Buddie3

Husband, wife and 13 year old girl travelling to Toronto for 6 nights then Niagara for 4 nights.( April 6th to 16th)Trying to fit in something for everyone. I like shopping, daughter likes hands on activities, husband likes wildlife, fishing and we all love good food.Apart from the Cn Tower and the Niagara boat trip or helicopter ride no other plans are made yet. Is there a cost effective way of doing things in Canada? Is it better to prebook activities before we arrive? Do's and don'ts would be great thanks.

BAK

Where are you coming from? That often helps us make suggestions.

Ontario Science Centre is probably a necessity for the girl. Lots of hands-on things to do, and lots of fun. My 11 year old and i arrived there the other day at 12:15 and he was busy until closing at 5 p.m. Interesting for adults, too.

There's somne sort of museum / attraction pass that is a decent discount from normal rates. Keep this thread alive, and we'll get that info here.

there are several Niagara boat trips -- Maid of the Mist takes you right to the bottom of the Canadian and American falls. Jet boat takes you through rapids and whirlpools.

African Lion Safari is semi-close to Niagara Falls. Not sure if it is open that early, though.

There's a lot of shopping to be done in Toronto, but again, it depends in part on where you come from.

If you want to see major-league plays or world-famous entertainers, book in advance. Other local entertainment does not need too much advance booking.

Someone else may offer info on fishing. There's salmon fishing in Lake Ontario, but I don't know the season. And river fishing north of Toronto, and even in the immediatel area, but again, don't know the seeason. Too late for ice fishing, though.

You could plan Toronto time so that you spend a few days with no car, and then reant a car for a couple of days (zoo, science center, McMichael Art Gallery in Kleinberg) and then drive to Niagara Falls.

Do you need hotel advice? Generally, stay downtown, south of St. Clair, west of Jarvis, east of Spadina, and, obviously, north of Lake Ontario.

I think four nights might be one or two too many for Niagara, unless you plan to see plays a couple of nights.

Food will not be a problem. You can eat here as if you were pretty much anywhere in the world.

BAK

Buddie3

Thanks for getting back to me. We are flying from Scotland (Glasgow). It is our first time in Canada and the accomodation is already booked, Delta Chelsea in Toronto and the Sheriton on the Falls at Niagara. We don't plan to drive so would need to rely on public transport.

dial

The pass BAK is referring to is Citypass (citypass.com) which is excellent as it gives you six attractions for 1/2 price, about C$47 for adults. They are some of the top notch attractions including CN Tower, Science Centre, Zoo, Royal Ontario Museom (ROM), Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) and Casa Loma. These are all great attractions for the family, an exception may be AGO if family is not into art galleries. AGO does have hands-on children workshops on Sunday.

Lord of the Rings (LOTR) will have its live theatre world premiere in March (previews start Feb) in Toronto - supposedly the most expensive live thetare production ever. This will not be cheap but order tickets in advance (mirvish.com)- if they aren't available you might check out hotel package as I am sure there are "official LOTR hotels" who will have hotel/theatre packages.

Mid April is a touch early for fishing as trout season opens the last Saturday of April alhough some river mouths are open from Jan 1. There are a number of rivers within 2 hours of Toronto that have river run rainbow trout in the spring. There is a Bass Pro Shoppe at Vaughan Mills Centre, an outlet mall in the northwest area of Greater Toronto (you need a car) - which is a pretty big outlet mall.

One small tip is the day pass for Toronto transit (TTC; ttc.ca) is C$8/day and is good for the whole family on Saturdays or Sundays.

Buddie3

Thanks, the city pass and the day pass sounds like a good idea. I take it the weather in Toronto is much the same as Scotland in April cold and wet?

StephsTravels

Hi there. You might want to check out the Butterfly Conservatory. Go to www.niagaraparks.com and follow the links. Its a fairly cheap side trip (11 or 12 Cdn dollars i think) and great for the wildlife lover. Mainly indoors so great if it rains or shines!

Judy_in_Calgary

>>>>>>I take it the weather in Toronto is much the same as Scotland in April cold and wet?<<<<<<

On average, yes. As is the case with Glasgow, Toronto <b>can</b> get warm weather in April. But on average the weather is cool.

Glasgow seems to get more rainy days in April than Toronto does. That said, you have a good chance of seeing rain during your visit, and even a slight chance of experiencing snow.

For the date range during which you'll be visiting, temperatures over the last 9 years have been:

Average daily high : 9 deg C (49 deg F)

Highest high: 23 deg C (73 deg F)

Average nightly low : 3 deg C (37 deg F)

Lowest low : -8 deg C (17 deg F)

Figures come from the Trip Planner feature of the Weather Underground web site.

sobolik

Bata shoe museum for your GIRLS. Nothing but shoes and foot wear. I'm a man and I liked it. Also not far from the shoe museum is the Yamato Japanese Steak house. In the back section they cook at your table with a musical/rhythm like treatment of the cooking utensils and a flaming onion on the grill. Also quite cool.

