November is Canada's quietest and cheapest month, and a good one if you want cities, early skiing or polar bears. It is a poor month for hiking, lake views and road trips: expect gray, wet weather in the East and on the Pacific coast, snow in the mountains, sunsets before 5 p.m. in Toronto and Montreal, and many summer attractions shut until spring.
The month gets better as it goes. The first two weeks are the dead zone between fall colors and winter. From mid-November, Niagara lights up, the Christmas markets open in Toronto, Vancouver and Quebec City, and the western ski resorts start turning their lifts. If you can choose, go in the second half.
Weather by region
Typical November highs and lows, rounded from long-term averages. "Wet days" counts days with measurable rain or snow. The last week often feels like winter, especially in Quebec and the Rockies.
| Place | Average high | Average low | Wet days | What to expect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vancouver | 50°F (10°C) | 40°F (4°C) | About 20 | The wettest month of the year |
| Whistler village | 38°F (3°C) | 29°F (-2°C) | About 20 | Rain in the village, snow building up high |
| Banff | 34°F (1°C) | 16°F (-9°C) | About 12 | Snow on the ground most days by mid-month |
| Churchill | 17°F (-8°C) | 4°F (-16°C) | Frequent snow | Wind off Hudson Bay makes it feel far colder |
| Toronto | 48°F (9°C) | 35°F (2°C) | About 14 | Gray and damp; first flurries late in the month |
| Niagara Falls | 48°F (9°C) | 34°F (1°C) | About 15 | Mist and wind at the brink feel colder |
| Montreal | 44°F (7°C) | 31°F (-1°C) | About 15 | First lasting snow often in the last week |
| Quebec City | 40°F (4°C) | 27°F (-3°C) | About 17 | Colder and snowier; real winter by month's end |
For the whole year by region, see When to go. The December and January pages use the same format if you are comparing months.
What's on in November 2026
| Date | Event | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Fri, Nov 6 (tentative) | Ski season opens at Banff Sunshine, Lake Louise and Norquay | Banff National Park |
| Thu, Nov 12 – Jan 3 | Distillery Winter Village; tree lighting at 6 p.m. on opening night | Distillery District, Toronto |
| Thu, Nov 12 – Feb 7 | Hot Chocolate Trail, the start of the SnowDays winter festival | Banff and Lake Louise |
| Sat, Nov 14 – Jan 10 | Winter Festival of Lights, free, nightly 5 p.m. to midnight | Niagara Falls, Ontario |
| Mon, Nov 16 – Dec 24 | Vancouver Christmas Market, timed tickets | Jack Poole Plaza, Vancouver |
| Thu, Nov 19 – Dec 23 | German Christmas Market, free, Thursday to Sunday | Old Québec, Quebec City |
| Fri, Nov 20 (target) | Whistler Blackcomb opening day | Whistler, BC |
| Thu, Nov 26 | Tremblant opening day, on US Thanksgiving | Mont-Tremblant, Quebec |
| Nov 27–29 | Caribbean Winterfest, organized by Toronto Carnival | Blue Mountain, Ontario |
| Early Nov – Dec 23 | Shaw Festival holiday season: Cinderella and A Year with Frog and Toad | Niagara-on-the-Lake |
Niagara's Winter Festival of Lights
The free festival runs November 14, 2026 to January 10, 2027: about three million lights and more than 25 new displays along a route of more than 5 miles (8 km) on the Niagara Parkway, through Fallsview and down Lundy's Lane. Drive Lundy's Lane and Dufferin Islands, where donations are welcome, then park near Table Rock and walk the river. Five-minute fireworks go up at 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, which in November means the 14th, 20th, 21st, 27th and 28th; wind can cancel them. Check the official festival page and see Niagara Falls.
The first Christmas markets
Toronto's Distillery Winter Village is free before 4 p.m. every day, and all day Monday to Wednesday and on November Thursdays after opening night. Opening night and Friday to Sunday from 4 p.m. need a ticket, from C$16 (about $11) plus HST and fees, sold only on the Winter Village site. The Vancouver Christmas Market sells timed slots that fill on evenings and weekends, so book on the market's site. Quebec City's free German Christmas Market runs 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday to Saturday and to 6 p.m. Sunday. More on Festivals.
Ski season opens
The Banff resorts are the safest bet for November snow: they sit high and make snow early. Treat coastal and eastern dates as targets.
- Banff Sunshine, Lake Louise and Norquay: November 6, tentative; lifts run 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. SkiBig3 tickets are up to 15% cheaper online at skibig3.com.
