Canada has it all. Quite literally. The world's second largest nation is home to huge mountains, lakes as large as countries, an Arctic archipelago, a vast network of National Parks – even a desert.

So how can you decide what to see? Check out the 15 best places to visit in Canada.

The sawtooth, white-topped mountains straddling the British Columbia–Alberta border inspire both awe and action.

Five national parks – Banff, Yoho, Kootenay, Waterton Lakes and Jasper – offer countless opportunities to delve into the wilderness, with hiking trails, rushing white water and powdery ski slopes.

The train provides another popular way to experience the grandeur: lakes, wildflowers and glaciers glide by as the cars chug up mountain passes and down river valleys en route to points east or west.

Québec's capital is more than 400 years old, and its ancient stone walls, spired cathedrals and jazz-filled corner cafes suffuse it with atmosphere, romance, melancholy and eccentricity.

The best way to soak it all up is to walk the old town's labyrinth of lanes and get lost amid the street performers and cozy inns, stopping every so often for a café au lait and flaky pastry.

It's also home to Québec’s honeymoon highway, Rte 132. Circling the Gaspé Peninsula, this road whisks puppy-eyed couples past the sea and the mountain with joie de vivre.

This ain't your average Canadian bay, though lighthouses, boats and trawlers, fishing villages and other maritime scenery surround it, with frequent landward sightings of deer and moose.

The unique geography of Fundy results in the most extreme tides in the world, reaching 16m (56ft), about the height of a five-story building.

They stir up serious whale food, with krill and other plankton attracting fin, humpback and blue whales here, as well as endangered North Atlantic right whales, making a whale-watch here a must-do.