Road trip from Toronto

Terry,
It looks like you have a month. How about driving to Quebec Province for half of that time? The drive from Toronto to Montreal is about 6 hours. Montreal and Quebec City have tons to offer. I haven't done much research on it, but there should be some scenic routes between Toronto and Montreal (e.g. Lake Ontario, St. Lawrence Seaway, 1000 Islands).

P.S.
You could leave the car in Montreal and take a train back to Toronto. It is about 5 hours I believe.

Toronto is a large Cosmopolitan City with population of abt. 3,000,000. If you get Netlfix, you can see the show "Kim's Convenience" which takes place there. It is very funny! If you like cities: I would go to Quebec City and Montreal.

What are your interests? There are lots of things to see and do outside of Toronto. Toronto is sprawling city.
It's a good time to visit - maybe, the worst of the summer humidity will be gone.
There are lots of wineries in the Niagara region and many of them have good restaurants.
Take note that the first Monday of September is Labour Day, a statutory holiday, so only major tourist attractions will be open.

I recommend visiting Ottawa, Montreal and Quebec City at a minimum.
2 days in Ottawa, 3 in Montreal and 3 in QC.

In the Niagara region you might want to look at staying in Niagara on the lake. It is a pretty town, about 30 minutes from Niagara Falls. It is a nice drive between the two. Personally i would want a car to explore the Niagara region a bit, so would maybe consider picking up your car there.
My family. live in Toronto and like the Prince Edward Country area. If you do decide to drive to Ottawa, Montreal etc it would be a good halfway stop for you. Kingston and the Thousand Islands is another nice spot to consider.

You mention that you don't like driving in cities. I'm not sure how you feel about busy highways, but the area around the Toronto airport is very busy, and highway 401 can be extremely busy in the section that stretches across Toronto ( and it is 18 lanes across at spots) Our itineraries suggesting going to the east will involve driving on this most likely. You would want to avoid rush hour. There are trains between the major cities, but you could also potentially look at flying Porter from Toronto Island airport if you do decide that Montreal is a priority.

If I were you, I would rent right from Toronto airport, and head first to Niagara on the Lake. Driving from the airport is easy as its on the western outskirts of Toronto, easy access to highway to the west to get to Niagara. You will want a car in the Niagara region to visit the town, wineries, Niagara Falls, Welland Canal and all the beautiful sights of the Niagara peninsula.

Other good road trips from Toronto include Cottage Country (Gravenhurst, Parry Sound, Muskoka); and Kingston, Really you could throw a dart at southern Ontario and Quebec and find a great place to drive.

Thanks - probably ok on highways etc - although never seen anything this big though but have drove around vegas , phoenix etc . Doing some more research today including the possibillity of we hire car say in toronto area then train up to say quebec - hire car if needed then return via montreal and do the same so we mix it up. Just need to look though whats in the middle of each of these cities to see if maybe just drive all the time and stop. Traditionally it will be me driving as wife never that keen on the alternative side of car and road. Looked at one way hire but they always seem extorsionate. Its just always hard planning trips across in this area due to size and distances involved.

Terry,
Oh my yes to Niagara Falls! We spent a week in upstate New York and were blown away by the Falls. If you include that part of Ontario province in your trip you will not regret it. We had been a bit snobby about the Falls, thinking they were just a touristy, kitschy place. But they were so magnificent and impressive that we recommend them to everyone. We spent 2 1/2 days on the New York side, but went to the Canadian side also. They are very much worth a 2 day stop to see them from all angles, above and below and every side. I hope you can include them in your trip.

In September we drove from Chicago for a long weekend (weekend after Labor Day) in Niagara. We rented a private home in Thorold, just south of Saint Catherine's, which saved us a ton of money on hotels. If you only want to see the Niagara Parks sights, and don't get sticker shock, the dedicated bus system is very good. With 3 full days we were able to see all the top sights and a few others. We also had time for several wineries. Labor Day weekend is the end of tourist season, so although there were lines and crowds on Sat-Sun, locals said it was much less than previously, and on Monday there weren't crowds or lines anywhere. With more time, we would have explored Saint Catherine's and Niagara on the Lake and gone to more wineries!

After lots of research and talks with a friend who's a frequent visitor to Toronto (she has close family there), I decided to skip Toronto. OTOH if we'd had a month, we'd surely have spent a good chunk of it in Quebec province. I would also have liked to go to Ottawa, because world capitals are always interesting.

In the Niagara region you might want to look at staying in Niagara on the Lake

Highly recommend NOTL as well. Let's you enjoy the falls without the carnival-ish atmosphere. Old British town vibes w/ a few pubs. Plenty of wineries and a great bike trail down the river. Fort George has fun interactions and reenactments.

We drove to Toronto as part of a road trip but kept the car parked the whole time and took public transit everywhere. Montreal has a great subway system as well.

If you are considering staying in Niagara on the Lake (highly recommend) make sure to look for accommodations early. They have many beautiful B&Bs and hotels and it’s just a lovely town. It can be quite busy and get booked up because of the Shaw Festival with 3 theater venues around town presenting plays by George Bernard Shaw and his contemporaries. Excellent productions if you have any interest in that.

You can visit places large and small by train from Toronto. Brockville, Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec City. May take a little strategizing, but if you rent a car from the outskirts of Montreal or Quebec City (to minimize your city driving) you can do some rural visiting in the Eastern Townships or up to Mont Tremblant. Later September should give you autumn colour.
If you like Louise Penny stories, they take place in the Eastern Townships and there are maps of the inspirational locations for Three Pines. If you are lucky, you'll bump into Louise at one of the shops.

Another person commented that post Labour Day is the end of the tourist season. It's the end, sort of, of the "cottage season" where people travel to their summer homes. "Cottage country" is anywhere, generally 2-3 hours to the north, northwest and northeast of Lake Ontario. There will still be a lot of traffic on major highways (401, 400, 403 - Queensway) as people go away for the weekend.

Just so you are aware some major highways may/will have ongoing maintenance/construction with lane reduction in sections. I'm sure it's not an exclusive Canadian joke - we have two seasons - winter and road construction (spring to early December) - the roads get pot holes from the early spring thaw and freeze cycle and the 401 has perpetual maintenance and expansion of the the express lanes due to urban sprawl in the Greater Toronto (Hamilton) Area (GT(H)A)

If it were me, I’d skip going straight to Niagara. After a long flight, Toronto is easier to ease into, and Niagara is an easy side trip later
Start in Toronto (3–4 nights total, split start/end): Use transit, no car. Recover from jet lag, see neighborhoods, waterfront, museums.
Niagara Falls / Niagara-on-the-Lake (2 nights): Go later by GO train + bus or FlixBus; no need for a car here.
Pick up the car after leaving Toronto and head east or north:
Ottawa (2–3 nights): Pleasant, walkable, very different feel from Toronto.
Algonquin Provincial Park (3–4 nights): Excellent for lakes, wildlife, and easy hikes.
Kingston / Thousand Islands (1–2 nights): Great break between cities and parks.
Return car outside downtown Toronto and finish your last days in the city
Late Aug/Sept is ideal for this plan: fewer crowds, great weather, and fall color starting late September.