Ottawa is Canada's understated capital: a walkable riverside city of Gothic parliament buildings, world-class museums, a UNESCO-recognised canal and a food market scene that punches well above its political reputation.
Canada: Ontario – Toronto
Contents
1. About Toronto
2. Things to do
– Ascend the CN Tower
– Cruise Toronto Harbour and the Islands
– Walk the Scarborough Bluffs
– Take a Day Trip to Niagara Falls
– Watch the Sunset at Humber Bay Park
– Photograph the Toronto Sign at Nathan Phillips Square
– Tour Casa Loma
– Explore the Royal Ontario Museum
– Browse St Lawrence Market
– Wander the Distillery Historic District
3. Getting around
4. Vegan dining options
5. Best time to visit
6. Where to stay
About Toronto
🌆 Where the Future Meets the Past
Toronto is a sprawling waterfront metropolis on the northern shore of Lake Ontario, and it is Canada’s largest and most multicultural city by some distance. Rather than limestone karsts and rainforest, Toronto’s story is written in glass towers, converted Victorian warehouses and a patchwork of neighbourhoods where more than 160 languages are spoken — the city is regularly ranked among the most diverse in the world, a character that shows up on every street corner and in every kitchen.
Toronto’s skyline is dominated by the CN Tower, for decades the tallest freestanding structure in the world, but the real draw for most visitors is what sits below it: a waterfront dotted with islands and beaches, a compact and walkable downtown, and a restaurant scene shaped by immigrant communities from every continent. Away from the office towers, the city’s real charm lies in its neighbourhoods — the punk energy of Kensington Market, the genteel boutiques of Yorkville, and the converted Victorian-era distillery buildings turned café strips and galleries.
The name itself is believed to derive from the Mohawk word tkaronto, meaning “where there are trees standing in the water,” originally referring to the narrows between Lake Simcoe and Lake Couchiching well north of the modern city. Today, the CN Tower has become Toronto’s unofficial mascot, visible from almost anywhere in the city and lit up in different colours to mark festivals and causes throughout the year.
Things to do
Ascend the CN Tower
Cruise Toronto Harbour and the Islands
A sightseeing cruise out of the harbour is the easiest way to take in Toronto’s skyline from the water, and it offers a perspective on the city that you simply cannot get from any vantage point on land. Boats run by operators such as City Cruises Toronto (Mariposa Cruises) depart from the Harbourfront and loop around the Toronto Islands, giving unobstructed views back towards the CN Tower and the financial district’s cluster of towers, while narrated tours point out landmarks along the way, from the old Gooderham and Worts distillery buildings to the Billy Bishop airport runway jutting into the lake. Lunch, dinner and sunset sailings are all available for a longer outing, and the later cruises are a particularly good way to watch the skyline light up as the sun goes down over the water.
Details:
- Location: Departs from Queen’s Quay Terminal, 207 Queens Quay West
- Website: cityexperiences.com/toronto
- Hours: Sailings run daily in season; times vary by cruise type, so check ahead and book online
- Fees: Sightseeing cruises typically from around CAD 30–40 per adult; dinner cruises considerably more
Walk the Scarborough Bluffs
The Scarborough Bluffs stretch for around 15 kilometres along the Lake Ontario shoreline east of downtown, their pale, layered cliff faces rising up to 90 metres above the water and formed from sediment laid down over the last 12,000 years, since the last ice age retreated. Bluffer’s Park, the main access point, has a Blue Flag-certified beach at the base of the cliffs, walking trails, kayak and paddleboard rentals, and a couple of lakeside restaurants, while Cathedral Bluffs Park offers the best lookout over the water from above, with the cliffs falling away dramatically just beyond the railings. It is a properly dramatic stretch of geology that most visitors never make it out to see, tucked away in the eastern suburbs well beyond the usual downtown circuit, and it rewards the trek out with a sense of scale that nothing else in the city quite matches.
