Our snazzy new Swim Guide lets you locate beaches near you, figure out which ones are safe for swimming (the green ones!), and plan your next trip to the beach. It’s free, and it’s fun, and it’s available now online and for your smartphone.

Adolphustown Park: This beach is not monitored. Adolphustown is in the heartland of the area settled by United Empire Loyalists. This group remained loyal to the British government during the American Revolution and settled in Canada in the late 18th Century. You will find lots of Loyalist history around Adolphustown, in addition to the public beach.

Alwington: This beach is no longer monitored. Welcome to one of Kingston’s oldest and wealthiest neighbourhoods! In addition to Alwington Park, you will find a number of historic mansions including the home of Canada’s first Prime Minister, Sir John A. MacDonald.

Arrowhead Beach Park: The Arrowhead Beach Park is a public beach accessed through the CFB Kingston Married Quarters. Enter the base at the Mcdonald’s restaurant, follow Niagra Park Drive as far as you can. Turn left and take the unpaved road to the right just before the Community Centre. Park next to the Yacht Club. The beach is a great ‘swimming hole’ in front of several acres of well kept grass and mature pines. There is a small playground above the beach. (Summary courtesy http://k7waterfront.org)

Back Beach – Amherst Island: Back Beach is actually located on private property. Nut Island Farms gives access to the public from January 1 to Labour Day. The beach is a mix of sand and rock.

Bath Filtration Plant: Bath Beach is in the heart of Bath, Ontario. Like most communities in the region, Bath was settled by people loyal to the British during the time of the American Revolution. Dating back to 1784, this is one of the oldest towns in Ontario. It is named after Bath, England. The beach here is relatively small but sheltered by Amherst Island.

Big Sandy Bay – Wolfe Island: Big Sandy Bay is one of the great beaches of Lake Ontario. Located on Wolfe Island, it is a ferry ride away from Kingston (Ontario) or Cape Vincent (New York State). The Bay is part of an environmentally significant dune and wetland complex. It is only open to the general public for swimming June – September. Visitors coming to the island from Kingston are strongly encouraged to leave their cars on the mainland and bike to the beach from the ferry terminal. To get to the bay, take Highway 95 to Reed’s Bay Road to 3rd Line Road. Park in the lot or lock your bikes at the gatehouse. The 1.3-kilometre nature trail takes you to the beach. There is an $8 park entrance fee for adults, with discounts for bikes, families, children, and frequent visitors.

Brooks Ferry Landing: This swimming area is inside Hay Bay, an area more protected than the open waters of Lake Ontario. You can generally expect less wind and wave action here.

Cartwright Beach East: This beach is no longer monitored. Cartwright Point gets its name from the family that once owned these lands. There are great views here of the St. Lawrence River, Wolfe Island and the Thousand Islands, as well as one of Kingston’s four “Martellos”. Martellos are small stone defensive forts built in the 19th Century.

Collingwood PUC: Collingwood Beach is across the street from Queens University’s Gordon-Brockington Hall residence, making it an ideal destination for university students. The Hall is named for Leonard Brockington, the first Chairman of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation’s Board of Governors and Donald Gordon, the first Secretary of the Bank of Canada.

Collins Bay Pier: This beach is no longer monitored. Collins Bay is a natural harbour just to the west of Kingston. Lemoine Point Conservation Area is nearby, and so is the popular marina.

Davidsons Beach: Davidsons is found north of the City of Kingston, on Loughborough Lake. The Lake is 20km north of Kingston. It has several small islands and more than 200km of shoreline. Its source waters include Heart Creek and Milburn Creek.

Desert Lake: Desert Lake is part of the Cataraqui River watershed. The River flows into Lake Ontario at Kingston. Its deepest point is 68 metres.

Du Pont Invista: This beach is no longer monitored. This beach is a public swimming area located on private property. It is tested regularly by the Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox & Addington Public Health Authority.

Fairfield Park: This beach is in the Loyalist area, just outside of Kingston. Fairfield beach is part of Fairfield Park and is close to Fairfield house, an original Loyalist-era wood frame house built in the late 18th Century. The limestone shelf on the shoreline here makes it a popular place for people to launch canoes and kayaks.

Floating Bridge: Floating Bridge beach is located in Parrotts Bay. This is a popular fishing spot and close to the newest conservation area near Kingston. Before or after your swim, check out the Conservation Area’s 5km of walking trails and great views of both the wetland and Lake Ontario.

Gilmore Beach: Gilmore is located on Dog Lake, north of Kingston. Before the construction of the Rideau Canal, these were the headwaters of the Cataraqui River. The River flows into Lake Ontario at Kingston. The sandy beach area is close to woods, picnic tables, and change rooms.

Grass Creek Park: This Park is on the north shore of the St. Lawrence River, just east of Kingston. There is a popular sandy beach here, as well as picnic area, playground, off-leash area (pilot), and boat-launch. In 2007, Kingston bought another 45 acres to the west of the park and is now in the process of creating a new master plan for the area.

Kingston Rotary: In addition to its beach and sand pits, Rotary Park offers picnic grounds, a pavilion, and plenty of open space for the entire family. Collins Bay marina is right next door, making this a great destination for sailors.

Lake Ontario Hospital: This beach is no longer monitored. This is a rocky beach close to St. Lawrence College, Kingston campus. Portsmouth Harbour is nearby.

Lake Ontario Park: Lake Ontario Park is one of Kingston’s largest waterfront spaces. The City is currently going through a major re-envisioning process, and the area is likely to change dramatically in the next generation. Public surveys found that a beach is one of the most important features that should be in a revitalized Lake Ontario Park.

Lemoines Point: This beach is no longer monitored. Lemoines Point Conservation Area borders Lake Ontario and Collins Bay. In addition to its stone beach, the Area offers 11 kilometres of trails.

Point Pleasant- Everett: This is one of Kingston’s many beaches, located at the tip of Horsey Bay. Nearby Everett Point is the westernmost point (beginning) of the St. Lawrence River.

Reddendale Crerar: This beach takes its name from Henry Duncan Graham (Harry) Crerar, former Commandant of the Royal Military College of Canada and a field commander in World War II. This sandy beach is located in Kingston’s west end, near a residential community and the city airport.

Richardson’s Beach: Sometimes known as MacDonald’s Beach, this is a rocky beach near the heart of Kingston. In 2008, a group of professors, students, residents, and Lake Ontario Waterkeeper held a mass swim here to rally support for a revitalized public swimming area in downtown Kingston. This event was a catalyst in the push for more and better beach access on Lake Ontario (and part of the reason you are looking at this Guide today)!

Sydenham Lake: Sydenham Lake is north of Kingston. The water from this lake drains into Millhaven Creek, which empties into Lake Ontario at Millhaven. The community is named after the controversial Charles Poulett Thomson, 1st Baron Sydenham. He was the first Governor of the United Province of Canada. The lake is beloved by a handful of Hollywood actors and NHL stars.