Toronto has numerous museums, shopping places, and entertainment zones. It will make your trip to the city worthwhile. Still, there are some things to do in Toronto that you should definitely check out during your vacation in Canada. The CN Tower, Lake Ontario, Art Gallery of Ontario, Ripley's Aquarium of Canada, Toronto Islands, Royal Ontario Museum, are some of the places you must visit in Canada.
The city gets covered in snow, a lot of snow! It is worth visiting Canada to see snowfall that you don't really have in other countries. You may need winter coats and snow boots which you CAN buy in Toronto. Toronto is really a big city life, en par with NYC, LA really. City delights and snow, you really must add it to your travel plans if you can.
Many countries don't need any visa to visit Canada for tourism only purposes and Canadians are very friendly and welcoming. You can find Everything you desire in the City obviously! Skiing, snowboarding might be a train ride away or drive out of the City, but only 40 minutes away. Don't forget to visit Niagara Falls too.
Moreover, this capital city of Ontario Province is a multicultural city. Chinese, Koreans, Greek, and Italians form a part of the main population. Check the following recommended places for your trip to Toronto. If you’re more of a city person than a go-out-in-the-middle-of-nowhere person, then Toronto is the best place to go in Canada.
Toronto is one of the largest cities in North America and BBC radio named Toronto the most multicultural city in the world. Despite its size and diversity, it still has a local Canadian charm to it and is very safe. And if you get a chance, visit the CN tower, the largest free-standing structure in the western hemisphere:
1. Toronto City Hall
The city has a couple of buildings such as City Hall or City Hall (in English). The first is the oldest and very close is currently. A couple of curved buildings where you can enter a part of its rooms for free to discover its history a bit. It also hosts the Toronto International Film Festival.
Take a walk along Ossington street at night: The stretch between Dundas and Queen may be an equivalent to New Orleans’ Bourbon street. It has restaurants and cafes of any kind you can imagine - Cuban, Mexican, Russian, African, Indian, Canadian etc. On top of that, there are trendy galleries and craft shops, ice cream joints and a lovely place called Bobby Sue where they make Mac and Cheese.
Take a bike ride or skate along the Humber river: Start North on Finch and go down towards the lake or start at the lake and go up towards Finch. Either option is incredibly scenic and lovely, you will meet tons of geese along the way, potentially deer and raccoons.
Go to Toronto islands, but immediately leave all the touristy places and head straight to Toronto Island Marina.
There is a bar called Upper Deck with amazing atmosphere, cheap food and drinks, and occasional rock concerts. The skyline at dusk or at night is to die for. Toronto probably has the best live music scene in the country.
If you like jogging, take a run at Mount Pleasant cemetery: This cemetery is very old, rusty and beautiful with ridiculously old trees and amazing creepy Gothic mausoleums. They should be included in your Toronto itinerary while travelling Canada.
2. Distillery district
Discover the most popular place in Toronto for a fun outing. Within an environment of an old industrial factory are trendy bars and cafes. Designer shops, seating areas, good food and vintage-style photographs are some of the attractions of the Distillery District. Formerly a whiskey distillery, the largest in the world in 1860, it is now a very picturesque area where you can do various activities.
Located in Downtown Toronto, it is a historic national site of Canada preserved for the enjoyment of locals and visitors. This area is a set of old Victorian industrial buildings that were transformed into restaurants, cafes, art galleries, clothing and decorative stores. In the Distillery district you can enjoy a walk to admire the architecture and details that are maintained to recreate the time when it was operating as a distillery.
Everything is decorated in a vintage style with an industrial touch, so you will surely take some great photos. Take your time to visit some stores as there are some very famous ones like Desigual and Canadian stores. There is a street where you can see a large Love sign with many locks, one of the most photographed places.
You can find some restaurants, cafes and pubs throughout the Distillery district, one of the most emblematic places is the Mill St. Brewery where you can enjoy a good beer. And if it is a dessert there is the famous Cacao 70 and SOMA, where chocolate is king. It's a good time to enjoy the kind of food you can get in Toronto during your trip.
