Toronto is the most populous city in Canada and the provincial capital of Ontario. It is the fourth most populous city in North America after Mexico City, New York City, and Los Angeles. Toronto is the centre of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), the most populous metropolitan area in Canada, and anchors the Golden Horseshoe, a heavily urbanized region that is home to 9.2 million people, or over 26% of the population of Canada. A global city, Toronto is an international centre of business, finance, arts, and culture, and is recognized as one of the most multicultural and cosmopolitan cities in the world.
Toronto is a prominent centre for music, theatre, motion picture production, and television production, and is home to the headquarters of Canada's major national broadcast networks and media outlets. Its varied cultural institutions, which include numerous museums and galleries, festivals and public events, entertainment districts, national historic sites, and sports activities, attract over 25 million tourists each year.
Toronto is known for its many skyscrapers and high-rise buildings, in particular, the tallest free-standing structure in the Western Hemisphere, the CN Tower. As Canada's commercial capital, the city is home to the Toronto Stock Exchange, the headquarters of Canada's five largest banks, and the headquarters of many large Canadian and multinational corporations. Its economy is highly diversified with strengths in technology, design, financial services, life sciences, education, arts, fashion, business services, environmental innovation, food services, and tourism.
Toronto Attractions:
1-CN Tower
The CN Tower is a 553.3 m-high (1,815.3 ft) concrete communications and observation tower in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Built on the former Railway Lands, it was completed in 1976, and held the record for the world's tallest free-standing structure for 32 years from 1975–2007 and was the world's tallest tower until 2009 being overtaken by Burj Khalifa and Canton Tower, respectively.
It is now the third tallest tower in the world and remains the tallest free-standing structure in the Western Hemisphere, a signature icon of Toronto's skyline, and a symbol of Canada attracting more than two million international visitors annually. The CN Tower's 350-metre high revolving restaurant offers regional Canadian fare & panoramic views.
Experience the world’s highest hands free external walk on a building. EdgeWalk is CN Tower’s most thrilling attraction in its history, and the first of its kind in North America. It is the world’s highest full circle hands-free walk on a 1.5 m (5 ft) wide ledge encircling the top of the Tower’s main pod, 356m/1,168ft (116 storeys) above the ground.
2-Ripley's Aquarium of Canada
Ripley's Aquarium of Canada is a public aquarium in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located in downtown Toronto, just southeast of the CN Tower. The aquarium features several aquatic exhibits including a walk-through tank. The aquarium has 5.7 million liters (1.5 million gallons) of marine and freshwater habitats from across the world. The exhibits hold 13,500 exotic sea and freshwater specimens from more than 450 species.
3- Royal Ontario Museum
The Royal Ontario Museum is a museum of art, world culture and natural history in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is one of the largest museums in North America, the largest in Canada, and attracts more than one million visitors every year, the second most for a Canadian art museum after the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. The museum is north of Queen's Park, in the University of Toronto district, with its main entrance on Bloor Street West. The Museum subway station of the Toronto Transit Commission is named after the ROM, and since 2008, it is decorated to resemble the institution's collection. St. George station is close to the museum's new entrance as well. With more than six million items and forty galleries, the museum's diverse collections of world culture and natural history contribute to its international reputation.
4-Casa Loma
Casa Loma is a Gothic Revival style house and gardens in midtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada, that is now a museum and landmark. It was built as a residence for financier Sir Henry Mill Pellatt. Casa Loma was constructed from 1911 to 1914. The architect was E. J. Lennox, who designed several other city landmarks. Casa Loma sits at an elevation of 140 meters (460 ft) above sea level.
5- Canada's Wonderland
Canada's Wonderland is a 330-acre (130 ha) theme park located in Vaughan, Ontario, a suburb approximately 40 kilometers (25 mi) north of Downtown Toronto. Opened in 1981 by the Taft Broadcasting Company and The Great-West Life Assurance Company as the first major theme park in Canada, it remains the country's largest. The park has been the most visited seasonal amusement park in North America for several consecutive years. As a seasonal park, Canada's Wonderland is open daily from May to September, with weekend openings in late April, October, and early November. With sixteen roller coasters, Canada's Wonderland is ranked third in the world by a number of roller coasters, after Six Flags Magic Mountain (19 coasters) and Cedar Point (17 coasters). The 330-acre (130 ha) park includes a 20-acre (8.1 ha) water park named Splash Works. The park holds Halloween Haunt, a Halloween-themed event, each fall, as well as special events throughout the season.
6-Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO)
The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) is an art museum in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its collection includes more than 80,000 works spanning the first century to the present day. The gallery has 45,000 square meters (480,000 sq ft) of physical space, making it one of the largest galleries in North America. Significant collections include the largest collection of Canadian art, an expansive body of works from the Renaissance and the Baroque eras, European art, African and Oceanic art, and a modern and contemporary collection. The photography collection is a large part of the collection, as well as an extensive drawing and prints collection.
7-Toronto Eaton Centre
The Toronto Eaton Centre is a shopping mall and office complex located in the downtown core of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Toronto Eaton Centre attracts the most visitors of any of Toronto's tourist attractions. It is North America’s busiest mall, largely because of extensive transit access and tourist traffic. With 48,969,858 visitors in 2015 alone, the center sees more annual visitors than Disneyland and Walt Disney World combined, the Las Vegas Strip, either of the two busiest malls in the United States (Mall of America and Ala Moana Center), or Central Park in New York City. The number of visitors to the Toronto Eaton Centre in 2015 exceeds the total 2015 passenger counts at Toronto Pearson International Airport, Canada's largest and busiest airport
8-St.Lawrence Market
St. Lawrence Market is a major public market in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located at Front St. East and Jarvis St in the Old Town district of Toronto. There are three buildings in the complex, each having a different purpose. St. Lawrence Market North, on the north side of Front St, hosts weekly farmer's markets and antique markets.
