Family on the Go

Toronto is a big city with a lot to do, but what do you do if you’re visiting with little kids?

You have a lot of options, so here are some of our favorites from our quick trip in Toronto.

1. Royal Ontario Museum

Our boys could have spent the entire day at the WonderWorks exhibit in the Royal Ontario Museum. They had a lot of hands-on activities and fun puzzles, toys and crafts.

On the same floor as WonderWorks were the bat cave, different animals (taxidermy) and a multitude of dinosaur fossils. If you have the kids with you, you really don’t need to leave the second floor.

Throughout the museum, there’s a lot to learn and fun exhibits for the entire family.

The Royal Ontario Museum is located close to the University of Toronto at:

100 Queen’s Park, Toronto,
ON M5S 2C6

Their hours are 10:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on the days they are open, but check their website or calendar to make sure they are open.

Tickets can be purchased at the museum or in advance. Adult General Admission is $26 and children tickets are $16.

2. Hockey Hall of Fame

We are hockey fans, so we wanted to try and make it a point to go to the Hockey Hall of Fame while in Toronto. Our boys may have been a little young at three and 16 months, but our oldest son still enjoyed shooting the puck, pretending to be a sportscaster and playing the games throughout the building.

We all loved seeing the Stanley Cup and looking at the championship rings, especially being St. Louis Blues fans and getting to see their name on the cup finally.

If you have little ones who enjoy sports or hockey, make the trip through the mall food court to the Hall of Fame.

The Hockey Hall of Fame is located inside Brookfield Place at:

Brookfield Place
30 Yonge St. Toronto
ON M5E 1X8

Their hours are 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. daily June 26 to September 4 and 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily Fall, Winter and Spring.

General Admission tickets are $25 and $15 for kids 4 to 13.

3. CN Tower

The CN Tower can have a long line, but it is worth it. We splurged a little bit and made a reservation for dinner at 360 Restaurant. There is a minimum, but the food is great, you get to see each amazing view as the floor rotates and you enjoy a nice meal while sitting and taking in the sights.

With reservations at the restaurant, you have access to all the observation decks, so you can still look around and explore the area. The best part was the kid menus with the coloring sheet of CN Tower on the back. It’s become one of our souvenirs.

Reservations at 360 Restaurant at the CN Tower require a minimum purchase of $75/adult and $40/child.

You can also visit the CN Tower without restaurant reservations for $43 per person, $30 for children 6 to 13 and $14 for children 3 to 5.

4. Toronto Railway Museum

This was a pleasant surprise. As we left the CN Tower, we saw this great little park with trains outside. It turns out it was the Toronto Railway Museum.

The stalls of the roundhouse host a museum, arcade, event space and charming brewery and patio. Steam Whistle Brewing had great beer and some delicious snacks so you can enjoy some food and let the kids play on the trains.

The Toronto Railway Museum and Roundhouse Park are located just outside the CN Tower and aquarium at:

255 Bremner Blvd, Toronto, ON M5V 3M9, Canada

The museum is open from 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily and the park is open until sunset.

5. St. Lawrence Market

St. Lawrence Market is a great place to find a variety of food, drinks and desserts, along with a large offering of souvenirs. If you are around downtown Toronto, it’s a great place to walk through and see if there’s something you might like or a snack or treat to take with you.

The kids loved looking at the different shops and restaurants and we liked how many options there were for food and gifts.

St. Lawrence Market is located at:

Toronto, ON M5E 1C3, Canada

They are open weekdays from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Saturdays from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Sundays from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.