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10 reasons why you should visit Toronto

Toronto's cityscape: Flickr/Michael Gil
Toronto's cityscape: Flickr/Michael Gil

No longer the city 30 Rock called “…New York…without all the stuff”, Toronto is fast-establishing itself as one of this year’s most desirable city destinations, with a creative counterculture to rival the likes Williamsburg and Copenhagen.

Packed with ethnic enclaves, boasting a bustling food scene and offering rest and relaxation in cool designer stays, there are plenty of reasons to discover Canada’s cultural quarter. With Canada celebrating its 150th anniversary and Prince Harry reportedly spending Easter in Toronto with girlfriend Megjan Markle, there's never been a better time to visit. Here are just ten reasons why you should book a trip this year:

1. It’s a cultural hotbed

Toronto is home to some 2.7 million people, a sprawling city filled with distinct shouldering neighbourhoods. There’s the cobblestoned and car-less Distillery District - a jigsaw of industrial warehouses filled with galleries, fashion designers and artisanal foodie haunts. Off Dundas Street West you’ll find the colourful bustle and flavour of Chinatown, while the two-kilometre strip that runs along Queen West between Bathurst St and Gladstone Ave has become home to Toronto’s young creatives and some 300 galleries, design houses, record stores, independent coffee shops, restaurants and boutique hotels.

Take a stroll around the trendy boutiques of Queen Street West
Take a stroll around the trendy boutiques of Queen Street West

2. The festival scene

Most of us will have heard of the Toronto Film Festival, but the city is also host to a whole summer of boutique alternative dance and electronic festivals - including Digital Dreams, Electric Island and Diplo’s annual Mad Decent Block Party. Arts lovers will want to travel over in June, when a 17-day festival, Luminato, will take over the Toronto's theatres, parks and public spaces with theatre, dance and music.

3. You can live like a Wes Anderson character

The unofficial hub of trendy Queen Street is The Drake, an upcycled mid-nineteenth century design stay that attracts nightlife lovers and design enthusiasts in equal measure. The look of the hotel feels Wes Anderson-approved - think “The Grand Budapest Hotel” and apply to both the interiors and the clientele. In the open-plan bar and restaurant you’ll find bearded types nursing Old Fashioneds under pendant copper lighting, or perusing the gallery walls filled with clocks, books and kitsch bric-a-brac. There are lots of hipster-friendly details hidden around every corner, such as a black and white photobooth, a ‘sky yard’ roof terrace, a subway-tiled coffee shop serving up signature roast coffee and free wi-fi and a regular rotation of local Toronto art adorning the walls. Infact, the week The Evening Standard stayed there, Lena Dunham’s mum even had a piece on show. The rooms - which vary from cosy ‘crash pads’ to spacious suites - are nothing short of contemporary cool and are filled with trendy touches - leather club chairs, exposed brick walls, Malin + Goetz toiletries and handmade soft toys. At night the hotel comes alive; locals queue to get a seat at the bar or at the restaurant before heading to the underground basement (an old 90s rave hotspot) which has a constant rotation of live indie shows, DJ dance parties and artist residencies.

Rest-up in the hip and fashionable Drake hotel on Queen West
Rest-up in the hip and fashionable Drake hotel on Queen West

4. It’s a one-of-a-kind shopping destination

If you’re a fan of COS or APC’s functional separates, Toronto will certainly be the place to take a half packed suitcase and return with all the monochrome knitwear, plaid flannel and handmade footwear your budget will allow. Durumi, Haven and Gravitypope should be your first port of call for self-gifting, and for unique homeware head to Spacing Store, Easy Tiger or Likely General. In Vintage We Trust, 96 Tears and Siberia are treasure troves for vintage hunters looking for one-of-a-kind finds. The city is essentially a collection of neighbouring villages, so if you breathe a sigh of relief when you step onto Stoke Newington’s Church Street, you’ll love escaping the crowds of Oxford Circus for Toronto’s quaint shopping streets.

