Toronto 
Twenty beaches and nine marinas have earned this year’s prestigious Blue Flag Canada award.
Credit: Tourism New Brunswick
Blue Flag is an international award for beaches and marinas that meet high environmental, safety, and cleanliness standards.
To be certified, “A Blue Flag beach must have at least one sampling point, which must be located where the concentration of bathers is highest. In addition, where there are potential sources of pollution, e.g. near streams, rivers or other inlets, stormwater outlets, etc. additional sampling points must be established at these sites to provide evidence that such inflows do not affect bathing water quality. The beach must comply with the Blue Flag requirements for the microbiological parameter Escherichia coli (fecal coli bacteria) and intestinal enterococci (streptococci).”
Of the twenty-nine beaches and marinas, twenty-three are in Ontario, three are in New Brunswick, two are in Quebec, and one is in Nova Scotia.
Cleanest Beaches and Marinas in Canada in 2023
- Halifax Waterfront Marina, Nova Scotia
- Aboiteau Beach, New Brunswick
- Parlee Beach (Provincial Park), New Brunswick
- Shediac Bay Yacht Club, New Brunswick
- Plage de l’Ouest, Quebec
- Plage des Cantons, Quebec
- Loyalist Cove Marina, Ontario
- Bluffer’s Beach, Ontario
- Kew-Balmy Beach, Ontario
- Woodbine Beach, Ontario
- Cherry Beach, Ontario
- Hanlan’s Point, Ontario
- Ward’s Island Beach, Ontario
- Royal Canadian Yacht Club, Ontario
- Centre Island Beach, Ontario
- Gibraltar Point, Ontario
- Port Burwell Municipal East Beach, Ontario
- Port Stanley Main Beach, Ontario
- Bluewater Marina, Ontario
- Grand Bend Marina, Ontario
- Grand Bend Beach, Ontario
- Port Franks Marina, Ontario
- Canatara Park Beach, Ontario
- City of Barrie Marina, Ontario
- Moonlight Beach, Ontario
- Bell Park Beach, Ontario
- Spruce Beach, Ontario
- Spine Beach, Ontario
- Tall Pines Marina, Ontario
