Perseids at Point Pelee: Watch the Year's Best Meteor Shower from Canada's Southernmost Dark Sky Preserve

August 11-12: The Night the Sky Puts on a Show

On the night of August 12, 2026, the Perseids meteor shower hits its peak. This is the most popular meteor shower of the year, famous for producing bright, fast-moving shooting stars that streak across the sky at rates of 60 to 100 per hour. And this year, the conditions are almost unreasonably perfect: the moon is new on August 12, which means the sky will be as dark as it gets. No moonlight. No interference. Just meteors.

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Now here's the part that matters. You could watch the Perseids from a Toronto rooftop and see maybe a handful through the light pollution. Or you could watch them from Canada's first designated Dark Sky Preserve, lying on a beach at the southernmost point of mainland Canada, where millions of stars are visible to the naked eye on a regular Tuesday. That's Point Pelee National Park. And on August 11-12, that's where Parkbus is taking you.

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You're Farther South Than You Think

Point Pelee sits at the same latitude as Rome, Barcelona, and Northern California. That fact alone tends to stop people mid-scroll. This is mainland Canada's southernmost point, a slender peninsula of sand and ancient forest that juts out into Lake Erie like a compass needle pointing toward the tropics. And for one night, during the peak of the best meteor shower of 2026, you're going to sleep inside it.

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The Carolinian Forest: Cactus, Wild Grape Vines, and 390 Species of Birds

The Carolinian forest at Point Pelee is unlike anything else in Ontario. This isn't the boreal shield you see up in Muskoka or Algonquin. Hackberry, sassafras, black walnut, and tulip trees form a dense canopy that feels more Appalachian than Canadian. Wild grape and Virginia creeper vines drape from the treetops. Prickly pear cactus (yes, cactus) grows on the sandy ridges. The park is home to over 750 native plant species and more species at risk than any other national park in the country. In summer, the forest floor hums with the sounds of tree frogs and the rustle of eastern foxsnakes moving through the underbrush. Then there are the birds. Over 390 species have been recorded here, more than almost anywhere else in North America. Point Pelee sits at the crossroads of two major migration flyways, which means everything from prothonotary warblers to peregrine falcons passes through on the way north or south. The park was literally created because birdwatchers lobbied for it back in 1918.

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Why Most Torontonians Have Never Been to Point Pelee

Here's the thing. Point Pelee is about four hours from Toronto by car. It's in the southwest corner of Ontario, past London, past Chatham, in a part of the province most Torontonians have never visited. There's no train that gets you there. No convenient GO bus. And if you do drive, the oTENTik accommodations inside the park are notoriously hard to book. There are only 24 of them and they sell out within minutes of the reservation window opening. And we saved them for you.

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We Handle the Drive & Accomodations

Parkbus handles the drive, the route, and the booking. You handle deciding which snacks to bring. We've secured a block of oTENTiks at Camp Henry for August 11-12, so you don't have to set an alarm for 8 a.m. on reservation day and hope for the best. And we timed it so you'll be sleeping in the park on the night the Perseids peak under a moonless sky. Just grab a seat on the bus and wake up in Canada's most ecologically diverse national park.

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Your Guide: Astronomer Caroline El Khoury

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Here's what turns a good stargazing night into an unforgettable one: having someone who actually knows what they're looking at standing next to you.

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Caroline El Khoury is a University of Toronto-trained astronomer with a degree in Physics and Astronomy. She's conducted pulsar research at ASTRON, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy, and has spent years turning her love of the night sky into something the rest of us can share. She runs stargazing tours and night sky workshops across Ontario, and her astrophotography and astronomy content have built her a dedicated following online (@nightsky.adventures).

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On this trip, Caroline will be your guide to the Perseids. She'll walk you through the constellations, point out planets, explain why the meteors leave those long glowing trails, and help you spot things you'd never notice on your own. If you've ever looked up at a dark sky and thought "I wish I knew what I was seeing," this is your answer. She'll also have tips for anyone who wants to try their hand at astrophotography, from phone cameras to full setups.

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It's one thing to lie on a beach and watch meteors streak overhead. It's another thing entirely to do it with an astronomer beside you who can tell you that those bright streaks are tiny grains of debris from Comet Swift-Tuttle, burning up at 59 kilometres per second in the atmosphere about 100 km above your head. The spectacle is the same. The understanding makes it richer.

