Road Trip Kingston to Prince Edward County

Kingston Prince Edward County
75
km
1h
drive
Summer
season

The Itinerary

This is the shortest way into Prince Edward County, and it works best as an add-on to a night in Kingston rather than as a drive in its own right. Highway 33, signed as the Loyalist Parkway, leaves Kingston westward and follows the Lake Ontario shoreline for roughly 65 km. The road is named for the United Empire Loyalists who settled this shore after the American Revolution, and the villages along it still carry that imprint in their street grids, churches and burying grounds.

The route runs through Bath, then Adolphustown, where a Loyalist landing site is marked near the water. At Glenora the highway simply ends at a ferry slip: the Glenora ferry crosses the Adolphus Reach to Prince Edward County in about ten minutes, runs year-round, and is free. It is a working link in the provincial highway system rather than a tourist boat, so it sails frequently and you rarely wait long. Immediately up the hill on the far side is Lake on the Mountain, a small lake sitting roughly 60 m above the Bay of Quinte with no obvious inlet feeding it.

From the ferry it is a short run into Picton, the county's main town and a sensible base. Sandbanks Provincial Park, the wineries around Hillier and the restaurants in Wellington are all within half an hour. Summer weekends are busy and county accommodation books out well ahead. Spring and early autumn are far easier, and the shoreline drive is at its best in October.

Points of Interest

  • ✦
    Loyalist Parkway (Hwy 33)
    A 65 km scenic route linking a string of Loyalist villages.
  • ✦
    Glenora Ferry
    Free 10-minute crossing to Picton.
  • ✦
    Lake on the Mountain
    A lake sitting 80 m above Lake Ontario, and a long-standing geological puzzle.
  • ✦
    Loyalist Heritage
    Adolphustown and Bath, founded by United Empire Loyalists in 1784.

Fishing Spots Along the Route

🎣
Amherst Bay
Lake
🎣
Anglin Bay
Lake
🎣
Arab Lake
Lake
🎣
Athol Bay
Lake
🎣
Babcock Lake
Lake
🎣
Barrett Bay
Lake
🎣
Barretts Bay
Lake
🎣
Barrs Bay
Lake

Protected areas along the route

🌿
LAKE ON THE MOUNTAIN PROVINCIAL PICNIC GROUNDS (RECREATIONAL CLASS)
Provincial Park
🌿
Big Sandy Bay Management Area
General Use Area
🌿
SANDBANKS PROVINCIAL PARK (NATURAL ENVIRONMENT CLASS)
Provincial Park
🌿
Monarch Point Conservation Reserve
Conservation Reserve
🌿
TIMBER ISLAND WILDERNESS AREA
Wilderness Area
🌿
TIMBER ISLAND PROVINCIAL PARK (NATURE RESERVE CLASS)
Provincial Park
🌿
Gananoque
Provincial Wildlife Area
🌿
Camden Lake
Provincial Wildlife Area
🌿
NORTH BEACH PROVINCIAL PARK (RECREATIONAL CLASS)
Provincial Park
🌿
MENZEL CENTENNIAL PROVINCIAL PARK (NATURE RESERVE CLASS)
Provincial Park
🌿
FRONTENAC PROVINCIAL PARK (NATURAL ENVIRONMENT CLASS)
Provincial Park
🌿
PRESQU'ILE PROVINCIAL PARK (NATURAL ENVIRONMENT CLASS)
Provincial Park

Take this route offline

Cell coverage thins out fast once you leave Kingston. Export the map as a geo-referenced PDF before you go and open it in BorealMaps — your GPS position shows on the map with no signal at all.

Try PDF Export How geo-referenced PDF maps work
Practical info
  • Departure Kingston
  • Destination Prince Edward County
  • Distance 75 km
  • Duration 1h
  • Category Short (< 100 km)
  • Best season Summer
Themes
heritage river ferry Summer vineyard beach Day Trip

Plan your adventure with our interactive map

Open the map
All road trips