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Toronto on a Weekday

New Haven...
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Toronto on a Weekday
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I am taking my 3 1/2 year old and 1 1/2 year old to Toronto for a Labor Day weekend getaway.

We are flying on Thursday morning and leaving Sunday night. That means that Friday is the only weekday that we will have a full day in Toronto. (Thursday we are arriving at 11:30 to Pearson so it'll be afternoon before we're downtown).

We are planning to go to the Toronto Zoo, Centreville Island, and maybe the Canadian National Exhibition (maybe a bit crowded for the kids, but Thomas the Train will be there!!!). Does anyone have any advice or input as to which of these places would be the MOST advantageous to go to on Friday, our one non-weekend non-holiday day. In other words, which place is most likely to have a more significant difference in the crowds between weekday and weekend? Thanks for your help!

Josh

Burlington, Canada
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1. Re: Toronto on a Weekday
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The zoo, Center Island and The CNE will all be busy on Friday....and all should be even busier on the weekend. If I were to pick which one to do on Friday I'd say the Exhibition because it will be jammed on Saturday and Sunday. The zoo and Center Island will also be quite busy on the weekend but not as bad as the CNE.

Toronto, Canada
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Agreed Krusty...

Toronto, Canada
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It would be a toss up for us. The other side of the coin is that the Ex will be crowded no matter what, but the islands will have a much more significant increase on the weekend.

Perhaps stick with the CNE on Friday but get an early start on Saturday to head to Centre Island. The ferry crowds will build quickly. One of the reasons is that the islands offer a great vantage point for watching the CNE air show, which runs all weekend.

West Grey, Canada
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Hi Josh;

The Toronto Zoo isn’t a typical concrete and bars zoo. It is divided into six zoogeographic regions with the animals displayed indoors in tropical pavilions and outdoors in naturalistic environments. The zoo is one of the largest in the world, encompassing an area of 710 acres / 287 hectares !

http://www.torontozoo.ca

You could spend an entire day at the zoo.

Best Regards

Toronto
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I think the OP was already sold on the zoo, and presumably spending a whole day there.

I'll make the case for the Islands: while all the attractions named will be more crowded on the weekend than on the friday, for the Islands you have to line up and buy a ferry ticket. Terrible lines can build up on popular days, which means getting on a later ferry than if the lines were less.

On the other hand, the solution for that could be to go early in the day, before the lines build up too much. And if you're going to the CNE for the midway rides then lines will have an impact there too, regardless of what time of day you go. So there's something to be said for the Ex on the friday.

How do you plan to get to the zoo? Will you have a car? The other attractions are best to get to by public transit, but for the zoo it's worth taking the car if you have access to one.

Toronto, Canada
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I'd do the Ex on Friday too..............as commented previously, all of those attractions will be busy, but that particular weekend is the closing weekend for the Ex for the season.......so it'll extra busy......the Toronto Zoo and the Islands are lovely......you've picked some really nice activities for your children to enjoy..........are you bringing a stroller with you?.........a collapsible umbrella- stroller type would help with your toddler, and is a good place to carry all the extras you're likely to be carting around with you(but my guess is you already know that by now!).....

Toronto, Ontario
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I think B&J's answer has you covered - the time factor on weekends in the ferry lineup is a problem. My experience with toddlers is they're already awake at that hour, anyway, so you might as well plan for the earlier ferry to the island. Do the Ex on Friday, but again, early in the day. Typically here, if there is a tourist attraction, anything after 11:30 a.m. there's gonna be a lineup.

Toronto, Canada
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Just to clarify, the Kids Midway at the Ex does not open until 11 a.m. on weekdays. It used to also be 11 a.m. on weekends, but it appears they may have moved it up till 10 a.m.

Good bets with really young children at the Ex are mostly around the Kids Midway area. You can play drums and percussion instruments for free at one part of the long building; you can sign up to make pizza (and get a free slice of real pizza); they have various acts on the stage aimed at young children with lots of participation; there is usually a "circus" where the kids from the audience all get to pretend with simple props to be the circus lions or acrobats; there is usually a parade where the kids (but really their parents) carry large puppets around; there is a real normal playground with slides; there is a petting zoo where the kibble to feed the animals is expensive but visiting the animals is free.

The washrooms, unfortunately, are only located in the kids midway itself in a set of trailers. They have been kept well cleaned the last few years by an onsite attendant. It's important to know where they are, though, as it's not too close to the other activities.

The farm building is also good with very young children. I haven't been yet this year, but in the past they have had some really cool tricycles to peddle that make it seem like you are driving a horse drawn carriage (hard to explain but way cool). There also were some other activities especially meant for 5 and under. In addition there are sheep being sheared; cows being milked; various farm animals to see, etc. All of these activities are free with admission.

I'd be more concerned with crowds at the ferry dock for Toronto Island and with getting parking in the main lot at the zoo (overflow parking is a zillion miles away from the entrance: try to get there early!) than with crowds at the Ex. Your guys are a bit young (short in height) for many of the rides even at the Kids Midway, so I don't think the lines will be that much of an issue.

If it's going to be really hot at the zoo, they do have a splash park. The water is very cold but sometimes very welcome. Food choices are very limited at the zoo and the lines can be crazy long. I'd bring a picnic and just buy a treat.

Hope you have a great weekend!

Toronto, Canada
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I'd go to the Islands. Getting to the zoo on the Friday of the last long weekend of the summer will be time consuming and frustrating as the roads will be jammed all day with people getting out of town for the last hurrah.

10. Re: Toronto on a Weekday

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