Things to do in Toronto and, probably, Montreal

[ljkeane]

So I'm going to be visiting Toronto in May but I'm in the somewhat unusual position for me of not having much specifically planned to do. The people I know who've been have all liked it but in a general sense rather than having any specific suggestions for things to see and do (outside of going to Niagara Falls) so any tips would be appreciated. 

Currently my plans are to visit Niagara Falls for a day and I'll probably go to Montreal for a day or two as well. It's what I'm going to do in Toronto itself, and I suppose Montreal, which is a bit up in the air. I'm thinking I'll probably go up the CN Tower and I usually like to visit a few museums so any recommendations on that front would be appreciated. I'm also told Toronto Islands are quite nice?

One question I do have is I'm planning to get the train to Niagara Falls but there's one train a day and it's the train to New York so is it going to be unpleasantly rammed full?

Thanks in advance for any help.

[Astromech]

I would suggest Fort York in Toronto and definitely the Maid of the Mist boat tour in Niagara Falls.

http://www1.toronto.ca/wps/portal/contentonly?vgnextoid=b59c2271635af310VgnVCM10000071d60f89RCRD

http://www.maidofthemist.com/

[Myshkin]

Ask @kairparavel, she's the most Canadian person in the world.

[James Arryn]

Kensington market, St. Lawrence market, the Danforth, China Town, Little Italy, the Distillery District, the Annex, Queen St W., maybe Yorkville. The Island or High Park if the weather's nice. 401 Richmnd's pretty cool.

edit: the ROM is on the w.t., so it gets the top exhibitions, but that depends on what's in circuit. Just checked and May's doesn't really do it for me but maybe it's more your thing: 

http://www.rom.on.ca/en/exhibitions-galleries/exhibitions/the-family-camera

edit 2: I feel un-Canadian for failing to mention the Hockey Hall of Fame, that's an acquired taste.

 

[kairparavel]

You can take the GO commuter train between Toronto and Niagara Falls.

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g155019-c97995/Toronto:Ontario:Niagara.Falls.A.Side.Trip.From.Toronto.html

Though honestly, to me it's just not worth it. Sure the falls are nice but the area around the falls is just a tacky tourist trap.

If you're going to go all the way to Montreal, I recommend stopping in to Ottawa for a day as it's on the way, more or less. And it's Canada 150 so I expect all three cities to have things planned in the lead up to July 1st.

Are you interested in fabulous dining experiences in Montreal? I love Joe Beef and Au Pied de Cochon. Smoked meat at Schwartz's is a must. You can walk it off climbing up Mount Royal and get a nice view from up top. Old Montreal is nice to walk around though they are starting to replace the cobblestone. Grr. Notre-Dame Basilica is very pretty. 

[Fragile Bird]

The important questions are, how long will you be here and where are you staying?

[SerHaHa]

If you wander to the NE at all from Montreal, be sure to see Old Quebec, absolutely fantastic place, a lot of architecture/etc we don't have here in Western Canada/Vancouver, I love it every time I'm there.

In Toronto, CN tower is an obvious tourist place, but worth it IMO If you're doing Niagra falls and can afford it, seeing it from a helicopter tour as is good as the Maid of the Mist, and a lot less wet, although both are great.

Also, baseball I think will be going by the time you get there, Skydome is an interesting place to visit, and tickets in the nosebleeds can be had very cheap, at least cheap the last time I was there.

I'm not really religions, but the Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal was astonishingly beautiful.  The museum of fine arts if you're into that sort of thing, as well as perhaps the Biodome. 

[ljkeane]

6 hours ago, Fragile Bird said:

The important questions are, how long will you be here and where are you staying?

I'll be in Canada for about a week and I'm staying near Union station in Toronto.

9 hours ago, kairparavel said:

Though honestly, to me it's just not worth it. Sure the falls are nice but the area around the falls is just a tacky tourist trap.

Really? That's shame. The American side seems to be pretty universally disliked but I've heard from a few people the Canadian side is ok. Oh well, I'm probably still going to go; it's only a day and I'd still like to see the falls. 

9 hours ago, kairparavel said:

You can take the GO commuter train between Toronto and Niagara Falls.

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g155019-c97995/Toronto:Ontario:Niagara.Falls.A.Side.Trip.From.Toronto.html 

Yeah, I'd seen that looking at trains. It's just getting a train and connecting bus seems like a bit of a pain. There's a direct Via Rail train which goes once a day which is the train to New York. I'm sure it'll be fine, it's just my experience of getting direct peak time trains to London which makes me a bit wary.

12 hours ago, Astromech said:

I would suggest Fort York in Toronto and definitely the Maid of the Mist boat tour in Niagara Falls.

http://www1.toronto.ca/wps/portal/contentonly?vgnextoid=b59c2271635af310VgnVCM10000071d60f89RCRD

That looks like my kind of thing. Cheers.

10 hours ago, James Arryn said:

I feel un-Canadian for failing to mention the Hockey Hall of Fame, that's an acquired taste.

I had thought about going to that actually. It's quite near my hotel and I do like sports but I don't really know anything about Ice Hockey. Is it worth it for the uninitiated?

5 hours ago, SerHaHa said:

Also, baseball I think will be going by the time you get there, Skydome is an interesting place to visit, and tickets in the nosebleeds can be had very cheap, at least cheap the last time I was there.

I thought about going to a baseball game, I went to a Giants game last year and enjoyed it, but unfortunately there isn't a home game while I'm in Toronto.

Thanks for all the tips guys.

