Stratford Chocolate Trail is an indulgent Ontario road trip

Here’s a sweet experience you can enjoy all year long: check out the Stratford Chocolate Trail! It offers a fun and delicious way to explore this unique Ontario city, whether or not you’re a certified chocoholic. Bring your best walking shoes and find out for yourself just how much chocolate (and more!) Stratford has to offer.

We explored the Stratford Chocolate Trail as part of a media visit hosted by Destination Stratford. Have questions about planning your own Stratford road trip? Join our Facebook community!

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What is the Stratford Chocolate Trail?

The Stratford Chocolate Trail is a program that invites visitors to explore destinations around the city. For $39.55 tax in, you’ll receive six vouchers redeemable for chocolatey treats at more than two dozen locations in and around Stratford.

My partner and I explored the Stratford Chocolate Trail together, so we had six vouchers each. This is a fantastic approach since together you can share the treats explore more participating businesses. Each person is permitted to use one voucher per stop. How you tailor the program to your own interests is entirely up to you!

If you’re not so into chocolate, Stratford also offers the Bacon & Ale Trail featuring combinations of bacon and local beer, as well as the seasonal Savour & Sip Trail. Each has a similar voucher and pricing structure.

Our favourite stops on the Stratford Chocolate Trail

Stratford is a very walkable city. If you’re taking part in any of the visitor trails, it makes sense to plan at least part of your visit around downtown Stratford. Most of the retailers there are within easy strolling distance of one other.

We chose to stay entirely downtown during our visit. These are the ones that emerged as our favourites.

Rheo Thompson Candies

If there’s one stop on the Stratford Chocolate Trail you absolutely cannot miss, it’s Rheo Thompson Candies. Generations of Stratford visitors and locals alike have been making this popular chocolate shop a tradition since 1969.

One Stratford Chocolate Trail voucher is good for four handmade pieces of chocolate from their enormous a la carte display case. You’ll find creams, caramels, barks, and specialty chocolates to choose from. Opt for their famous Mint Smoothie, or pick your favourites from the dozens of other selections!

Poppin Kettle Corn

At Poppin Kettle Corn, the hand-popped kettle corn is so good we couldn’t help but come back for seconds! We each picked up a bag of their Stratford Chocolate Trail popcorn flavours, Decadent Chocolate Cherry and Chocolate Banana. (But if there’s another flavour in the same size that appeals to you, just ask. You can often make a switch!)

Blowes Cards and Gifts

Picture the most traditional small-town Ontario gift shop you can think of, and you’ll have an idea of what to expect at Blowes Cards and Gifts. This family-owned store has been operating in downtown Stratford since 1949. It offers a variety of giftable items, along with cards and wrapping paper to complete the package. With our Stratford Chocolate Trail voucher, we picked up four packages of Gourmet Village hot chocolate to take home.

Distinctly Tea

Distinctly Tea claims to have the freshest and most extensive collection of teas in all of North America. Having visited ourselves, we believe it! There are shelves upon shelves of premium teas in all sorts of flavours and varieties.

For the Stratford Chocolate Trail, three different chocolate teas are available: black, rooibos (caffeine-free, from the leaves of a South African shrub), or yerba maté (a caffeinated tea made from a plant native to South America). We found a small bag of black tea and took it to the counter, only to discover our voucher was good for a larger 50-gram bag of looseleaf tea instead!

Olive Your Favourites

When you first walk into Olive Your Favourites, you’ll be surrounded by carafes full of exotic olive oils and vinegars from around the world. The friendly staff will be more than happy to guide you through some samples and help you find your ideal products.

Located on picturesque York Street next to the Avon River, this unique shop is in the process of being transferred to a second generation of family ownership. Stop in with a Stratford Chocolate Trail voucher and you’ll receive a bottle of chocolate balsamic vinegar. We can’t wait to follow their advice and try it drizzled over ice cream!

neōb lavender

The alluring aroma of neōb lavender will lure you in off the street even if you’re not in search of chocolate. As a satellite location of the Niagara-on-the-Lake based producer of essential oils and personal care products, there are plenty of beautiful and fragrant products to explore.

