Toronto Attractions

CN TOWER
301 Front Street West
(416) 868-6937

The world’s tallest freestanding structure on land, the CN Tower, is located in the beautiful multi-cultural city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada and is considered one of the signature icons and one of the most visited landmarks in North America. Standing at 554.3 meters [1 815 feet and 5 inches] no wonder this international attraction is a must see for everyone!

Over 2 million tourists visit this Guinness World Book of Records holder. CN Tower has much more to offer than just a beautiful view of the city of Toronto and Lake Ontario.

The elevator ride in it self is an attraction that will leave you with memories forever. The friendly staff at the restaurant or the adventures on the Sky Pod will ensure that your family, friends and yourself have wonderful lasting memories and experience one of the greatest thrills the city of Toronto has to offer.

ART GALLERY OF ONTARIO
317 Dundas St. West
416-979-6648 / 1-877-225-4246 (toll-free)

Founded in 1900 by a group of private citizens as the Art Museum of Toronto, the Art Gallery of Ontario is one of the largest art museums in North America, with a physical facility of 486,000 square feet. Currently under construction, the AGO’s new facility will boast 583,000 square feet, and will re-open in 2008 with an innovative architectural design by world-renowned architect Frank Gehry. The nearly transformed AGO closed its doors on October 7 as they install thousands of artworks in 110 galleries. They haven’t set the reopening date yet but are aiming for Fall 2008.

Meanwhile, the public can keep in touch throughout the closure. The AGO’s Gallery School will continue providing a full slate of classes for adults and children at its temporary location just down the street from the AGO at 60 McCaul.

THE MARKET GALLERY
92 Front Street East
416-392-7120

The Market Gallery opened in 1979 and is an exhibition facility for the City of Toronto, Culture Division.

Located inside the South St. Lawrence Market on the south-west corner of Front Street East and Jarvis Street, the Market Gallery is on the second floor in the original council chamber, all that remains from Toronto’s City Hall (1845-1899) which once stood on this site. The Market Gallery mounts several exhibits and hosts a number of special events each year.

ROGERS CENTRE TOUR EXPERIENCE
One Blue Jays Way
416-341-2771

Rogers Centre Tour Experience is the best way to appreciate the wonders of Rogers Centre, one of Toronto’s most popular attractions. The tour offers a newly renovated museum area featuring a model of Rogers Centre, memorabilia from past events, concerts and much more! See the multi-screen video wall featuring the many exciting sports and events that have been held at the facility.

Rogers Centre Tour Experience is a one hour, fully-guided behind the- scenes tour. Highlights of the tour include a visit to the Blue Jays Hall of Fame, a Press Box and a Luxury Suite among other stops.

GROUP TOUR INFORMATION
Group rates are available for groups of 20 or more. We are happy to accommodate school, adult and youth groups and can customize a tour based on your area of interest. Tours can also be made available in multiple languages if requested in advance.

Black Creek Pioneer Village’s Historic Brewery
1000 Murray Ross Parkway
(416) 736-1733

More and more locals and visitors to Toronto are making the trip to Black Creek Pioneer Village to tour the Black Creek Historic Brewery — an authentic working reproduction of a 19th-century brewery, the only one of its kind in Canada. The Brewery uses traditional tools, techniques and recipes to recreate the ales, stouts and porters enjoyed in Upper Canada before Confederation, and because everything is done by hand on a small scale, visitors have a unique opportunity to learn about beer and the brewing process up close and directly from a Brewmaster. During the summer, tours of the Black Creek Historic Brewery are offered twice daily where visitors can learn the whole story of how beer was made. (From September to December the tours are offered once a day). Participants can see where the grain was milled, how the barrels were made and even see hops growing in Village gardens. Committed to sourcing all ingredients locally, as it would have been in 19th-century Ontario, the Brewery will even start growing and malting barley on-site over the next few years. On the tours, participants are immersed in the world of 1860s’ beer making while learning about the people of the time period. Visitors are given a character card with the name and story of a historical personality. The tour introduces some of Toronto’s colourful brewing past, including notables like Thomas Molson, or Joseph Bloore, (after whom Bloor Street in Toronto is named), Mary Short, proprietress of the Wheat Sheaf Hotel, Toronto’s oldest pub, Timothy Eaton, (a pious abstainer), and George Brown, founder of the Globe newspaper and temperance advocate.

“People have a lot of fun with the character cards,” said Blythe Haynes, one of the tour guides at the Black Creek Historic Brewery. “They are surprised by the social history of beer and find it as interesting as the process of brewing beer. I invite them to play along with their characters, and that makes it a very lively social experience for everyone, including the children. By they end of the tour everyone is talking and laughing.”

Sampling the actual beer right from the barrels is a highlight for tour participants, and there is old-style root beer for the children. “People are surprised by the taste of the beer, because it is barely carbonated and room temperature,” said Haynes. “We get a lot of different reactions and I tell them that your taste buds don’t lie. Some don’t like it, but a surprising number of people like it more than commercial beer. They say it has more body and flavour.”

“Visitors are surprised that the beer is brewed in such a small space with such simple equipment,” said Edward Koren, Brewmaster, Black Creek Historic Brewery. “Because it’s on such a small scale, people find it easier to understand the process.”

“We are getting quite a cult following for our beer,” said Koren proudly. “We have people coming back regularly to pick up growlers of the beer to bring home, and some are even coming back to take the tour a second time. People like that the beer really is 100% natural, and just like in the early days, no two batches taste exactly alike.” A growler is 1.9 litre jug that was commonly used for beer in the 1860s.

“We really enjoyed our tour guide, she was a lot of fun,” said Mary Evans from Stettler, Alberta who recently visited the Brewery with her husband. “And it was great to taste the beer at the end. I have wanted to visit Black Creek Pioneer Village since I was a teenager and I’m so glad we came. It has lived up to all my expectations.”

The Brewery is located in Half Way House Inn at Black Creek Pioneer Village, a restored inn built in 1849. One half of a large downstairs room is used for the brewery, the other half operates as a pub. Visitors can enjoy a pint in the pub, or with a meal in the adjoining Black Creek Historic Brewery Restaurant. The Restaurant was fully renovated in 2009 and offers an all-new menu focusing on local foods and featuring a selection of Ontario’s best craft beers, including Black Creek Ales and Porters.

Along with a series of special events through the summer and fall — including Field to Firkin tours the first Friday of every month through November, and Say Cheese! And Cheers events which teach visitors to pair craft beers with artisanal cheeses — Black Creek Historic Brewery is available as a one-of-a-kind venue for corporate events and meetings, family parties and wedding receptions.

Black Creek Pioneer Village is located at 1000 Murray Ross Parkway, Toronto (one block east of Jane St., south off Steeles Avenue, right next to York University). The Village is south east of Hwy 7 and Hwy 400. Parking is available on site. For more information on the Black Creek Historic Brewery, visit www.blackcreekbrewery.ca, or call (416) 736-1733.