6 Best Sights in Toronto, Ontario

One of North America's loveliest parks, High Park is especially worth visiting in summer—when special events include professionally staged Shakespeare productions—and in spring when thousands of visitors flock to see the cherry blossoms flower on High Park's sakura trees. Popular fishing spot Grenadier Pond is named after the British soldiers who crashed through the soft ice while rushing to defend the town against invading American forces in 1813. The High Park Zoo, open daily from dawn to dusk, is more modest than the Toronto Zoo but a lot closer to downtown and free. Kids love walking among the deer, Barbary sheep, emus, yaks, llamas, peacocks, and bison.

The park was once privately owned by John George Howard, Toronto's first city architect. Colborne Lodge, his country home built in 1837 on a hill overlooking Lake Ontario, contains its original fireplace, bake oven, and kitchen, as well as many of Howard's drawings and paintings. Other highlights of the 399-acre park are a large swimming pool, tennis courts, fitness trails, and hillside gardens with roses and sculpted hedges. There's limited parking along Bloor Street north of the park, and along the side streets on the eastern side.

This pocket-size park is pleasant enough during the day, but at night it comes alive with strings of rainbow-color lights that symbolize the LGBTQ+ community. There's a mural of gay history on an adjacent building, and tucked away in one corner is the Toronto AIDS Memorial.

This small but charming public space is home to a gorgeous two-tiered water fountain surrounded by 27 whimsical dog sculptures—and one cat—making it a delightful spot for a short respite and the perfect Instagram pic. Designed by celebrated Claude Cormier + Associés, the grand cast-iron fountain is encircled by the statues, whose eyes reverently look to the golden bone positioned at the top. Ample seating and grass make Berczy Park a relaxing oasis in the heart of the city where people and their dogs love to gather. During the colder months the fountain is turned off, but it remains worth the visit to see the dog statues cutely decorated with Santa hats for the holiday season.

This park comprises a peninsula that juts 5 km (3 miles) into Lake Ontario. Created from rubble from construction sites around the city and sand dredged for a new port, the peninsula has quickly become one of the best areas in the city for cycling (quad-cycles are available for rent), jogging, walking, photography, and bird-watching. The peninsula is home to the largest breeding colony of double-crested cormorants in North America, as well as dozens of species of terns, ducks, geese, and great egrets. At the end of the spit of land, you'll find a red-and-white lighthouse, in addition to amazing views of downtown and an awesome sense of isolation in nature. Bird-watching is best from May to mid-October. To get here, head east along Queen Street to Leslie Street, then south to the lake. Dogs and private vehicles are not permitted.

Bellwoods is the top destination for west-enders to kick back on a sunny day. The tree-lined park runs between Dundas West and Queen West, which makes for a scenic stroll if you're heading between neighborhoods. It's a great spot for picnicking and people-watching---or dog-watching, if you take a bench next to the dog bowl. It's especially attractive in mid-May, when the cherry trees bloom pink, or when the leaves turn in the fall.

Yorkville is also home to a unique park on Cumberland Street, right outside Bay subway station, designed as a series of gardens along old property lines and reflecting both the history of the Village of Yorkville and the diversity of the Canadian landscape. The result of an international design competition, the park lines the street with a soothing waterfall fixture, tree-lined enclaves, and a big rock sculpture that children love to climb on. It's rare to find that kind of open public space in a retail area in the city that doesn't require you to buy something, though the ample outdoor seating often looks like a shared open-air café for nearby shops like Starbucks, Sorry Coffee Co., and vegan lunch spot Kupfert & Kim.