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Photo: Friendsofhanlans, CC BY 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Hanlan's Point Beach is the only officially recognized clothing-optional beach in the City of Toronto. It was first approved as clothing-optional in 1894 but this approval was repealed in 1930 due to the protests of citizen's groups. The official status was restored in 2002 following a three-year pilot project, and as of 2023 the beach (and the portion designated as clothing-optional) is gradually being expanded, including a section of beach to the south that restores part of the shoreline that had eroded. Expect this beach to be the most crowded and noisiest of all the island beaches on summer weekends. The beach is accessed by trails and a boardwalk from the main pathway through the sand dunes and forest. Washrooms and a snack bar are located off the beach, along the main pathway.
Hanlan's Point Beach is a nude beach on The Island just offshore from downtown Toronto, Ontario. It stretches for 2 km along the western shoreline of Hanlan's Point, facing the open waters of Lake Ontario. Recognized by the City of Toronto as one of the ten oldest surviving queer spaces in the world, it is also Canada's oldest surviving queer space and the site of the country's first Gay Pride celebration in 1971.
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A plaque commemorates Babe Ruth's first professional home run in a 1914 game on the Toronto Island. The ball park and bleachers, however, are long gone.
Monument to champion rower Ned Hanlan (1855-1908) plus a 1902 tugboat named in his honour, now mounted on a pedestal.
Gibraltar Point lighthouse has stood since 1808 and quickly became home to one of Toronto’s oldest mysteries when, in 1815, its first keeper, J.P. Radan Muller, disappeared. A subsequent lighthouse keeper found skeletal remains years later. Believed to have been beaten to death by soldiers from nearby Fort York, Muller is said to haunt the lighthouse, as a plaque on the grounds will attest to.
A quieter beach, with fewer amenities further from either the Hanlan's Point or Centre Island ferry docks. Washrooms are available at the far west end of the beach.
Olympic Island offers great views of the Toronto skyline. The island also is home to the Lagoon theatre and has a large field for picnics and BBQ.
A themed garden based on characters from "Franklin the Turtle" stories, it contains many bronze statues of Franklin's friends, many plants, a turtle pond, small benches and paths for kids to explore.