66 Best Sights in Toronto, Ontario

Serving Toronto's Japanese community and thousands of lovers of Japanese culture, this space features a traditional garden and offers workshops and classes in martial arts, music, visual arts, traditional dance, cooking, and more. Visiting art shows are frequently in rotation, as well as artist talks and movie screenings; there's even a Japanese film festival each June. Plan a visit if checking out the nearby Aga Khan Museum.

Just a 10-minute walk east on the boardwalk from Woodbine Beach, the officially merged stretch of Kew Beach, Scarboro Beach, and Balmy Beach is a bit pebbly and slightly more secluded, making it ideal for those seeking a quiet stroll or a dip in the lake. Look for the historic Leuty Lifeguard Station, which was built in the 1920s. Kayak and stand-up paddleboard rental shops sit along the shore. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (fee); toilets; water sports. Best for: walking; sunrise; swimming.

Only 10 minutes north of the city, this delightful conservation center has more than 16 km (10 miles) of hiking trails through forest, meadow, and marshland, as well as a Bee Space where kids can see them up close and taste their honey, and an Innovation Trail that demonstrates how technology can reduce our impact on the wild. In the magnificent woods there have been sightings of foxes, coyotes, rabbits, deer, and a wide array of birds. Seasonal events include a spring sugar bush maple syrup festival and a honey harvest festival in September. To get here, drive 3 km (2 miles) north along Highway 400, exit west at Major Mackenzie Drive, and continue south 1 km (½ mile) on Pine Valley Drive to the gate.

Honoring the memory of the city's first children's librarian, this branch houses the Osborne Collection of Early Children's Books, which contains over 90,000 items, including a cuneiform tablet dating all the way back to 2,000 BC. In addition, the Merril Collection of Science Fiction, Speculation, and Fantasy includes another 80,000-plus items covering everything from parapsychology to UFOs.

Once home to journalist William Lyon Mackenzie—Toronto’s first mayor, elected in 1834, and the designer of the city’s coat of arms—this Greek Revival row house now serves as a museum. Among the preserved period furnishings is an 1845 printing press that visitors can try for themselves. Mackenzie held office for just one year. In 1837, he led roughly 700 supporters down Yonge Street in an attempt to overthrow the government. The rebellion was swiftly crushed, and Mackenzie fled to the United States with a bounty on his head. Years later, after receiving a pardon from Queen Victoria, he returned to Canada and was reelected to the legislative assembly. By then, he had fallen on hard times and a group of friends purchased the house for his family. Mackenzie lived there only a few years before his death in 1861. His grandson, William Lyon Mackenzie King, would become the longest-serving prime minister in Canadian history.

Located in a former industrial building across the street from a working chocolate factory, the MOCA regularly hosts exhibitions from cutting-edge contemporary art stars from Canada and all over the world. The museum retains some of its ramshackle concrete past, making it feel anything but sterile. If you get hungry or thirsty, grab a coffee or pastry from local café Forno Cultura in the lobby. 

This small museum might not rival the city’s major art institutions, but it offers a fun escape—especially for families on a rainy afternoon. Its mind-bending illusions range from holograms to an antigravity room and a rotating room that makes it look like you’re standing upside down. It’s also a great place to snap a few photos.

From tributes to Canadian children's TV like Degrassi High and Mr. Dressup (think Mr. Rogers but with more puppets) to pop art renditions of influential women in Toronto's history, you never know which part of the city's eclectic history and culture might get featured. Exhibits are always interactive and user-friendly.

This nonsectarian burial ground, established in 1850, is the final resting place for many of Toronto's pioneers, including prominent turn-of-the-century Black Canadian doctors, businessmen, and politicians. The cemetery's chapel, gate, and gatehouse date from 1872; the buildings constitute one of the most attractive groupings of small Victorian-era structures in Toronto.