In summer you can feel good atmosphere because the terraces of these places are at their best. However, at Christmas time the appeal is completely different and unique too. So no matter the time of year in Toronto, this place is a must see.
3. Ripley Aquarium
Live a Canadian marine adventure from the Toronto Ripley Aquarium that features modern facilities and an interesting number of species. It is a visit for all types of travelers through 9 rooms with different marine environments. The proximity and the level of detail is impressive. This aquarium is part of the Ripley amusement group, believe it or not!
It has another headquarters from the city of Niagara falls in Canada, where the famous Niagara Falls are located. This is a recommended place especially to visit with children, where you will discover about 13 thousand marine species of various types. The place is composed of nine galleries where you can enjoy these species in their habitats as natural as possible.
The Toronto Ripley Aquarium preserves the life of animals. You will have fun in each gallery because the truth is surprising to know the marine life so close. More than one will be impressed. The highlight of the Canadian waters area is the diversity of marine fauna that you can really find in the great and famous Canadian lakes.
The impressive part of the Dangeours lagoon is the largest area of all with its transparent roof tunnel where you can see sharks and others swimming over you. Also discover very closely the striped blanket in the Ray bay area, they are really impressive.
4. Casa Loma
This is a simply spectacular place. Casa Loma is a large castle full of works of art and history. Immerse yourself in a walk where you will know the history of its former owners, its architecture, gardens and even secret passages. Discover the corners of Casa Loma, a place that was converted into a museum. Imposing and spectacular.
For the type of attraction it is one of the places you must visit during your trip to Toronto. It is not a common museum, it is quite interactive. Home of billionaire Henry Pellatt, but after going bankrupt because of the high maintenance costs of the house many years later it becomes a museum.
This is an interesting place from the outside, its neo-Gothic architecture enchants more than one, so enjoy taking photos at various angles outside. At the entrance the person who will receive you will give you a team with headphones to make the visit at your own pace. You just have to be guided by the map and listen to the audio in each place.
The audios will reveal important data of the life of the millionaire, as well as artistic details of each area of the house. You can listen to the entire visit only in English and French. Do not miss the opportunity to discover the tunnels that are built internally (as is a movie) and the gardens that are really spectacular.
If you have a chance for a coffee or a dessert, do not miss the opportunity to sit in the Liberty cafe right on one of the terraces, especially if you travel with good weather in Toronto.
5. Royal Ontario Museum
The emblem museum of Toronto, we are facing the cultural icon of the city. Initially a spectacular facade will welcome you to a great place. The Royal Ontario Museum houses exhibits of natural history of great value to mankind, such as the sections of Egyptian and other dinosaur works.
6. Ontario art gallery
We are in front of the representation of art in Toronto, the Art Gallery of Ontario houses works of contemporary art. See an interesting variety of works made by Canadian and international artists. Facilities very well achieved.
7. St. Lawrence Market
This is Toronto's most famous market both for its architecture and for the variety of local products found within it. Located in the downtown of the city, the St. Lawrence market becomes a very central point to visit and what to do in Toronto. It is easily recognizable thanks to its vintage style architecture both outside and inside. A large sign identifies it as St. Lawrence market.
Recognized by the National geographic as the best food market in the world. This market means a lot to locals, in the environment you feel the conviviality and harmony between vendors and visitors. It is a meeting place within one of the most picturesque neighborhoods in Toronto. From its entrance you can enjoy the great variety of fruits, vegetables, meats, cheeses and more foods of Canadian and international culture.
This visit connects you with the heart of Toronto, which is why we consider it the unmissable activities in the city. All workers will speak to you in English. We recommend doing this visit during one morning and you can give yourself a taste to try some of the food while you walk during the place. Within the market you can pay in cash, debit or credit cards, everything depends on each seller.
