Visiting Toronto

colmomto2 · July 3, 2010, 3:55pm

DD, DS, and I will be stopping in Toronto for an overnighter and a day. Can anyone recommend things we MUST see while we’re there? Given the short amount of time we have, I want to see the best Toronto has to offer. I know nothing about Toronto so all suggestions, ideas, and thoughts are welcomed.

Also, can anyone suggest a good, but not overly pricely hotel that is ideally situated as a home base for tourists? In other words, a good place to leave the car so we can walk around safely, see the sights, and catch public transportation to sites/venues.

abasket · July 3, 2010, 4:26pm

We visited two summers ago and stayed here and would stay again:

[The</a> Grand Hotel & Suites Toronto — Official Site](<a href=“http://www.grandhoteltoronto.com/index.htm]The”>http://www.grandhoteltoronto.com/index.htm)

[The</a> Grand Hotel & Suites Toronto — Photo Gallery](<a href=“http://www.grandhoteltoronto.com/photogallery.htm#]The”>http://www.grandhoteltoronto.com/photogallery.htm#)

I remember there was parking and I don’t think we were charged for it, but I don’t remember many of the parking details. I called and got a better price on the phone then online I think - $99/night! Room was very nice, breakfast buffet was wonderful and we ate it out on the lovely patio AND there is a sweet rooftop that has a couple of hot tubs and actually an outdoor movie screen and fantastic views of the city! (we bought/brought dessert back after dinner and ate it on the rooftop!)

As far as the city, we were there for a sporting event so only were able to do a little sightseeing - there is a nice walkway along the river that was very nice and an awesome mall!

abasket · July 3, 2010, 4:28pm

Oh, I wanted to say the ^^^ hotel was not along the riverwalk , but was only a five minute-ish or so walk to the heart of things.

colmomto2 · July 3, 2010, 8:30pm

Thanks, abasket. The hotel looks like what I was looking for. The rooftop looks fabulous. I went ahead and booked the hotel and will suprise DD and DS with the rooftop view. I didn’t get as good a deal as you did, but the price was reasonable.

Now, what do we do while we are in Toronto?

alwaysamom · July 3, 2010, 9:10pm

The Grand isn’t ideally located. All of Toronto is very safe compared to U.S. cities but that area on Jarvis is not great. What is your budget, colmom? And what kind of things do you like to do? Also, when are you visiting? There are a ton of different things going on each week during the summer, a few of which will have all hotels fully booked.

Toronto is a big theatre city with several choices of shows currently playing. If you like baseball, you can probably catch a Jays game at the Skydome/Rogers Centre. If you’re hockey fans, the Hockey Hall of Fame is in Toronto, located in a beautiful old building with many interesting exhibits. The waterfront in Toronto is lovely. By the way, it’s not a river. Toronto is located on Lake Ontario! There are many terrific galleries in the city, the best of which is the Art Gallery of Ontario. The Royal Ontario Museum is also a great place to see and is located on Bloor St. which is the high end shopping area of the city and bordering the University of Toronto. It’s a lovely campus to explore. There is a restored area of restaurants, theatre, shops called the Distillery District which is fun. You can take a ferry across to the Toronto Islands and rent bikes to explore the paths, beaches, etc. The CN Tower is one of the tallest free-standing structures in the world. There’s a restaurant and observation decks at the top. In addition to the sites in the city, there are hundreds of great restaurants of every description.

Here are you some links that you might find helpful. If you have any specific questions, feel free to ask. I’ve lived here for most of the past 35 years.

