See more Toronto Sun on Google — save as a Preferred Source
Ontario boasts a lot of beautiful towns that would definitely fall under the “coolest” category.
But one neighbourhood in particular is putting Canada on the map.
Timeout magazine released its list of “ 40 coolest neighbourhoods in the world in 2026 ” and of the two Canadian neighbourhoods that made the cut, the downtown area of St. Catharines, Ont. cracked the Top 10.
What makes the city so cool?
The criteria for the hospitality publication include thriving local restaurants, bars and small businesses in communities that have, well, “cool stuff,” from festivals to pedestrian-friendly, greener spaces.
And with all the amazing neighbourhoods, much less towns and cities in the country, Timeout Canada editor Laura Osbourne chose St. Catharines above the rest.
The largest city in Niagara Region is nicknamed the “Garden City” for a good reason, given its abundance of gardens, parks and trails, not to mention its close proximity to the area’s wineries.
Montebello Park gets its own shoutout as one of the few Canadian landscapes designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, the visionary designer behind New York City’s iconic Central Park.
The St. Catharines Farmers Market, which has been around since 1848, is open year-round every Thursday and Saturday, and features more than 60 local vendors offering fresh produce, baked goods, and artisanal products.
Also noted is the neighbourhood’s art scene, vintage shops and record stores, and it is close to stealing the tourism thunder of Niagara-on-the-Lake.
St. Paul Street, “one of Ontario’s few curved main streets,” according to Timeout, is likened to Brooklyn, thanks to its 100-plus heritage homes, some of which house some exciting new restaurants.
The timing couldn’t be more perfect, as the best time to visit is September and October, for the fall colours and harvest season at the nearby farms and wineries, the magazine suggested.
- LAKE ONTARIO FOREVER: Ten spots to enjoy the great lake in Canada
- Places to Live: St. Catharines
- Niagara Region wineries come out on top at national competition
Who else made the cut?
The only other Canadian neighbourhood that made the cut was Mount Pleasant in Vancouver, which ranked 35th out of 40.
Here are the other neighbourhoods that made Time Out’s Top 10:
- Jongno 3-ga in Seoul, South Korea
- L’Ocean District in Rabat, Morocco
- Neos Kosmos in Athens, Greece
- Chinatown in Los Angeles, U.S.
- Govanhill in Glasgow, Scotland
- Kitakagaya in Osaka, Japan
- Chapinero Alto in Bogotá, Colombia
- Koenji in Tokyo, Japan
- Downtown in St. Catharines, Canada
- Esquilino in Rome, Italy