In the near but intentionally-vague future, I’ll be spending a weekend at a hotel in Toronto. I have an event all day and into the evening Friday. I expect I’ll come back to the hotel sleepy, so I won’t go out that night.
However, I have the option of leaving Toronto at 9:30 a.m. or at 2:30 p.m. on the Saturday. There’s no cost difference. I’m pathologically unable to sleep in past 8:30, so “sleeping in” isn’t an advantage. I’m wondering if it’s worth leaving later and taking time to explore the limited area are the hotel. I say “limited” because I can’t drive. What’s nearby and awesome?
Facts: I’m a history and science nerd. I’m kind of a tourist-attraction kind of guy, but I also like back alleys and weird places to wander. I’m not a foodie but I do like to eat. I doubt I’ll be in the mood for art galleries or other high-browed pursuits.
You’re at the Sheraton Centre? There are museums and more at your disposal, and they’re within about a thirty-minute walk if you don’t want to pay $3 for the subway. The Royal Ontario Museum is located at Museum subway station, a three-stop ride up University Avenue from Osgoode subway at Queen and University near your hotel. The Science Centre is, unfortunately, a bit of a hike–it’s in the eastern suburbs near the new Aga Khan Museum at Don Mills and Eglinton. Unfortunately the Museum of Television is closed while it moves to new quarters. We do have a Shoe Museum, though.
As for wandering… Go west, young [del]man[/del] person! Go to Kensington Market (west of Spadina, north of Dundas, a thirty-minute walk) and explore the funky old shops. Or, go east (another thirty-minute walk) and hit the Distillery District.
There are many more things than I can mention. Here’s the website of Tourism Toronto.
Seconding the Royal Ontario Museum, it was cool. I really wanted to go to the shoe museum but it was deemed too girly by my husband and friends. The Royal Ontario did have a textiles exhibit so my girly itch was scratched somewhat.
My husband will be there Tuesday through Sunday, so I am interested in this too. He will be busy with the International Barbershop Harmony Society Competition so I am not sure how much free time he will actually have to explore but it would be cool to give him some options.
OP, if you’re at the Sheraton, you’re just around the corner from the Eaton Centre, where you’ll find all kinds of shopping and dining.
A few blocks down Yonge, at Front, is the Hockey Hall of Fame, if you’re into hockey.
Head for the Royal Ontario Museum (another vote for that), but wander through the University of Toronto campus on your way there–you’ve seen the University’s beautiful old ivy-covered buildings before, in any number of movies and TV shows. And while the Harry Potter movies were not filmed there, many of the buildings have that “English school” look and feel–go into the Great Hall at Hart House, for example, and see if you don’t feel like you’ve just stepped into Hogwarts.