Opened in 1899, and used until 1965 when the new City Hall was built across the street, the old municipal building now operates solely as a courthouse. This imposing building was designed by E. J. Lennox, who was also the architect for Casa Loma and the King Edward Hotel. Note the huge stained-glass window as you enter. The fabulous gargoyles above the front steps were apparently the architect's witty way of mocking certain turn-of-the-20th-century politicians; he also carved his name under the eaves on all four faces of the building. The building has appeared in countless domestic and international TV shows and feature films.

This 1893 Romanesque revival building, home to Ontario's provincial government, is often referred to simply as "Queen's Park," after the surrounding grounds. The detail-rich exterior is made of pink Ontario sandstone; inside, the huge, lovely halls echo half a millennium of English architecture. The long hallways are hung with hundreds of oils by Canadian artists, and a permanent space is devoted to rotating works by Indigenous artists. Various specialized tours are available, focusing on everything from the parliamentary chambers to the building's artwork and architecture. It is also possible to watch parliament in session from the public gallery. Statues of historical figures, including Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth II, dot the lawn in front of the building.

Toronto’s first sake brewery uses natural Ontario spring water from Muskoka and traditional Japanese techniques to produce its award-winning sake under the name Izumi Brewery. The company has a small tasting bar and retail shop featuring products made with sake kasu—the lees or yeast, left over from fermentation—such as soaps, salad dressings, and miso soup, ceramics—as well as sake glassware. Weekend brewery tours (by reservation only) offer a look at how sake is made, an introduction to Junmai (pure rice) and Namazake (unpasteurized sake), and a guided tasting of four varieties.

This subterranean universe expanded from existing tunnels in the mid-1970s partly to replace the retail services in small buildings that were demolished to make way for the latest skyscrapers and partly to protect office workers from the harsh winter weather. As each major building went up, its developers agreed to connect their underground shopping areas with others and with the subway system. You can walk from beneath Union Station to the Fairmont Royal York hotel, the Toronto-Dominion Centre, First Canadian Place, the Sheraton Centre, The Bay and Eaton Centre, and City Hall without ever seeing the light of day, encountering everything from art exhibitions to buskers (the best are the winners of citywide auditions, who are licensed to perform throughout the subway system). According to Guinness World Records, the PATH is the biggest underground shopping complex in the world. Maps to guide you through the labyrinth are available in many downtown news and convenience stores.  Be aware that large sections of the PATH may be closed on weekends when the office buildings are closed. This can cause particular problems for wheelchair users because not all sections of the underground are fully accessible.

For those who like things that have scales and slither, Reptilia is home to more than 250 animals, from tiny turtles and tree frogs to massive pythons and crocodiles. The family-friendly indoor zoo is also Canada’s largest reptile rescue, and about 75% of the animals on display were saved or surrendered by their owners. The "Feed a Reptile" add-on is highly recommended—but call in advance for something big like the pair of American alligators. Hourly shows let you get up close to touch the animals, and behind-the-scenes tours and night programs are also available. Although this branch is located in Vaughan (near Canada’s Wonderland), there are also Reptilia zoos in nearby Whitby and London.

This spot once hosted the city's main zoo, but it's now home to a rural community representative of a late 19th-century farm. Permanent residents include horses, cows, sheep, goats, pigs, donkeys, ducks, geese, and chickens. While it's not a petting zoo per se, kids get a real kick out of watching farmers go about their daily chores, which include feeding and bathing the animals. The adjacent playground has a wading pool. The nearby Riverdale Park offers some of the best skyline views in the city.

The home of baseball's Blue Jays was the world's first stadium with a fully retractable roof. Rogers Communications, the owner of the Blue Jays, bought the stadium, formerly known as the SkyDome, in February 2005 for a mere C$25 million. One way to see the 52,000-seat stadium is to buy tickets for a Blue Jays game or one of many other events and concerts. You can also take a one-hour guided walking tour: the route depends on what's going on at the stadium, so you may find yourself in the middle of the field, in a press box, in the dressing rooms, or, if a roof tour is available, 36 stories above home plate on a catwalk.