Details:
- Location: Bluffer’s Park, Brimley Road South, Scarborough
- Website: destinationtoronto.com
- Hours: Daylight hours; best visited in the morning or for sunset
- Fees: Free (paid parking at Bluffer’s Park)
Take a Day Trip to Niagara Falls
Look, we know. Everyone goes to Niagara Falls. It’s on every tour itinerary and every “top things to do from Toronto” list ever written. We went anyway, because you’d have to be fairly determined in your contrarianism to drive past one of the natural wonders of North America without stopping. The Horseshoe Falls — the Canadian side — measure 57 metres in height and 670 metres across, carrying around 2,400 cubic metres of water per second over the edge, and they’ve been pulling in visitors since the 1820s. The best way to appreciate them is from water level aboard Niagara City Cruises, which sails directly into the spray and leaves everyone thoroughly soaked, cheering, and entirely unbothered by it. We were handed ponchos, wore them with what dignity we could muster, and abandoned any pretence of staying dry about thirty seconds after leaving the dock. The Journey Behind the Falls tunnels through the bedrock to viewing portals cut directly into the rock face, putting you behind the curtain of water itself — also excellent. Guided day-tour coaches from Toronto typically bundle in Niagara-on-the-Lake or the wineries of the Niagara Peninsula, making for a well-rounded day out, and most itineraries still leave time for a wander along the Niagara Parkway before heading back.
- Location: Niagara Falls, Ontario, approximately 125 km south-west of Toronto via the QEW
- Website: niagaraparks.com
- Hours: Falls illumination operates daily; Niagara City Cruises and Journey Behind the Falls run seasonally (roughly April–November) — check ahead
- Fees: From CAD 40–60 return by seasonal GO Transit, or CAD 99–150 per adult for a guided day tour; Niagara City Cruises from CAD 47.95 (adult) / CAD 32.95 (child); Journey Behind the Falls from CAD 33.00 (adult) / CAD 21.50 (child)
Watch the Sunset at Humber Bay Park
We stumbled across Humber Bay Park almost by accident on our last evening, having been recommended it by someone at the hotel who clearly knew what they were talking about. It’s a pair of connected waterfront parks a short ride west of downtown, sitting on a peninsula created by landfill in the 1980s at the mouth of the Humber River — a waterway with considerable Indigenous and early colonial history, though the park itself is resolutely about the present. Paved paths wind around the shoreline and a small marina, past swans, herons and fishermen who appear entirely unbothered by the photographers accumulating around them, and the angle to the downtown skyline is close to perfect: the CN Tower glows gold in the distance, the whole cluster of towers reflected in the water below it. On the evening we visited there was indeed a small army of tripods lined up along the waterfront, but the park was large enough that a quiet spot of our own took no time at all to find. A very good way to end a trip.
- Location: Humber Bay Park West, 2200 Lake Shore Boulevard West
- Hours: Accessible at all times
- Fees: Free
Photograph the Toronto Sign at Nathan Phillips Square
Nathan Phillips Square, in front of Toronto’s distinctive curved City Hall, is home to the illuminated Toronto Sign — a three-metre installation of the city’s name that has become one of the most photographed spots in the city, particularly with its coloured lighting changed to mark festivals and causes throughout the year, from Pride to Canada Day to various awareness campaigns. The square itself has a reflecting pool that becomes a skating rink in winter, fountains that children play in through the summer, and a regular programme of markets, concerts and civic events, making it a pleasant spot for a stroll any time of day and a natural gathering point whenever the city has something to celebrate. City Hall’s own twin curved towers, cradling a flying-saucer-shaped council chamber between them, are worth a look in their own right and were themselves considered strikingly modern when they opened in 1965.
Details:
- Location: 100 Queen Street West, in front of Toronto City Hall
- Website: toronto.ca
- Hours: Open 24 hours; best visited early morning or after dark when the sign is lit
- Fees: Free
Tour Casa Loma
Casa Loma is a genuine Gothic Revival castle in the middle of midtown Toronto, built between 1911 and 1914 for financier Sir Henry Pellatt and complete with secret passages, an 800-metre tunnel, decorated suites and manicured gardens. Pellatt spared no expense on his dream home, installing elevators, central vacuuming and a shower with multiple settings decades before such fittings were common, only to lose the house within a few years when his fortune collapsed — a rise-and-fall story that the audio guide tells with evident relish. Self-guided tours (with a complimentary audio guide app) take in the grand hall, the stables and the towers, and the gardens alone are worth the visit when they bloom in late spring, spilling colour across the terraces below the castle walls. The building has also done double duty as a film and television set for decades, so keen-eyed visitors may well recognise a corridor or two from something they have watched.
