Nestled in the Bruce Peninsula National Park near Tobermory, Ontario, the Grotto is a stunning natural wonder that draws countless visitors each year. Known for its striking sea caves and vibrant turquoise waters, this attraction is a highlight for those visiting Tobermory or northern Ontario. Nearby, you’ll also find the Fathom Five National Marine Park, famous for Flowerpot Island.
In recent years, the Grotto’s popularity has exploded I don’t know if it was because of the pandemic and everyone’s discovery of how beautiful our home of Ontario, Canada, is or if it’s the Instagram and TikTok effect, but one thing is certain: Tobermory is very busy most weekends and the Grotto was even busier and almost impossible to visit until Parks Canada made some changes that arguably make it a far more enjoyable visit let jump in.
I am going to provide you with all the information you need to have a great visit at the Groton in Bruce Peninsula National Park.
What Makes the Grotto Special
The Grotto is renowned for its picturesque sea cave carved out of limestone, set against the backdrop of Georgian Bay’s crystal-clear waters. The underwater tunnel that extends from the pool inside the cave through the cliff gives the waters inside the Grotto an ethereal glow on sunny days, giving it an almost tropical feel when visiting (don’t be fooled the water is still cold). These are just some of the reasons making it a popular spot for photographers, swimmers, snorkelers, and even scuba divers.
The Grotto is such a special place for me personally. I have visited this area basically my whole life, and once I became a scuba diver, visiting the Grotto always let me fantasize about cave diving. Because of all the fond memories I have at the Grotto, I even asked my Fiancé to marry me at the Grotto. There is no more special place on earth than the Grotto at Bruce Peninsula National Park to me personally.
Planning Your Visit
The Best Time to Visit
The Grotto is busiest during July and August. Reservations are required for parking access from April 30- to October 31. This is the real secret to an enjoyable visit, more on this later. The Grotto is busiest in the spring and summer, not just because of the people visiting the Grotto, but there are campers in the Bruce National Park who also have access to the Grotto as well as hikers all summer. Winter also offers a unique view of the frozen landscape, though preparation for icy conditions is essential. However, if you have seen any of the pictures, it looks like a winter wonderland.
Getting There
The Grotto is located within Bruce Peninsula National Park, about a 4-hour drive northwest of Toronto. This is the closest and most popular access to the Grotto. The parking reservation will give you access to the Grotto for a 4-hour window. I know it sounds quite limiting, but since Parks Canada instituted the reservation system, the Grotto has returned to being a really nice place to visit. There will be people around, but it will almost never be a zoo, with no access to the water and dozens of people loitering on trails. I feel like this was a strange arrangement at first, but now that I have visited several times with this system in place, I do think it creates a much better experience than the first come, first served as it was before. I’ll have a few tips for you as you read on if you don’t get the reservations you want.
Taking a bus
There is also the option of taking a bus for a day trip to Bruce National Park. Bus availability changes depending on how many seats are sold. If there is a weekend in particular that you would like to visit, make sure to check the website for availability well ahead of time. According to the website, the bus trip normally takes about 4 hours, which isn’t too bad compared to driving. For more information, check out the website ParkBus.
Parking and Reservations
Parking is limited and requires advanced booking, especially during peak season. As mentioned above, a reservation system is in place from April 30 to October 31, with a fee of $11.70 per vehicle. It’s crucial to book your parking spot early to avoid disappointment. There are more reservations during the week as weekends fill up fast.
For more information on parking reservations, click here
The hike from the main Parking lot 1 to the Grotto is scenic, following the Georgian Bay Trail, and manageable for most. Expect a 30-minute walk each way, though the terrain near the Grotto can be rocky and requires careful navigation. The path is well-marked, but reaching the Grotto itself involves navigating over slippery rocks and tree roots.
Halfway log dump
If you have the spirit for adventure or you weren’t able to secure the spot you wanted in the ideal parking in Bruce National Park, there is an alternative that isn’t as easy but equally worth it. Simply because you’re already in the woods, enjoying the whole experience.
If the Grotto parking lot is full when you reserve your spot, select the Halfway Log Dump parking lot. This is a scenic rocky beach that is worth visiting, too, but if you access the Bruce trail and head west toward the town of Tobermory, you will get to the Grotto in about a one-hour hike, approximately 6 km. Once at the grotto, you can enjoy the water and the cave and then hike back to your car. Parks Canada does consider this an advanced hike. I have done it a few times. There are some steep ledges, but if you stick to the trail, it definitely sounds worse than it is.
