Toronto for 7 days in May?
 

I have the good fortune of visiting Toronto for a week starting this Monday - and was wondering if anyone had a favorite location they would suggest seeing/doing? I don't want to visit just the regular 'touristy' spots. Thanks!

Liz, take the Queen St streetcar (the "red rocket") from Queen and Yonge downtown, east for a few miles to the Woodbine stop. Get off and walk further east through the "Beach" or "Beaches" section of Toronto to Balsam or Beech Avenues (another mile or so). Lots of shops, restaurants and interesting '20s and '30s architecture. Walk south a couple of hundred yards to the boardwalk that fronts Lake Ontario, and walk it back west to Woodbine. Walk north to Queen and catch the streetcar west. You might even enjoy taking the car all the way west past Yonge (where you got on originally) to the end of the line in the western sector, and then back again to Yonge, a round trip from Yonge of 10 miles or so. You won't get a better taste of Toronto than by doing that. And if you want to get off and look around at any time, you might consider buying a one-day pass offered by the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) for about $CDN 7.50, at any subway stop (Queen and Yonge for example).<BR><BR>You might also want to take a look at Little Italy, a section of College Street running west of Bathurst Street for a mile or so, also accessible by streetcar from downtown. Lots of good restaurants, bars, etc.<BR><BR>Sometimes you really should do the tourist thing, though. Take the ferry to Toronto Island from the foot of Bay Street, and walk (or rent a bike) around the Island. <BR>Yonge Street itself has little to offer, but a walk west of Yonge on Bloor Street will acquaint you with Toronto's "Mink Mile", and the minkiest section of that area lies a couple of blocks north of Bloor and west of Bay in the Yorkville-Hazelton Lanes area. Ask anybody for directions.

You might also want to check out the St. Lawrence Market and surrounding area if you want a taste of authentic Ontario cuisine. For a more diverse ethnic mix, try Kensington market.

I also like the Danforth - many Greek restaurants, but others as well. It's very popular on a summer evening. Queen Street west is popular as well.

If you are interested in photography ...<BR><BR>May is "Contact" month in Toronto, with over a hundred photo exhibits all around town.<BR><BR>If you get a guide book and go see the shows, you'll experience the arty side of the city, get to a wide range of neighborhoods, galleries, stuios, etc., and meet a very diverse cross section of the population. (you'll see some lousy shots,a dn some great ones. the onlyquestion is which are which.)<BR><BR>LCBO stores (which means Liquor Control Board of Ontario) may have the catalogs with maps, etc.<BR><BR>BAK