Can the Hamptons of Canada dish it out like the real thing?

Ian Nelmes started visiting the beaches of Prince Edward County (PEC), Ontario — not to be confused with “Anne of Green Gables” Prince Edward Island, which lies over 1,000 miles to the east — in the 1970s.There wasn’t much to it. “The county was a destination for the beach and for fishing, but not much else,” said Nelmes.

“After the beach, we would just get in the car and go home.”By the 1980s, things had improved.A vanguard of creative winemakers — drawn by the county’s limestone-rich soil reminiscent of Burgundy — started planting vineyards. Restaurants, artists and bed-and-breakfasts followed. Today, this 30-mile-wide island in the northeast corner of Lake Ontario has grown into a deluxe agrarian playground for wealthy Torontonians and Montrealers in search of fresh air and open space.

Some call it “the Hamptons of Canada.” Nelmes now runs Mirazule on the lakefront, a luxe and modern take on the B&B, just 20 minutes from the rural beach he visited at a child.Since 2018, he’s been welcoming guests with goose-down duvets and bathrooms with heated floors — a big change from the “Schitt’s Creek”-esque accoms once found in this area. Antiques shops, art galleries, boutique hotels as well as award-winning wineries and restaurants are now plentiful in the county.

And while more on par with Hamptons prices of 50 years ago, real estate here has certainly popped off.Since 2016, the county’s median home price of $302,250 has more than doubled to over $680,000 as of 2024.Looking for a wallet-friendly alternative to the East End of Long Island this summer — why not try the South End of Ontario?Much of the activity centers around the (small) downtown of Picton, where family-owned the Royal Hotel has welcomed guests since 1879.

This full-service grande dame offers a spa, a gym, a heated saltwater pool and an award-winning, farm-to-table restaurant that works closely to source ingredients from the owner’s Edwin County F...