Washington D.C. vs. Toronto (better, crime, compare, place)

[TheFriendlyGod]

In the DC vs. Ottawa thread, somebody said that DC was better matched with a larger Canadian city like Toronto or Montreal. Quite so. DC and Toronto have similar sized metros; both are around five million. If you compare the Washington-Baltimore metro with the Golden Horseshoe, they both have close to eight million people.

DC and Toronto also have a lot of things in common as cities proper. Toronto is Canada's financial capital and Washington is the US's governmental capital, so they're both filled with educated professionals and have a white-collar reputation. They also have a lot of international diversity. Finally, there's a certain similarity in their architecture--a lot of Victorian residences in both cities.

So--which one wins in terms of culture, urban vibrancy, quality of life, importance, beauty, things to do? In your most humble opinions, of course.

[cpterp]

Toronto's great (one of the top 10 cities in NA in my opinion), but I prefer DC. I've been to Toronto many times since I have family there, and it's really the only place I've been to in Canada besides Niagara Falls.

I've found Toronto to be well layed out and clean with good transportation options, great diversity, and plenty to do downtown. That said, the same goes for DC, but there's more here that you can't find elsewhere than in Toronto (monuments, Smithsonians, WH etc.).

The one thing Toronto has over DC is probably the lack of serious crime or really troubled areas (relative to other cities in the US and Canada). They might have crime problems, but I've never really heard of it. There are some really bad parts of DC, like a lot of the SE quadrant, but the city has vastly improved in that regard since the 80's when it was the "murder capital." DC's now one of the most high end cities in the country along with Boston and San Fran.

[boreatwork]

The advantage Toronto has is the low crime other than that its a little too north for my comfort....plus D.C is a proud city to be from

[Smtchll]

Toronto by far. Much bigger, more diverse, better skyline, cleaner, safer.

Climate is one of the only advantages DC has over Toronto IMO

[14thandYou]

If Toronto were farther south, this would be a lot more difficult. (Although with the amount of snow DC is getting this year, it's beginning to feel like Toronto.)

One thing I will never understand, however, is why the presence of tall buildings in any way makes a city superior to another. No, DC proper doesn't have skyscrapers...but so what? I grew up in a city that had them (Columbus, OH) and DC has 100x the life and vitality downtown as Columbus does. Tall buildings can be nice to look at, but by themselves they really don't add to the urban fabric of the city.

[14thandYou]

Originally Posted by cpterp

There are some really bad parts of DC, like a lot of the SE quadrant, but the city has vastly improved in that regard since the 80's when it was the "murder capital." DC's now one of the most high end cities in the country along with Boston and San Fran.

It's really been quite a stunning transformation, in a pretty short period of time. Back in the early 80s, many people still viewed DC as a culturally deprived backwater.

[john_starks]

i like both. both are diverse with a lot to do. and i'm partial to skyscrapers, but the weather is the deciding factor.
T.O and Canada in general is way too cold for me.

so DC

[grindin]

Dang, I LOVE both of these cities. Since I'm a child of the Sunbelt, even DC's winters can be a bit cold for me, but it's nothing that I can't handle. If it wasn't for the Winter, my answer would be Toronto, hands down. But both have their strengths and weaknesses in my mind. I will say that even though Toronto is expensive by Canadian standards, it's a bit cheaper than DC.

[J'aimeDesVilles]

Toronto hands down for me. Cleaner, safer, easier to get around and better weather. DC gets too hot for my taste.
Plus it is closer to Michigan where I live and Quebec where I would like to live.

[robbobobbo]

I've only visited Toronto, and I've lived in DC.

So I pick DC. I did not find anything visually interesting in Toronto. I like Montreal better. Granted, I didn't see much of it even though I drove around to different areas, so a new visit might change my impression.