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Napanee is a town in eastern Ontario between Belleville and Kingston.

Get in

Napanee is located on Highway 401 (exits 579 and 582), about 2.5 hours east from downtown Toronto and half an hour west of Kingston. The town's original business district was located at the crossroads of Highways 2 and 41 (Dundas and Centre, respectively); 41 leads to Pembroke and the Trans-Canada Highway, the 401 bypasses 2 in the Windsor-Quebec corridor.

There is VIA rail service to the town on the Toronto-Kingston CN line but service is limited. The station, which dates to the original Grand Trunk Railway, operates as an unmanned shelter with one train daily in each direction. It is one of two original 1856 wayside stations still in railway use between Montréal and Toronto (the other is the restored station in Port Hope).

While there is no local bus station, a Coach Canada bus does stop alongside Highway 401 on its way from Kingston to Malton airport (YYZ IATA) in Mississauga.

Get around

Napanee has no local transit of its own and only limited weekday service from Deseronto's system. An automobile is a necessity. Parking is free, even on the main street. There are two local taxis, Napanee Cab (+1 613-354-6688) and Mike's Taxi (+1 613-354-2207).

See

Old post office

Napanee's history dates to the pre-Confederation era and the United Empire Loyalists. There is a museum near the county hall and parkland along the Napanee River east of downtown.

Do

The Loyalist Parkway (Highway 33) nominally passes within the town limits, at Adolphustown. This region is waterfront cottage country with farms at which apples and strawberries can be gathered in-season. The best time for strawberries is traditionally early summer, before the Dominion Day (July 1) long weekend. A free ferry takes Highway 33 westward across the Bay of Quinte to Prince Edward County.

Buy

Most established, independent businesses are on the original main street near the highway 2/41 crossroads. These highways are now county roads. Newer development has followed Centre Street (#41) northward to the 401 offramp, although offerings in this section tend to be dominated by national chains and similar in content to that in other towns across Ontario.

  • Summer Marketplace, Market Square (beside town hall), ☏ +1 613-354-4423. 9AM-2PM Saturdays (summer). Bi-Weekly Saturday Market in Napanee. Fresh Fruit, Vegetables, Honey, Hand-Made Jewellery, Natural Bath Products, Needlepoint, Sewing, Natural Gourmet Dog Treats, Fresh Cut Flowers. 

Eat

  • Various national chains (KFC, Tim Horton's, Pizza Hut, Wendy's, Dairy Queen, Mr. Sub, McDo, Subway, Shoeless Joe's, Denny's, A&W) are located on or near Centre Street at 401 (exit 579).
  • Napanee Fish & Chips, 721 County Road 41, ☏ +1 613-354-5527. 11AM - 8PM, closed Mondays. Seafood, steaks, burgers, chicken, wraps, soups, sandwiches, salads. 
  • Royal Coachman Restaurant, 8087 County Road 2 (East of town on old Highway 2), ☏ +1-613-354-9124. 11AM-1:30PM and 5-7:30PM, closed Mondays. C$25-50/person. 
  • Spuds Griddle, 140 Industrial Blvd, ☏ +1 613-354-6787. 

Drink

Sleep

There are two groups of motels in the town:

Highway 2 (Dundas Street) west of town, three motels:

Highway 41 (Centre Street) north of the 401 (exit 579) offers two motels. There is also a Hampton Inn one block south of the 401:

Bed and breakfast accommodation is also available locally.

Connect

Internet access is available at the local public library (25 River Rd Napanee K7R 3S6 +1 613-354-2525). There's also wi-fi at the Harvey's and McDonald's hamburger stands (both Centre Street south of the 401 exit 579) and the ONroute highway rest stops (near Odessa).

Nearby

Adolphustown

A rural area on the Lake Ontario shore, west of Bath. A car ferry on Highway 33 links Adolphustown to Prince Edward County year-round. Like Prince Edward County, this region is agricultural and produces apples, strawberries and grapes.

