Haliburton, a small town in Haliburton County, Ontario, is a popular tourist destination full of beautiful lakes and cottages. Haliburton County is also known as the Haliburton Highlands, due either to its geographical similarity to the Scottish Highlands, or to the Scottish ancestry of the area's founders. The lakes and rivers in the area dominate, but there is also a thriving arts and cultural scene which also helps to make Haliburton a great destination for a family holiday. And with deals available on a host of rental homes in the region, it can be a surprisingly low cost trip!

About three hours drive out from Ottawa, or two hours away from Toronto, Haliburton offers a great opportunity for a laid back holiday - hiking around the lakes, fishing, generally relaxing. Those interested in a more active holiday can also take an ATV (all terrain vehicle) or go riding on horseback around trails in the area. If you go in the Winter, you can try your hand at cross country skiing or driving a snowmobile. The Haliburton Forest and Wildlife Park is also a major tourist attraction, and well worth exploring with the whole family. For keen shoppers, there is a thriving local trade in arts, crafts and antiques, and cinema fans will love the annual Haliburton International Film Festival each Summer. Other cultural events include Art in the Park and the Haliburton Highland Games. In Winter there's also the annual Haliburton Dogsled Races for more unusual entertainment!

There are a wide variety of lakeside rental homes available to rent in Haliburton on the shores of Lake Head, and elsewhere in the Haliburton Highlands, cabin and cottage rentals almost all come fully equipped with TVs, DVD players and broadband. The family friendly rural setting offers much more privacy and security than a city centre hotel, not to mention a huge amount more space for the kids to run around and let off steam without disturbing other tourists. Find a rental home for your holiday in this charming and beautiful corner of Ontario, and you'll have a fantastic low cost outdoor holiday which the whole family will really enjoy.