Vacation in Toronto (rent, hotels, restaurants)

[ComingfromAL]

Hello,

I am a 26yo woman planning to visit Toronto in July 2011 (with a small group of similarly aged people).

Here are a few details about the trip:
1.) One of my favorite ways to find out about a city is through one of kind restaurants so I would def be interested in visiting some of those.
2.) I am also DEF interested in night life so any good nightclubs/bars/lounges suggestions would be great.
3.) I am also interested in doing any typical tourist attractions (zoos, parks, etc).

Are any places that y'all would recommend? Any travel tips?

Also what hotels would be ideal? The budget for hotels would be up to maybe 300 US dollars per night...although less than that would certainly be great!

How do tourist typically travel in the city?

If there is a similar thread that answers these questions, please send me in that direction.

Thanks in advance for your help!!

[YtownGuy]

I wouldn't encourage a tourist to drive in Toronto. Gas prices are higher than in the States and parking can be expensive and inconvenient. I don't know how you're getting to Toronto (driving? flying?), but if you drive, you'll want a hotel that offers decent parking.

Stay in or near the downtown area and be prepared to do plenty of walking. Wear comfortable shoes. I have most of my family in Toronto, and we walk pretty much everywhere or take a subway or streetcar.

There's an entertainment district around King Street West and Queen Street West. You'll find the nightlife you crave there.

People tell me that Eaton Centre on Yonge Street is a big tourist attraction. It's a huge mall.

Everybody goes to the CN Tower once. It's a great view, and I'd suggest going early in the day to avoid lines.

[AlsoNotMe]

Toronto is a fantastic city. Most attractions do not require a car to get too (the zoo is quite far from the central core, so I'd take a cab on that one though). I recommend most tourists to stay directly in the city core, and plan on walking/subway (very safe)/cabs rather than drive and pay parking. Tip: Hotels that say 'subway only a short bus ride away' or 'ttc at front door' are using code words for: "it's a long walk to a bus stop that only runs every 25 minutes on a good day and takes 50 minutes to get to the subway.". You want to stay within at most a 10 minute walk to the actual subway trainstop.

Stay on the subway line. If I were you - Yonge and Eglinton is a great place for a group of people your age to stay at (it's nickname is Young and Eligible). Lots of intersting stores, bars, and restaurants there. And convenient to get to Bay/Bloor (upscale shopping) and everywhere.

Another good choice, especially for nightlife, is King West and Spadina is pretty solid.

You do have to visit the CN Tower at least once. But instead of paying the ridiculous entry fee, call ahead and book a reservation at the restaurant at the CN Tower. You'll skip the lineup and still get the great view and enjoy a drink too (don't have to order dinner).

Depending on what your tastes are, I also recommend casaloma.org - it's a castle that a rich guy built right in the city in the 1920s that doesn't get enough love from the tourist blogs.

[lucknow]

I would advise that you take a tour on one of those double decker buses with the open 2nd level. Do that first thing and it will really orient you on the downtown and what you would like to spend your time on checking out in more detail. You can get on and off the bus at the stops for one fare for the day. There was a poster a while back that had a really awesome post on visiting Toronto. I'm going to look for it and ifr I find it I'll let you know.

[LMANA]

Since, you might have some time ahead I suggest if you are looking for one of a kind restaurants its going to be hard. There are a lot of restaurants in Toronto - all different styles, types and price range. It also depends on what you want to eat e.g. Italian, Indian, Mexican, Chinese, Greek etc., so I suggest you to have a look at this website and find some local restaurants near your hotel and try those out or maybe pick what you feel like having and go from there.
toronto.com, Toronto Restaurants, Restaurant Guide, Italian Restaurants, Fine Dining, Brunch, Trendy Restaurants & more

[ihos501]

there's this underground shopping complex, its the largerst in the world its about 27 km of underground network. its called The PATH.
here:City of Toronto: PATH - Toronto's downtown walkway
its basically underneath of Downtown.

there's the Toronto Zoo, its a bit larger than the Bronx zoo, its located in Scarborough, a suburb of beautiful T.O. also, you have to check out High Park: High Park Toronto

and also check out St. James park:St. James Park, Toronto

and i find the Allen Lambert Galleria beautiful: Allen Lambert Galleria, Toronto

nighlife, there's lots of things happening at The Guvernment on most night, (mostly Trance music): The Guvernment

actually you can go to Yonge-Dundas square on a night and see lots of people performing on the streets its kinda funny but cool too.Yonge-Dundas Square

you should visit Greektown on the Danforth:Greektown, Toronto - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

amongst the highest restaurants per sq kilo in the world.

[Marv101]

I also wouldn't rent a car in Toronto, but primarily because their public transit system is outstanding.

Be prepared to do lots of walking, but Toronto is a superb city to explore on foot, right up there with San Francisco & Montreal.