Things I Wish I Knew Before Travelling to Toronto
- Georgia Louise
- Mar 20
- 4 min read
Updated: Jun 11
Toronto, the capital of Ontario is one of the largest Canadian cities. With millions of visitors each year, tourists are drawn to this vibrant city and its many attractions including the mighty CN Tower, the Rodgers Centre - home to the Bluejays, and of course, its proximity to Niagara Falls. We visited here in the summer of 2024, and here are some things I wish I knew before coming!
It is a clean/ calmer version of New York. It has everything you would expect of a major city, sky scrapers, boat cruises, shops, restaurants, etc., but was so much nicer, and the people were so friendly (just don't go to Dundas Square, because that WAS more like New York than ever!).
Any route you take to visit Niagara Falls will be LONG, but trust me, so so worth it. You can see my Niagara Falls adventures in my Toronto vlog on You Tube at Georgia Louise Travels, but trust me, even we were surprised just how long it took to get there. The train from Toronto is around 2 1/4 hours, with the journey from New York being closer to 9 hours! We did consider staying in New York and travelling north but did not realize just how long the journey would be. Our Viator tour took nearly 5 hours to drive there from the city centre, although we did have a few stops along the way.
You must must must visit Niagara on the Lake. Niagara on the Lake is a town in southern Ontario and is often described as the prettiest town in Ontario… and for good reason. I fell in love with this town and I would honestly go back despite the long travel time, to spend the day here. It had quaint little shops, bakeries and so many cute little streets to just endlessly wander around. On our trip we only had about 45 minutes so you either had to get food or shop… of course we shopped, and ate a nature valley bar instead!. But I really recommend coming here for a day trip, if you fancied hiring a car and getting out of the city.
Toronto International Airport (Pearson) is a nightmare - be prepared for long queues at passport control and no real system or order. It seemed like everyone, whether locals or foreign visitors, were in the same queue and there were no proper signage or staff around to assist. There is also just one train from the airport into the city centre. This is the UP Express - we booked our tickets in advance via their website and when this is working (as it was on our return journey) it is brilliant, however, if it is not working (as happened to us), be prepared to spend $40 dollars on an uber. There is a bus as an alternative option, however this takes a long time to get into the city, so if you’re on a time crunch like us, get the uber. I would also say that despite getting an uber, as we landed at around 4pm, by the time we cleared security and passport control we hit the rush hour and it took a full hour to get into the city due to the heavy traffic.
Dont drive in the downtown area or the surrounding neighbourhoods. The traffic is crazy, there always seem to be road closures due to road works, and the parking is limited and expensive. The city is super walkable and public transport is reliable and convenient. You can get a presto card and ride the TTC. This covers the subway, street cars, buses etc.
Be respectful on the TTC. While on the New York subway almost anything goes, this is not the case in Toronto. Don't have your phone calls on speaker, avoid listening to music without headphones, and please no shouting.
The city is super international. Whilst you definitely should try lots of yummy Canadian food, don't limit yourself to just this. They have Korea town, China town, Little Italy, Greek town, just to name a few. Enjoy the city for how diverse it is and all right on your doorstep.
Don't expect the price you see when shopping to be the price you pay, expect a 13% increase due to sales tax. But remember, Canadian dollars aren’t always as scary looking when converted to the likes of the pound. We found this with a lot of things when trying to stick to some sort of budget for our big 2024 trip, especially as Toronto was only the first place of 7 we visited on our trip (you can watch all my vlogs from each place on You Tube at Georgia Louise Travels).
Save your appetite for St Lawrence market. It has a delicious array of food from all over the world. Buy one of everything and share it amongst you. Don't just visit one place and get a big meal, get little bits from each stall. Try the cheeses, the meats, the sweets, try everything!
Don't come to Toronto in the winter… it is cold. Not like the UK cold, like FREEZING COLD.
Leave time to visit the islands. There are various tours available or you can pick up a Ferry from the Jack Layman Ferry Terminal and travel over independently.
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