BAK

Yamato, mentioned above, is not only fun, and not only good, but a bargain at lunch time, too.

BAK

Buddie3

Thanks to all who have responded so far. I am so happy to have found this site as your comments will enable me to arrange the perfect trip. I have learned quite a lot already but please keep your advice and suggestions coming. Cheers

sobolik

Other observations:
There is a motion simulator ride at the CN tower that is no where near as real and awesome as the FX thrill ride at the Great Canadian Midway on Clfton Hill Niagara Falls. Do the FX thrill ride. (if still the same as july 05)

A tip if you do the boat or Behind the falls. Buy before you leave home 1 or 2 disposable water proof camers. I think $8.00 at home $20.00 or some way higher price at the attractions. Do take pics just have a hanky over the lens when not shooting. It will get wet but smear the drooplets before the shot and it will get good pics.

Do you know about the NF people mover system? Very cost effective and efficient. We started at Butterflies and worked our way back. The wait for the last attraction Journey behind the falls was 1 1/2 hours later than purchase. So we went across the street and rode the inclined railway up and did the Minolta tower and took pics. The timing worked out good for that. This route could take all day leaving the museum and Skylon for the next day. Your daughter would probably get quite a kick out of Clifton Hill amusements after dark so could plan to end the day/days there.

Driving Toronto can be bad are you used to big cities? Research this Toronto driving business on the web.

Check the web to see if there will be Fri. fireworks over the falls. No big deal but an extra.

There is high security at the tower. You must pass through check points. It leads you to a gft shop when exiting. There is a big Mounty and Moose that you can see but can't get to via the gift shop with out going back through security. So get a pic when passing it the first time if you want - on the way in.

Behind the CN tower you can get hot dogs from a street cart and feed the pigeons. Nice city atmosphere to soak up. Legal to feed? I do not know.

PS if you are from the US do not leave you Drivers License/ID at the counter if claiming tax refunds when leaving. I KNOW!

gemelli

Walk a few blocks south/east of your hotel to <i> Mackenzie House</i>, the former home, (now a hands-on museum,) of William Lyon Mackenzie a famous Scottish immigrant. He helped lead the 1837 Upper Canada Rebellion and was Toronto's first mayor. They say his house is the most haunted in Toronto.
http://www.toronto.ca/culture/mackenzie_house.htm

TobieT

I think 4 nights in Niagara without a car will be too much time, especially in April when the weather may still be wet and cool.

I'd actually visit Toronto for 5 nights, Ottawa for 3 nights and Niagara for 2 nights. There's train or bus service to Ottawa (viarail.ca~greyhound.ca) and the trip would only be a few hours.

Ottawa offers lots for kids, particularly the Canadian Museum of Civilization, (civilization.ca), the Parliament Buildings and a different spot for shopping too. It would also give you a small taste of our unique mix of French and Anglo culture since you won't have time to go to Montreal. Hull, Quebec is across the river from Ottawa.

Have a look at travelocity.ca for tour ideas in Ottawa as well as ottawa.com and ottawatourism.ca

I really think everyone in the family would enjoy it.

Best wishes
TobieT

Buddie3

Thanks again for all the advice. I seam to be well on my way sorting out the first 6 days but might be struggling for the last 4 days at Niagara. Is there really only 1- 2 days worth of activites in the Niagara Falls area. Any other suggestions on how we could fill our days whilst based at the Sheriton on the Falls Hotel?

BAK

&quot;Niagara&quot; is more an area than a place.

There's the City of Niagara Falls, which is where the falls is located, along with a casino, some decent little museums and some weirdo ones, a greenhouse, and, nearby, the butterfly conservatory. You can get to all these places on a tourist bus systems.

Then, down the river, where it enters into Lake Ontario, in the town of Niagara on the Lake. this is mostly a tourist town, but fancier and classier than Niagara Falls. NotL is the home of the Shaw Festival (George Bernard...) and has several live thatres. It's got lots of interesting architecture, and if you could findmy book in a local store,you could walk around and see houses and read descriptions written by a friend of mine, and look at my photos.

You can walk around without the book, too. There's lots of little stores, and an art gallery sellign the work of Tricia Romance. Your daughter will probably love this gallery.

And there's the Niagara Peninsula, which extends between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. Teh Welland Canal cuts through, so ships can get from lake to lake. The peninsula has lots of vineyards and wineries. They have tours, but once you've been on two, you don't need three, four, five and six.

How's your budget?

You could take the train from Toronto to Ottawa and spend one night there, visit the Canadian Houses of Parliament and several really good museums (for kids and adults both) and return to Toronto.

Morning train should get you to Ottawa by lunch. Late afternoon train will get you back to Toronto in time for dinner, but you should stay overnight.

Highway buses cover the same route. When my son was little --3 to 7 years old, he went to Ottawa onthe bus a lot (not by himself) and his grandmother preferred the bus to the train because of cost. But it must have been commfortable enough; she'd ride down, meet him at the station, and take him back.

And are you willing to do any driving?

