We visited Toronto over Christmas in 2023 hoping to have our first white Christmas. Unfortunately, according to our relatives it was the warmest winter they’d had in 20 years and Toronto stayed infuriatingly snow-less. Instead of playing in the snow, we had to find other stuff to do to keep ourselves entertained. As we were there for 2 weeks and travelling on a budget, we had to do it cheaply. We ended up finding some great things to do so read ahead to discover some these free and cheap ways to explore Toronto.

Cost: Free

Like most of our other travel guides, one of our favourite budget things to recommend is a park. High Park is one of the largest parks in Toronto and is located in the west of the city. It’s easy to get to via public transport as there is a subway line running along the north of the park, a tram line running along the south, and buses along each side. Limited parking is available except on weekends so we don’t recommend driving. The park is open all year round and is free to enter.

There are lots of great walking trails as one third of the park is a natural forest. On the western side of the park is Grenadier Pond which is definitely worth a visit. North American beavers live in this pond and while we were there we spent a good amount of time looking for one. We did end up seeing a marine animal but unfortunately for us it was just an otter. Still cool to see a wild otter though!

In the park you will also find Colborn Lodge museum, sports facilities, areas to picnic, gardens, playgrounds and a café. One of the main draws of the park are the cherry blossom trees, which flower from late April to early May. There is also a free zoo in the south of the park which is open 9am to 5pm every day. The zoo goes along Deer Pen Road and is a series of 10-15 enclosed pens. It won’t take long too look around but there are some fun animals. You’ll find bison, capybaras, highland cows, emus and wallabies, yaks and more. Its definitely worth a visit if you’ve got time.

Cost: Free

If you’re after a nice thing to do for an hour or two, you can walk along the Toronto harbourfront. It starts up near the ferry terminal, runs around the marinas that dot along the harbour. Walking west along the water there’s lots there including the Harbourfront Centre which is a theatre and event space. There’s also eateries, The Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery and lots of parks.

One of the coolest ones we walked through was the Toronto Music Garden, which Yo Yo Ma helped to design. The different sections of the garden correspond to each movement of Bach’s First Suite for Unaccompanied Cello. There is also a great view of the CN tower on one side of the garden, and a great view of the Toronto city airport on the other side. The whole walk is lovely, especially in nice weather, and has a great view across to the Toronto Islands.

Cost: $9.11 CAD for the return ferry but free entry to the islands

These are a series of 15 islands on Lake Ontario just off the mainland. The main island is Centre Island and is 5km from one end to the airport at the other end. It is also connected to all the smaller islands by bridges, so you can walk between them all.

You can get there from the Jack Layton ferry terminal, and the ferry ride only takes 13 minutes. However there are three different ferries as one goes to the airport, one goes to the middle of the islands and one goes to the eastern most side of Centre Island. You can find the schedule here and return tickets are $9.11 CAD each. There is also a pedestrian tunnel but it only goes to the airport, not any of the touristy islands.

On the islands there are beaches, parks, including Toronto Island park, a lighthouse and several view points back to the mainland. There’s picnic areas but also lots of eateries, bathrooms, as well as sports facilities and places to hire bikes, canoes and kayaks. There are also private yacht clubs, a residential neighbourhood and even a public school on the island. For kids, you’ve got the Centreville Amusement Park which is open during summer and charges per ride, as opposed to an entry fee. There really is so much to do on the island for every age and it would be a great place to visit in nice weather.

Cost: $45 CAD to $56 CAD for entry or free to visit the outside

Of course no time in Toronto is complete without a trip to the CN Tower. The communications and observation tower is 533 meters high and is visited by over 2 million people every year. It held the title of the world’s tallest free standing structure for 32 years until it was taken over by the Burj Khalifa in 2007.

Inside the tower are 11 lifts to take you up to one of the three observation levels. There is also a thrilling experience called Edgewalk, a revolving restaurant, an interactive art exhibition, and a gift shop. Tickets range from $45 CAD to $56 CAD for the observation decks, and the Edgewalk is $199 CAD. Even if you don’t go in the tower, you should walk by it to see it from underneath, as it very impressive in its height.

