Toronto, Canada is a wonderful city to explore.  Many of the sites are located near one another, making them easy to visit in a short amount of time.  I spent a little over 24 hours in Canada’s largest city and found it to be a great place to explore in a day.  This itinerary takes you through Toronto’s top places in one busy, but great day.

When we went

October 2024.  The weather was wonderful, with blue skies and temperatures in the 50s-60s.

Where we stayed 

We stayed at the Sheraton Toronto Airport Hotel.  Not only can the location not be beat (especially for early morning flight departures), but the hotel is actually pretty great.  It features a nice club lounge, bar and restaurant, and a small gym.  Our room overlooked the airport, which was a fun view.

How to get around

Toronto has a great public transit system.  The TTC is the underground subway system.  The route map and schedule can be found here:  TTC  Website.

From the airport, the Union Pearson Express (aka the UP train) takes you from the Toronto Pearson Airport to Union Station in downtown Toronto in 25 minutes.  The route map and schedule can be found here:  Union Pearson Express Website.

We hired an Uber when we visited Casa Loma, which was a 30 minute drive away.  Uber and Lyft are both popular rideshare options in Toronto.

My favorite way to see the city is simply by walking!  This itinerary is created with walking everywhere except for the visit to Casa Loma.

One Day in Toronto Itinerary:

• Toronto Music Garden
• Toronto Islands
• Hockey Hall of Fame
• St. Lawrence Market 
• Distillery District 
• Casa Loma
• Eaton Center
• Nathan Phillips Square
• CN Tower
• 360 – dinner

MORNING

I stayed at the Sheraton Airport Hotel, so to get downtown I took the UP transportation system right from the Toronto Pearson Airport to Union Station in downtown Toronto.

Start your morning with breakfast at your hotel to maximize your time.  Once you head out, grab a coffee from Canada’s famed coffee shop, Tim Hortons.

The Toronto Music Garden is a lovely place to start your day.  It’s a unique space that ties in the beauty of nature to the poetry of music.

Toronto Music Garden

Inspired by Bach’s Cello Suite 1 in G Major, cellist Yo-Yo Ma and landscape architect Julie Moore Misservy collaborated on the garden.  The end result is a peaceful respite along the harborfront with large trees, flower gardens, and enchanted walkways. 

Toronto Music Garden

The Music Garden represents six sections of the piece, which is a unique way to visualize music.  As you stroll, there are interpretive signs with music that was the inspiration for that particular area of the beautiful gardens.

Toronto Music Garden

The walk will take you along Toronto’s Harborfront, which is a lovely walking area along the water.  There are several “Wave Walkways”, a wave-like wooden walking path.

One of the many WaveDecks on the Toronto waterfront

This is a great time to visit the Toronto Islands, if it’s something you want to do, with ferries departing from Jack Layton Ferry Dock.  Located just a 13 minute ferry ride from downtown Toronto, Toronto Islands (also known as the Island or Toronto Island Park) is a city escape with walking paths and bridges with great views of the Toronto skyline.  Expect this visit to take 2-4 hours.  Once on the islands, you can take a quick stroll and take in the views of the skyline of Toronto.  Or, if you want to spend more time, rent a bike and ride the paths.

Next up head to the Hockey Hall of Fame, located about a 12 minute walk from the Jack Layton Ferry Terminal.  The Hockey Hall of Fame is home to the Stanley Cup, the highest trophy in professional hockey.  While here, explore the exhibits on NHL players, hockey artifacts, and peruse the interactive exhibits.  If you spent a good bit of time visiting the Toronto Islands, consider eating lunch first, which we will get into next.

The Hockey Hall of Fame

It’s time for lunch, so head to St. Lawrence Market where you can assemble a delicious feast from the many vendors.  Built in 1850, the St. Lawrence Market was once named the best market in the world! 

St. Lawrence Market

You have many options here as the market features over 120 vendors.  One can find meat and seafood vendors, ethnic bakeries, fresh produce, specialty products such as jewelry and souvenirs, and so much more. 

St. Lawrence Market

AFTERNOON

From the St. Lawrence Market it is about a 15 minute walk to the Distillery District, a renovated area of 19th century Old Toronto with restaurants, shops, art galleries and entertainment spaces.  

