Destination: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

As most of us are wondering if it is safe to travel now or in a week or a month or sooner? Just like you or anyone, I am not really sure when is really safe to travel. All we can do is to continue to protect ourselves, stay safe and observe social distancing. However, as most countries are opening slowly their tourism, why don’t we start exploring our own backyard. I have lived in Canada most of my life but believe me, there are so many places, provinces and cities in Canada that I haven’t been. For now, I will be taking you all to my own neighborhood, the beautiful City of Toronto and the rest of the Province of Ontario. Maybe another time, we will explore together other cities and provinces in Canada.

What I love about Toronto? It is very diverse and a multi cultural city. Toronto has slightly over 6M people living in the city. However, I still find it not as much crowded compared to other big cities in the world. Although it is very expensive to live in the city, there are still nearby cities that offer decent house prices. It is beautiful, clean and Torontonians are nice and considerably warm people. It has great public transportation and definitely you can live in Toronto without having to own a car. Yet, it still very convenient to go around. The Toronto Transit will take you from one end of the city to another end of the Greater Toronto and when going to the other cities and suburbs, no worries because we have the Go Train and Transit and Greyhound buses to take you there.

When it comes to food, there are plenty of different authentic restaurants around. Just name it, what type of food you feel like eating? We have Italian, Mexican, Ethiopian, Greek, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Filipino, Brazilian, Portuguese, Jamaican, other European cuisine and more. The night life and entertainment are fun and great too! However, our city still sleeps at night because there’s still tomorrow for fun!

CN Tower is Toronto’s icon at 553.33 m or 1815 feet and 5 inches high and completed in 1976. It is a free standing tower where you can eat at a 360 Restaurant at the top of the tower or simply enjoy the EdgeWalk. CN referred to Canadian National, the railway company that built the tower. The tower is open to the public all year round.

The Iconic CN Tower

Casa Loma is another beautiful place not to miss. It’s Toronto’s Majestic Castle and full of history. There’s a restaurant onsite and of course you will enjoy exploring the castle itself with the rooms decorated in old time furnishings, exhibits, step into secret passages of the castle and winding stairs. Weddings and debuts are held from time to time here in the castle and it’s also open to the public whole year round.

We have the incredible Old City Hall, the City Hall, the Ontario Museum, the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO), the Roger’s Centre or formerly known as the Skydome where baseball games are held, the Scotiabank Arena for basketball games, the Ripley’s Aquarium, the Chinatown, the famous Lawrence Market, the Distillery District and more to offer just in the city alone.

Canada’s Wonderland Amusement Park. You can spend a day and enjoy the rides, splashes and more. It’s about 50 minutes drive north from downtown Toronto and of course you can take the bus or train too.

Another one amazing place to go during your trip to Toronto and definitely not to miss ever is the beautiful Niagara Falls, which borders Canada and USA. The city has definitely great entertainment, it has the Ripley’s Believe It or Not, the Guinness World Records Museum and more. It’s about 1.5 hour drive from Toronto. A day trip or two is great but to enjoy the falls, the lights and the city of Niagara, I would suggest to stay three days at least. There are a few day bus tours available from downtown to Toronto to Niagara Falls or you can take the train or bus from Toronto. On your way to Niagara Falls, there are vineyards along the way and definitely most day tours to Niagara Falls will take you for wine tasting too.

African Lion Safari and Toronto Zoo are definitely a must visit places. African Safari is an hour and 15 min drive to Toronto and an hour and a half to Niagara Falls. Definitely you need a whole day to enjoy the wildlife and park. Toronto Zoo is about 40 minutes drive to downtown Toronto and also accessible by public transport.

There are many beautiful places and National Parks to visit in Ontario. Of course, you may not be able to explore the entire province but definitely you can plan to visit major places like the City of Ottawa, the Canada’s Capital, the City of Kingston and the Town of Tobermory on the Bruce Peninsula.

The City of Ottawa where the Parliament Hill is and it’s about 4 hour drive. If you’re visiting Ottawa, you may as well visit Kingston where you can enjoy the scenery of the beautiful 1000 Islands and visit the Bolt’s Castle. 1000 Islands borders Northern New York State (USA) and southeastern Ontario (Canada).

The beautiful town of Tobermory is located at the top of the Bruce Peninsula which is about 3.5 – 4 hour drive from Toronto. Tobermory is surrounded by blue crystal clear fresh water, the Niagara Escarpment and where the Flowerpot Island Park, the Bruce Peninsula National Park and the Fathom Five National Marine Park are. The blue clear fresh water and the scenery are breathtaking. Some of us would wonder if it is worth to drive to this beautiful lakeside town? Yes, it is totally worth your time!!! Not to forget, Tobermory is known as the Fresh Water Scuba Diving Capital in the world.