Boat Cruise to Flowerpot Island + Things to Do There (2026)

Flowerpot Island is one of the most unique and distinct-looking islands in Canada, with its tall, flowerpot-shape rocks. It’s a tiny, uninhabited island in Georgian Bay, just north of the Bruce Peninsula.

Flowerpot Island has more than just the ‘flowerpot rocks’ its known for – there are wooden boardwalks, pebbled shorelines, hiking trails and even caves on the island.

Your options for visiting Flowerot Island are:

• Just admiring the island from one of the boat cruises (90 minute roundtrip tour from Tobermory)
• Spending 1-3 hours walking around on the island (via drop off option from one of the cruises)
• Camping overnight on the island

We chose to take a boat cruise with Bruce Anchor (one of two boat companies that take people to the island.) The first time, I only saw Flowerpot from the shoreline, as I had a toddler with me and didn’t think it would be safe or easy to explore the island alone with her. The second time, we got off the boat and spent time exploring it – which is what I’d recommend!

Flowerpot Island is beautiful, and like I said – offers more than just the rocks. It’s a great place to walk around, hike, spend time in nature and enjoy some gorgeous sights of the turquoise Georgian Bay. Let’s jump into how to get to Flowerpot Island, your options, and important things to know.

Choosing a Boat Cruise to Get to Flowerpot Island

The only ways to get to Flowerpot Island is to book a boat cruise with either Bruce Anchor, or Blue Heron.

Both companies have been operating for a long time. They both have glass-bottom boats (which you shouldn’t get too excited about, its just a small section on the boat, with people walking on it), with indoor and outdoor seating and overall, the experiences they offer are almost identical. The prices are also very similar. You can’t go wrong with either one.

I have only ever sailed with Bruce Anchor, but I know that Blue Heron is also a very reputable company worth considering as well. I believe your choice between the two mostly depends on where you’d prefer to board the cruise, as this is a big part of where they differ.

• The Blue Heron boarding area is right in Little Tub Harbour, the tourist hub of Tobermory. This makes it a bit more accessible and easy to get to since the boarding area is right where you’re likely to already be spending time anyway
• The Bruce Acnhor boarding area is less conveniently located, but is by far – the more picturesque one. The boarding area for Bruce Achor is right on the shoreline, with a view of Big Tub Harbour, the open bay and the lighthouse. It’s a beautiful panoramic view of the lake, and a lighthouse as you’re boarding the ship.

Ultimately, the two boarding areas aren’t far from eachother. You can walk to the Bruce Anchor boarding area above in about 10 minutes from where the Blue Heron one is located. It’s a really beautiful view and boarding area, and I always love getting on the boat there. Personally, I always go with Bruce Anchor – but like I said, both options will get you to and from the island and be comparable in service and price.

See Flowerpot from the boat, or get off and explore?

If you’d like to spend a few hours hiking and exploring Flowerpot Island, you’ll need to book a “DROP OFF” cruise option with either Bruce Anchor or Blue Heron. 

The “STAY ON” option will mean you see Flowerpot Island from the boat, but you don’t get off the boat to explore. You just stay on the boat, and take photos from the side. Usually, the boat will circle the island and give you an opportunity to admire it from all angles.

If you have anyone who has limited mobility or just doesn’t want to hike the island, then the STAY ON is still worth it. I did the Stay On option with young kids, before I felt comfortable bringing them onto the island.

The DROP-OFF option will give you 1-3 hours (depending on which option you select) on Flowerpot Island to hike, swim, picnic and admire the impressive, one-of-a-kind rock flowerpot rock stacks, the beach and the caves on the island.

If cost is an issue, then the Stay On option is also quite a bit cheaper than being dropped off on the island. The Drop Off option will likely cost $10-$20 extra per person. However, if this is your first time here, and the only time you’ll see it for a while, then I think its worth it to book the Drop Off option

Things to Keep in Mind about Exploring Flowerpot Island:

• There are no amenities on Flowerpot Island: no food, no electricity, running water or garbage cans. Bring lots of water with you, and a bag to bring back any garbage
• There are washrooms, but only compost washrooms
• It is not stroller friendly at all. I’ve seen people bring strollers, but they struggle because of the stairs, and uneven terrain. If you’re in Tobermory with a baby or toddler, then I recommend packing a carrier to explore Flowerpot with them
• Flowerpot Island is a sensitive piece of nature that they are working hard to preserve, so leave it better than you found it.
• 1 hour isn’t enough time to spend on the island if you want to swim and see the cave (pictured below.) We did 1 hour with our 3-year-old and didn’t have time for either- in fact, we just barely made it back to the ship on time. So, I recommend choosing the 2-3 hours option to have enough time to enjoy the island

How Long to Spend on Flowerpot Island

An hour is enough if you only want to see the Flowerpot Stacks and go for a nice walk.

