Hi! I am a US college student looking for a great weekend in Toronto that is cultured, has lots of bars and such with great places to eat and fun stuff to do. On a budget, have any ideas???

Jackie - Start with a low bid for accomodations online with Priceline.com or any number of other "bid for hotel" services. This will almost guarantee you a great room for a low price...much better than a hostel or YWCA. <BR> <BR>Then do a google search on Toronto for all the cultural, news, museum, and festival sites. There's always something on the calendar. <BR> <BR>There are also dozens of online cheap food sites and they tend to be very reliable. Look for the sites that offer reviews. <BR> <BR>Your entertainment will probably be centered on and around Queen St W. (also known as the entertainment district) where there are dozens of clubs, bistros, theatres, game rooms, boutiques, and a vibrant evening crowd in your age group. <BR> <BR>Everyone will be amazingly friendly and help you fill in the blanks on your trip, and US money goes a lot further. <BR> <BR>Finally, do a specific Toronto search on this site and you will get hundreds of ideas! Have Fun.

To add to the above poster...if you like culture on a budget then I would suggest heading to T.O.Tix which is Toronto's half-price ticket booth (located underneath Eaton's at the Eaton Centre). You might like Yuk Yuk's or Second City or The Mousetrap or any of the other choices. My college-aged daughter likes to head to the College Street area (also known as Little Italy) for bars or restaurants. The area around Remy's in Yorkville fills up at night also. If the weather's good (it's been amazing so far this fall)you could bring rollerblades and go to the boardwalk at the beaches or go over to the Islands. (You can also just walk as an alternative). Enjoy!

Previous suggestion re Little Italy was good. I really like that area. Another area is the Danforth - loads of Greek restaurants (others as well, but it's primarily known as Greek). They tend to be open really late. Queen Street West has lots of places as well - it's the so called entertainment district - lots of restaurants, bars, as well as the Royal Alex and Princess of Wales theatres.

Saturday morning people watching at the <BR>St Lawrence Market bottom of Jarvis Street while munching anyone of a thousand food items and a long walk out <BR>East Queen Street to the Beaches-T.O's <BR>best intown neighborhood.

You might want to hook up with other college/university students by checking out the scene at areas adjacent to the University of Toronto: Bloor and Avenue road west to Bloor and Ossington. Lots of great bars, cheap, fun restaurants and other student hangouts. Your university may even have some more formalized exchange arrangement for cheap lodgings. Check out the university bulletin boards when you get there, too.