- Whistler Blackcomb: targeting November 20, usually with upper-mountain runs only at first. Check whistlerblackcomb.com the week before.
- Tremblant: opens Thursday, November 26, with a projected close around April 18, 2027.
- Revelstoke: expected around December 5.
Save money
Tremblant's early rate is C$148 (about $106) for one day, or from C$109 (about $78) a day for two to seven days, if you buy by November 26. After that, a day costs C$156 (about $111), or C$164 to C$195 (about $117 to $139) in high season, before tax. Epic passes, which cover Whistler, go off sale in early December.
Early-season skiing is cheaper but thinner: a fraction of the runs, man-made snow and rocks off the groomers. Resort details are on Winter in Canada, Whistler and The Rockies.
Polar bears in Churchill
Churchill, on Hudson Bay in northern Manitoba, is the easiest place in the world to see wild polar bears. The bears gather on the coast in October and November waiting for the bay to freeze so they can hunt seals. The best stretch is late October to mid-November; once the ice forms, usually in the second half of November, they walk out onto it and the season ends.
There is no road: fly from Winnipeg, about 2.5 hours, or take VIA Rail's train, about two days. You watch from tundra vehicles, high-clearance buses with heated cabins and open decks. Most visitors buy all-inclusive packages from Winnipeg costing several thousand dollars per person.
Watch out
For 2026 it is very late. In late October, Frontiers North listed its last November day tour on the 18th, and all but one date were sold out. Ask operators about cancellations, or book October or early November 2027 now. In town, never walk at the edges of Churchill or after dark, and obey every bear warning sign.
See The Prairies, and Northern lights for Churchill's aurora season.
Holidays and closures
Remembrance Day, Wednesday, November 11
It is a statutory holiday in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador and the three territories. It is not a general holiday in Ontario, Quebec, Manitoba or Nova Scotia, so Toronto, Montreal and Quebec City run as usual. Manitoba makes most retail stores close from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., and in Nova Scotia most shops and malls close for the day. Federal offices close and Canada Post doesn't deliver.
Everywhere, expect a two-minute silence at 11 a.m. and ceremonies at cenotaphs, the biggest at the National War Memorial in Ottawa. For two weeks beforehand, many Canadians wear a red poppy; visitors are welcome to pick one up from a Royal Canadian Legion volunteer for a donation.
US Thanksgiving, Thursday, November 26
Nothing closes in Canada, whose Thanksgiving was October 12, so the long weekend makes an easy four-day trip to Montreal, Toronto or Quebec City. Land crossings get busy northbound Wednesday and Thursday and southbound Sunday; see Crossing the border.
Shorter hours and closed roads in the national parks
- Moraine Lake Road is closed for winter and its shuttle stopped in mid-October.
- Icefields Parkway: open, but winter tires or chains are required from November 1, there is no gas, food or cell service between Lake Louise and Jasper, and the Columbia Icefield tours and Skywalk are closed.
- Yoho: the Takakkaw Falls road is closed; Emerald Lake is still reachable.
- Jasper: Maligne Canyon remains closed after the 2024 fire and Miette Hot Springs is shut for the season. Check the Jasper open and closed list.
- Everywhere: most campgrounds have closed, visitor centers keep shorter winter hours, and daily fees apply again (C$12.25, about $9, per adult or C$24.50, about $18, per vehicle) since the free Canada Strong Pass ended September 7.
At Niagara, the boats stop once ice builds on the river, usually in November, and the Whirlpool Aero Car and White Water Walk close; Journey Behind the Falls and the Power Station stay open. Most Cabot Trail and PEI businesses closed in mid-October. See National parks.
Crowds and prices
Demand is at its lowest of the year. You can walk into restaurants in Old Québec, find short lines at the Banff Gondola on weekdays, and pay a fraction of summer rates for falls-view rooms in Niagara, where winter weeknights can be half price. Montreal's cheapest hotel months are November and January to March.
- Flights: fares are usually soft outside US Thanksgiving week. Book three to eight weeks ahead; see Flights.
- What still sells out: Churchill tours, weekend and evening slots at the Vancouver Christmas Market, and Distillery weekend evening tickets.
- Taxes: prices are quoted before sales tax of 5% to 15% by province, plus hotel levies. See Money.
Where to go this month and where to skip
Toronto and Niagara
The best all-round November trip: museums, theater, the Distillery from the 12th and Niagara's lights from the 14th. See Toronto.
Montreal and Quebec City
Go after November 19, when Quebec City's market opens and snow often dusts the old town. Montreal's restaurants are full strength and hotels cheap. See Montreal.
