Tourist Questions (hotels, dorms, college)

[KoobleKar]

My Daughter wants to take a long weekend and visit the NHL Hockey Hall of Fame in two weeks. She's just a poor college student on a budget however.

Can anyone assist with some lower-priced lodging info please?

She won't be spending much time in a room other than to sleep and shower.

Obviously, she doesn't need the swank 5 star hotel, but I'd like her to be safe and have a decently clean place to stay.

She'll have her car for transportation and GPS to help navigate.

Also...any other cool things a young person might enjoy seeing and doing plus any suggestions of good eateries would be a real bonus to pass along to her.

TIA for any help!

[Cornerguy1]

Try the various U of T dorms ........not fancy, but cheap, clean, safe and located downtown

www.housing.utoronto.ca/CMSPages/GetFile.aspx?nodeguid=d887bc55-d5ce-4447-a58b-04c0be6987a9 (broken link)

[KoobleKar]

Thank you Cornerguy....I do appreciate that. However, she's not quite as keen on that idea. Her budget would be more like in the Red Roof Inn type of place. Anything along those lines?

[theterribleone]

Many motel located downtown as well Kooble, some are dirt cheap.

[Cornerguy1]

Originally Posted by KoobleKar

Thank you Cornerguy....I do appreciate that. However, she's not quite as keen on that idea. Her budget would be more like in the Red Roof Inn type of place. Anything along those lines?

Not sure how the U of T dorms would stretch her budget out of shape at rooms from $50/night, but.......

It's the old story of you usually get what you pay for; I don't think anything in the downtown core that goes cheaper than $50 will anything too great.

Perhaps a hostel room such as HI-Toronto Youth Hostel - Downtown Toronto Youth Backpackers > Home


National chain motels such as Motel 6 or EconoLodge are likely to be in the $75-$100

[rgpg_99]

Originally Posted by KoobleKar

she's not quite as keen on that idea

If I understand it correctly, I think she is not keen on the idea of living in a dorm (a youth hostel would be in the same category).

A Red Roof Inn type of accomodation would be cheap enough (as compared to a Hyatt or Radisson) with the privacy of a single room with ensuite bathroom.

[KoobleKar]

Yes...I meant she could afford MORE than the U of T rooms. Just a cheaper motel/hotel is all she needs.

I saw a Motel 6 online which is in her price range and it's in the Chinatown area. The only thing that set me back a bit was that it said they have no parking and you'd need to pay $19 a day to park. Is that typical?

Also....what about some places to eat and other things to do there?

[jambo101]

Plenty of Hostels in the downtown area.heres one example
Toronto Hostel Prices | Toronto Backpacker Hostel | Accommodation Downtown Toronto Backpackers Youth Hostel | Canadiana Backpackers Inn
Eateries? just walk around the downtown area there are thousands to chose from.
Check out the Science center.
Do the CN Tower
Go take a walk along the beaches
Walk around the lake front area

The car will be an albatross just park it at an indoor parking lot and pick it up when you are leaving the city which i wouldnt recommend doing at rush hour as Toronto's traffic is some of the worst i've ever seen.

[rgpg_99]

Originally Posted by KoobleKar

My Daughter wants to take a long weekend and visit the NHL Hockey Hall of Fame in two weeks.

I assume she is aware of the G8/G20 summit taking place on June 26-27 (Toronto G20 Summit), which means a number of areas near the convention center will be closed. As a matter of fact, cement and wire fences have already been put in place in most of that area, including the area surrounding the CN tower (those would make ugly pictures).

[rgpg_99]

Originally Posted by KoobleKar

The only thing that set me back a bit was that it said they have no parking and you'd need to pay $19 a day to park. Is that typical?

I've seen that (parking not being offered) with smaller hotels, or those hotels downtown that have been repurposed from something else (e.g., offices, housing) to a hotel.

Parking in general is a b*tch. I've been here barely a week and I already got a ticket (breaking a 16-year long, no-ticket streak) because last night I forgot to move my car from one side of the street to the other. There are multiple regulations that affect parking all over the city. Technically, once you enter the city limits, all parking is limited to 2 hours, whether that is posted or not. The good thing is that the 2-hour limit is only enforced if someone complains and calls the parking department.

So far I have not taken my car anywhere except a Loblaws and a mechanic. I have not seen any need to use it, except for my first grocery shopping (lots of bags to carry otherwise). All the attractions I wanted to see were either on a bus, streetcar, or subway route, or a combination of those with a short walk.

So, in the case of your daughter, her car will probably stay at the parking lot all the time until she goes back home.