My wife is working on some vacation ideas, including a likely car trip from PA to Toronto after stopping at Niagara Falls. I would love to hear about any can’t miss activities for us and our 18 year old twin girls. Also, any ideas on hotels would be welcome, including thoughts on staying downtown and spending more versus staying outside the city (maybe near the airport) as a more affordable option.
The CN tower is cool if you’re not afraid of heights. They have a section of glass floor…
I tend to stay anywhere but downtown. Airport area in Missasauga and Etobicoke is good, York and Midtown is good, Markham/Richmond Hill is good (for me anyhow). You probably want to either stay by the airport or Midtown, it will save you money. I don’t see a need to stay in the downtown area.
ROM and Ontario Science Center are cool places to visit, and Ontario Place is a great place to hang out to see everything. If you stay in Midtown the University of Toronto is close by.
We loved the hockey hall of fame. You have 2 girls so maybe not! My daughter actually tolerated it well for the day! Love Toronto! We stayed downtown, I think maybe I found the place on VRBO? We were definitely on a budget and it was cheaper than staying closer to the falls.
My wife & I visited a few years ago.
We stayed at a downtown hotel. But did not have kids with us, which makes lodging more expensive presumably. From there we could walk around a bit which was nice.
The aquarium is pretty good, I thought- for an aquarium.
If they are on the way there or back, you might stop off somewhere in the NYS Finger lakes. I particularly like Ithaca. Your girls might like it too. There are gorgeous state parks ringing the area, with beautiful views and hiking trails; theater in Ithaca and Cortland; and more. You can get some Rieslings from someplace on the Finger Lakes Wine Trail.
It depends what type of things you want to do. I would recommend staying downtown and as many of the things you’ll likely want to do are easily accessible and you have easy access to public transit. Do not stay out in the wasteland by the airport. Why anyone who wanted to visit Toronto would stay in Markham or Richmond Hill is beyond me!
U of T’s campus is beautiful:
https://www.utoronto.ca/
Great eclectic shops along Queen St.
https://www.seetorontonow.com/shopping/shopping-in-queen-west-the-hippest-of-the-haute/
Lots of interesting museums:
https://www.rom.on.ca/en
https://www.gardinermuseum.on.ca/visit/
http://batashoemuseum.ca/
https://ago.ca/visit/tourist-information
https://www.hhof.com/
https://www.agakhanmuseum.org/
https://www.ontariosciencecentre.ca/
Other attractions:
https://www.thedistillerydistrict.com/ (highly recommend)
https://www.ripleyaquariums.com/canada/
http://www.highparktoronto.com/
http://www.torontozoo.com/
https://www.torontoisland.com/
https://www.cntower.ca/en-ca/home.html
http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/
http://toronto-chinatown.info/
Toronto theatre: (the second largest theatre community in N.A. after NY)
https://www.toronto-theatre.com/
Canadian National Exhibition:
https://theex.com/
Sports:
https://www.mlb.com/bluejays
https://www.torontofc.ca/
https://www.argonauts.ca/
That’s just a taste of what Toronto has to offer. If you can provide a bit more information about what you and your family like to do, I’m happy to share some more detailed information. I’ve lived here for 45+ years.
We loved visiting Casa Loma and had an amazing meal at Canoe in the financial district.
Markham is where there are all things Asian plus it’s close to where I had a field office.
We went to Toronto island via the ferry one afternoon while we were there. Very relaxing - beautiful afternoon. Took a picnic lunch with us. Rented bikes and rode all around the island. Relaxed near the fountain. We still have great memories of that afternoon!
I found a list my wife sent me of places we might want to go on our trip, but I don’t remember where we actually went. Except the aquarium (which wasn’t listed).
So FWIW, here’s the pre-visit list she sent me:
Fort York national historic site
Royal Ontario Museum
St Lawrence Market and Gallery
Toronto City Hall
Toronto Zoo
Royal Botanical Gardens
Casa Loma
High Park
I remember we did check out various neighborhoods and shopping areas.
Which might have impressed more if we actually wanted to buy anything, or weren’t from NYC. YMMV.
Thanks to everyone who took the time to post thus far. I have a lot of resources to go through now. Generally when we travel, we like to take advantage of what makes the place unique, especially the charming areas, ideally that are easy to get to. We’re all pretty adventurous eaters, as well, and enjoy museums or boat tours that aren’t ridiculously expensive when water’s involved.