The finest beach on the Canadian side of Lake Erie, a wide crescent of sand in the Crystal Beach neighbourhood at the southern tip of Fort Erie. The water is warmer than Lake Ontario and the shallow approach makes it popular with families. On clear days the Buffalo skyline is visible across the lake.
The beach gained its first fame from Crystal Beach Park, an amusement park that operated from 1888 to 1989 and was once considered one of the finest in North America. Its signature attraction was the Comet roller coaster, now dismantled, which drew visitors from both sides of the border for decades. The park closed and most of the site was redeveloped, but the beach remains the best thing about the area. The town of Crystal Beach retains a pleasant cottage-country feel.