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If you’re thinking of making a winter trip to Toronto, beware. It gets cold – very cold. At forty degrees below, you’ll be wandering about outside with clothing more suited to Arctic exploration than an elegant city break. But now the spring thaw is here and the weather has warmed up, it’s an attractive spot, with plenty to keep you occupied.
A visit to the Royal Ontario Museum and the Art Gallery of Ontario is a pleasant way to spend an afternoon, but for something a little different, pop over to Casa Loma, the ultimate rich man’s folly. Built in 1917 for $3.5m by Sir Henry Pellat, a financier and military officer, the house was a gift to his wife. Within ten years it was valued at just $27,305 – high-end London homeowners beware! It features Elizabethan chimneys, underground tunnels, a marble swimming pool, a 10,000-volume library and 15 baths. Even the horses lived in luxury, with their names engraved in 18-carat gold above their stalls.
But in this part of the world, the number-one item on the sightseeing agenda has to be a trip to the Niagara Falls, which really are stunning. Take the underground tour behind the falls and learn some of the amazing statistics and stories – for example, the equivalent of over a million bathtubs of water flow over one section alone, the Horseshoe Falls, every minute. It makes you wonder what all those daredevils of old who got into barrels and threw themselves off were thinking of. And at just two hours’ drive away, you can easily get there in the morning and be back in Toronto for dinner.
From Alaska to Argentina, if there’s one thing they do better than us on the other side of the pond, it’s steak. Head to the decadent and delicious Bymark in the TD Centre. The meat, whether it’s steak, duck or lamb, is just splendid.
As for where to stay, the Marriott is conveniently located right in the heart of things. Recently refurbished, there’s a spectacular view of the city from the top floor bar to rival the famous outlook from the CN Tower. The staff are friendly and the rooms spacious, while the food in the bistro is simple and unpretentious.
At the luxury end of the scale, The Daily Telegraph suggests the glamorous Royal York, which has “played host to three generations of the British Royal family” and which has “a suite kept aside for the present Queen”.
British Airways flies to Toronto from Heathrow.
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Dominic Frisby
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