A trip to Toronto can be so fun and interesting for people of all ages, but you might be at a loss for activity ideas if your kids are no longer quite so little. Here are some of our favorite things to do in Toronto with older kids.
We lived in Toronto when our oldest, Kennedy, was born, but moved out to the suburbs when she was about one, and even further away to our old farmhouse in the country when she was starting school. Now that she’s back in the city for university, we find ourselves spending time there quite often with her and her younger brother, Jack, who is a tween of ten. Navigating planned itineraries, activities, and eating arrangements with teens, young adults, and tweens, is definitely a bit of a different situation compared to planning for a trip with toddlers or young kids. If you’re visiting this multicultural Canadian city with your family and are hoping to have a great time and do some sightseeing while you’re there, here are some of our favorite things to do in Toronto, Ontario with older kids.
DIY Walking Tour of Toronto Neighborhoods
One of the best parts of traveling is learning the layout of a new city and getting a feel for what it’s like to live there. That might be a bit overwhelming for younger children, but older kids can definitely start to grasp how the map of the city fits together.
If you’re visiting during the warmer months, plan your own DIY walking tour through the different neighbourhoods of Toronto to really get a feel for what makes this city so great. As you go, point out changes in different types of architecture, the types of people you see going about their lives, and what those people are doing. Consider a walk starting in Yorkville, down into the financial district, across the entertainment district, up Spadina through China Town, into Kensington Market, and finally into Little Italy.
Plan out stops at cafes, restaurants, bakeries, and ice cream shops along the way to fuel up. Mizzica Gelateria on Queen Street, and Bunner’s Bakery in Kensington are two of our family’s current favorites.
More Southern Ontario Family Fun: Staying in the Pinery Provincial Park Cabins
The Best Toronto Attractions for Older Kids
If your kids are anything like our 10-year-old, Jack, they love the idea of visiting an “attraction” while traveling for family fun. Often, the draw for these big attractions geared towards tourists is that your kids have heard of them before, and when they go back to school and tell their friends about them, their friends will know what they’re talking about.
Some of the best Toronto attractions to visit when you travel with older kids are the CN Tower, the zoo, Ripley’s Aquarium, Toronto Island, the Science Centre, the ROM (Royal Ontario Museum), Casa Loma, and the Toronto sign and skating rink in Nathan Phillips Square. The AGO (Art Gallery of Ontario) and the famous OCAD building right beside it can also be a great choice if you have teenagers who are interested in art.
If you need somewhere to sit and take a mid-day break from playing tourist, make sure to visit the beautiful, vibrant Grange Park directly behind the art gallery. The park has walking paths to stroll, a big open grass area, a dog park, and a great playground, along with lots of benches.
If we happen to be staying in a nearby hotel, we have a little tradition of walking down to Yonge-Dundas Square just before bedtime, sometimes with Jack in his pajamas. This always seems to go over well as there’s plenty of hustle and bustle in that area, even at 10 pm on a weeknight, and it’s just a great change of scenery from the quiet country evening views at home.
On our most recent trip, we visited a newer point of interest, Little Canada, which we’ve wanted to see since it opened a few years ago. It was amazing to see all the detailed miniature scenes created from all across Canada. It was perfect for big kids with longer attention spans and adults alike, but it might be a bit of a difficult place to visit with a younger crowd.
Places to visit in Canada at least once: 48 Hours in Niagara on the Lake
Attend Toronto Events While You’re Visiting
Toronto events are a great way to keep everyone entertained. Make sure you look into what’s going on in the city during the time that you’ll be there if you’re looking for things to do with kids. Especially during the summer, you’ll often find a street festival happening in one neighborhood or another, with interesting food options, free entertainment, and cultural art to take in, whether it’s just for a few minutes, or a whole afternoon.
If your trip is at just the right time, you may be able to see one of the larger events that draw crowds from all around like the CNE (Canadian National Exhibition) at the end of summer for amusement rides, the “One of a Kind Show” during the fall and spring, the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair, or the Distillery District Market at Christmas.
Sporting events are always fun activities with older kids, and Toronto, Canada, is known for having fans who create a great atmosphere to make watching sports a truly memorable experience. There are many local sports teams that play throughout the year with the more well-known teams being the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre, the Raptors, Toronto FC, and Maple Leafs, but if there’s a particular sport that interests your family, also consider looking into minor teams like York United FC, the Marlies, or one of the university team schedules.
Another great family trip in Ontario: Two Days in Point Pelee National Park Otentiks
Take the Kids Along With You on Your Adventures
Maybe there’s something you have in mind that you’d like to do, but think it might be a little boring for young people and not geared towards children in any way. If there’s a restaurant or coffee shop you’d like to visit, an errand you need to run, or an art show you’d like to go see, my suggestion is just to take the kids along with you. You may end up being surprised by what a great time you have together by doing something unexpected. Kids are always taking in the world around them, and there’s so much to see in the city no matter what you’re doing, so trying something new can be an exciting and eye-opening experience, even if it’s just something like helping your daughter stock up on groceries for her dorm room.
We often like to try out different restaurants that we’ve read about while we’re visiting the city, but we know that our youngest would usually choose pizza or chicken fingers most of the time if we gave him the choice. Our dinner-time tactic is usually to just go to the restaurants we’re interested in, and say we’ll pick up a burger for Jack on the way back to the hotel if he hates it. Most of the time, we all end up loving the experience and Jack is the first one to say that we definitely need to go back to that particular establishment soon. Some of our unexpected family favorites have been Saigon Lotus in China Town for vegan pho, Ramen Ishin in Little Italy, Tenon Vegan Sushi in the Annex, and the Village Genius Pub across from the AGO.
Do you have any unexpectedly fun things to do in Toronto with older kids that you’ve done recently?
Courtenay Hartford is the author of creeklinehouse.com, a blog based on her adventures renovating a 120-year-old farmhouse in rural Ontario, Canada. On her blog, Courtenay shares interior design tips based on her own farmhouse and her work as founder and stylist of the interior photography firm Art & Spaces. She also writes about her farmhouse garden, plant-based recipes, family travel, and homekeeping best practices. Courtenay is the author of the book The Cleaning Ninja and has been featured in numerous magazines including Country Sampler Farmhouse Style, Better Homes and Gardens, Parents Magazine, Real Simple, and Our Homes.