Details:
- Location: 1 Austin Terrace, Casa Loma neighbourhood
- Website: casaloma.ca
- Hours: Daily, 9:30 AM – 5:00 PM (last admission 4:30 PM)
- Fees: CAD 45 (adult) / CAD 40 (senior/youth 14–17) / CAD 30 (child 4–13); under 3s free
Explore the Royal Ontario Museum
Canada’s largest museum of art, world cultures and natural history, the ROM is instantly recognisable for the jagged crystalline extension — the Michael Lee-Chin Crystal — bolted onto its original heritage building, a piece of architecture that divided opinion sharply when it opened and still draws a strong reaction from visitors either way. Inside, highlights range from a full-size dinosaur gallery to Egyptian mummies, an extensive Chinese art collection with a genuine Ming tomb, and a bat cave modelled on a real Jamaican cavern, making it an easy way to fill a rainy afternoon in Yorkville without ever feeling like the collection is thin. The museum’s sheer size means most visitors have to be selective about what they see in a single visit, so it is worth deciding on two or three galleries in advance rather than trying to cover everything at once.
Details:
- Location: 100 Queen’s Park, Yorkville/University of Toronto
- Website: rom.on.ca
- Hours: Daily, 10:00 AM – 5:30 PM
- Fees: General admission from around CAD 26 (adult) when booked online in advance; discounted rates for youth, students and seniors; under 4s free
Browse St Lawrence Market
Once named the world’s best food market by National Geographic, St Lawrence Market has occupied this Old Town site in one form or another since 1803, making it older than the city’s own incorporation as Toronto. The South Market’s stalls sell everything from peameal bacon sandwiches — a genuinely Toronto invention, and worth queuing for at Carousel Bakery — to cheese, seafood, spices and baked goods, packed into a single handsome hall that rewards a slow wander rather than a hurried lap. The separate Saturday Farmers’ Market draws producers from across Ontario at the crack of dawn, setting up in the lower level of the North Market building, while the upper floor occasionally hosts an antique and collectables market on Sundays for anyone with time to browse a little further.
Details:
- Location: 92–95 Front Street East, Old Town
- Website: stlawrencemarket.com
- Hours: South Market Tuesday–Friday 9:00 AM – 7:00 PM, Saturday 7:00 AM – 5:00 PM, Sunday 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM; Farmers’ Market Saturday 5:00 AM – 3:00 PM; closed Mondays
- Fees: Free to browse; pay for what you buy
Wander the Distillery Historic District
A cluster of Victorian-era industrial buildings that once housed the Gooderham and Worts distillery, once the largest distillery in the British Empire, now a car-free warren of cobblestone lanes filled with galleries, boutiques, cafés and restaurants rather than barrels of whisky. The site’s collection of Victorian industrial architecture is considered one of the best-preserved of its kind in North America, and its unchanged red-brick backdrop has made it a favourite filming location for period dramas shot in Toronto. It is at its most atmospheric in December, when a Christmas market and towering tree take over the courtyards and the whole district smells of mulled wine and roasted chestnuts, but the red-brick architecture, public art installations and rotating gallery shows make it worth a wander at any time of year, particularly on a weekday morning before the day-trip crowds arrive.
Details:
- Location: 55 Mill Street, Old Town
- Website: thedistillerydistrict.com
- Hours: Public area open 24 hours; individual shops and restaurants generally open 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM or later
- Fees: Free to enter (Winter Village and special events may charge admission)
Getting Around
Getting to Toronto
By Air: Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ) is Canada’s busiest airport and the main gateway for international and domestic flights. Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport (YTZ), on the waterfront and served largely by Porter Airlines, is a useful alternative for short-haul flights within Canada and the north-eastern United States, and sits only a short ferry or pedestrian tunnel ride from downtown.
By Train: VIA Rail’s Quebec City–Windsor corridor calls at Toronto’s Union Station, with frequent services from Montreal (around 5 hours) and Ottawa (around 4–4.5 hours), plus connections further afield. Union Station is also the terminus for GO Transit’s regional rail network across the Greater Toronto Area.
By Road: Megabus and FlixBus both run coach services into Toronto’s coach terminal from cities including Montreal, Ottawa and Buffalo, and driving in from the US or elsewhere in Ontario is straightforward via the 400-series highway network, though downtown traffic and parking can be a headache at peak times.
Getting Around
UP Express: The dedicated airport rail link runs every 15 minutes between Pearson Terminal 1 and Union Station in about 25 minutes, and is generally the fastest, most reliable way into the city centre.
- Website: upexpress.com
- Fare: CAD 12.35 one-way (CAD 9.25 with a Presto card)
TTC (subway, streetcar and bus): The Toronto Transit Commission runs an extensive network of subway lines, streetcars and buses covering most of the city, and is by far the easiest way to get around downtown without a car.
