With a world of amazing travel photos at our fingertips on social media, sometimes we overlook the wonders of the world in our own backyards.
A new study has analyzed Instagram hashtags to determine the "Most Instagrammable" cities in Canada.
Are you surprised to learn that Toronto tops the list as Canada's most Instagrammable city?
The hashtag #toronto has exceeded over 55.6 million posts. Other popular hashtags related to the city are #torontocity, with over 113,000 posts and #torontocityvibes, with over 19,000 posts.
The posts on Instagram that use the hashtag #toronto often display the city's dynamic skyline during sunrise or sunset over Lake Ontario.
The second most Instagrammable city according to the survey is Vancouver. There are over 26 million posts using #vancouver as well as 45,000 using #vancouvercity. Most of the images shared using #vancouver are shots highlighting the contrast between the modern skyscrapers and majestic mountains that overlook the city. They also reveal Vancouver's nearby lakes and waterfalls.
Montreal is Canada's third most Instagrammable city, amassing over 20 million hashtags on the platform for #montreal. Montreal is widely known for being a culturally diverse destination with an incredible variety of restaurants - the highest number of restaurants per capita in Canada - making foodie photos de rigeur.
Calgary ranks Canada's fourth most Instagrammable city. The city's popularity on Instagram is proven, with #calgary surpassing over 8.7 million posts. Of course it's the gateway to some of Canada's most spectacular Rocky Mountain national parks.
Ottawa, Edmonton, Winnipeg and Mississauga and Brampton ON come in at numbers 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9 respectively on the list of the 10 most Instagrammable cities in Canada.
Here's perhaps the only surprise on the list: the final city finishing off the rankings as the tenth most Instagrammable city in Canada is Quebec City, with #quebeccity amassing 1.3 million posts.
That's astonishing considering that the Fairmont Chateau Frontenac, which dominates the city skyline, is considered the most photographed hotel in the world, due in no small part to the city's popularity as Europe away from Europe for Canadian and North American visitors and a fast-growing cruise port.
The only explanation can be a 'hometown advantage' for cities which may have fewer charms for visiting travellers, but simply more proud residents posting what they love about their towns, muddying the distinction between destinations' social media popularity among locals vs tourists. The population of Mississauga, for example is over 800,000, compared to just over 500,000 living in Quebec City.
On the other hand, Quebec City ranks 6th most-visited Canadian city, behind Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Niagara and Calgary, with Brampton, Mississauga, Winnipeg and Edmonton not cracking that top-ten list.
Which only proves yet again how deceptive social media can be.