If you are willing to do some driving, we can plan a nice circle drive for you, inclduing more Canadian wilderness for your husband.

BAK

Kate_W

What do you like to shop for? You can find all the designer labels (Chanel, Armani, etc), available in any large city, in Yorkville (Bloor St West of Yonge). Many people would send you there if you express an interesting in shopping. But, when I travel, I prefer to shop for labels I can't find in my own country, so, if I were you, I'd skip most of the Yorkville shops, with the following exceptions:

- Holt Renfrew (rather like Selfridges). Skip the expensive, international designers and check out its private label, as well as collections like Teenflo.

- Club Monaco - moderately priced, stylish knock-offs of designer trends.

- Marlowe (on Avenue Road, north of Bloor). Armani quality Italian wool suits, plus cashmere sweaters, at moderate prices (moderately expensive, but great value).

- Roots. Canadian chain with terrific leather goods (purses, luggage, shoes and boots) and sporty casual clothes.

- Femme de Carriere (in the shopping centre underneath Holt Renfrew) - for feminine, stylish work clothes (suits, sweaters, dresses) and dress-up clothes).

- Banana Republic - an American chain with stylish clothes for men and women.

- Eddie Bauer - a North American chain with good value casual clothes for men and women.

- Over the Rainbow (Yorkville Avenue, north of and parallel to Bloor). Comprehensive selection of the trendiest labels in jeans (men and women).

- The Running Room. If one of you is a runner, it's worth a visit to this specialist shop on Avenue Road. Wide selection, very knowledgeable staff.

In addition to Yorkville, the other popular shopping neighbourhoods include the following.

- Malls: the Eaton Centre (near your hotel) and Yorkdale (on the Yonge-University subway line. Large shopping centres with all of the usual Canadian high street brands. Yorkdale has a Rainforest Cafe, which your daughter might enjoy. Otherwise, it's not worth the trip.

- Yonge Street strip near the Eaton Centre, near the Delta Chelsea. Kind of seedy, in my opinion. Since it mostly has the same shops you'd find in the Eaton Centre, it's not worth spending time there, with a few exceptions. First, there are some discount electronics shops. Second, there is a huge bookstore on Edward Street. Third, your daughter might like Urban Outfitters (across from the Eaton Centre) and there are a couple of good discount shoe shops nearby. Also, there are a couple of good inexpensive Asian restaurants nearby. Spring Rolls (on Dundas) is very popular for pan-Asian food in a stylish restaurant. But I like Salad King, an inexpensive Thai restaurant near Sam the Record Man.

Queen Street West - and West Queen West. Queen Street West between University and Spadina used to be a trendy shopping district, but the big chains invaded and now there are very few local stores left. One exception is Price Roman just West of University. Beautiful, dressy clothes (e.g. for black tie events) at exceptionally affordable prices given the quality. The designer is often in the shop (a tall, blonde woman).

The more interesting part of Queen Street is further west, starting at Spadina and continuing for a couple of miles. Between Spadina and Bathurst, you'll find quirky shops (clothes, home, vintage) mixed with old fashioned fabric stores. West of Bathurst, you'll start to find a higher concentration of trendy shops. One of my favourites is Comrags, featuring reasonably priced clothes by a local design team. As you progress further west, you'll also start to find some interesting art galleries. This is a great street to explore, although it could take you a couple of hours to cover it (but there are lots of good restaurants and cafes in the area, so you can take a break).

Buddie3

We are pretty sure that we don't want to drive this time. Are there any day excursions by bus or train in the Niagara area that are worth doing?

TobieT

Hi Buddie,

You can have a look at niagaraairbus.com for tours of Niagara which would include Niagara on the Lake.

Many tours are out of Toronto (for 1 day) which should tell you that is is quite possible to see the highlights in only a day or two. Usually people spending more time are seeing theatre (off season from your travel time) or visiting wineries (with a 13 yr old not likely your plan).

Again, without a car, your time there could be spent doing a tour one day and then meandering on your own another visiting the &quot;sights&quot; of Clifton Hill. Maid of the Mist won't be open till May 4. For more info and dates for attractions: tourismniagara.com

I'm quite sure the Sheraton booking could be changed this far in advance to allow you time elsewhere if the hotel dates are a consideration.

Buddie3

Hi thanks for your input. You have drawn our attention to our first major disappointment ie the Made of the Mist not opening until May. Does this mean that none of the boats are operational during April including the Easter holidays?

TobieT

Sorry to disappoint, but as far as I can tell, the earliest boat tours of any kind start May 1. See: niagarafallstours.net

Even though it can be mild (even warm) in mid-April for a FEW days the weather is not really conducive to outdoor boat rides or tours where you can get soaked to the skin. weathernetwork.ca will give you past statistics but as already mentioned, it can be fairly cold and wet that time of year.

If boat tours in Niagara are your priority, you would have a much better time at the Falls a few weeks later.

Again, I would seriously consider going to Ottawa for a short visit. Otherwise I think you may have trouble keeping busy in Niagara since it is &quot;off season&quot; and you won't be driving.