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What's Actually Waiting for You

• Stand at the bottom of the map. Take the shuttle (or bike) to the Tip, the actual southernmost point of mainland Canada, where a narrow sand spit dissolves into Lake Erie. Climb the Tip Tower for a 360-degree view of open water with the faint suggestion of Ohio on the horizon. It's a strange and beautiful feeling, knowing that every direction except south is Canada.
• Walk through a forest that feels tropical. The Woodland Nature Trail and DeLaurier Trail wind through old-growth Carolinian forest where the canopy is so thick that summer light barely reaches the ground. Keep your eyes low for painted turtles and wild turkeys, which wander the campground paths with zero concern for human schedules.
• Paddle a freshwater marsh older than the country. Rent a canoe or kayak from Pelee Wings at the Marsh Boardwalk (first come, first served) and explore the park's interior wetlands, where the water is calm, the birdlife is extraordinary, and the loudest sound is your own paddle. You can also book a spot on Parks Canada's guided Freighter Canoe Tour, a ten-person canoe led by an interpreter who'll introduce you to carnivorous plants, basking turtles, and the occasional beaver. Tours run on weekends and can be reserved by calling 519-322-2365 ext. 0. No paddling experience required.
• Watch the Perseids tear the sky apart. This is the whole reason for the timing. Point Pelee was designated a Dark Sky Preserve in 2006, the first national park in Canada to receive the honour. On a regular clear night, millions of stars are visible and the Milky Way stretches overhead like a bright, chalky band. On the night of August 12, with the new moon keeping the sky pitch black, you'll be watching one of the year's most spectacular celestial events from one of the darkest places in southern Ontario. The Perseids produce bright, colourful meteors that frequently leave long, glowing trails. At peak, you can expect to see a shooting star every minute or so. West Beach is the prime viewing spot. Bring a blanket, lie flat on the sand, and let your eyes adjust for about 20 minutes. What happens next is the kind of thing that's legitimately hard to describe to someone who has only ever looked up from a city. The best viewing is after midnight into the pre-dawn hours, so the fact that you're sleeping in the park (and not driving home) is the whole point.
• Sleep in a real bed. In a national park. With electricity. More on the oTENTiks below, but the short version: you get a mattress, a roof, a barbecue, Muskoka chairs, and a fire pit. The long version is even better.

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Sleep in a Real Bed in a National Park (With Electricity)

An oTENTik is Parks Canada's answer to the question, "What if camping were actually comfortable?" It's a cross between an A-frame cabin and a prospector tent, built on a raised wooden platform with a proper door and a locking latch. Each one sleeps up to six people on high-density foam mattresses: four on the lower level (two queen-size beds) and two more in the upper loft (one double). Inside, you'll find a table, chairs, an overhead light, and electrical outlets. The oTENTiks at Point Pelee also come stocked with cookware, plates, cutlery, pots, and pans, which is unusual and genuinely appreciated.

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Outside, each site has a gas barbecue, a picnic table, two Muskoka chairs, a wildlife-proof food locker, and a fire pit. The Camp Henry comfort stations (a short walk away) have flush toilets, showers, and a dishwashing station. There's a camp office that sells firewood, snacks, and Parks Canada merchandise.

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So you get the experience of sleeping in the forest, surrounded by the sounds of the Carolinian canopy and the distant wash of Lake Erie. But you also get a mattress. And a barbecue. And a door that closes. It's the best of both worlds for people who love nature but also love not sleeping on a root.

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Solo, With Friends, or Somewhere in Between

This is a trip built for groups. Each oTENTik sleeps six, which means the more friends you bring, the less each person pays. Rally your crew, fill a cabin, and split the cost. It turns a park weekend into something closer to a cottage weekend, but with a dark sky overhead and a national park as your backyard.

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If you're booking solo, that's equally welcome. Parkbus trips attract a disproportionate number of independent adventurers, and this one is no different. Solo travellers will be matched with same-sex cabin mates, so you'll share an oTENTik with other people who showed up alone and are ready to make friends over a campfire. It doesn't matter if you're coming with your best friend, a group of six who've been planning this for months, or by yourself on a Tuesday impulse decision. Everyone ends up around the same fire pit.

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There's something specific about arriving at a place together, by bus, without the stress of driving. No one's exhausted from navigating the 401. No one's arguing about directions. Everyone steps off at the same time, in the same mood: ready. That shared arrival creates a kind of instant camaraderie that's hard to manufacture any other way. And then you all end up on a beach at midnight watching meteors together. That's the kind of night people talk about for a long time.

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Meet Your Crew Before the Bus Leaves

We'd recommend joining the ActiveDays Facebook group before the trip. It's part practical (ask about gear, find out what your guide recommends, coordinate food for shared barbecues) and part social (put faces to names, find someone to split an oTENTik with, get excited together). Some of our best trip stories started with a comment in the group days before departure.