Any place you choose to eat or drink will be worth it because they are all very clean, well maintained, friendly and helpful. Toronto’s signature meal is the peameal bacon sandwich, and you won’t find a fresher one anywhere else in the city because pretty much all the peameal in the city goes through the Carousel Bakery.
8. Roger center
Toronto is the mecca of sports in Canada, proof of this is a visit to the Roger center, home of the Toronto Blue Jays. Enjoy a game of baseball or just admire this spectacular and famous place. It is one of the things to do in Toronto especially if you are a sports lover. Toronto is known as the sports city of Canada, so between the Center Rogers and the Hockey Hall of Fame, you can have plenty of fun.
The center offers its visitors a tour to tour its facilities when there are no games planned on the day. They are usually during the day. On this walk you can explore several levels of the place and discover the greatness that it saves for its visitors. Getting to the Rogers Center is not very difficult if you are staying at one of the nearby hotels.
9. Kensington Market
It is a set of streets where you can find local clothes, accessories for your home, fruits, coffees. It is the bohemian area so art and culture are everywhere. Part of the experience at the Kensington Market is walking and discovering corners of this place, where you can also take some beautiful photos.
10. Yonge-Dundas Square
Fran’s, a diner style restaurant has pretty much been here forever. This is the College Street location, just west of Yonge. There are two others, both near Yonge Street. It’s always open and is popular for the late night crowd. Barbarian’s Steak House looks like on some distant side street, but it’s two blocks from the Eaton Centre.
11. CN Tower
The CN Tower is the main tourist attraction of the city. CN Tower is the tallest tower in Toronto, known as the city's main icon. We are in front of the most visited tourist place in Toronto, so it is undoubtedly part of our top 10 of the unmissable walks in the city. Located in the Downtown, it is an extremely central attraction and point of reference for many people in Toronto.
The CN Tower is the fifth tallest tower in the world and the tallest in America, with 553 meters high. From the lowest part to the top is a spectacle, mainly to admire the city to its fullest, regardless of the weather in Toronto. Visiting this place is about going up to an elevator that will take you to the levels according to the type of entrance you have.
Then, in each place you will appreciate the view of Toronto, Lake Ontario and the entire harbor. It has a 360 degree view. For those who love extreme activities, the CN Tower offers at certain times and dates a walk called Edgewalk. Of course, the cost of making the Edgeywalk includes access to all other levels of the CN tower.
If you want to live a different experience we recommend a meal at the top of the tower from the 360 restaurant. They serve lunch and dinner by schedule, so it is advisable to call to reserve. For diners who purchase a menu in the restaurant, they may have access to the Belveder area and the glass floor of the CN Tower.
The tower is a bit remote - it’s not close to transit and it’s about a 15 minute walk to it from Union Station. It’s not easy to reach from King Street because the railway tracks are in the way, although there is a bridge from Front Street to the tower. It’s on the other side of the Convention Centre. However, the Skyway from Union Station is the easiest way to get there.
It’s not terribly cheap to go up, and once you do you won’t want to leave quickly. The main observation deck is really large so it takes a while to go around. In addition, there’s an upper deck, but it’s smaller and can be more crowded, and you have to take a separate elevator. Of course, although there are emergency stairs, you probably want to take the elevators for all the trips.
If you’re really brave, you can spend the $100 or so to walk around the outside of the lower observation deck. Don’t worry, you’re on a cable. If you’re going, you should take in Ripley’s Aquarium, which is right next to it. There’s also an entertainment complex to the south and Rogers Centre in case the Jays are playing. Afterwards, head up Spadina Avenue for Chinatown and Kensington Market.
The world’s first interprovincial zipline allows riders to experience the best of both worlds. And what a way to travel between provinces, swinging across the river at up to 50 kilometres per hour with a killer 360-degree view of Parliament, the Chaudière Falls and a host of abandoned factory buildings to peer through the window of, like you’re looking back on a chunk of history.
