Hi

I will be traveling to Toronto in the beginning of August..How many days do you think is ideal for a general Toronto experience? Let me know!

4 or maybe 5 - www.toronto.com will give you some idea of what you might want to see.

There are always festivals and events going on during the summer months - one I can think of in August is Taste of the Danforth but there would be more including the "Ex".

I am with SallyC. TO is a great, multi-faceted city and when you add in a day trip to Niagara Falls (which is mandatory if you have never been!) you will need that much. And don't let anyone talk you out of going to The Ex-the Canadian National Exhibition: it is great fun, but some mis-guided snobbery can make Torontonians very dismissive of this 'grand old lady' of fairs.

I'd say at least 4 or 5 but there's plenty to do if you stay a little longer. Try to make your trip cover a weekend -- there are always festivals on the weekends.

Thanks for the advice!

Count me as one saying don't go to "The Ex". It's an aging midway fiasco with no real exhibitions of anything but bad fast food, cheap gadgets and some critters.

Missing it shouldn't be a problem given your stated visit - it doesn't start until August 15.

"Count me as one saying don't go to "The Ex". It's an aging midway fiasco with no real exhibitions of anything but bad fast food, cheap gadgets and some critters.'

ditto !

I have to agree about the tired old Ex....I gave up attending a couple of years ago after a lifetime of going.

I don't know if the OP is travelling with kids but if so, the Ex might be good. I agree that it's getting tired -- the people I know who go are a) traditionalists who go every year and b) people with kids.

OK, I give up on my sales pitch for the EX! I know both SallyC and Goddess and respect their judgement(s)...and I do confess to being a traditionalist and taking 'kids' to the EX (even if they are all my age!).

BUT, it is because of this that I think the EX does represent a side of Toronto that we should not dismiss so easily.

The butter sculptures, the retro feel ( and admitted 'stickiness') of the Food building, the cows-giving-birth-on-site, the craft displays of First nation arts, the dog and the lumberjack competitions, the talent contests, even the Midway (tired and tacky though it may be), this is part of a Toronto-past and isn't that (part of) what tourists want to see when they go to another place? It may not be what we ARE, but it represents what we WERE, and that may well be part of what we will BECOME.

Anyway, this is a conversation we can hold on August 9th, I believe.

IN the meantime, Jmkramer, you will have a great time: TO is a wonderful and vibrant city.

Okay, LJ. Your post might have convinced me but I still think it means more to Torontonians than it would to a visitor.

But how HOW could you forget to mention Elsie the Cow and Tiny Tom (Tim?) donuts???

Sadly, Elsie doesn't make an appearance any longer.

But they still have Tiny Toms (or did the last time I was there).

Oh yes, mini-donuts in three delicious variations, hot and in a powder-sugar-filled bag.

And the 'deals' at the Better Living Centre. And the ice-cream waffles. And the rows of prize cows being shown by fresh-faced girls and pimply young men from 4H clubs all round Ontario. And the corny dog show that Iams puts on. And the annually smaller and inevitably more moving Warrior's Day march of WWII veterans. And the hopeful musicians vying for busker's rights on the TTC. And the ferris wheel (my all-time favourite ride). And 'swirl painting' and one-day tattoos and hard-won giant pink teddies lugged around by hopeful swains. And, wafting over all, the smell of cotton candy.

C'mon, you've got to admit, it is part of being a Torontonian.

But do you remember when the Food Building was so much fun? Cardboard hats, samples, cooking demonstrations, pickle pins (loved my pickle pin!). Last time I was there, the Food Building had just become one giant, not very pleasant, food court.

Yes, I admit there was a time when the 'samples' were the reason I went...the miniature coca cola bottles are now worth a pretty penny.

The EX was my family's introduction to 'ethnic' foods. The spaghetti and slices of pizza seemed exotic at a time when only The Brown Derby was open on Sundays. Murrays and Frans ruled the family crowd. Except for hotel dining rooms, The Town and Country buffet was as sophisticated as dining out got...

The EX Food building is but a mere shadow of its former self. But you can still get peroghies and a roti on the same plate!Its sort of symbolic of Toronto, don't you think?

We were at Lichee Garden almost every Sunday night! That or the one you forgot -- Bassels, at Dundas and Yonge.

By the way, my uncles used to own the Brown Derby and the Town Tavern.

Jmkramer - what kinds of things do you like doing or did you have in mind ?

NinaM: you are quite right to draw us back to the matter at hand. I hope OP has not become turned off either Fodors or TO as we merrily explored our memories!

I promise to make it up by suggesting a trip to the ROM to catch the final days of the Darwin Exhibit, truly fascinating.

...but didn't we answer the OP's question? I was assuming that we did and that s/he was satisfied with that? No?

Goddess, Bassels was my father's hang-out when he worked downtown!

I thought it was at Gerrard and Yonge not that I was ever in it - you had to be 21.