Dorset Lookout Tower — Attraction in Algonquin Highlands

This place has an online reservation although you could arrive here even without a reservation. They have two parking lots. One at the entrance and one above near the tower. You could park outside and walk the 800m upto the tower which will cost you 5.50$. Or you could drive upto the tower which will cost 17.50$. The guy at the face had such a rude face and he just blurted out the costs to me "walk up 5.50$ per person, drive up 17.50$" - Which I understood as driving up will cost me more. However, he meant the whole car no matter how many parties we have would cost us 17.50$. If he had been kind enough to explain a bit more slowly, I would have happily driven up the hill instead of paying more and walking up the terrain to the tower park. And why in the hell would you want park visitors to park outside the park when they can enjoy the park close by. The staff at tower were much better than the dudes at the entrance. There was a queue up at the bottom of the stairs which was emptying quickly. There wasnt much of a wait. The stairs were scary to climb up and if you are afraid of heights, this climb may not be for you. Also if you are bringing older parents, be careful as the stairs are pretty steep. The views when climbing up the stairs were far better than the view at the top as it is caged and you cannot get much of a view. There was a queue at the top to take pictures at the top most stairs which offers the highest view point. The climb down was quick and easy. They have portable potties and it was cleaner than most of the potties I have used. There is an icecream shop and gift center at the top. This location also has a 2.3 km loop trail which you can embark if you are interested. I rate this place 2 stars for the rude staff at the gate who are totally not clear to people about parking cars up the hill and my biggest discontent was the price! Uff, My friend remembers this place as 8$ to go up the hill a few years back. The inflation at this park is mysteriously at 200%! This place is a definite recommend but speak up at the gate and interrogate details out of those rude staff so you can make best use of the park since its our hard...

We were so disappointed when we tried to drive here on our honeymoon and were turned away even though Google Business has the closing time listed as 6pm and we arrived at 5:03pm. The employee wouldn’t let us in and was quite rude about it.

We then walked up the steep public hiking trail that indicated you could pay for the lookout at the top until 6pm. We arrived at the top at 5:39, believing we would finally get to access the views, but the gate to the tower was already locked. To add to the confusion, there was a sign on the tower saying it closed at 5:45. (The signage is so poor and confusing, every sign says something different. When does this place close and why do the hiking trail and Google Maps list different details from the website? Even the prices were different at the top of the trail from the bottom.)

The Dorsey Lookout Tower employee didn’t want to deal with us so she tried to quickly drive away with her trunk still open. When we waved her down, she gaslit us by making us think we were “being sneaky” by taking the completely legitimate public trail to the top, and wouldn’t let us pay to access the lookout, even though it was only 5:39 and the tower was marked as closing at 5:45.

I honestly don’t blame the Dorset staff. They are clearly getting very poor leadership from their management, being asked to enforce rules without proper signage or Google Business listings. Also how are they supposed to enforce the hiking trail closure time? If people take the hiking trail and arrive at the tower before 5:45, they should be let in…

What a disappointing experience. We drove 40 minutes to visit this site and intentionally left at 4:20 so that we had plenty of time before the 6pm closure. We would have just left earlier if we had known it actually...

I strongly advise against visiting this place. After a 30-minute hike yesterday, I was thoroughly disappointed and feel compelled to share my experience. My wife and I parked in the town below and hiked up to the tower. They charged $6.20 per person, with 3-4 staff members collecting fees on-site. When we offered to pay with a credit card, they initially requested $6.20, but upon clarifying it was for two people, they made us pay separately for each. When we asked for a receipt, they only provided one for a single $6.20 payment, despite us paying for two. When questioned, they claimed they couldn’t provide another receipt because we didn’t request it in advance. I pointed out that I was requesting it now, but they rudely dismissed us, saying we no longer needed it and to just leave. After insisting again, another staff member finally provided the second receipt. The parking fee was $18.25, and if the fall foliage had been vibrant and worth seeing, the $6.20 per person for the hike wouldn’t have felt like a waste. However, the foliage wasn’t even properly colored, and it’s clear they’re only focused on making money. If they’re going to charge for the hike, they should do so consistently for everyone—some people paid while others didn’t, which is unfair. It feels like they’re overcharging without justification. If the fee is for tower maintenance, they should only charge those who actually climb the tower, but it seemed like less than a third of visitors even went up. They demand payment, withhold receipts unless pressed, and it’s unclear where the money goes. I question whether the local authorities are properly overseeing this. Who would want to return after such an experience? I strongly recommend avoiding this place. Don’t...