[SpaceChampion]

If you're any kind of anime fan and here during the weekend of May 26-28 then Anime North is being held then, but up near Pearson airport.

I'm not saying these are spectacularly awesome places, but if you want the Toronto vibe then go to the places where every Torontonian has fond memories of.

    If you're hanging out late at night near Queen & Bathurst and get the munchies for wings or nachos, Sneaky Dee's is a Toronto tradition for drunks of all kinds.

    Up until the early morning hours and want breakfast?  Fran's is 24/7 at it's College street location, but there is another one close to Union station.  It's even featured in Cory Doctorow's latest book, Walkaway.

Don't forget to find yourself some poutine in either Montreal or Toronto.

There might be a free concert in Yonge-Dundas square.  It's got free wi-fi too if you need to access it.  Looks like something called RIB-FEST is going to be there for a whole week.

A day pass on the TTC is worth it if you're doing more than 3.5 trips that day last time I checked, and you can take  a guest/several kids.

 

[Ser Scot A Ellison]

Eat Poutine!  Lots of poutine!

[Lord of Oop North]

Depending on when you are in town, Toronto FC are playing at home May 3rd, 14th and 26th.

CN Tower, of course. The ROM is a good museum.

Take a ride on the 501 streetcar west along Queen Street over to Spadina and check out St. Lawrence Market, Chinatown, Queen West. After that, May might be good for people watching in my homeland (Trinity Bellwoods Park), which has been overrun by hipsters, hippies, and the generally unwashed.

May 27th to 28th is Doors Open Toronto, when a lot of normally closed buildings are open to the public.

 Late May is usually Cherry Blossom time in High Park. With the weather we've been having, maybe they'll bloom earlier. On weekends, this is pure insanity (literally hordes of people). 

The Hockey Hall of Fame is interesting, but not sure how much to someone who doesn't know anything about ice hockey. This year they have the Centennial for the League, so I expect there are some special exhibits.

If the weather is nice, you could take the ferry to the Islands. Or maybe rent a kayak at Harbourfront Centre on Queens Quay. Or just walk down Queens Quay. They've done a lot of work down there and it is a lot nicer than in the old days.

If you are going to Niagara Falls, the seasonal GO Trains don't start running until Victoria Day Weekend, and then every weekend from last week of June. So you're either in for a train to Aldershot and a connecting bus, or VIA Rail. Seating shouldn't be an issue, as it is all reserved seating. I'm not a regular on the Maple Leaf to NYC, but I've taken it a few times and it wasn't packed. Don't forget that train travel (especially long distance) isn't as well developed here as in the UK.

If you're in Montreal, go see my cousin at Schwartz's deli. After that, head to Foufonnes Electriques for cheap beer and bands.

 

 

[Aemon Stark]

2 hours ago, Lord of Oop North said:

Take a ride on the 501 streetcar west along Queen Street over to Spadina and check out St. Lawrence Market, Chinatown, Queen West. After that, May might be good for people watching in my homeland (Trinity Bellwoods Park), which has been overrun by hipsters, hippies, and the generally unwashed.

You mean Kensington Market?

May is a good time to visit Toronto as it's not usually that hot and it tends to be nice enough outside. There are too many things to do, but the more uniquely "Toronto" things are the St Lawrence Market, which is just a short walk to the east of Union Station along Front St (the area is called the Esplanade). Farther east is the Distillery District which is definitely worth a visit. Otherwise check out the neighbourhoods - Leslieville, the Annex (for Casa Loma!), Queen West, Chinatown, Harbourfront, possibly the Islands. The ROM is a fine museum though I am not a fan of its modern addition (or the new format of most of the galleries), but the AGO is well worth it for art (if you can make the journey a bit north, the McMichael in Kleinburg houses much of the Group of Seven collections). 

Explore on foot and by streetcar - and subway if necessary. If you're flying to Pearson, there's a train directly to Union for $12. Well worth it!! 

The CN Tower is worth considering, but it is transparently touristy. 

Yonge-Dundas Square will appear as something like a scaled-down Times Square surrounded by malls, but it's interesting for the urban bustle (and occasional free concerts/shows). 

One essential thing is to get a hot dog or sausage at one of the carts by Nathan Phillips Square. Go out for breakfast to Fran's or Over-easy (or the George St Diner at Richmond E. and George St if you can snag a spot). 

Some nicer walks would be through the UofT campus or along Spadina between College and King though Chinatown (note, however, that the best Chinese food isn't found there). 

I suppose Niagara Falls is worth seeing for a day, but don't spend an extended time there. It's been developed like a tamer mini-Vegas. 

Keep in mind also that Montreal is about 5 hours away by train or automobile. It really needs several days at least to fully appreciate but I'd second what's been said already. Except no one's mentioned Ruben's! If you do make the journey, Ottawa could be a potential stop, but it's somewhat off the direct route. Kingston is a nice spot to stop, however, and has one of the more historic downtowns in the province (certainly you won't see much of that in TO). 

[Nas!]

May is a nice time to visit Toronto and Montreal both, usually.  Don't have anything else to add, but enjoy!

[DireWolfSpirit]

If your at the falls for just one day, make sure your viewing it from the Canadian side. 

Stratford, Ontario has great Shakespeare theatre and festivals, if you have any intererests in that type of entertainment you might check that out.

[ljkeane]

So, Montreal was warm yesterday, and Mont Royal was steeper than I anticipated. I was quite impressed with the number of people running up it.

It probably wasn't smoked meat conditions but Schwartz's was very nice. I did have the meat sweats afterwards though.