Muskoka Steamships — Attraction in District Municipality of Muskoka

I booked the afternoon cruise with high tea for 9 ladies on a bachelorette weekend this past weekend. Our overall experience was very nice, but I can only rate it 2/5 because of the lack of clarity of prices on their online booking service. At no point during the online booking process does it say that high tea costs an additional $25pp (plus tax and tip). I booked for a group selecting the cruise with high tea option as opposed to the regular cruise option expecting the price to reflect this upgrade. Even the confirmation that was sent afterward does not list the high tea price in the fine print. All it says is that meal service payable on board, which I took to mean server tips or adding something, like champagne which is mentioned in the description as an option during booking. In my opinion, this is unacceptable. It would be simple enough to clearly list the cost of high tea somewhere during the booking process before final payment is taken. When you are booking a group event you expect prices to be up front so that your group members know exactly what they are agreeing to spend. $30 pp was a bit steep to begin with but even moreso when you were not expecting to pay it due to a misleading website. This really put a damper on my experience as the group organizer and makes it difficult for me to recommend this excursion to others. I implore Muskoka Steamship to make serious improvements to how they communicate prices on their website to avoid anyone else going...

My family, including my two teenage sons decided to take the 1.5 hour boat tour to enjoy the afternoon and learn more about the area. We were thankful that the boat had both indoor seating and outdoor seating as it was a chilly day. While we awaited the boat we shopped in the store which had an extensive collection of items made by local artists.

What we liked: When asked questions the crew was knowledgeable. The boat was very pretty- much nicer than other boat tours we’ve done. They had a full bar and snacks for purchase. Lots of different views from the boat- three levels of I treating spaces. Plenty of seating.

What we didn’t like: From the website it looked like we would be enjoying a steamship. The boat we took was a diesel ship. It seemed like we would learn about local history of the area- but it was a prerecorded tour that was out of sync with what we were supposed to be looking at. This made it confusing and we were unsure of what we were supposed to notice. It was pricey for what it was. And there is an additional charge for the museum. Crew was moving furniture from the dining room for the carpet to be replaced. The tour felt like an imposition for the crew to get their work done on the boat. Not great pictures of the beautiful dining room because there were chairs stacked everywhere.

There are many great museums in the area and lots of cool experiences, many that are free.. I wish we had skipped this one & spent...

Today, we had the pleasure of taking a delightful 2.5-hour cruise on the beautiful Lake Muskoka. The weather couldn’t have been better—warm sunshine, calm waters, and fresh air all around. The entire journey was accompanied by captivating stories told by our knowledgeable guide.

Lake Muskoka is truly vast, stretching roughly 30 kilometers long and 10 kilometers wide, with depths reaching up to 70 meters in many places. The cruise departed from Gravenhurst, just about 150 kilometers north of Toronto—a perfect distance for a day trip.

What makes this lake so unique is not just its size, but the sheer number of islands scattered across its waters—each with its own charm and story. At one point during the cruise, we sailed through a narrow channel between two islands, only 9 meters wide. The ship passed so close to the shores that it felt like you could reach out and touch the trees. It was magical.

This incredible experience was made possible by Muskoka Steamships, a company that operates two historic vessels on the lake. One of the ships is an astonishing 125 years old and still proudly cruising. Both offer a variety of tours—with or without meals on board—and provide an unforgettable way to explore this iconic Canadian destination.

We loved every minute of it. The cruise, the scenery, the stories—it was all...