Banff and Whistler
Early skiing at low rates before the Christmas surge. Pair Banff with the Upper Hot Springs, C$19.75 (about $14).
Also good: storm watching in Tofino, which runs November to February at well below summer rates (see Vancouver Island). Skip: Atlantic Canada, the Rockies for hiking or lake photos, cottage country, and Yellowknife before late November, when skies are often cloudy as lakes freeze and Aurora Village is closed.
The clock change and short days
The US falls back at 2 a.m. on Sunday, November 1, 2026, and so do Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, Manitoba, the Atlantic provinces, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut. Most of Saskatchewan stays on Central Standard Time all year, and the Yukon on UTC-7.
The change this year is British Columbia, which announced in March 2026 that it would stop changing clocks and does not fall back this November. It now stays at UTC-7 all year. Until mid-March, Vancouver, Victoria and Whistler are one hour ahead of Seattle, the same as Calgary and Denver, and two hours behind Toronto. Southeastern BC around Golden and Cranbrook keeps following Alberta.
Different from home
Your phone switches automatically, but bookings may not. Ferry timetables from Washington, tour pickups and car returns use local time on each side, so add an hour when you drive north through the Peace Arch. Vancouver's sunrise comes late, around 8:40 a.m. by the end of November, with sunset around 5:20 p.m.
In the East, evenings get dark early: Toronto's sunset slides from about 5:05 p.m. to about 4:45 p.m. through the month, and Quebec City's to about 4 p.m. Do sightseeing and long drives at midday and save markets and lights for evening.
First snow and winter tires
Snow arrives to stay in the Rockies in November and, by the last week, often in Quebec. Toronto and Niagara usually get flurries, but lake-effect squalls can shut highways in minutes, and freezing rain hits Ontario and Quebec.
- British Columbia: winter tires (M+S or the three-peak snowflake) on signed highways, including the Sea-to-Sky to Whistler, from October 1 to March 31, to April 30 on some routes; the fine is C$109 (about $78).
- Quebec: Quebec-registered cars, including rentals, need snowflake-marked winter tires from December 1 to March 15. US-plated cars are exempt, but late-November roads in the Laurentians can already demand them.
- Icefields Parkway: snow tires or chains from November 1 to March 31.
- Rentals: ask for winter tires when you book in Calgary or Vancouver; some companies charge a daily fee.
Check DriveBC, 511 Alberta or Québec 511 before mountain or rural drives, and read Driving in Canada.
What to pack
- A waterproof jacket with a hood; an umbrella is useless at Niagara's brink.
- A fleece or light down layer, a tuque (knit cap) and gloves.
- Waterproof shoes with grip for cities; insulated boots for Quebec City, Banff or Churchill late in the month.
- Ice cleats for Johnston Canyon or icy sidewalks by the falls.
The full list is on Packing.
A sample week
This route starts Thursday, November 19, when all three eastern markets are open, and ends before Thanksgiving traffic.
- Day 1
Thu · Quebec City
Fly into Québec City. Walk Dufferin Terrace at dusk and the German Christmas Market on its opening night.
- Day 2
Fri · Old Québec
The Citadelle (10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.), Petit-Champlain and the funicular, then hot wine at the market.
- Day 3
Sat · Montmorency, then Montreal
Montmorency Falls in the morning, then the train to Montreal, about 3 hours.
- Day 4
Sun · Montreal
Old Montreal, Notre-Dame Basilica's AURA show and bagels in Mile End.
- Day 5
Mon · Toronto
Train to Toronto, about 5 hours, and an evening at the Distillery, free all day Monday to Wednesday.
- Day 6
Tue · Toronto
The Royal Ontario Museum, St. Lawrence Market and the waterfront.
- Day 7
Wed · Niagara
About 2 hours by GO train. Journey Behind the Falls by day, the lights after 5 p.m., then home from Toronto or Buffalo.
Out west, fly into Calgary and ski Sunshine and Lake Louise for three days; the Banff Airporter is C$88.90 (about $64) one way plus GST.
Bottom line
Go in November for low-priced city breaks, Niagara's lights, the first Christmas markets, early skiing or Churchill's bears, ideally in the second half of the month. Pick another month for hiking, mountain lakes, Atlantic Canada or road trips; September is better. For more snow and Christmas, see December; for deep winter, festivals and the aurora, January; for gear and resorts, Winter in Canada.
Add it to a route in the trip builder, or ask us to plan the hotels, trains and guides for you.