[toronto.com</a> - Toronto Restaurants, Events, Hotels, Attractions, Shopping, Movies, Bars, Clubs, Nightlife, City Guides](<a href=“http://www.toronto.com/]toronto.com”>http://www.toronto.com/)

[Experience</a> Ontario Place](<a href=“http://www.ontarioplace.com/]Experience”>http://www.ontarioplace.com/)

[City</a> of Toronto: Toronto Island Park](<a href=“Toronto Island Park – City of Toronto”>Toronto Island Park – City of Toronto)

[Yonge-Dundas</a> Square](<a href=“http://www.ydsquare.ca/]Yonge-Dundas”>http://www.ydsquare.ca/)

[Casa</a> Loma](<a href=“http://www.casaloma.org/]Casa”>http://www.casaloma.org/)

[Home</a> | AGO Art Gallery of Ontario](<a href=“http://www.ago.net/]Home”>http://www.ago.net/)

[The</a> Distillery Historic District](<a href=“http://www.thedistillerydistrict.com/]The”>http://www.thedistillerydistrict.com/)

[Royal</a> Ontario Museum | Tourism attraction for family fun, group tours & school visits in Toronto](<a href=“http://www.rom.on.ca/]Royal”>http://www.rom.on.ca/)

[Gardiner</a> Museum - Home Page](<a href=“http://www.gardinermuseum.on.ca/index.aspx]Gardiner”>http://www.gardinermuseum.on.ca/index.aspx)

[Mirvish.com[/url</a>]

[url=<a href=“http://www.dancaptickets.com/]Dancap”>http://www.dancaptickets.com/]Dancap</a> Productions Inc.](<a href=“http://www.mirvish.com/]Mirvish.com[/url”>http://www.mirvish.com/)

[Canadian</a> Stage](<a href=“Page Not Found / Canadian Stage”>http://www.canadianstage.com/)

[High</a> Park Toronto](<a href=“http://www.highparktoronto.com/]High”>http://www.highparktoronto.com/)

[Hockey</a> Hall of Fame - Visitor Information - Plan Your Visit](<a href=“http://www.hhof.com/html/gi01.shtml]Hockey”>http://www.hhof.com/html/gi01.shtml)

[Summerlicious</a> 2010](<a href=“http://www.toronto.ca/special_events/summerlicious/2010/index.htm]Summerlicious”>http://www.toronto.ca/special_events/summerlicious/2010/index.htm)

[City</a> of Toronto Special Events - Fresh Wednesdays](<a href=“http://www.toronto.ca/special_events/wednesdays/2010/index.htm]City”>http://www.toronto.ca/special_events/wednesdays/2010/index.htm)

[City</a> of Toronto Special Events - Tasty Thursdays](<a href=“http://www.toronto.ca/special_events/thursdays/2010/index.htm]City”>http://www.toronto.ca/special_events/thursdays/2010/index.htm)

[Honda</a> Indy Toronto - Honda Indy Toronto](<a href=“http://www.hondaindytoronto.com/]Honda”>http://www.hondaindytoronto.com/)

[Caribana</a> 2010 - Toronto Caribana](<a href=“Caribana Toronto”>http://www.caribanatoronto.com/)

[Pilaros</a> Taste of the Danforth in Toronto from Dine.TO](<a href=“Home - Greektown Toronto”>Home - Greektown Toronto)

[TheEx.com[/url</a>]

For hotels that are well-located, check and see if you can get a deal with any of these:

[url=<a href=“http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/yyzec-toronto-marriott-downtown-eaton-centre/]Hotels”>Hotels in Downtown Toronto, Canada | Marriott Downtown at CF Toronto]Hotels</a> in Downtown Toronto - Marriott Hotel in Downtown Toronto](<a href=“http://www.theex.com/]TheEx.com[/url”>http://www.theex.com/)

[Renaissance</a> Toronto Hotel Downtown: Attached to SkyDome-Rogers Centre, Close to the CN Tower, Metro Toronto Convention Centre, Ontario Place and Toronto’s Entertainment District](<a href=“http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/yyzbr-renaissance-toronto-downtown-hotel/]Renaissance”>http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/yyzbr-renaissance-toronto-downtown-hotel/)

<a href=“http://www.choicehotels.ca/toronto-hotel-comfort-ontario-CN228-en?cid=1398878[/url]”>http://www.choicehotels.ca/toronto-hotel-comfort-ontario-CN228-en?cid=1398878</a>

