, so make sure to pack some repellant. I tried to park in this area to hike parts of the Arrowhead Lake Trail, but was turned away because parking was full. Overall, Arrowhead is a decent park, but there isn't too much to do or see here.

It is a nice quiet intimate Beach. I love that the shore is sand but I hated that the minute you…read moreenter the water it's all rocks. So I would suggest bringing water shoes They have a lifeguard that was out and watching and they have the shallow area and a deeper area sectioned off The beach is right behind the bike path so you can bike or go for a walk on the trail if you wanted to Parking is $10 an hour which I do feel is a bit extreme and when I arrived the parking attendant was giving out tickets so they do monitor whether or not you are paying for your parking Overall it's okay but for me I absolutely hate rocks in the water that was very uncomfortable for me even if I had shoes I would still feel all the pebbles under my feet and combined with the overpriced parking I would not go back

Great little beach! This one is located on the north side of…read moreKempenfelt Bay, which is part of Lake Simcoe off to the east. It's down a bit of a hill from the road, and you'll see a parking lot on the right which is where you park. While you can continue to drive down to the beach, there is no parking and you would be blocking emergency vehicles in the event of a problem. The bathrooms are pretty good here and there were lots of people on that warm and windy day in August. This is a great spot to keep in mind when in Barrie as it's close to downtown.

This is a review for day-use only, as the park is actually closed for camping during this time of…read morethe year. There are a couple of day-use lots on the outside of the actual park for locals to use, I don't believe you can drive into the park proper to use it for day use. At the time we visited, Orillia was close to peak color, so it was a fantastic time. It was a nice day for a hike, and there were quite a few other people using the park as well -- there's a little beach area in the day use part as well as a playground and places for taking your dog on leash. We went and followed the trails in the park, there seems to be a few that can be used, one in the treeline and one along the lake. You can make a decent little loop of a couple of kilometers. There's nothing incredibly challenging about this little hike, to be honest, but the tree colors make for some gorgeous photos. I'll definitely want to come back and visit here and go camping during the season. A really lovely provincial park!