Condé Nast Traveler has published its 2026 Readers' Choice Awards ranking for Eastern Canada, and the shortlist runs to twenty properties. The list is compiled entirely from reader votes, so it reflects where actual travellers — not critics — say they've had the best stays across the country's eastern half.

Geographically, "Eastern Canada" in these rankings covers a lot of ground. Think the historic old towns of Quebec City and Montreal, Toronto's downtown and boutique scene, the capital in Ottawa, and the Atlantic provinces — Halifax, St John's and the resort pockets of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island. The top 20 spans that whole range, from grand city landmarks to smaller inns and country retreats, which makes it a useful shortlist whether you're planning a city break or a road trip through the Maritimes.

A few things worth knowing about how these lists work. The Readers' Choice Awards are one of the longest-running consumer travel surveys in the industry, with hundreds of thousands of responses each year, and hotels are scored on factors like rooms, service, food and location. That means the Eastern Canada ranking skews toward places with established reputations and loyal repeat guests — the hotels people bother to vote for are usually the ones they'd book again.

Condé Nast Traveler has published a companion ranking for Western Canada too, covering Banff, Vancouver, Whistler and the Rockies, so if you're weighing the country's two halves against each other, the two lists can be read side by side. Both sit within the wider 2026 awards, which also name the best hotels in major cities, resorts and countries worldwide.

For anyone plotting a trip to Canada's east, a reader-voted list like this is a handy starting point: it saves you wading through hundreds of listings and points you at properties that have already passed the most demanding test — going back. The obvious way to use it is to match the hotels to the kind of trip you want. Quebec City and Montreal suit a food-and-history long weekend, Toronto works as a base for Niagara day trips, and the Atlantic picks pair naturally with a summer coastal drive through Nova Scotia or PEI. Check the full gallery on Condé Nast Traveler's site for the complete ranking and hotel details.

Story via Condé Nast Traveler.