Fill up your suitcase at Haven
Fill up your suitcase at Haven

5. It has its own version of the Cotswolds

Spend a day taking the ferry to Torontonians’ favourite getaway, the Toronto Islands. This chain of small Islands in the western part of Lake Ontario offers parkland to hike or bike, sandy beaches and the Ward’s Island community to explore. Take a camera and snap the city’s skyline at sunset.

6. It doesn't sleep (and neither will you)

From brewhouses to dive bars, the city comes alive at night. Thirsty and Miserable, Sauce and The Done Right Inn are a few low-key hipster hotspots perfect for sinking a beer or two before heading on to one of the city’s night clubs. Londoners will feel right at home at The Hoxton, a DJ-friendly downtown club in a converted industrial space, or Wayward - a West Queen West nightclub that has an unrivalled cocktail venue and speakeasy vibe.

Night spot: The Hoxton in the trendy fashion district
Night spot: The Hoxton in the trendy fashion district

7. Unrivalled restaurants

If you’re looking to try some traditional Canadian fare, head to Boralia, a slick foodie spot on Ossington owned by Ex-Fat Duck chef Evelyn Wu and partner Wayne Morris. It offers a modern take on traditional recipes of early settlers and immigrants of the 18th and 19th centuries; comforting and homely classics with a fine-dining finesse. The restaurant (a cosy wooden enclave upscaled with artful copper fixtures) is populated with Toronto’s trendy food scenesters and tourists who have either done their research or hit the jackpot with a lucky find. The food menu is largely made up of delicious sharing plates including, chef’s Kedegree (smoked whitefish, rice crackers, curry mayo, parsely puree), Bison Tartare (Wild Ginger & Garlic Aioli, Piment D'Espelette, Pickled Fennel, Grilled Bread with Crema di Lardo) and Rabbit Rubaboo (Roast Saddle and Sausage, Pine Mushroom Duxelle, Beet). Locals swear by the Pigeon Pie, although we’d challenge you to find a tastier Foie Gras parfait in the whole of Canada. Tuck into sweet desserts with punch-packing flavours like Pumpkin Bread Pudding and Louisbourg Hot Chocolate Beignets or finish your evening with a traditional Syllabub cake (Lemon Pound Cake, Sherry Sabayon, Toasted Almonds, Blueberries). It’ll be the most delicious history lesson you ever take.

Design hotspot: Boralia
Design hotspot: Boralia

8. Rest and relaxation

Partying might be top of your list, but there are plenty of tranquil retreats to rest and recover after an evening of revelry. The Hammam Spa is an urban sanctuary tucked underneath the hustle and bustle of trendy King West, that’s built on the ancient philosophy of the traditional Turkish Baths still found throughout Europe and the Middle East. Whether looking to purify, re-energize or re-balance, the menu of treatments features hot and cold water techniques and exfoliation practices developed over centuries are a must before heading into the steam room to detoxify - we recommend The Hamman Rhassoul Clay Rap to improve the texture and luminosity of your skin. Alternatively, the Stillwater Spa offers traditional Swedish massage techniques alongside city restoration facials (a must after a day battling the winter weather) as well as manicures and aqua therapy.

9. The art scene

As well as a good deal of major art museums: the Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto Gallery of Inuit Arts and the Gardiner Museum of Ceramic art, the city has a burgeoning art community that’s present in every corner. There are hundreds of small galleries lining the streets of Queen West, Ossington, Queen East and the Distillery District, while each year the city is taken over by contemporary artists during Nuit Blanche, an all-night arts festival that runs from dusk until dawn. You’ll also want to spare a morning to grab a coffee and walk down ‘Graffiti Alley’ in The Fashion District, a street that’s been legally tagged with a whole walking tour of murals by local street artists.

Street art in Toronto (Image: Flickr/wiredforlego)
Street art in Toronto (Image: Flickr/wiredforlego)

10. It's incredibly clean and safe

Forget the holiday... how soon can we move here?

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