Bath

A lakeside village established 1784 on the north shore of Lake Ontario, between Kingston and Adolphustown. Once a busy shipping port and centre of commerce, its role diminished as the York Road (1817), Grand Trunk Railway (1856) and the 401 freeway (1964) all bypassed the village in favour of Napanee. The Tragically Hip maintain studio space in the village.

  • Academy Gallery, 352 Academy Street, Bath, ☏ +1 613-352-5582. Art gallery and B&B open by chance or appointment. 
  • Bath Museum, 434 Main St, Bath, ☏ +1 613-352-7716. Wed-Sun 10AM-4PM, Victoria Day to Labour Day. Historical museum covering aboriginal times, Loyalist settlement and the War of 1812. Building was originally the 1861 court house and later the Bath town hall. 
  • Bath Summer Market, Centennial Park (on Bath's Main Street). 9AM-3PM Sundays, in season. 
  • Loyalist Cove Marina, 185 Main St, Bath, ☏ +1 613-352-3478, fax: +1 613-352-5209. Marina with fuel, pumpout, repair, boat storage, washrooms, showers, playground. 
  • United Empire Loyalist Heritage Centre and Park, 54 Adolphustown Park Road, Bath, ☏ +1 613-373-2196, toll-free: +1-877-384-1784. Museum, campground and day-use facility, established June 16, 1784 as the landing site of the initial group of United Empire Loyalists under Major Peter Vanalstine. During the American Revolution, United Empire Loyalists were loyal to the British Empire; after the US fell to revolution, loyalists made their new home in Canada. 

Odessa

A small village less than a mile across, built on a mill creek, midway between the centre of Napanee and Kingston. There is a fuel station and a motel at the Wilton Road (CR 6) off-ramp. Main Street is Ontario Highway 2, which runs one block south of (and parallel to) the 401 freeway.

  • Babcock Mill (Better Baskets by Babcock), 100 Bridge Street, Odessa. Historic 1856 woolen mill and water-powered saw mill, became a basket factory in 1915. The stone mill building on Mill Creek is now restored as a park site and museum. 
  • Odessa Fairgrounds, Main St. Fair held one weekend, mid-July. Public park on south side of Main Street directly east of Wilton Road $8/day, $20/weekend, plus $2-3 per ride. 

Wilton

Blessed are the cheesemakers...

Wilton is a tiny little place in the country, north of Odessa. From Highways 2 or 401, exit northbound on Wilton Road (401 exit 599) which leads 6km (4 miles) north to the village, then turn east 2km (1.2 miles) on Simmons Road. While tiny Wilton makes Odessa look like a sprawling metropolis, there are at least two points of interest:

  • Wilton Cheese Factory, 287 Simmons Rd, Wilton, ☏ +1 613-386-7314, fax: +1 613-386-1223. 9AM-5PM (7 days/wk). Independent village cheesemakers, one of the few where one still sees the product being made (alas, only viewed through a window). Established 1867, local and imported cheese for sale, curds, specialty boxes. 
  • Wilton Pottery, 239 Simmons Road, Wilton, ☏ +1 613-386-3400. Seasonal, 10AM-5PM Tue-Sat, noon-5PM Sun, closed Mon. Another opportunity to see products made locally. Former limestone schoolhouse (Wilton Public School, 1855-1970) turned porcelain and stoneware studio (tours available), showroom and home of potters Diane Creber, Tim De Rose and their children. 

Go next

Routes through Napanee
Toronto ← Belleville ←  W  E  → Kingston → Montreal
Toronto ← Belleville ←  W  E  → Kingston → Ottawa
Oshawa ← Belleville ←  W  E  → Kingston → Montreal
Trenton ← Picton ← ferry ←  W  E  → Bath → Kingston
Pembroke ← Kaladar ←  N  S  → CR41 becomes CR 8 → Bath


This city travel guide to Napanee is a usable article. It has information on how to get there and on restaurants and hotels. An adventurous person could use this article, but please feel free to improve it by editing the page.
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