9- Yorkville
Yorkville district is one of Canada's most exclusive shopping districts, anchored by the Mink Mile along Bloor Street, Toronto. In 2006, Mink Mile was the 22nd most expensive street in the world, with rents of $208 per square foot. In 2008, the Mink Mile was named the seventh most expensive shopping street in the world by Fortune Magazine, claiming tenants can pull in $1,500 to $4,500 per square foot in sales.
10- Black Creek Pioneer Village
Black Creek Pioneer Village is an open-air heritage museum in the North York district of Toronto, just west of York Universityand southeast of the Jane and Steeles intersection. It overlooks Black Creek, a tributary of the Humber River. The village is a recreation of life in 19th-century Ontario and gives an idea how rural Ontario might have looked in the early-to-mid-19th century.
11- Edwards Gardens
Edwards Gardens is a botanical garden located on the southwest corner of Leslie Street and Lawrence Avenue East in Toronto. Edwards Gardens is one of several parks located along Toronto's ravines, many of which are connected by hiking and cycling trails, and connected to the shores of Lake Ontario. The park's manicured lawns and flower beds make it a popular destination for wedding parties to take photographs.
12- Harbourfront Centre
Harbourfront Centre is a key cultural organization on the waterfront of Toronto, situated at 235 Queens Quay West. Harbourfront Centre has a seating capacity of 2,000. Harbourfront Centre works with over 450 community organizations, and hosts more than 4,000 events a year in many disciplines such as theatre, dance, literature, music, film, visual arts and craft.
13- Unionville
Unionville is a suburban village in Markham, Ontario, Canada 33 km northeast of downtownToronto and 4 km east of southern Richmond Hill. Tourism is a major part of Unionville's economy. The historic village or downtown section is typical of a small town that developed over a century or so starting in the early 1840s. As of 2006 it boasted nine restaurants, including three pubs. Main Street (originally the laneway from the village's first grist mill) also has a number of "century homes" dating back to the 19th century. Each year, thousands of people visit Unionville during the Unionville Festival.
14- The BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir
The BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Etobicoke, Toronto, is a traditional Hindu place of worship that was built by the BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha. The mandir was built in 18 months and consists of 24,000 pieces of hand-carved Italian carrara marble, Turkish limestone and Indian pink stone. The mandir is the largest of its kind in Canada and was constructed according to guidelines outlined in ancient Hindu scriptures. The grounds spread over 18 acres and in addition to the mandir, include a haveli and the Heritage Museum. The mandir is open daily to visitors and for worship. In July 2017, the temple will complete its 10 years of greatness, wisdom, and spirituality.
15- Exhibition Place
Exhibition Place is a publicly owned mixed-use district in Toronto, located by the shoreline of Lake Ontario, just west of downtown. The 197-acre (80 ha) site includes exhibit, trade, and banquet centres, theatre and music buildings, monuments, parkland, sports facilities, and a number of civic, provincial, and national historic sites. The district's facilities are used year-round for exhibitions, trade shows, public and private functions, and sporting events. From mid-August through Labour Day each year, the Canadian National Exhibition(CNE), from which the name Exhibition Place is derived, is held on the grounds.
16- The Toronto Islands
Toronto Islands are a chain of small islands in Lake Ontario, south of mainland Toronto, located just offshore from the city centre, and provide shelter for Toronto Harbour. The islands are home to parkland, the Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport, several yacht clubs, Centreville Amusement Park, and Hanlan's Beach. The island community is considered to be the largest urban car-free community in North America, although some service vehicles are permitted. Access to the Islands is by ferry, including the City of Toronto ferries operating from Jack Layton Ferry Terminalat the foot of Bay Street, or by water taxis.
17- The Distillery District
The Distillery District is a commercial and residential district in Toronto. Located east of downtown, it contains numerous cafés, restaurants, and shops housed within heritage buildings of the former Gooderham and Worts Distillery. The 13 acres (5.3 ha) district comprises more than forty heritage buildings and ten streets, and is the largest collection of Victorian-era industrial architecture in North America.
18- Yonge-Dundas Square
Yonge-Dundas Square, or Dundas Square, is a public square situated at the southeast corner of the intersection of Yonge Street and Dundas Street East in Downtown Toronto. The square has hosted many public events, performances and art displays, establishing itself as a prominent landmark in Toronto and one of the city's prime tourist attractions. Central to the Downtown Yonge entertainment and shopping district, intersection is one of the busiest in Canada, serving over 100,000 pedestrians daily.
19- Nathan Phillips Square
Nathan Phillips Square is an urban plaza in Toronto. It forms the forecourt to Toronto City Hall, or New City Hall, at the intersection of Queen Street West and Bay Street, and is named for Nathan Phillips, mayor of Toronto from 1955 to 1962. The square is the site of concerts, art displays, a weekly farmers' market, the winter festival of lights, and other public events, including demonstrations. During the winter months, the reflecting pool is converted into an ice rinkfor ice skating. The square attracts an estimated 1.5 million visitors yearly. With an area of 4.85 hectares (12.0 acres), it is Canada's largest city square.
20- Toronto Zoo
The is the largest zoo in Canada. It is divided into seven zoogeographic regions: Indo-Malaya, Africa, Americas, Tundra Trek, Australasia, Eurasia, and the Canadian Domain. Some animals are displayed indoors in tropical pavilions and outdoors in what would be their naturalistic environments, with viewing at many levels. It also has areas such as the Kids Zoo, Waterside Theatre, and Splash Island. It has one of the most taxonomically diverse collection of animals on display of any zoo; it is currently home to over 5,000 animals (including invertebrates and fish) representing over 500 species.