The part of Spadina Avenue (pronounced spa-dye-nah) that runs through Chinatown, from Dundas Street to Queen Street, has never been chic. For decades it has housed a collection of inexpensive stores, import-export wholesalers, ethnic food stores, and eateries, including some first-class, plastic-tablecloth Chinese restaurants. Each new wave of immigrants—Jewish, Chinese, Portuguese, East and West Indian, South American—has added its own flavor to the mix. While changes in the neighborhood are heralded by modern bubble-tea shops and traditional northern and southern Chinese cuisine expanding past Cantonese mainstays, the basic bill of fare is still bargains galore: yards of remnants piled high in bins, designer clothes minus the labels, and the occasional rock-and-roll nightspot or late-night greasy spoon. A streetcar line runs down the wide avenue to Front Street.

Now dwarfed by bank towers, this Anglican church with its soaring Gothic spires still holds the tallest steeple in Canada. Its illuminated clock once helped guide ships into the harbor. St. James Cathedral is the fourth church built on this site—the third was destroyed in the Great Fire of 1849. As part of its bicentennial celebration in 1997, the church added a peal of 12 bells. Stand nearby most Sundays around 10:10, just after the 9 am service ends, and you’ll hear a glorious concert of ringing bells.

At the northeast corner of Parliament and Wellesley Streets, this cemetery contains interesting burial monuments of many prominent politicians, business leaders, and families in Toronto. The small yellow-brick Gothic Chapel of St. James-the-Less has a handsome spire rising from the church nave and was built in 1861. This National Historical Site is one of the most beautiful churches in the country.

Built in 1850 on the site of the area’s first public meeting space, St. Lawrence Hall showcases Renaissance Revival architecture at its finest. Originally designed for musical performances and balls, the hall hosted famous opera soprano Jenny Lind and became a venue for antislavery demonstrations and P.T. Barnum’s first presentation of Tom Thumb. Take a moment to admire the exterior of this architectural gem, now used for everything from concerts to wedding receptions. If you join one of the many walking tours in the area, you’ll likely find photos on the third-floor lounge of notable figures who performed, lectured, or were entertained here. 

Early writing artifacts such as a Babylonian cuneiform tablet, a 2,000-year-old Egyptian papyrus, and books dating to the beginning of European printing in the 15th century are shown here in exhibits changing three times annually. Subjects of these shows might include William Shakespeare, Galileo Galilei, Italian opera, or contemporary typesetting. Registration is required to use the collections, so bring government-issued ID with you, but there's no admission fee to view the exhibition area.

This park comprises a peninsula that juts 5 km (3 miles) into Lake Ontario. Created from rubble from construction sites around the city and sand dredged for a new port, the peninsula has become one of the best areas in the city for bird-watching, photography, cycling (a Bike Share Toronto stand is located at the mouth of the trail), walking, and jogging. At least 334 bird species have been sighted at the park, and the peninsula is home to one of the largest breeding colonies of double-crested cormorants in North America. At the end of the spit of land, you'll find a red-and-white lighthouse, in addition to amazing views of downtown and an awesome sense of isolation in nature. Bird-watching is best from May to mid-October. To get here, head east along Queen Street to Leslie Street, then south to the lake. Dogs and private vehicles are not permitted.

These beautiful themed botanical gardens and adjacent estate garden (once owned by industrialist Rupert Edwards) flow into one of the city's most visited ravines. Paths wind along colorful floral displays and exquisite rock gardens, which are incredibly popular with wedding photographers. There's also a signposted "teaching garden" for kids to touch and learn about nature. You can join a 90-minute tour ($) between early May and late October; go online for times and to reserve your spot. Refreshments and snacks are available on-site at the Dandelion Café. The paid parking lot can get very busy on weekends in spring and autumn. For a long nature walk, head south through Wilket Creek Park and the winding Don Valley. After hours of walking (or biking or jogging) through almost uninterrupted parkland, you reach the southern tip of Taylor Creek Park on Victoria Park Avenue, just north of the Danforth—here you can catch the subway at Victoria Park Station.

Located on the first floor of Toronto Police Service Headquarters, this museum is a replica of a 19th-century police station. Its collection explores the history of policing in Toronto, with exhibits on infamous crimes. Quirky but engaging, the museum offers an offbeat look at law enforcement history. All visitors must pass through a security screening upon entry.  You must call ahead to book a guided tour.

