Ivy curls in romantic tendrils around the stone turrets of graceful Kinston architecture, a charismatic city located at the east end of Lake Ontario on the mouth of the St Lawrence River. Partway between Montreal and Toronto, Kingston charms visitors with ambiance and an array of cultural attractions.

Start your trip with a stroll through downtown Kingston running west from Kingston Harbour. Many of the sight-seeing stops here are historic. Study up on sailing ships and get your Great Lakes facts straight at the Marine Museum of the Great Lakes. Catch a colorful military drill at Fort Henry National Historic Site, check out local architecture with a tour of the Bellevue House and City Hall, then indulge sports fans with a stop at the International Hockey Museum. Kingston is home to Ontario's third-largest art collection, so round off your cultural experience with some gallery cruising.

For all the picturesque city sights, Kingston also boasts an impressive range of outdoorsy options. Dive one of the many shipwrecks dotting the floor of Lake Ontario, or explore with kayak and paddle hidden inlets and solitary stretches of water. Rent a bike or take a hike along a few miles of the Waterfront Trail, a route linking Niagara-by-the-Lake on the southwest side of the lake to Brockville, northeast of Kingston. Just don't go expecting to cover the 400 plus miles in an afternoon. For a relaxed trip on the water, boat along the Rideau Canal linking Kingston with Ottawa. Make the trip by houseboat if you fancy cruising the stretch; anyone with cabin fever can get off for a day and walk the Rideau Trail, also linking the two cities.

Hopeful fishermen will do well to take a day to cast off in the numerous opportune watery bodies dotting the region north of Kingston aptly referred to as the Land O'Lakes.

Kingston, just across the border from upstate New York, is within easy reach of Montreal, Quebec, and Toronto, Ontario.