Hiking to the Grotto
Hiking from Fathom Five Marine Park Visitor Center
If you visit the Fathom Five Marine Park Visitor Center, you can pay your day user fee to use the parking lots. The Visitor Center has a full-service washroom and a gift shop; there is also a Bruce Park demonstration in the theatre there. One real advantage of the Visitor center is there staff, they are quintessential Canadian polite and very helpful they will give you instructions on how to get to the Bruce trail from the visitor center it’s not hard as the visitor center is the head of the Bruce trail.
This is a much longer hike, and I would consider it a proper hike as you will now be several hours away from your car. Follow the instructions of the parks canada staff, once on the Bruce trail head east away from Tobermory and in about 3.5 hours you will reach the Grotto. There are several sites and lookouts to enjoy on the trail; notably, there are Little Dunks Bay, Dunks Bay Beach, and Little Cove Beach; these are nice areas to stop for a rest or have a small snack to recharge. I would say if you’re planning on spending a few hours enjoying the Grotto with a 3.5-hour hike in between, take the Fathom Five Visitor Center route for the serious hiker adventure as this should like it will take the better part of a day.
If you are determined not to pay a parking fee to visit the Grotto, it is possible to get there on a long hike from Tobermory. If you leave your car in Tobermory, you can walk to the Fathom Five Visitor Center, which is well over an hour. At the visitor center, you can pay the park access fee, and from there, follow directions to the Bruce Trail, which will take you to the Grotto, as stated above.
Once at the Grotto, what do you do there?
Once you reach the actual Grotto, the trail will take you to Indian Head Cove. This is a very picturesque area with turquoise water and sun-bleached rocks; if you’re looking to do some sunbathing, this is the area. Pick a spot to put your towel down; this is a great area to dive into the fresh Georgian Bay water. From the beach area, you can swim to the Grotto. It is a bit of a swim. If you’re not the strongest swimmer, I would recommend a life jacket and staying close to the rock wall before you get to the cave. There are lots of areas to hang onto and rest. Outside the Grotto, there is an underwater passage accessible by a simple dive down and swim through. It is quite intimidating at first, but once you have done it a couple of times, swimming through and coming up in the cave is exciting.
Alternatively, if you want to go into the Cave area and not enter the water, you can carefully scale the wall down into the Cave. It is also an intimidating climb down as you will have to clink to the rock face, and if you slip, you will end up a little wet. It helps if you can see other people climb down into the cave area as it will help you plan your route as to what rocks you’re going to hang onto. There is no official path down into the cave.
A while back, there was a very tight and scary hole in the rocks that you could squeeze yourself into, and it would open up once it led you into the cave. This passage was pretty intimidating but also a lot of fun once you conquered it. Sometime during 2020-2021, as the site became increasingly popular, too many people were getting stuck in the hole and needing emergency help. This started happening too frequently, leading Parks Canada to put some large boulders in front of the hole, making it inaccessible.
This is to bring to the grotto when Visiting.
- -Id, health card
- -Mobile phone with a waterproof case
- Good hiking shoes. Running shoes are fine if you’re hiking from the main parking lot to the grotto, but hiking shoes will be your friend if you plan on doing any other trails.
- -sun hat (it gets very bright and hot on shore around the grotto)
- -sunglasses
- -sunscreen
- -bathing suit and
- -if you have a wetsuit, mask, snorkel, and fins (not necessary)
- -light towel
- – Dry bag to carry all your stuff or a backpack
- -reusable water bottles, there are fill stations in the parking lot. If you plan on doing lots of hiking, consider a hydration pack.
Other Hiking to do at the Grotto
I love spending time at the Grotto because it checks off so many boxes for me. Not only is there a ton of fun to be had in the water and in the cave, but there is also fun climbing the rock face and getting in and out of the cave. One of my favourite parts of visiting the Grotto is the short, simple hike that is available.
Mar lake loop
I have done this hike dozens of times. It’s a very serene and peaceful hick, it takes you through some dense areas of forest where it gets super quiet, and you feel like you are the only person on earth; it takes you on the bolder beach that was formed by glaciers thousands of years ago. It also has a few areas on the trail that looked like something straight out of a storybook, with the trees cradling the hiking trail. It’s a 5km loop ending back at the main parking lot. Depending on your pace, this can be done on a very casual 45-minute hike.
Halfway log dump loop.
This hike is in the opposite direction as the Cyprus Lake loop but equally picturesque. This trail has some steep hills and some walking along cliff edges. I would still recommend this hike, but Park Canada classifies it as an advanced trail, so please proceed with caution and have an exit strategy if you’re not a confident hiker.