But if you’d like to see the Lighthouse Station, do the entire loop trail, swim, or have a picnic – then I highly recommend spending 2-3 hours, or more.

Ultimate Packing List for Flowerpot Island

Things to See and Do on Flowerpot Island

After you get off Flowerpot Island, you will see a visitor information with compost toilets. This is one of only two bathrooms on the whole island. (The other ones are by the Lightstation, which is approximately 20-minute walk – more if you’re making lots of stops.)

1. Walk along the Loop Trail

Right at the area where the boat lets you off, is the start of a beautiful trail along the shoreline of the island, woods, and takes you past the Flowerpot Stacks. This is called The Loop Trail.

The Loop Trail is basically how you see everything on the Island. The entire trail is 3.5 km, and takes at least a couple hours to hike, plus stop for all the photos you’ll want to take.

Book as wide of a gap between your drop off and pick up time as you can if you want to do the entire Loop trail. (Otherwise, you’ll have to keep track of time and turn back around in time to get back for your return cruise.)

We selected 1 hour last time we went, and it wasn’t enough time at all -we had to run to get back to the boat in time for our return booking. So I recommend 2 or 3 hours on the island, especially if you’re visiting with kids (this definitely slowed us down.)

Here’s the approximate walking distance to things to see on the island:

• Flowerpot Stacks (there are two, one tall one, and one shorter one), they’re about a 15 minute walk from where the boat drops you off
• A cave, very close to where the large flowerpot is
• The historic lightstation, another 15 minute from the flowerpot stacks walk depending on your pace and how often you stop

I can’t say it enough times – wear good shoes, and bring water, as there are no filling stations on the island

2. Swimming

You’ll see lots of people swimming off the shores of Flowerpot Island. Sometimes they swim near the flowerpot stacks, but you can swim or wade in the water from many different places!

We don’t usually swim here but we always test the water a little bit. The water is chilly, even in the peak of summer – so bring towels to dry off after your swim.

3. Get photos in front of the flowerpot stacks

You can admire these cool flowerpot shape rock formations from many different angles when you’re on the island. You can pictures of the stacks from afar, but you’ll also see people getting right up close ot them.

I will say, Flowerpot Island, like many of the top attractions in Ontario – suffers from overtourism. So, it will be very tricky to get photos without other people in them.

Places like Flowerpot and the Grotto, there are people who do a million different poses without the regard of all the people waiting. Just be patient, share the beauty with all your fellow visitors, and try to be considerate of all the others hoping to get their shots.

The area surrounding the flowerpots is very wet, and can be slippery. Another reason to wear good shoes, and preferably waterproof ones.

4. See the cave

The cave is just a short walk from where the flowerpot stacks are. We were running late and missed seeing it on our last visit there (where we only spent 1 hour), but my husband saw the cave on one of his prior trips to Flowerpot.

There’s a staircase leading up to the cave, and then you can walk inside of it if you want – it’ll be very rocky, with large table size rocks. So good footware is ideal for this too.

5. Visit the historic lightstation

The Flowerpot Island Lightstation is along the pebbly shores of the eastern part of the island.

It consists of a few wooden buildings where you can learn about the history of the lighthouse of Flowerpot Island. I’ve never actually made it this far on the trail, due to having young kids with me. But if it interests you, there’s some detailed history about it in advance here.

6. Camp overnight

Camping on Flowerpot Island is a unique camping experience for those up for an adventure. You pitch your own tent, and fall asleep under the starry sky to the sounds of the Georgian bay lakes crashing onto the rocky shore.

Since Flowerpot Island is a part of a national park (Fathom Five National Marine Park), you book your camping through Parks Canada. You need to bring your own tent and water, (or purfier to drink water from the bay)

Camping on Flowerpot Island, in my opinion, is for experienced campers who know how to be prepared. You need to be able to function without electricity or running water.

Also, because of the location of the island, there’s a small chance that you can’t be picked up when planned and may need to spend an extra “day or two” on the island, according to the Parks Canada website. So, be prepared for that.

Final Thoughts on Flowerpot Island

Flowerpot Island is one of the most unique places I know of in Ontario, and definitely worth seeing. I hope that this guide helps you plan a great visit here!