Canada
Toronto
Canada's biggest and most varied city: the CN Tower over Lake Ontario, island ferries, and a food scene drawn from every corner of the world.
Toronto is Canada's biggest city, a sprawl of glass towers and brick-and-maple neighbourhoods on the north shore of Lake Ontario, with the CN Tower rising over the waterfront. About half its people were born outside the country, and that shows most in the food: dim sum, Portuguese bakeries, Caribbean roti and Korean barbecue all within a streetcar ride. Visitors come for the lakefront and the islands, big museums, market halls and a patchwork of neighbourhoods that each feel like a different town.
Suggested stay
3–5 days
Language
English, French
Currency
CAD
Timezone
UTC-4
Why you'll love Toronto
The food Few cities anywhere eat as widely, from Chinatown dim sum and Little Portugal bakeries to Caribbean roti in the west end
Neighbourhood hopping Kensington Market, Queen West, the Danforth and Leslieville each have their own streets, shops and crowd
The lakefront Ferries cross to the car-free Toronto Islands, with beaches, bike paths and the best view of the skyline
Big-city culture The Royal Ontario Museum, the Art Gallery of Ontario and a deep bench of theatre, live music and pro sport
Best time to visit
May-Oct
15-27° days
43.654° N, 79.384° W
UTC-4 · America/Toronto
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Weather & when to go to Toronto
Month by month: typical highs and lows, rainfall and rain days.
✓ Best May-Oct
Cards tinted by calculated verdict · big number = typical daily high, small = low · hover for conditions
When to avoid Toronto
December to March is properly cold, with snow, icy winds off the lake and short grey days; the underground PATH walkway and skating rinks help, but outdoor sightseeing suffers. Summer can turn hot and humid in heatwaves, and October brings autumn colour to the ravines and nearby countryside.
Top things to do in Toronto
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CN Tower - the glass floor and the skyline view
scenic 👍 PopularFor decades the world's tallest freestanding structure, the tower dominates the waterfront. Lifts run up to the observation levels, where a glass floor looks straight down; the bravest can do the EdgeWalk, a harnessed circuit around the outside of the pod.
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Toronto Islands - ferry to the car-free islands
scenic nature wildlife ⭐ Highly recommendedA short ferry ride from the foot of Bay Street, the islands close off the harbour with beaches, lagoons, bike paths, a small amusement park at Centre Island and the city's best skyline view, especially at sunset from Ward's or Hanlan's Point.
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St Lawrence Market - the city's food hall
food 👍 PopularA 19th-century market hall in Old Town packed with butchers, cheesemongers, bakers and fishmongers. The classic order is a peameal bacon sandwich, Toronto's signature, eaten standing up; come on a Saturday for the farmers' market too.
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Kensington Market and Chinatown - wander and graze
food shopping 👍 PopularNext door to each other west of downtown: Kensington is a tangle of vintage shops, Latin American and Caribbean food counters and street murals, while Spadina Avenue's Chinatown is all bakeries, dim sum and produce spilling onto the pavement.
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Royal Ontario Museum - dinosaurs and world cultures
culture arts history ⭐ Highly recommendedCanada's biggest museum, its old stone building pierced by the angular glass Michael Lee-Chin Crystal. The dinosaur galleries, First Peoples collections and Chinese galleries are the highlights, and it is an easy win with children.
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Art Gallery of Ontario - Canadian painting in a Gehry building
culture artsFrank Gehry, who grew up nearby, reshaped the gallery with a long wooden-and-glass facade and a sculptural spiral staircase. Inside, the Group of Seven's northern landscapes and a large Henry Moore collection are the reasons to linger.
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Distillery District - cobbled Victorian lanes
history shoppingThe old Gooderham and Worts whisky works east of downtown, a pedestrian quarter of red-brick industrial buildings now filled with galleries, cafes, shops and theatres. At its most atmospheric around its winter market.
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Hockey Hall of Fame and a game night
culture artsThe hall, in an old bank building near Union Station, holds the Stanley Cup and a century of hockey history. Toronto is a serious sports town: catch the Maple Leafs, the Raptors or the Blue Jays if a game is on.
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Casa Loma - the castle on the hill
historyAn Edwardian financier's mock-medieval castle above the Annex, with towers, secret passages and formal gardens, built just before its owner's fortunes collapsed. The terraces look back over the city to the lake.
Best areas to stay in Toronto
$ Budget $$ Mid-range $$$ Premium
Downtown and the Entertainment District
First-time visitors $$$Towers, theatres and the waterfront
Explore hotels in Downtown and the Entertainment District →
Old Town and St Lawrence
Food lovers $$Historic red-brick core by the market
Explore hotels in Old Town and St Lawrence →
Queen West
Nightlife and shopping $$Boutiques, bars and galleries
Explore hotels in Queen West →
Yorkville and the Annex
Culture and comfort $$$Leafy streets, museums and designer shops
Explore hotels in Yorkville and the Annex →
Live nightly prices from Booking.com, Agoda and others, centred on Toronto
Getting to & around Toronto
Getting there
Fly into Toronto Pearson (YYZ), about 25 minutes by UP Express train to Union Station downtown
Flight
Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ)
The UP Express train runs from the terminals to Union Station in about 25 minutes, the fastest way in; taxis and ride-hailing take longer in traffic. Some regional flights use Billy Bishop airport on the Toronto Island, a short ferry or tunnel walk from downtown.