Cost: Free (Unless you buy something)

Located in the city centre, St Lawrence Market is a great public market with some amazing things. There is one permanent bigger part of the market that is open Tuesday to Sunday. The times vary depending on the day so make sure to check out their website to see what works for you. In this two storey building you can find heaps of delicious food stalls. These have both ready to eat takeaway food, restaurants and fresh produce like meats, fruits and vegetables. There are also lots of baked goods, locally made accessories, crystals, and other items.

There are also a couple of temporary market additions. In the main building is the Market Gallery which is a small exhibition space with free admission. It’s open 11am – 4pm Wednesday to Sunday and houses exhibits about the cities history. From April to October in the outdoor sections there is an arts market that runs every Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Lastly, just across the road is the much smaller temporary market building. This hosts a farmers market from 5am to 3pm every Saturday.

Cost: Free (Unless you buy something)

This is a residential and commercial area of Toronto that was one of our favourite places in the city. It actually has the largest amount of Victorian-era industrial architecture in North America, with over 40 heritage buildings. The area is the old Gooderham and Worts Distillery which was founded in 1832. The company was eventually bought out and in 2001 the area was bought by a company that turned it into a pedestrian area. They apparently refused to let any chain companies set up here. Because of this, all the shops and restaurants here are independent places that sell things like candles, soap, jewellery, chocolate and jams. There’s also restaurants, cafes, art galleries, a brewery and even a theatre.

If you’re visiting Toronto during the Christmas Period, you will be lucky enough to visit the Distillery Winter Village. This Christmas market runs from mid November to early January from midday until 9 or 10pm. It’s free to visit during the week but costs $8 to $12 CAD for entry from Friday at 6pm until the end of Sunday. As well as the normal shops, there’s also temporary wooden chalets put up that sell more treats. There is also a main stage for performances, lots of Christmas decorations and a big Christmas tree. It is an amazing market and you can find more information about it and other Christmas markets in Canada in our blog post here.

There are lots of wonderful museums in Toronto you can visit:

• The Royal Ontario Museum is the most visited museum in Canada. It has a bit of everything including art, natural history, costumes and textiles and world culture. It is open everyday from 10am to 5:30pm and tickets are between $24 to $34 CAD.
• Casa Loma is a castle style mansion built in the gothic architectural style in 1914. It’s now a museum where visitors can explore the three floors, stables and gardens. It is open from 9am to 5pm everyday and tickets cost $40 CAD per person.
• The Art Gallery of Ontario is open 10:30am to 5, 5:30 or 9pm depending on the day. Tickets cost $30 CAD per adult but there is also free entry between 6pm to 9pm on the first Wednesday of every month. The museum has over 120,000 pieces from different art eras and cultures from around the world. There is also a library and archive, a couple of places to eat and a shop.

There’s also heaps of other super unique museums in Toronto such as the Hockey Hall of Fame, the Bata Shoe Museum, Little Canada, the Textile Museum of Canada and the Gardiner Museum which is a ceramics museum.

One of the best things to do while in Toronto is day trip to Niagara Falls. This is a series of three waterfalls on the border between Canada and the United States. It is famous because of the sheer amount of water falling off it, with over 3 million litres falling from it EVERY SECOND. It really is something worth seeing at some point in your life, and luckily it’s so easy from Toronto.

The first option is to drive if you have access to a car, but parking at the falls does cost. The easiest way would be to catch a coach, such as Megabus or Flixbus. The journeys are only an hour and a half each way and usually aren’t very expensive. Another way to see it is on a Get Your Guide tour where you can also do boat tours and go behind the falls. We saw the falls from the Table Rock Welcome Centre, where there was a also food and a shop. Also, even if you’re not going down onto the water, take some waterproof clothing with you. The spray coming off the falls is intense!

There is so many wonderful free and cheap ways to explore Toronto. From a great park (and the possibility of a beaver sighting), to great markets, great places to walk, cool museums and a special day trip. There is so much to keep you entertained, whatever the season!

If you want to see what we did during out two weeks in the city, check out our vlog:

• Plan Your Visit: The Best Christmas Markets In Canada
• What To Do In Beautiful Québec City: Canadas European Gem
• 8 Great Free Things To See In Montréal
• How to See Vancouver on a Budget