Designed by one of Canada's most admired architects, Raymond Moriyama, who also created the Ontario Science Centre, this five-story library is arranged around a large atrium, which gives a wonderful sense of open space. One-third of the more than 6.2 million items—spread across 82 km (51 miles) of shelves—are open to the public. Audio carrels are available for listening to nearly 40,000 music and spoken-word recordings. There's an impressively large performing arts collection, and, lest you think libraries have to be quiet, listening stations and piano rooms are on the fifth floor—as is the Arthur Conan Doyle Room, which is of special interest to Baker Street fans. It houses the world's finest public collection of Holmesiana, including records, films, photos, books, manuscripts, letters, and even cartoon books starring Sherlock Hemlock of Sesame Street. The fourth-floor Jack Rabinovitch Reading Room opened in 2022, with collections from the man who founded Canada's most prestigious literary award, the Giller Prize.

With terrain ranging from river valley to dense forest, the Rouge Valley was an inspired choice of site for this 710-acre zoo in which over 5,000 different mammals, birds, reptiles, and fish are grouped according to their natural habitats, in both indoor and outdoor enclosures. Daily activities might include chats with zookeepers and animal demonstrations. A visit takes at least three hours and includes the Africa, Americas, Australasia, Indo-Malaya, and Canadian Domain pavilions. In the spring and summer, the Zoomobile can take you through the outdoor exhibit area. The African Savanna is a fantastic walking safari: a dynamic reproduction that brings rare and beautiful animals and distinctive geological landscapes to the city's doorstep. Reserve ahead for a VIP behind-the-scenes tour or to camp overnight in the Serengeti Bush Camp.

This small, functioning post office dates back to 1833 and still operates with quill pens, ink pots, and sealing wax. For C$5 plus the postage stamp, you can use the old-fashioned equipment to send a letter. Exhibits feature reproductions of letters from the 1830s, and all outgoing mail is stamped with distinctive cancellation marks.

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, a virtuoso of modern architecture, designed a significant portion of this six-building office complex, though he died before its completion in 1992. As with his acclaimed Seagram Building in New York, Mies stripped the TD Centre's buildings to their skin and bones of bronze-color glass and black-metal I-beams. The tallest building, the Toronto Dominion Bank Tower, is 56 stories high. The only architectural decoration consists of geometric repetition. Inside the low-rise square banking pavilion at King and Bay Streets is a virtually intact Mies interior.

Bellwoods is the top destination for west-enders to kick back on a sunny day. The tree-lined park runs between Dundas West and Queen West, which makes for a scenic stroll if you're heading between neighborhoods. It's a great spot for picnicking and people-watching---or dog-watching, if you take a bench next to the dog bowl. It's especially attractive in mid-May, when the cherry trees bloom pink, or when the leaves turn in the fall.

Historian Pierre Berton wrote that the planning of Union Station recalled \"the love lavished on medieval churches.\" Indeed, this train depot can be regarded as a cathedral built to serve the god of steam. Designed in 1907 and opened by Edward, Prince of Wales, in 1927, it has a 40-foot-high coffered Guastavino tile ceiling and 22 pillars weighing 70 tons apiece. The floors are Tennessee marble laid in a herringbone pattern (the same that's in Grand Central Terminal in New York City). The main hall, with its lengthy concourse and light flooding in from arched windows at each end, was designed to evoke the majesty of the country that spread out by rail from this spot. The names of the towns and cities across Canada that were served by the country's two railway lines, Grand Trunk (incorporated into today's Canadian National) and Canadian Pacific, are inscribed on a frieze along the inside of the hall. As train travel declined, the building was nearly demolished in the 1970s, but public opposition proved strong enough to save it, and Union Station, a National Historic Site of Canada, is now a vital transport hub. Commuter, subway, and long-distance trains stop here. In 2021, following a 6-year facelift, the station's modernized Bay concourse quadrant reopened with due fanfare, welcoming a wave of dozens of local upmarket retail and dining developments.