If it’s chocolate you’re searching for, this one’s for the white chocolate lovers. Present your Stratford Chocolate Trail voucher and you’ll receive a decadent bar of premium white chocolate infused with lavender and lemon.

Small-Mart

If you’re into all things retro, kitsch, and novelty, you need to visit Small-Mart General Mercantile. Created by the people behind Bradshaws — which itself is a Stratford institution — a browse through this shop may tickle a memory of walking through a store that was considered “it” during the 1990s.

This is one of those places to start your gift buying search for the person who has everything. If you visit with a Stratford Chocolate Trail voucher, you’ll get to select two retro chocolate bars from the special stash they keep behind the cash register.

Other options on the Stratford Chocolate Trail

There’s something for every taste along the Stratford Chocolate Trail. At Black Angus Bakery, you’ll receive an eight-piece sample pack of their chocolate squares. Junction 56 Distillery will offer up a 50 mL bottle of their chocolate liqueur. Black Swan Brewing will pour you a glass of their chocolatey porter, or you can grab a can to go. Receive a box of chocolate saltwater taffy at Corner Store Candy Co. And these are just a few of the great options in Stratford!

If you’d like to hop in the car and explore the surrounding region, you can also check out The British Touch and Chok Fine Chocolates in Shakespeare, or The Chocolate Factory and Snapping Turtle Coffee Roasters in St. Mary’s, among others. Stratford Chocolate Trail vouchers can be used on different days and don’t expire. Save some to use on your way home, or put them away for your next visit!

Make a weekend of your visit to the Stratford Chocolate Trail

While you’re stuffing your face with chocolate, there’s plenty more to check out in Stratford! Here are some great reasons to extend your stay into a weekend visit.

Catch a flick at the Little Prince Micro-cinema

Stratford’s Little Prince Micro-cinema is a 12-seat theatre that holds the Guinness world record for being the smallest operating movie theatre on the planet!

Book a private showing for your family or group, or plan a romantic movie night for two. If booking in advance isn’t your thing, the theatre sometimes hosts public showings in between its private events. Find out what’s on during your visit at their website. Leave room for the fresh movie theatre popcorn, multiple flavours of cotton candy, and retro snacks and treats!

Explore the bar and restaurant scene

Stratford is packed with great places to enjoy a delicious meal, a microbrew, or a cocktail. Here are a few of our favourites:

• Black Swan Brewing for its unique microbrews
• The Starlight, a cozy cocktail bar
• The historic Boar’s Head Pub in the Queen’s Inn (closed for renovations until summer 2025)
• Bluebird Restaurant and Bar, a bistro-style restaurant with an immaculate vibe
• Mercer Kitchen, a modern beer hall with delicious Asian-inspired dishes
• Café Bouffon, a French bistro with legendary brunch selections

Check out Lights On Stratford

If you’ll be taking a winter road trip to Stratford in late December or early January, add Lights On Stratford to your itinerary. Stratford’s annual winter festival of lights fills the city with colourful lights and art installations!

Try your luck at finding Stratford’s speakeasy

Full disclosure: we haven’t yet done this successfully. We’ve only heard a rumour that if you’re in downtown Stratford and spot an unassuming-looking door with an orange light on next to it, you should knock and see what happens. Apparently, they’re slinging some fantastic cocktails in there. We’ll definitely report back if we ever solve this mystery!

Make your visit special with a stay at the Parlour Inn

A stay at the Parlour Inn will transport you back in time. This historic hotel has been a mainstay of downtown Stratford since 1871. Its central location is reason enough to choose it, but the boutique atmosphere, warm and cozy guest rooms, and premium-level amenities will keep you coming back. And you might be pleasantly surprised, as we were, to find very reasonable rates during the off-season.

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