travel there light, come back full (Sights & Attractions in Toronto in general)

Member Name: damaj

Product:	Sights & Attractions in Toronto in general
Date:	31/01/02 (155 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Very good value, Great people, Clean

Disadvantages: Cold, 7 - 8 hour flight, too sterile

Toronto is a shoppers delight - which is a good thing as it is one of the most sterile places I have ever visited. However, it does have some of the friendliest and most polite people on the planet.

Briefly the best places to go are:

CN Tower.
It's tall and when the wind blows half of it (the top bit) is shut. The views over Toronto and Lake Ontario are very impressive. The high speed lift (on the outside of the building) is great fun so stand by the doors so that you can see. When you get to the top make sre you stand on the Glass floor, it is a bit scratched but the view (straight down) is OK.Make sure that you look at the construction and history pictures on the way to the lifts.

Skydome
Huge, bigger than Wembley or Twickenham, this stadium has a concrete base which is lined with astroturf for either Baseball or American football. Hence the padding!! They also play basketball here, have concerts, fun fairs and just about anything else. It is next door to the Tower so if there is a game on (in Summer) you can watch from very high up. Take the tour - it is very impressive and good value.

Hockey Hall of Fame
By the Hummingbird Centre. You have to like, understand, ice hockey for this one.

Eaton Centre
A big shopping centre. Canada does these very well, several of them are linked and you can go for some distance without getting cold, wet, etc., This will take you about 2 hours just to scratch the surface. Best sale time is Boxing Day (which seems to start in the middle of December and go on, and on. The centre has a food court in the basement and restaurants on the very top floor. In the middle is everyhing on the planet from electrical goods, through clothes and Xmas goodies (the Canadian $ stands around $2 - 2.30 to the £) so everything is good value.

City Hall.
Nice roof, and general architecture.

Shoppys
Brilliant diner like only the North Americans can run. This
place makes our fast food joints look extremely slow. Fabulous Club sandwiches and, obviously, HOT DOGS, fries, shakes, etc.,

National Ballet.
It was Xmas and they were doing the Nutcracker and it was opposite Shoppys.

Sams.
No trip to Toronto would be compete without spending at least two days here. As the Canadian dollar stands at around 2.20 to the £ CD's and Vinyl at $18 make for very cheap CD's (£8.00 ish). This place is on several floors and seems to have more corners and sections than is possible. The shop covers almost a whole block and is great for Classical, Rock, Jazz & Blues as well as contemporary and Indigenous (not Alanis) musicians.


Steam Packet Brewery.
This is located at an old Railway turntable building right by the CN Tower and the Skydome and the Air Canada centre. It is a micro brewery which was just starting to do tours whilst I was there (December 2001). The beer is excellent

The Metro.
Very cheap $2.25 for an adult and 50 cents for a child to go anywhere on the system (U shaped goes from North to South and back again). Don't forget your transfer ticket if you are going to IMMEDIATELY continue your journey by bus.

Eating out.
Anywhere - food is very cheap and is not served in those challenging US portions. Lots of choices for Ethnic food exept for Inuit. In fact they do not seem to know about them in Toronto. Try to make time for Planet Hollywood - by the Skydome and CN Tower and the TWO Hard Rock cafes. One is in the Skydome complex, the other is by the Eaton Centre. There is also a revolving restaurant on top of the Westin Hotel (I did not go)

Shopping.
Take a large EMPTY suitcase and buy everthing you need there. Not only is it cheaper than here but they will give you your tax back on everything you take out of the country - providing it costs more than $50.00. Well eventually they will.

TAX
None of the prices include tax
so be aware of the 7% PST and 6% GST.

Summary: