Three Days in Toronto: My Favourite Things to Do

This summer, I took advantage of a long weekend in Cayman to hop on a flight to Toronto. It has been years since I had last visited the city, but I used to love my trips to and from the island when I was attending boarding school and university in Ontario. We flew direct on Air Canada to make this most of the three days we had planned to spend in Toronto. We spent our time dining at restaurants, shopping at the Eaton Centre and meeting up with old friends. Tommy is not as familiar with the city, so I wanted to throw in some of the key Toronto activities since we had a limited amount of time. If you’re planning a short trip to the city, here are some of my favourite things to do that will give you a taste of what Toronto has to offer.

1. Catch a Blue Jays Game
Toronto’s sports culture is electric, and nothing captures it better than a Blue Jays game at the Rogers Centre. I played t-ball, softball in school and women’s league in Cayman, so it can be expected that I enjoy a good old fashioned baseball game. Even if you’re not a die-hard baseball fan, the atmosphere is infectious (and much more fun than watching on TV). With the CN Tower looming in the background as you enter the area you’ll quickly see the contagious energy of the crowd streaming into the stadium. Win or lose the ballpark has that nostalgic feel for me personally; beers, ballpark snacks and the excitement of watching a good catch or a home run.

2. Dine with a View at the CN Tower
The CN Tower is Toronto’s most iconic landmark, and dining at the revolving 360 Restaurant is an experience in itself. We reserved this ticket in advance to avoid what can be a longer line to enter, especially for those just wanting to go to the viewing platform. You can choose to order a la carte or one of there curated tasting menus, where one of them features first nation-inspired flavours. As you enjoy your meal, the 360-degree views slowly reveal the entire city skyline, Lake Ontario and beyond especially on a clear day. We went for an early lunch to catch the daytime views and our tasting menu meal lasted around 2 hours, which is just over 2 full rotations as each rotation takes 72 minutes. It’s lunch/dinner and sightseeing tour rolled into one! If you spend CAD$75 as an adult on your meal at 360, you are granted free access to the Main Observation Level just below the restaurant. The Main and Lower Observation Levels have an interactive art showcase, wrap-around views of the city, the Overview station with tilted glass and the thrilling glass floor that shows the city 342m below. It was quite enjoyable for me to watch Tommy stand on it in the glass floor corner for as short 3 seconds before stepping off as it started to trigger his fear of heights. I guess it’s a good thing I didn’t sign him up for the Edgewalk; a harnessed, 360o walk on the outside circumference of the tower. Maybe next time …

3. Escape the Norm
We are always on the lookout for a playful experience, so if you are looking for something out of the ordinary consider Escape Manor. It’s more than an escape room venue as they also offer activities like axe throwing, which made for a mix of puzzle-solving and adrenaline. My Caymanian friend Rejuan happened to be in the city at the same time, so he came out to join us and help us to crack the codes in the escape room, then we all worked on our axe throwing skills where we all ended up hitting a bullseye. For adults who enjoy a beer or cocktail, they have a bar on-site that you can order from before, after and even during your escape room or axe throwing experience. It is also incredibly easy to book online as they show timeslots for each activity, so you can smoothly move from one activity to the next. I’d definitely recommend trying here with friends!

4. Food Market Finds
Toronto’s food scene is endlessly diverse and the St. Lawrence Market is the perfect place to dive into some of the cities iconic eats. We read reviews about a few stalls and also roamed around to see what we were interested in trying. We finalised our decision to 3 food stalls - Mike’s Fish Market, Stackd Kitchen and Carousel Bakery. Mike’s Fish Market literally sells fresh seafood on ice, but around the side of the stall they have their Oyster Bar where they will freshly shuck them for you to eat on site. They were so fresh, cold and flavourful that we had to order another dozen before heading onto our next stop. Carousel Bakery has been around for decades and we had heard that they serve the original (and best) peameal bacon sandwich. Even though it has a simple appearance, I now understand all of the hype. Thick slabs of peameal bacon are placed inside their signature soft country bread and it was absolutely satisfying. We added one of their mustards to ours, but it is just as good on it’s own or if you load it up with eggs and cheese for breakfast. To finish our eating around the market, we went for a Montreal smoked meat sandwich with mustard. The meat is shaved paper thing, the meat is smoked beautifully and it was literally stacked! I was incredibly impressed and will be thinking of this one for a long time. I think that the vendors at St. Lawrence Market have done well to showcase that when you are intentional with quality ingredients, a ‘simple’ dish can really pack a punch.

Final Thoughts
In just three days, Toronto gave me a mix of sports, skyline views, hands-on fun, and memorable food. What I love about this city is that it balances big attractions like the CN Tower with more down-to-earth experiences like sharing a sandwich at the market or cheering on the Blue Jays with thousands of fans. If you’re looking for a quick getaway that offers variety, more bang for your buck and a safe city, Toronto is the perfect pick.