Train
Union Station
VIA Rail from Montreal, Ottawa and the rest of Ontario; Amtrak's Maple Leaf runs from New York via Niagara Falls
Coach
Union Station Bus Terminal
Intercity coaches from Ontario towns, Montreal and cities across the US border
Getting around
Subway
The TTC's Yonge-University and Bloor-Danforth lines cover the core; the fastest way across downtown and midtown
TBC
Streetcar
The red streetcars run along King, Queen, Spadina and other main streets; slow in traffic but good for neighbourhood hopping
TBC
Ferry
City ferries cross from the Jack Layton terminal at the foot of Bay Street to Centre Island, Ward's Island and Hanlan's Point
TBC
Bike share
Bike Share Toronto docks cover downtown; the Martin Goodman Trail runs along the lakefront
TBC
Walking
Downtown is walkable, and the underground PATH links stations, towers and malls when the weather turns
Free
Day trips from Toronto
Niagara Falls
Full dayGiant waterfall
The Horseshoe Falls thunder over the Canadian side of the Niagara River. Take the boat into the spray at the foot of the falls and the Journey Behind the Falls tunnels, then escape the neon of Clifton Hill along the river parkway.
Getting there
car | train | bus | tour
About 1.5-2 hours by car, GO train or bus, or on a guided tour
Niagara-on-the-Lake
Full dayWine country town
A preserved 19th-century town where the Niagara River meets the lake, with the Shaw Festival's theatres and wineries all around. The region is known for icewine, made from grapes picked frozen on the vine.
Getting there
car | tour
About 1.5 hours by car or on a winery tour, often combined with Niagara Falls
Stratford
Full dayTheatre town
A small town on the Avon River that hosts the Stratford Festival, one of North America's biggest repertory theatre seasons, with Shakespeare at its core. Pair a matinee with a riverside walk.
Getting there
car | train | bus
About 2 hours by car, or by train or coach
Algonquin Provincial Park
1-2 daysLakes and forest
The classic Ontario wilderness of maple forest, lakes and canoe routes, with moose along the roadside and short trails from Highway 60. At its most famous when the maples turn red in autumn.
Getting there
car | tour
About 3 hours north by car to the Highway 60 corridor
A little history of Toronto
Long before the city, the north shore of Lake Ontario was home to Wendat, Haudenosaunee and later Mississauga Anishinaabe peoples, and the Toronto Carrying-Place trail linked the lake to the upper Great Lakes. The name is usually traced to a Mohawk word, tkaronto. The French built a small trading post here in the 1750s, and in 1793 the British founded the town of York as capital of Upper Canada, a naval base safely back from the American border.
American forces raided York in 1813 and burned its parliament buildings, and in 1834 the growing town was incorporated as the City of Toronto. It became capital of Ontario at Confederation in 1867, a Protestant, British-leaning industrial city for its first century. After the Second World War waves of immigration from Italy, Portugal, the Caribbean, East and South Asia and beyond remade it, and by the 1970s it had overtaken Montreal as Canada's largest city and business capital.
John Graves Simcoe founds the town of York as the capital of Upper Canada
American forces capture York and burn its parliament buildings during the War of 1812
York is incorporated as the City of Toronto, with William Lyon Mackenzie as its first mayor
Mackenzie leads the short-lived Upper Canada Rebellion, defeated north of the city at Montgomery's Tavern
Toronto becomes capital of the new province of Ontario at Confederation
The Great Fire destroys a large part of the downtown commercial district
Canada's first subway opens under Yonge Street
The CN Tower is completed, the tallest freestanding structure in the world for over three decades
Toronto amalgamates with its surrounding boroughs into a single city
Know before you go
Payment
Cards everywhere
English
Everywhere
Wifi
Reliable
Power
Type A / B
120 V, 60 Hz
Dialing
+1
The months our climate read flags to avoid: the wettest, lowest-rated weather of the year.
Mobile network & SIM card
Get an eSIM before you fly
A Canada eSIM installs in minutes and works the moment you switch off flight mode. No SIM swap, no roaming bill.
FAQs about Toronto
▸ When is the best time to visit Toronto?
May to October. Late spring and early autumn are the sweet spot, mild and sunny, with the ravines and nearby parks colouring up in October. Summer is the liveliest season, with patios, island beaches and festivals, though heatwaves can be humid. December to March is cold and snowy; the city keeps going, but it is not the time for the lakefront.
▸ Is Toronto expensive?
It is one of Canada's pricier cities, especially for hotels downtown and in summer. Eating is where it gets easier: the neighbourhood restaurants, food courts and markets of its immigrant communities are good value compared with the downtown dining rooms.
▸ Can you see Niagara Falls on a day trip from Toronto?
Yes, easily. The falls are around 1.5-2 hours away by car, GO train or bus, and plenty of tours run daily. Many visitors add Niagara-on-the-Lake and a winery on the way back.
▸ Do you need a car in Toronto?
No. Downtown and the main neighbourhoods are well served by the subway, streetcars and ferries, and parking is expensive and traffic slow. A car only earns its keep for trips out into Ontario's countryside and parks.
▸ Is Toronto safe for visitors?
Yes, it is generally regarded as one of North America's safer big cities. Use ordinary big-city sense with belongings on transit and in crowded areas, and take extra care late at night. Check your own government's current advice.
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