A Local's Guide to Toronto's Most Scenic Drives

Toronto is a city most people move through at speed. Highway 401 to Pearson, the DVP to the downtown core, the Gardiner toward Etobicoke — these routes are defined by efficiency, not scenery. But for those with the time and the right vehicle, there are drives in and around Toronto that reward a slower pace.The Lakeshore between Port Credit and Oakville is one of the most underrated stretches of road in the greater Toronto area. On a clear autumn morning, the light on Lake Ontario is extraordinary — wide, flat, and deeply blue. The road itself passes through a series of mature, tree-lined neighbourhoods that feel worlds apart from the city's commercial corridors.The Don Valley Parkway, when traffic permits, offers a genuinely unusual perspective on the city. Dropping into the valley from the interchange at the 401, you follow the Don River through a narrow green corridor that feels entirely incongruous with its urban surroundings. In late October, when the trees are at their peak colour, this stretch is genuinely spectacular.For guests staying in Yorkville or Rosedale who wish to explore Scarborough's dramatic cliffs and bluffs, a morning drive along Kingston Road and down to Scarborough Bluffs Park offers something most visitors never see — an elevated escarpment overlooking the lake with views that stretch to the horizon.If wine country is the destination, the route north toward Niagara-on-the-Lake through Highway 55 and the Niagara Parkway remains one of the finest drives in Ontario. The parkway itself hugs the Niagara River for nearly 56 kilometres, passing through orchards, vineyards, and historic landmarks before arriving in one of Canada's best-preserved 19th-century towns.Our chauffeurs are intimately familiar with all of these routes and can help guests build personalised touring itineraries that go well beyond the standard airport-to-hotel journey.