Toronto City Guide

Toronto Overview

Get to know Toronto and its slow-growing pleasures.

Although the famous Niagara Falls are nearby, Toronto isn't a city with a checklist full of attractions. But its summer festivals, the spicy corners of its markets, the beachfront boardwalks and the music pouring out of its neighbourhood eateries will slowly and surely seduce you.

This is Canada's business capital and largest city: a clean, safe and vibrant metropolis where real estate prices are high and blood pressure levels are low. The centre of Anglo-Canadian culture and media, it's also one of the great ethnic melting pots of the world.

Toronto Photo Gallery

Photographs of Toronto

View from the CN Tower, once the world's tallest freestanding structure

Entrance to National Exhibition Centre: no shortage of columns or flags

Henry Moore sculpture - Art Gallery of Ontario ( AGO )

Toronto Fast Facts

Facts about Toronto

Currency in Toronto

Notes in Canada

Paper currency comes in denominations of five (blue), 10 (purple), 20 (green) and 50 (red). The brown 100.00 CAD bill and larger bills are less common and can be difficult to change.

Coins in Canada

Canadian coins come in denominations of one (penny), five (nickel), 10 (dime) and 25 (quarter) cent pieces. There are also the gold 1.00 CAD (loonie) and 2.00 CAD (toonie) pieces. The gold-coloured loonie features the loon, a common Canadian water bird, while the two-toned toonie is jauntily decorated with a polar bear.

Preferred Form of Payment in Toronto

You can easily get by with a credit/debit card in all but the smallest towns. Keep an extra card and a couple of travellers cheques if you're the precautious type.

Changing Your Money in Toronto

It's best to change money at companies such as American Express or Thomas Cook/Travelex, which specialise in international transactions. If you can't find a money exchange office or booth, try a bank. American Express and Thomas Cook are the best travellers cheques to have, and you should make sure they are either in US or Canadian dollar denominations. Credit cards are widely accepted, especially Visa, MasterCard and American Express. ABMs (ATMs) are common throughout Canada.

Money Tips

Be aware that shops and businesses rarely accept personal cheques, but credit cards are widely accepted (except perhaps in remote, rural communities where cash is king). Still, you'll find it hard or impossible to rent a car, book a room or order tickets over the phone without having a piece of plastic.

Using a Telephone in Toronto

Dial all 10 digits of a given phone number, including the three-digit area code and seven-digit number, even for local calls. Always dial '1' before toll-free (800, 888, 877 etc) and domestic long-distance numbers. Some toll-free numbers are good anywhere in North America, others within Canada only. International rates apply for calls to USA, even though the dialling code (+1) is the same as for Canadian long-distance calls.

Using a Mobile Phone in Toronto

North America uses various mobile phone systems, which are mostly incompatible with the GSM 900/1800 standard used in Europe, Asia and Africa. Check with your cellular service provider about using your phone in Canada. Calls may be routed internationally, and US travellers should beware of roaming surcharges (it can become very expensive for a 'local' call).

Doing Business in Toronto

Despite Canadians vowing to 'Buy Canadian!', foreign companies actually do quite well here. As the most popular Canadian city for conventions and trade shows, Toronto hosts over 100 events annually at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre and Exhibition Place. Tourism Toronto (tel: 416 203 2600, 800 499 2514; www.torontotourism.com) readily assists business travellers and offers corporate incentives. It has a summer kiosk staffed inside City Hall. Telephone agents are available year-round from 08:30 to 17:30 weekdays. After hours, you can use their automated touch-tone information menu.

The financial district dominates most of the downtown core, taking up over a dozen city blocks between the subway lines along Yonge St and University Ave. It stops short at Queen St, which defines the district's northern edge.

Media in Toronto

Like the rest of Canada, Toronto is passionate about its media, happily pumping megabucks into supporting local writers and artists and promoting a strong bias towards local content. In fact, 35% of music played on radio and a cracking 60% of programming on most TV channels must be Canadian content, so you can be assured of receiving a pretty hearty, authentic view of the city through its media outlets.

Periodicals in Toronto

Radio Stations in Toronto

Books in Toronto

Factoids

What Gets A Canadian Riled

Some years ago, in a whimsical attempt to entertain tourists, Toronto officials placed more than 300 brightly coloured fibreglass moose throughout the city. They proved unpopular with many Torontonians, who regarded them as tacky, and calls were made for their removal. Some Molson-fuelled moose abuse occurred. The controversy was ended when the works, all decorated by local artists, were publicly auctioned for charity.