January
The quietest month in the catalogue, and the most honest one.
OpenAlpine at full strength, plus the city rooms that hold their scores through the cold.
ClosedEvery seasonal house in Small Stays except Sir Sam's Inn, which runs through winter.
Weather you should expectCold that settles rather than swings. Clear skies inland, wet air on both coasts.
Nita Lake Lodge
Fallsview Casino Resort
Post Hotel & Spa
The Rimrock Resort Hotel
February
Deep snow, thin crowds, and the best month to be in the mountains midweek.
OpenAll nine Alpine entries, including the private valley above Fernie.
ClosedThe Cape Breton headland, the Gulf Islands and the Muskoka lake hotels.
Weather you should expectThe coldest averages of the year, broken by chinooks in the Alberta foothills.
The Rimrock Resort Hotel
Post Hotel & Spa
Auberge Saint-Antoine
Hôtel Gault
March
Light returns before the snow leaves, which is the best trade of the year.
OpenAlpine holds, and the eastern city rooms begin to make sense again.
ClosedMost of Small Stays. Northern and park roads are still unreliable.
Weather you should expectLong afternoons, soft snow after noon, and ice breaking up on the St. Lawrence.
Post Hotel & Spa
The Broadview Hotel
The Rimrock Resort Hotel
Auberge Saint-Antoine
April
A month of half measures, and better than its reputation.
OpenArt Rooms across the country, plus the first Small Stays to unlock their doors.
ClosedThe Gaspé lodge between seasons, and the park houses until June.
Weather you should expectMud below, snow above, and the clearest mountain air of the whole year.
Post Hotel & Spa
The Rimrock Resort Hotel
Auberge Saint-Antoine
Hôtel Gault
May
The catalogue opens properly, and the cities are the reason.
OpenEvery art room, the Muskoka verandas, the Jasper cabins and the island resort.
ClosedTwo park houses wait for June, and the Cape Breton lodge with them.
Weather you should expectWarm afternoons, cold nights, and blackflies inland from the middle of the month.
Hôtel Gault
Post Hotel & Spa
The Rimrock Resort Hotel
Auberge Saint-Antoine
June
Fog on the Atlantic, long light on the Pacific, and everything open.
OpenAll four sections, with the coastal and island houses at their strongest.
ClosedNothing of consequence, though the Chic-Chocs shuttle changes over for summer.
Weather you should expectMorning fog in Halifax, dry evenings inland, and daylight past nine.
Montreal Casino & Hotel
Post Hotel & Spa
The Rimrock Resort Hotel
Auberge Saint-Antoine
July
High summer, the busiest weeks, and the month to book the far places.
OpenThe whole catalogue, including the full day of driving to the Gaspé peninsula.
ClosedNothing. Two alpine houses hold rooms for walkers rather than for skiers.
Weather you should expectHot and dry in the interior, cool on both coasts, and thunder inland by evening.
Windermere House
Post Hotel & Spa
The Rimrock Resort Hotel
Auberge Saint-Antoine
August
The water is finally warm, and the light starts leaving earlier every week.
OpenEverything, with the park lakes and the prairie rivers at their best of the year.
ClosedNothing, though the Algonquin house takes no new arrivals in the last week.
Weather you should expectWarm nights, low wind on the lakes, and the first cool mornings after the twentieth.
Casino Rama Resort
Post Hotel & Spa
The Rimrock Resort Hotel
Auberge Saint-Antoine
September
Our favourite month, and the one we say that about every year.
OpenAll four sections. The Exchange District and the Cape Breton headland peak now.
ClosedNothing yet. The island and park houses begin to publish their last dates.
Weather you should expectClear, dry, and cooling steadily. First frost inland by the end of the month.
Drake Devonshire
River Rock Casino Resort
Keltic Lodge at the Highlands
Post Hotel & Spa
October
Colour, harvest, and the last month before the seasonal houses shut.
OpenArt Rooms everywhere, the Townships manor, and the cliff rooms in Charlevoix.
ClosedThe Cape Breton lodge and the Algonquin house take their last guests.
Weather you should expectCool and bright inland, wet on the west coast, and windy on the Atlantic.
Le Germain Hotel Ottawa
Post Hotel & Spa
The Rimrock Resort Hotel
Auberge Saint-Antoine
November
Storm season on the Pacific, and the emptiest weeks in the cities.
OpenTofino for the storms, every Art Room, and the alpine houses waiting on snow.
ClosedNearly all of Small Stays. The Gaspé lodge is between its two seasons.
Weather you should expectHeavy rain and swell in Tofino, grey and mild in the east, snow above 1,200 metres.
The Wickaninnish Inn
Post Hotel & Spa
The Rimrock Resort Hotel
Auberge Saint-Antoine
December
Stone streets, early dark, and the first honest week of snow.
OpenAlpine reopens fully, and the lower town of Québec City is the best it will be.
ClosedThe seasonal lake and island houses, and the Gaspé lodge until January.
Weather you should expectCold and dry inland, mild and wet on the coast, and reliable snow in the east.
Auberge Saint-Antoine
Post Hotel & Spa
The Rimrock Resort Hotel
Hôtel Gault
A hotel recommended in the wrong month is a hotel recommended badly.