Field Guides/St. Catharines/Swimming & Beach
Strong
Best WindowJune through early September
Variantslake-swim · beach-day
RegionSt. Catharines, Ontario

Swimming & Beach.

Lakeside Park at Port Dalhousie carries a sand beach with a designated Lake Ontario swim area, alongside the 1898–1905 Lakeside Park carousel, the pier, and the Port Dalhousie Range Front and Range Rear lighthouses. West along the Lake Ontario shore, Sunset Beach is a Niagara Region–managed beach with a second designated swim area.

Swimming & Beach in St. Catharines
01 — What to know

The brief.

Both Lakeside Park and Sunset Beach are seasonally monitored under Niagara Region Public Health beach water quality programs through the summer; check the Region's listings before visiting. Lake Ontario water temperatures stay cool — June through early September is the practical swim window.

Lakeside Park is the heritage harbour beach with the carousel and pier; Sunset Beach west of Port Dalhousie is the quieter natural-shoreline option. Both beaches sit within walking distance of the Welland Canals Parkway Trail and the Great Lakes Waterfront Trail.

02 — Locations

2. places.

  1. 01

    Lakeside Park (Port Dalhousie)

    Sand beach with designated Lake Ontario swim area; 1898–1905 Lakeside Park carousel; pier with the Port Dalhousie Range Front and Range Rear lighthouses.

  2. 02

    Sunset Beach

    Niagara Region–managed Lake Ontario beach west of Port Dalhousie with a designated swim area.

03 — Conditions

Today's read.

Air Quality
25
eu-aqi · low
UV Index
0.7
scale 0–11
Humidity
77%
relative
Visibility
18.8 km
clear
Temp
+4.7°
H 16° · L 1°
Sun
05:56 / 20:30
14h 34m daylight
F
Out of season for swimming & beach

Temperature (4.7°C) below the typical range and outside the typical season window.