Best Neighbourhoods to Explore in Toronto, Picked by Mood

Parks Canada lists Kensington Market as a national historic site of Canada. It describes a small neighbourhood west of Spadina Avenue in the heart of downtown Toronto, with distinctive narrow streets of small stores, colourful awnings and former homes selling food, spices and clothes from around the world. The tightly knit blocks of businesses, homes and community institutions evolved as successive waves of immigrants added their cultural imprint to the city. Our pick for a no-plan afternoon. More on the Kensington Market hub.

The City says the South Market contains more than 60 specialty vendors, while the North Market is primarily known for its Saturday Farmers’ Market. The complex has served as a City landmark for more than 200 years. Go hungry, leave with a shopping bag.

The area’s business association says the street signs in its district were replaced in the summer of 1982 with bilingual blue and white signs showing street names in both Greek and English. In June 1993, the BIA’s name was officially changed to GreekTown on the Danforth. Read the street signs as you walk, then pick a table.

This main street runs along Bayview Avenue from Davisville Avenue north to Parkhurst Boulevard, and the BIA was established in 2015. It is bounded by the historic neighbourhoods of Leaside and Davisville Village. A relaxed walk for a Sunday of window-shopping.

The heritage site opened to the public in 1967 as part of East York’s contribution to the celebration of Canada’s centennial. The Helliwell family settled here in 1821 and established a brewery and distillery. Its grounds are home to a 9.2 hectare Wildflower Preserve. The City says the Don River Valley’s natural resources drew Indigenous peoples, settlers, industrialists, workers, artists and families for centuries. Read more on our East York hub.

Mel Lastman Square features 20,000 square feet of open space, a garden court, an outdoor amphitheatre, fountains and a reflecting pool. It is at 5100 Yonge St. by the North York Civic Centre, steps from shops, restaurants and public transportation. Nearby, Gibson House Museum is a 19th-century farmhouse hidden between the high rises of North York, with an 1850s kitchen. The City says Gibson House offers visitors an opportunity to taste, smell and touch history. Plenty to see in North York on one short outing.

The City lists eleven parks along 15 km of the Scarborough Bluffs. They feature views of the bluffs and Lake Ontario, trails, beaches, gardens and sports and recreation facilities. Guild Park and Gardens sits atop the bluffs and includes woods, waterfront, formal gardens and a collection of public art and architectural fragments, with six kilometres of forested, floral and cultural trails. Follow the City’s posted signs, and bring a camera. Dig deeper on the Scarborough hub.

Four heritage buildings make up Scarborough Museum in Thomson Memorial Park. The Cornell House shows rural village life circa 1914, and the McCowan Log House portrays settler life in the 1850s.

The Village of Islington BIA’s mural map lists murals along Dundas Street West, including The Art Alley Mural Project, Honouring Islington’s Volunteer Fire Brigade and Flight of the Passenger Pigeon. At the corner of Dundas Street West and Islington Avenue, Montgomery’s Inn was built in the 1830s to shelter travellers. The inn also lists weekly farmers’ markets, hearth cooking demonstrations and community art exhibits. A good day out in Etobicoke.

Mimico Waterfront Park provides 1.1 kilometres of shoreline park space in Etobicoke, between Norris Crescent Parkette and Humber Bay Park West. Its multi-use trail and enhanced shoreline provide a water’s-edge route to walk, cycle or skate through the neighbourhood. Pack a coffee and walk until the skyline changes.