[Downtown</a> Toronto Hotels- Hyatt Regency Toronto- Hyatt Hotel Reservations](<a href=“http://www.torontoregency.hyatt.com/hyatt/hotels/index.jsp]Downtown”>http://www.torontoregency.hyatt.com/hyatt/hotels/index.jsp)

[Hotel</a> Victoria - Toronto Ontario Hotels - Downtown Hotels Toronto](<a href=“http://reservations.downtownhotelstoronto.com/hotel/10009267-10216645O.html?&rel=nofollow]Hotel”>http://reservations.downtownhotelstoronto.com/hotel/10009267-10216645O.html?&rel=nofollow)

[Novotel</a> Toronto Centre - Toronto Ontario Hotels - Downtown Hotels Toronto](<a href=“http://reservations.downtownhotelstoronto.com/hotel/10009267-11253167O.html?&rel=nofollow]Novotel”>http://reservations.downtownhotelstoronto.com/hotel/10009267-11253167O.html?&rel=nofollow)

[Pantages</a> Hotel Toronto Centre - Toronto Ontario Hotels - Downtown Hotels Toronto](<a href=“http://reservations.downtownhotelstoronto.com/hotel/10009267-11322571O.html?&rel=nofollow]Pantages”>http://reservations.downtownhotelstoronto.com/hotel/10009267-11322571O.html?&rel=nofollow)

[Metropolitan</a> Hotel Toronto - Toronto Ontario Hotels - Downtown Hotels Toronto](<a href=“http://reservations.downtownhotelstoronto.com/hotel/10009267-10208032O.html?&rel=nofollow]Metropolitan”>http://reservations.downtownhotelstoronto.com/hotel/10009267-10208032O.html?&rel=nofollow)

itsinreach · July 3, 2010, 9:17pm

Second City if you like comedy!

abasket · July 4, 2010, 12:18am

Yes, I know the lake is not a river! The “walk” part just reminds me of many river walks I’ve been on…

We were very satisfied with the hotel, but were also willing to be a few minutes from center of action - the hotel itself was beautiful, but still quaint.

Depends what you are looking for!

colmomto2 · July 4, 2010, 12:42pm

oooohhh . . . Thanks, alwaysamom. So far the Distillery History District and the Toronto Islands for biking seem to be the favs, but there are so many options to explore!

Since we are from the land of sunshine, we know nothing about hockey and would be lost in the Hockey Hall of Fame. lol (I have seen a cute animated short film called “The Sweater” which I think may sum up how Canadians feel about their hockey, though. Does that count? )

My best friend in high school lived in Toronto for three years before moving to my neck of the woods. She and her family LOVED Toronto and had nothing but nice things to say about it. I am very excited about visiting our neighbors to the north.

colmomto2 · July 4, 2010, 1:02pm

Here’s a question - Do I need to convert my cash to Canadian dollars, or do restaurants/shops take American dollars? (I feel so ignorant asking this question, but I’d like to know.)

alwaysamom · July 4, 2010, 1:11pm

colmom, yes, there are many, many fun things to do in the city. I listed only a few. All stores and restaurants will take your U.S. dollars (unlike the reverse in the U.S.) but you will get a more favorable exchange rate if you change your currency at a bank. Are you driving or flying in? There will be currency exchange booths at the airport if you have difficulty getting Canadian $$ at your local bank. Let me know if you have any other questions.

p.s. Don’t forget your passports!

colmomto2 · July 5, 2010, 6:15pm

So true. We drove through Canada two years ago (We didn’t stop to visit then. We are stopping this time!) and forgot DD’s passport. What a pain. We got stopped at the border, convinced the border guy we were related (not hard to do - all he had to do was look at us ), and finally were given permission to drive through. Turns out DD was afraid she wasn’t going to be allowed back in the US when we arrived back at the US border. Poor thing. She worried the whole time we were in Canada. No fears this time, the passports are ready to be packed!

Visiting Toronto

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