Kincardine (Ontario)

Kincardine is a town of 11,000 people (2016) in Bruce County in southwestern Ontario.

Station Beach

Understand

Bruce B Nuclear Generating Station

The economy of Kincardine has been dominated by the Bruce Nuclear Power Plant since the 1970s.

There is also a thriving tourist industry, centred on its sandy beaches and Scottish cultural tradition.

Get in

Kincardine Municipal Airport serves charter flights and private pilots.

The Kincardine Yacht Club is a busy marina serving mainly recreational boaters.

By bus

There are buses daily from Toronto, London and Owen Sound offered by Can-ar Coach

Grey-Bruce Airbus ([phone]) offers eight trips a day from Toronto Pearson International Airport ($81 one way, $154 return) (July 2018).

By car

Kincardine is a small town located on the eastern shore of Lake Huron. Most people arrive here by car, from the east on highway 9, or from the north and south on Highway 21.

In the winter, blowing and drifting snow frequently causes dangerous driving conditions. Occasionally conditions require the highway to be closed to traffic. Check the weather forecast , road conditions and road closures before leaving. Make sure your car tires are in good condition, and travel with clothes appropriate to the weather.

Get around

Most people get around Kincardine by car, bike or foot. There are no public buses, but there are several taxi services.

• ABC Taxi, ☎ [phone]. 
• Kin Taxi, ☎ [phone]. 
• Freds Cab, ☎ [phone]. 

See

The Kincardine Lighthouse

The icon for the town is the lighthouse, which is painted on the watertower seen from the highways, as you come into town. The lighthouse is one block west of Queen Street (the main street). Inside the lighthouse is a Maritine Museum . Across the street is the Paddy Walker House Museum. A Phantom Piper plays from the top of the lighthouse at sunset.

Do

Kincardine is a very popular tourist destination in the summer. There are events such as the Kincardine Summer Music Festival, the Kincardine Scottish Festival, Cruise Nights (Classic Cars) and Fishing Derbies planned almost every weekend.

Unique to the town, is the Saturday night pipeband parade. The Kincardine Scottish assemble at Victoria Park and parade down Queen Street, playing bagpipes and drums, followed by a crowd. At the end of the street, they take a brief break, and parade back to the park (followed by the crowd). Some nights, they are joined by visiting pipebands.

During July and August the Bluewater Summer Theatre presents plays. During the winter the amateur Kincardine Theatre Guild presents plays using the same facilities. The Kincardine Legion organizes regular bingos, dances and community dinners.

Most people come here to enjoy the lake. The water is clean and there are lengthy stretches of easily accessible beach for swimming or sitting in the sun and the fresh lake air.

There are four golf courses nearby:

• Ainsdale Golf Course. 
• Black Horse Golf Course. 
• Kincardine Golf & Country Club. 
• Somerhill Golf Club. 

Kincardine has an extensive network of walking trails.

Kincardine tourism information can be found at Kincardine Tourist Info or the Bruce County Tourism pages. Remnants of the wreck of the ship "Anna Maria" can be seen at Station Beach.

Buy

🌍 Pine River Cheese & Butter Cooperative, south of Kincardine on highway 21, ☎ [phone], fax: [phone]. Fresh cheese and discount "trim ends" are available for purchase from the factory store which is open every day during the summer. Fresh chesse curds every Wednesday. cheesemusem is free. 

Fincher's, 816 Queen St, ☎ [phone]. Toys, games, jigsaw puzzles, hobbies, children's books, Playmobil toys, Webkinz. 

Eat

• 🌍 Bean's Bistro, 728 Queen Street, Kincardine, ☎ [phone]. Great local coffeehouse without the franchise-feel of big chain coffeehouses. Offering light breakfast and lunch fare as well as great, individually hand-prepared regular and specialty coffees, teas, fair trade. 

Mid-range

• 🌍 The Erie Belle, 259 Harbour Street, ☎ [phone]. Regular visitors to Kincardine always stop in the Erie Belle for deep-fried fish and lots and lots of chips. (updated Nov 2016)
• 🌍 Bruce Bar and Grill (Bruce Steakhouse), 750 Queen St, ☎ [phone]. Every town in Ontario used to have a hotel. This was Kincardine's, which is why local people occasionally refer to it as "the Bruce Inn". The Canada South Blues Society puts on regular concerts here. 
• 🌍 Gilley's Feed Lot Bar & Grill, 832 Queen St, ☎ [phone]. Tu-Sa 11AM-10PM. (updated Jul 2018)
• 🌍 Jean's Family Restaurant, 1120 Sutton St, ☎ [phone]. A good place to go for breakfast. 
• 🌍 Knotty Pine Restaurant, 507 Broadway Street, ☎ [phone]. Chinese and Canadian cuisine. 
• 🌍 New Seasons Tavern & Restaurant, 722 Queen St, ☎ [phone]. Chinese buffet on Thursday, Friday, Saturday nights. 
• 🌍 Victoria Park Restaurant, 335 Durham Market Square, ☎ [phone]. 
• 🌍 Watercress Bistro, 829 Queen St, ☎ [phone]. From 4PM. 

Splurge

• 🌍 Harbour Street Brasserie, 217 Harbour Street, ☎ [phone], e-mail: [e-mail]. Tu-Sa dinner starting at 5PM. $30 main courses. 

Drink

Most bars and pubs offer food (see Eat above) as well as drink. The following usually have a large selection of draft beer.

• The Erie Belle, 259 Harbour Street, ☎ [phone]. 
• 🌍 Hawg's Breath Saloon and Deli, 894 Queen Street, ☎ [phone]. Eat the peanuts and throw the shells on the floor! 

Sleep

In the summer, the hotels, motels and cottages are frequently full.

Hotels

• 🌍 Inn at the Harbour, 249 Harbour Street (right across from the lighthouse), ☎ [phone], e-mail: [e-mail]. Friendly clean hotel with spacious room. Free Wi-fi. 3rd and 4th floor rooms have access to a balcony. $160 off season. (updated Oct 2016)

• 🌍 Best Western Governor's Inn, 791 Durham St (at Highway 21 east of Kincardine), ☎ [phone], fax: [phone]. 
• Sutton Park Inn, 1126 Sutton St, ☎ [phone], fax: [phone], e-mail: [e-mail]. 

Motels

• Kincardinite Motel, 319 Kincardine Ave, ☎ [phone], fax: [phone]. 
• Lakeview Motel, 378 Queen St, ☎ [phone], e-mail: [e-mail]. 
• Living Waters Cabins, 392 Queen St, ☎ [phone]. 
• Maple Leaf Inn, 481 Broadway St, ☎ [phone], fax: [phone]. 
• Save Inn Motel, 1111 Sutton St, ☎ [phone]. 
• Southsider Motel, 354 Queen St, ☎ [phone]. 

Campgrounds

• Aintree Trailer Park, 2435 Huron Concession 12 Rd, toll-free: [phone]. 
• Bluewater Trailer Park, 847 Saugeen Street, ☎ [phone]. Great location right across from Dunsmoor Park and the beach. 
• Green Acres Campground, Aintree Road, ☎ [phone]. 

Go next

Larger nearby towns are Goderich (~ 30 minutes by car south), Walkerton (~ 30 minutes east), Port Elgin (~ 30 minutes north), Southampton 40 minutes north

The nearest major centres are London (2 hours south-west), Kitchener (1hr 30 min hours east) or Owen Sound (1hr 15min north)

Routes through Kincardine

END ← Owen Sound ←

N  S

→ Huron-Kinloss → Jct