Hello again gandb7;
You suggest staying on the "outskirts" of TO and using the subway system. There aren't many hotels and no motels to my knowledge that are close to the extremities of the subway system (TTC) plus you must pay to park at the subway stations. An alternative would be the GO train. From Oakville, there is excellent, frequent service in and out of Union Station (Toronto downtown) where you connect with the TTC. You can also easily access The Path, TO's underground walkway from that point.

My suggestion would be to stay in Burlington (easy 10 min drive to Oakville) park free at the GO station then travel by train in and out of TO (return single-$10.60 /family group of 5 -$21.20) The trip takes about 40 min. at peak time -- definitely faster than driving and cheaper than parking downtown for the day.

I'm including two links to suggested accommodations in Burlington & Oakville. Of the hotels/motels listed my preference would be the Travelodge On The Lake in Burlington. It's in a great location for walking the lakefront trail and close to very good restaurants and shopping. Other hotels are close to the QEW for easy access, and to my knowledge are all quite good. Best Western Burlington, Holiday Inn Select Oakville @ Bronte are both very new.
Sites of interest:

Burlington hotels:
http://tinyurl.com/2mwzk

Oakville hotels:
http://tinyurl.com/3bsnt

GO Transit site:
http://tinyurl.com/rmra

TTC (subway) site with other good TO links:
http://www.city.toronto.on.ca/ttc/

The Path:
http://www.city.toronto.on.ca/path/
Happy explorations!

I know the west end of the city very well. and the west end is the end that is closest to Niagara Falls.

To the best of my recollection, there are no motels within walking distance of a subway station. there are a couple of mediocre motels on the Queensway, and you'd have to take a bus (every 22 minutes) to a subway station, or to overlap with a streetcar on Queen Street, which would lake you downtown.

The Sheraton Four Points is a low-rise hotel on Lakeshore Blvd, near Windemere, and it's a short walk from there to the Queen streetcar.

There are a few motels in Mississauga, but you'd have to buy one Mississauga ticket and then one Toronto ticket on the bus/subway system.

There's a Novatel hotel in North York on the Yonge subway line.

There's GO train service right to Burlington, so you don't need to drive to Oakville. And there's a low-rise hotel within walking distance of the Oakville Go Station.

I take this train a lot; it's OK, but, tonight for instance, a friend from oakville is coming to a reception in Toronto and she's driving because it's too much of a pain to walk from the restaurant where the receeption is down to the train station, and then from the Oakville train to her car and drive home. She's just driving in and paying for parking, which is about the same price as a round trip ticket. She's out the price of gas, and some wear and tear on the car.

Toronto really is a downtown kind of a city; when you finish up enjoying it well into the evening,it's great to just walk back to your hotel and call it a night.

BAK

[There's GO train service right to Burlington, so you don't need to drive to Oakville. And there's a low-rise hotel within walking distance of the Oakville Go Station.]

Not to disagree with your excellent advice BAK, but GO service direct to Burl. is limited -- bus transfer @ Oakville is required -- that's why I suggested the connection in Oakville. For the life of me I can't think of a low rise within a short walk of the station -- the original Hojo's that was a Ramada and now a Holiday Inn is the closest but that's a fair hike because of it's street location. (1 block as the crow flies --- quickly.)

I agree with the concept of park it and leave it in TO then walk or TTC, but that wasn't the question. However, if promo prices stay as they are at present, that would be my personal choice too.

I am assuming that reason for doing this is to save money. You might possibly be able to do that but it might not be worth it in terms of time spent in transit. Like others I can't think of anything on the outer reaches of the subway. There is a Holiday Inn within easy walking distance to the Oakville GO Station and there are several restaurants nearby. There is a newish Motel 6 on the north side of the QEW in Burlington near Applebey Line that shows rates in the mid $60 (cdn) range on a sign out front.

Beware of parking at certain GO Stations. If you show up late in the morning rush hour you will have trouble finding a parking spot at Burlingtion, Oakville and Clarkson stations as well as those close to Toronto. I am told that Appleby is OK and I know Bronte is OK at all times since I use it every day. There is full service Monday to Friday to Burlington but only to Oakville on weekends (and lots of parking then). The way to GO stations is well signed.

gandb7; GAvin explained the apparent conflict over Go service. It depends on the day of the week.