- Website: ttc.ca
- Fare: CAD 3.35 per ride with a Presto card (includes a two-hour transfer window); monthly fare capping applies automatically after 47 rides
GO Transit: Metrolinx’s regional rail and bus network connects downtown Union Station with the wider Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area, useful for day trips beyond the city itself.
- Website: gotransit.com
Taxis and Rideshare: Uber and Lyft both operate widely across the city alongside traditional metered taxis, and are a straightforward way to get around, particularly late at night when transit service thins out.
Bike Share Toronto: A citywide docked bike-share scheme with several thousand bikes and hundreds of stations, well suited to short hops around downtown and the waterfront trails.
- Website: bikesharetoronto.com
Driving: Rental cars are widely available at the airport and downtown, and are useful for day trips out of the city, but are more of a hindrance than a help within the compact, well-served downtown core, where traffic and paid parking are both significant.
Vegan Dining in Toronto
Avelo
Tucked into a heritage townhouse in Yorkville, Avelo is Toronto’s most ambitious plant-based fine-dining restaurant, serving five- or eight-course tasting menus downstairs with an entirely vegan wine and cocktail pairing, while the more relaxed Bar Avelo upstairs offers tapas-style small plates.
- Location: 51 St Nicholas Street, Yorkville
- Hours: Wednesday–Sunday, 5:00 PM – 11:00 PM
- Website: avelorestaurant.com
Fresh Kitchen + Juice Bar
Toronto’s original plant-based restaurant group, with several locations across the city serving smoothie bowls, tacos, quinoa onion rings and cold-pressed juices in a bright, casual setting — a reliable, all-day option wherever you happen to be.
- Location: Multiple locations, including 47 Front Street East
- Hours: Daily, roughly breakfast through dinner (hours vary slightly by location — check the website)
- Website: freshkitchens.ca
Kupfert & Kim
A fast-casual chain built around customisable grain bowls, noodles and cold-pressed juices, with several locations across downtown making it an easy, healthy option between sightseeing stops.
- Location: Multiple locations, including 100 King Street West
- Hours: Daily, roughly late morning through early evening (hours vary by location — check the website)
- Website: kupfertandkim.com
King’s Cafe
A long-standing Kensington Market institution serving Chinese and Vietnamese mock-meat dishes — think dim sum, sushi rolls and clay-pot curries — that convert even committed carnivores.
- Location: 192 Augusta Avenue, Kensington Market
- Hours: Daily, 11:30 AM – 8:30 PM
- Website: kingsvegetarianfood.ca
Saigon Lotus
A Vietnamese vegan restaurant in Chinatown serving pho, banh mi and vermicelli bowls built entirely from plant-based ingredients, a short walk from Kensington Market.
- Location: 6 St Andrew Street, Chinatown
- Hours: Daily for lunch and dinner (check the website for current times)
- Website: saigonlotus.ca
Bunner’s Bakeshop
Toronto’s best-known 100% vegan and gluten-free bakery, turning out cakes, pies, doughnuts and cookies from a bright Kensington Market storefront, with nothing baked on the premises containing nuts.
- Location: 244 Augusta Avenue, Kensington Market
- Hours: Daily, 10:00 AM – 7:00 PM
- Website: bunners.ca
Ozzy’s Burgers
A fast-casual vegan burger joint near Kensington Market doing smash-style plant-based burgers, loaded fries and milkshakes late into the evening — a welcome change of pace from the city’s more health-conscious vegan spots.
- Location: 66 Nassau Street, Kensington Market
- Hours: Daily, 11:00 AM – 11:00 PM
- Website: order.online
The Best Time to Visit Toronto
December to February — Winter
Toronto’s winter is properly cold, with average highs hovering around freezing and lows regularly dropping well below it, plus a reasonable chance of snow. It is also when the city is at its most festive: the Cavalcade of Lights kicks off the season at Nathan Phillips Square, whose reflecting pool becomes a free outdoor skating rink, and the Distillery District’s Winter Village adds mulled wine and market stalls to its cobbled lanes. Hotel rates are at their lowest outside the December holiday fortnight itself.
Packing: A proper insulated winter coat, thermal layers, waterproof boots, gloves, a hat and scarf, and hand warmers for anything more than a short walk outside.