The Distillery District

You will need some sort of transportation to get to the next destination, Casa Loma.  We used Uber and it was a 30 minute ride.

So what is Casa Loma?  It just so happens to be the only “real” castle in North America! 

Casa Loma

It was built in the early 1900s by Sir Henry Pellat for the purpose of being his personal residence.  Pellat created the Toronto Electric Light Company in 1883, earning his fortune to fund this grand estate.

Built in the gothic-revival style, Casa Loma took three years to build.  Sir Henry Pellat wanted large spaces to entertain and host events in addition to having secret passageways, an underground tunnel, suits of armor, and more to make this one of the most fantastical residences in North America.  In the days when there were only about 200 telephones in the city of Toronto, Casa Loma had over 50 of them! 

Casa Loma

Casa Loma also featured a central vacuum system, over 20 fireplaces, stables, and gardens, making this quite the residence to upkeep.  In fact, Pellatt could not keep up with the upkeep nor pay his taxes so it was eventually seized after just ten years of living in it.

Today, Casa Loma is open to the public and is an amazing place to explore.  The Great Hall is impressive with its soaring ceiling filled with flags, suits of armor, and chandeliers. 

The Great Hall | Casa Loma

Check out the bedrooms, climb the towers for great views of the city of Toronto, and explore the 800 foot long tunnel. 

Pellat’s bedroom; Conservatory | Casa Loma

Pellat had the tunnel constructed to allow ease of moving from the house to the stables and carriage houses in the harsh Canadian winters.  Today, it features the exhibit, “The Dark Side Tunnel Exhibit”, taking you through the passageway while sharing darker stories of Toronto.

The Tunnel | Casa Loma

Uber back to the Eaton Center, get some shopping done if you’d like (or take a break from the weather if you’re here in winter months).  From here, it is a short walk to Nathan Phillips Square, where you can check out the Toronto sign.

The Toronto Sign | Nathan Phillips Square

EVENING

From here, walk to the CN Tower, the Western Hemisphere’s tallest tower at 1,815 feet.  

The CN Tower

Begin your journey with a ride up to the main observation area which is 114 stories up. 

The main observation area has panoramic windows, giving visitors fantastic views out to the city and beyond. 

Epic Views from the Observation Deck | Casa Loma

One can even see Niagara Falls from here on a clear day!  The observation area consists of several levels.  You can also step out onto a section of plexiglass floor, giving you a view directly down to the city streets!

Besides taking in the views up here, the CN Tower’s restaurant, 360 The Restaurant, rotates giving diners a spectacular view, taking 72 minutes to complete the spin. 

360 The Restaurant | CN Tower

The restaurant also holds the Guinness World Record for the world’s highest wine cellar. 

360 The Restaurant’s Wine Cellar, the world’s highset! | CN Tower

Reservations are required to dine at the restaurant and if you spend $75/person you can access the observation area at no extra charge.  

If you are not afraid of heights consider doing the EdgeWalk.  At 116 stories above the streets of Toronto, simply lean over the edge with just a harness securing you.  It holds the acclaim for being the “world’s highest full-circle hands-free walk”.  Do you dare to do the EdgeWalk?!

Must Try Foods and Drinks

It’s always fun to seek out local food and drinks when traveling.  Icewine is made from grapes that grow in Canada’s northern climate.  I found it pretty delicious!  It reminded me of a cross between Reisling and champagne.

Delicious Canadian Icewine

Poutine is a Canadian speciality that consists of french fries topped with cheese curds and gravy, traditionally.  Of course there are all sorts of variations so why not give this side dish a try?!

Tim Horton’s is to Canada as to what Starbucks is to the US.  You will easily find Tim Horton’s on your walking journey through Toronto.

The National Coffee:  Tim Horton’s

Maple Syrup is one of the great gifts from our neighbors to the north.  It’s interestingly a very controlled commodity as it supplies 85% of the world’s maple syrup.  The cold winters and warm summers in Canada’s eastern provinces make for ideal conditions for syrup creation.  On most menus, you’ll find maple products.