Experience the 1000 Islands from the air on a breathtaking helicopter tour. Choose your own adventure with three unique tour options ranging from 10 to 30 minutes. Depart from Gananoque Heliport, located within a 20-minute drive east of Kingston via Highway 401 in beautiful Gananoque, Ontario.  Check in at the front desk then relax in the lounge before your pre-flight briefing. Feel the thrill as you rise above lush greenery, sandy beaches, and rocky cliffs, admiring the sights from your guaranteed window seat.  Wear audio headsets complete with microphones for easy communication. Enjoy pilot-narrated commentary in English or select one of the recorded multilingual audio tours. The duration depends on your selected option. Choose the 10-minute tour for a taste of the 1000 Islands, including the town of Gananoque, the Admiralty Islands, Navy Islands, and the Lake Fleet Islands. Explore further on an Ontario Signature Experience: a 20-minute tour that includes both the U.S. and Canadian spans of the Ivy Lea Bridge, and Boldt Castle on Heart Island.  The most popular option is a Canadian Signature Experience: an extended 30-minute ‘Two Castle’ tour that sends you flying over sunken shipwrecks and nation-spanning bridges, as well as Boldt and Singer Castles.

Come on board City Cruises from Gananoque and join a one or three-hour cruise taking you closer to the scenery than any other cruise available in the 1000 Islands. Referred to by the Iroquois Nation as the “Garden of the Great Spirit,” the tranquility of the area belies a history of adventures, wars, and rebellions. See fifth and sixth-generation family cottages. Cruise the narrow channels of the Admiralty and Navy group of islands in the most intimate tour the 1000 Islands has to offer. Gananoque is the gateway to the 1000 Islands, located approximately 3 hours from Toronto, two hours from Ottawa, and three hours from Montreal. Gananoque is just 15 minutes from the border crossing into New York State via the 1000 Islands Bridge and is only 50 minutes from Watertown. Our community is accessible from Highway 401 and Highway 2 from Kingston, Ontario. 1 Hour Cruise: Join the 1-hour cruise from the port at Ivy Lea or Gananoque and experience the beauty of the region from the St. Lawrence River. During this cruise in the heart of the 1000 Islands, see Boldt Castle, the 1000 Islands International Bridge, and Zavikon Islands containing the smallest International Bridge in the world. Cruise past the Statue of St. Lawrence, while he watches peacefully over the moving vessels on the river. This statue is only visible from the water, standing high above on a rock cut. 3-hour Cruise: Departs from Gananoque and it is a Canadian Signature Experience. This tour tells the story about the 1000 islands region, its history, and stories of those who have called it home. You will see the famed Boldt Castle and lavish homes of the rich and famous on “Millionaire’s Row.” Learn about and discover the remarkable feats of engineering required to build the St. Lawrence Seaway, 1000 Islands International Bridge and so much more! The 1000 Islands cruise with an onboard audio commentary in English and French is the perfect way to explore the scenery that has made the region famous throughout the world.

Set sail on a 5-hour 1000 Islands Cruise and cruise through the Canadian and American span of the 1000 Islands. Enjoy the narrated cruise going by popular attractions such as Zavikon Island, Millionaire’s Row, the St. Lawrence Seaway and the 1000 Islands Bridge as you see the area's most breathtaking scenery. Enjoy this beautiful, must-see destination when visiting Ontario. Experience the views of the grandiose structure by George C. Boldt that was to be a display of his love for his wife on Heart Island, one of the most popular of the 1000 islands. You SAVE TIME with this cruise. For your convenience, the price of the Boldt Castle Stopover Cruise INCLUDES the Boldt Castle Admission Fee. Therefore, once you arrive at Boldt Castle you can bypass the ticket booth once you clear Customs. A valid passport is required to board this cruise. Boldt Castle is also an Official Port of Entry into the United States in Alexandria Bay, New York. No guests will be admitted to the cruise without a valid passport. There are no exceptions. Please read the Essential Info section for more details about required documentation. To cruise around Boldt Castle, without a stopover, select the 3-Hour 1000 Islands Cruise departing from Gananoque, or the 1-Hr 1000 Islands Cruise departing from Ivy Lea. All City Cruises Gananoque vessels are fully accessible on the first deck. Learn more about Boldt Castle: at the turn of the century, George C. Boldt, (millionaire proprietor of the world-famous Waldorf Astoria Hotel) set out to build a full-size Rhineland Castle on picturesque Heart Island. The grandiose structure was to be a display of his love for his wife, Louise. 300 workers fashioned the six-story, 120-room castle. Not a single detail or expense was spared. In 1904 his wife passed away suddenly, and all construction was halted. Boldt never returned to the island, leaving behind the structure as a monument of his love. Currently, it is owned by the Thousand Islands Bridge Authority which is restoring the castle to its intended glory. Seasonal departure schedule: May 13-14, 20-21, 27-28: 10:00am June 3 to June 30: 10:00am July 1 to September 4: 10:00am and 3:00pm September 9-10, 16-17, 23-24, 30 and October 1, 7-9: 10:00am