Is the CN Tower worth the $20 or is it just a "nice view"

Yes, it is worth the money. Of all the sites I take visitors to, this is the one that they all love. It gives a visitor a 360 degree "walk" around the city from the view of the lakeshore, the Island Airport, to the west, the downtown and points north. You can stop for something to eat or drink on the observation level and take your time seeing Toronto. You can go outside or walk on the glass floor looking down. The ride up is fun if you can get a spot near the glass doors. I would recommend it.

What can I say? It gives you a good perspective of the city. Am I glad I did it? I must say my feeling was frankly one of indifference; yes it was high and it gives you a panoramic view of skyscrapers on one side and the lake on the other. If you got that on your plane ride in, I say "skip it". I tend to feel a better way of getting know Toronto is by foot, public transport, cab...exploring neighborhoods, museums, restaurants, parks... <BR><BR>I must say though, curiosity got the better of me and I shelled out the bucks (student rates at the time .. If you do go, make sure visibility is good that day; it was slightly overcast when I went and I must say it gave the city a dreary look.

I must agree with the last poster - if it's a nice clear day, go. If it's overcast, don't. The view is so outstanding and it is beautiful but being able to see more of the city when it dreary is just more dreary.

Years ago we had dinner at the restaurant at the top. The food was not very good (we expected this) but we were there on a holiday with fireworks ( Canada day? ). Watching the fireworks from above was well worth the price for dinner.

Actually, I thought the food at CN Tower was better than I expected. Not great, but certainly good.