Scuba dive the Grotto.
This probably should have been the first thing I mentioned, but I think it will merit its own post about diving the Grotto. You can do this by parking at the main parking lots, loading all your gear in a wagon, and towing it .5km to the site to have an amazing dive. You can also do this by taking a charter boat from Divers Den in Tobermory. There is a dive group called Bruce Divers that regularly organizes Grotto shore dives. Feel free to check it out here.
Safety and Accessibility
The rugged terrain could make the Grotto challenging for the elderly or anyone with mobility issues, but children who don’t need to be carried should be fine. Appropriate footwear is essential, and visitors should be prepared to assist less agile companions. Plan to pack any garbage you bring out of the trail, as there are no garbage cans on the Trails or at the Grotto. Signs are warning you of this at the trailhead. Let’s do our part to keep the National Park clean and pristine for everyone.
Regulations and Etiquette
Visitors are encouraged to respect the natural environment. While swimming and exploring are popular, some areas may be restricted to protect both the ecology and the safety of visitors. Always follow park guidelines and respect any temporary restrictions.
There is a strict rule that there should be no cliff jumping, and you will see people regularly doing it! I recommend you don’t, even though it looks like a lot of fun. Every year without fail, someone really injures themselves cliff jumping, causing the park to close down and everyone to be asked to leave because an emergency helicopter has to do an emergency medical evacuation from the beach area (closest area to the grotto). Feel free to google this, as the images are impressive.
The second reason not to cliff jump is that there are scuba divers under the water, and it may seem like it’s deep enough to jump, but it definitely isn’t deep enough if you jump and land on a divers tank. Imagine a diver not expecting to have a person crash into them when they’re 20 feet underwater, which can cause any number of complications for the diver underwater. Also, the cliff jumper crashing into the back of a scuba diver that has hard scuba tanks on their back could cause any number of injuries to your feet and legs.
All this is to say, don’t cliff jump!
Respect the wildlife and leave them alone. Bruce National Park is a nature preserve, so animals are abundant there; I have seen Black Bears there and the Critically endangered Massasauga Rattlesnake. This is a very small snake that is more afraid of you than it is. It will normally alert you to its presence so that you can keep your distance. If you are lucky enough to see one, please take pictures from a safe distance and leave it alone. Massasauga Rattlesnakes are very important at controlling small rodents and especially frog populations, which can help prevent disease outbreaks in those species.
Accommodations
There are multiple accommodation options, from camping within the park at Cyprus Lake Campground to various B&Bs, Airbnbs, and motels in Tobermory. Camping within the park provides the easiest access to the Grotto, especially for early morning visits.
For Camping information, Click Here.
Seasonal Considerations
The Grotto’s beauty shifts with the seasons, offering icy vistas in winter and vibrant, lush landscapes in summer. Winter visitors will need ice cleats or snowshoes, while summer visitors should prepare for swimming and sun protection.
Alternative Activities
One of the most enjoyable ways to visit the Grotto is not only to enjoy the shoreline and the sea cave but there is also really nice hiking available on your visit that I hope you will take advantage of. There are two hikes in particular which aren’t difficult and will also give you the opportunity to see more of the national park. This first hike is:
Georgian Bay trail that everyone takes from Parking Lot 1 to the Grotto. Once you’re done and have about 40 minutes to get back to your parking spot, take the Bruce trail until it meets with the Mar Lake trail. This will take you right back to your car while taking you on a really relaxing and enjoyable route.
Alternatively, you can again take the Georgian Bay Trail to the Grotto and then, on your way back, take the Horse Lake Trail back to your car. This trail takes you around a small inland lake. It isn’t a hard hike but has lots for you to see and isn’t as busy as just asking the Georgian Bay Trail back to the car with all the other visitors.
Conclusion
Visiting the Grotto at the Bruce Peninsula is a must for nature lovers and adventure seekers alike. With proper planning and respect for the natural environment, visiting this breathtaking location can be a memorable, enjoyable experience.
Additional Tips
- Use the Booking options to visit the Grotto during the sun’s rise or set for incredible picture opportunities.
- For the best photographic opportunities, aim for a sunny midday when the sun illuminates the water inside the Grotto.
- Check the weather forecast and park conditions before heading out for the best experience.
By following this guide, you’ll be well-prepared to explore the Grotto and enjoy everything the Bruce Peninsula has to offer. Happy hiking