Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery
Art Museum in Ontario, Canada.
Attractions in Waterloo
Photo: Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery, JFVoll (CC BY-SA 3.0)Places to visit in Waterloo, led by Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery
18 of the 23 places to visit in and around Waterloo are museums or galleries. We list 8 places to visit inside Waterloo’s municipal boundary and 15 within 5 km of its edge. Inside 1 km of the middle lie 2 of them. Allow a day for Doon Heritage Village, 12 km off.
In Waterloo
8
inside the municipal boundary
Within 5 km
15
of the town’s edge
Museums & galleries
18
in or near town
Best known
First stops in Waterloo
Art galleryCanadian Clay and Glass Galleryin townGardenGardenWaterloo Parkin town
MuseumBrubacher Housein townArt galleryArt galleryChrysalides House, School of Fine Art and Galleryin townMuseumMuseumCity of Waterloo Museumin townMuseumMuseumEarth Sciences Museumin townEach has a page of its own: what it is, who runs it, the weather month by month and what else is near it.
The map
The map view
At 7.4 km, Waterloo Central Railway Resoration Shop is the farthest one out.
The dashed line is Waterloo’s municipal boundary; orange marks its middle (where most people live). Numbers match the list below. © OpenStreetMap contributors · Statistics Canada 2021 outline
By kind
What kind of places
Museums & galleries 10 museums · 8 art galleries6 in town · 12 nearby
Gardens & estates 1 garden1 in town
Zoos, theme parks & days out 2 heritage railways · 1 water park0 in town · 3 nearby
Other attractions 1 attraction1 in town
Green: inside Waterloo. Grey: within 5 km of its edge.
Every place
The places, one by one
9
10
11
12
13The 8 inside Waterloo come first, best known first; then the places within 5 km, close and well known first. Provincial and city parks are on the Outdoors page instead.
Historic places in Waterloo → · Parks, footpaths and green space in Waterloo →
Big names nearby
Big names nearby
MuseumDoon Heritage Village12 km southeast · 80K visitors a year
MuseumFashion History Museum20 km east
Ski hillChicopee Ski Club11 km east
ZooAfrican Lion Safari33 km east
National historic site · Parks CanadaWaterloo Pioneer Memorial Tower13 km southeast
MuseumHomer Watson House13 km southeast
MuseumCastle Kilbride14 km southwest
National historic siteMcCrae House25 km northeast
MuseumWellington County House of Industry and Refuge27 km north
National historic siteAdelaide Hunter Hoodless Homestead34 km southeastPlaces well known beyond Waterloo (Wikipedia articles in several languages, published visitor counts, or a Parks Canada property), close and famous first. Distances are straight lines from the middle of the town.
What people ask about Waterloo
What are the main attractions in Waterloo?
Top of the list inside Waterloo’s municipal boundary: Waterloo Park, Brubacher House and Chrysalides House, School of Fine Art and Gallery.
Does Waterloo have a museum?
Look at City of Waterloo Museum, Earth Sciences Museum and The People's Gallery, in Waterloo or within 5 km.
Is there a Parks Canada property near Waterloo?
None within 5 km. The nearest well-known one on our list is Waterloo Pioneer Memorial Tower (Parks Canada), 13 km southeast.
What are the best-known days out near Waterloo?
Worth the drive, within 40 km: Fashion History Museum (20 km), Chicopee Ski Club (11 km), African Lion Safari (33 km), Homer Watson House (13 km).
How is this list made?
Places come from four open sources (OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Statistics Canada’s ODCAF, the federal and Québec heritage registers), each site once. A building counts as a place to visit only with opening hours, a fee, a website, a heritage operator or a Wikipedia article; hotels, restaurants and tour firms are dropped. The town’s 2021 outline and 5 km around it set the reach.
Places to visit: Canada publishes no open tourism list, so this one is assembled from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), Wikidata (CC0), Statistics Canada’s ODCAF museums and galleries (2020, Open Government Licence – Canada), the federal and Québec heritage registers and CPCAD’s national parks, and it reflects what mappers and editors have recorded. Forts, houses, lighthouses and churches count only with a sign that visitors are welcome. Places sit in each town’s 2021 census outline; visitor counts are Wikidata’s latest, with their year.
Photos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (17)
- Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery: JFVoll, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Brubacher House: Julius177, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- THEMUSEUM: Illustratedjc, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Waterloo Central Railway: Tudor Costache, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Waterloo – St. Jacobs Railway: Tudor Costache, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Joseph Schneider Haus: Yoho2001, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Woodside: Carole Moran from Cambridge, Ontario, Canada, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Doon Heritage Village: Pcorb, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Fashion History Museum: Jean1183, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Chicopee Ski Club: Beowulf cam at English Wikipedia, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- African Lion Safari: Hitesh reddy allu, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Waterloo Pioneer Memorial Tower: Original photograph: Sarah Pidcock; derivative work: Mindmatrix, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Homer Watson House: Matt Deres, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Castle Kilbride: Tudor Costache, CC BY 2.5, Wikimedia Commons
- McCrae House: TheGiantVermin, CC BY 2.5, Wikimedia Commons
- Wellington County House of Industry and Refuge: Tudor Costache, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Adelaide Hunter Hoodless Homestead: Yoho2001, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).