March to May — Spring
Spring arrives gradually, with cool, showery weather giving way to milder days as the season progresses. The undoubted highlight is the cherry blossom display in High Park, usually peaking for a week or two in mid-to-late April, when crowds gather beneath the sakura trees near Grenadier Pond. Rates are noticeably lower than summer, and the city’s patios begin to fill again as the weather warms.
Packing: Layers that can be added or removed through the day, a waterproof jacket or umbrella, comfortable walking shoes and a light scarf for cooler mornings and evenings.
June to August — Summer
This is Toronto at its liveliest and warmest, with long daylight hours, a busy festival calendar and the Toronto Islands’ beaches finally worth the ferry crossing. The Toronto Caribbean Carnival, one of North America’s largest Caribbean festivals, fills the streets with parades and music in early August, while patios across the city stay busy well into the evening. It is also, unsurprisingly, the busiest and most expensive season to visit, and humidity can make the hottest stretches of July and August feel considerably warmer than the thermometer suggests.
Packing: Lightweight, breathable clothing, swimwear for the Islands’ beaches, sunscreen, sunglasses and a refillable water bottle for humid days.
September to November — Autumn
Autumn brings crisp, clear days, cooling gradually as the season goes on, along with the city’s biggest cultural event: the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) takes over cinemas and red carpets across downtown every September. High Park and the Toronto Islands both put on a good display of fall foliage into October, and hotel rates ease off from the summer peak even as the weather often stays pleasant well into the season.
Packing: A mid-weight jacket, layers for variable daytime temperatures, a compact umbrella and comfortable shoes for a lot of walking among the foliage.
Overall Best Time
June to September offers the most reliable warm weather, the fullest events calendar and the best use of the waterfront and Islands, though it comes with the highest prices and biggest crowds. Travellers happy to trade a little warmth for better rates and thinner crowds will do well visiting in May, June or late September.
Where to Stay?
Entertainment District
Toronto’s liveliest downtown base: walkable to the CN Tower, Rogers Centre and Scotiabank Arena, with the city’s densest concentration of restaurants, bars and nightlife on the doorstep. It is the easiest area for getting around without a car.
Hotels:
- The Ritz-Carlton, Toronto (⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐) — Polished five-star hotel with a spa and skyline-view rooms, popular with couples and business travellers alike.
- Bisha Hotel Toronto (⭐⭐⭐⭐) — Design-led boutique hotel with a rooftop pool bar and striking, art-filled interiors.
- Planet Traveler Hostel — Sociable, eco-conscious backpacker hostel a short walk from Kensington Market, well suited to budget travellers.
Old Town and the Distillery District
A quieter, more historic base around the cobblestoned Distillery District and Old Town, with boutique cafés, galleries and St Lawrence Market close by rather than nightlife on the doorstep.
Hotels:
- The Broadview Hotel (⭐⭐⭐⭐) — Beautifully restored Victorian-era building with a celebrated rooftop bar overlooking the Don Valley.
- The Ivy at Verity — Intimate boutique hotel a short walk from the Distillery District and St Lawrence Market.
- Cambridge Suites Toronto (⭐⭐⭐⭐) — Comfortable all-suite hotel in Old Town, handy for both the Distillery District and the financial core.
Financial District and Union Station
Toronto’s transport hub has no beach or historic charm of its own, but it is the practical choice for VIA Rail, GO Transit, the UP Express and the PATH underground network, and a sensible base for a short stopover.
Hotels:
- Fairmont Royal York (⭐⭐⭐⭐) — Grand, century-old railway hotel directly across from Union Station, with a full spa and several restaurants.
- The Omni King Edward Hotel (⭐⭐⭐⭐) — Elegant Edwardian-era hotel dating to 1903, a short walk from St Lawrence Market.
- One King West Hotel & Residence — All-suite hotel inside a converted 1914 bank tower, with condo-style kitchens in every room.
Yorkville
Toronto’s answer to a luxury enclave: tree-lined streets of designer boutiques, art galleries and some of the city’s most refined hotels, a short walk from the Royal Ontario Museum and University of Toronto.
Hotels:
- Four Seasons Hotel Toronto (⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐) — Widely regarded as Toronto’s finest hotel, with a serious spa and one of the city’s best fine-dining rooms.
- Park Hyatt Toronto (⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐) — Recently renovated icon with a rooftop lounge overlooking the Yorkville treetops.
- The Hazelton Hotel (⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐) — Intimate five-star boutique hotel favoured by visiting film stars during TIFF.
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