And if you stay in Oakville near the GO station, there's a Golden Griddle restaurant nearby (walking distance) that serves an excellent, low-priced, buffet breakfast.

But as I write this, my friend is in her car driving back to oakville, because it's easier to drive, leaving when you want, than it is to wait until the trains leave once an hour.

And I'm back at work a couple of blocks form lots of great hotels, with no need to drive for 40 minutes or wait for a train.

Your plan is good in theory; I've done the same thing in lots of cities. The problem is that Toronto is more like New York, for instance, where the hotels and the action are compressed, than like Columbus, for instance, where staying on the outskirts is a good idea.

Thanks everyone for the excellent advice.
I think perhaps that I understand the picture much better. Seems like I would be better off staying in the city rather than the outskirts.
Would still like to take the subway to get around but since I would be driving in from Niagara Falls I would prefer staying in that direction. I will be coming in the QEW so does any one have hotel/motel suggestions relative to this. Does not have to be along the QEW however.
Would prefer fairly nice but would not have to be Top Class. Again, any help is appreciated. Thanks gandb7

The Sheraton Four Points on Lakeshore Blvd is on the way into the city and close to the street car route to downtown, so that's a good bet.

Otherwise, just drive another ten minutes to downtown. Your target is to stay in the box with Bloor Street (or just north of it) along the north side, jarvis on the east Side, Spadina on the west side, and the lake on the south side.

Within this box are lots of hotels, lots of attractions, and lots of subway stations to take you out of the box, or to different places within it.

BAK

Try The Holiday Inn on King St. West. It's w/in the box and while certainly not "top class", it is "fairly nice" ( nicer than your average HI if that means anything to you!) I think you will be very happy staying downtown as opposed to outside of To. Close to the theatre, restaurants, Skydome, CN Tower, Toronto Islands.

I'm not sure what parking is like, but you might consider the Quality Hotel Midtown on Bloor St West. It's in the Annex (a lively neighbourhood next to the University of Toronto; good restaurants, pubs, shops - lively nightlife but not a rowdy bar scene); very close to the museums, shopping and steps away from the subway system). Not sure what your price range is - but it's a moderate/budget option where U of T often puts up visiting professors.

...I would not recommend the 4 points..The rear rooms abut the Gardiner expressway. There is a Holiday inn that is right on the subway route but yet not downtown (401 and dufferin) and on the west side of the city...I think though that I would choose one of the downtown hotels if my budget would bear it.

The Four Points is designed so that the hallway runs along the back of the hotel, against the highway, unless it's been rebuilt.

I was involved in building this hotel.

The Holiday Inn on Duifferin is, unless they moved it when I was not looking, on the west side of Dufferin. The subway station is on the east side of a giant shopping center, and there's a long walk across a big parking lot.

It translates to about six city blocks, more or less, of walking, from hotel to subway. I assume you can walk through the shoopping center late into the evening, after the shopping center has closed. otherwise, there's a bit of extra walking to get around the buildings, instead of through them.

BAK

Just to add to the excellent advice. Unless money is "tight", stay in the box but ask about parking options and prices. Like most city hotels everywhere, parking charges vary and can be a surprize.

One non-downtown choice is Novotel North York which is on Yonge St approx 1-2 miles north of Highway 401 and has direct access to the North York Centre subway station. However, it is not near "tourist sites" although there are lots of nearby restaurants and the underutilized Toronto Centre for the Arts. This is a bettr choice than Holiday Inn Yorkdale.

I would suggest staying out near airport row. You can drive the 401 and park at Yorkdale Mall (401 and Spadina Subway) to take the subway downtown. Pay attention to where you may/may not park and their hours. The mall has gates to stop commuters from using their parking lot.

There's a nice hotel at Belfield and the 27 (Called the Belaire, if I recall). There's a dozen hotels on airport road, but if you get too close to the airport, the hotels have all kinds of gated parking to (a) charge you money and (b) prevent people from parking in their lots and avoiding airport long term parking fees. My company got a room at the Hilton there for $99C.

I have rarely used the GO trains, but people in the Toronto Office that I talk to generally complain about late night service. Miss the last train about 7PM and you take a 2-hour bus ride.

Is this still correct?