Five things under $50 in Toronto
Toronto isn’t always a cheap city, but there are tons of activities for folks on a budget. Here’s a look at five great things to do in the city that will cost you $50 or less.
SOMETHING FISHY
Ripley’s Aquarium of Canada has amazing displays of live sharks, turtles, packs of elegant, waving jellyfish and colourful fish. One of the great features is a moving sidewalk inside what’s called Dangerous Lagoon. The sidewalk takes you inside a glass tunnel, where you move slowly and are surrounded by hundreds of sea creatures. Having a metrelong shark pass by a few inches over their head will surely impress the kids. The aquarium also features displays about the Great Lakes and other Canadian waters and there’s a Ray Bay where you can get up close and personal with manta rays. It costs $33 for adults 14 and over, with discounts for seniors, students and kids.
DOWNTOWN ART AND ARCHITECTURE
If you’ve driven around the northwest corner of Toronto you may have seen the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, a shining white Hindu temple a few metres east of Highway 427 north of Pearson Airport. It’s pretty enough from a distance. But once you get up close you’ll be truly stunned at the intricate carvings and tiny, itsy-bitsy details in the limestone and marble. Inside is even more amazing, with swirling, intricately carved arches of brilliant white stone dancing around your head, and soft lighting that infuses the room with a deep glow. The lights turn various colours, from light green to deep blue to yellow and soft orange, and the glow seeps around corners and plays onto brilliant white pillars that rise towards a series of equally stunning ceiling panels. It’s free to enter, but donations are encouraged for upkeep. A surprising and utterly marvelous place to visit.
The Art Gallery of Ontario is one of the top museums in North America and features more than 90,000 works of art. The collection ranges from Gothic and African art to thought-provoking modern pieces. The AGO also is home to Indigenous Canadian art and to some of the finest work of Tom Thomson and other members of the famed Canadian Group of Seven. There’s a special exhibition on now with work from European master Peter Paul Rubens that runs until January 5, 2020. In addition to having fine art, the AGO was given the royal treatment by Canadian architect Frank Gehry a few years ago, with lovely light and curving masses of light-coloured wood. It’s definitely one of the finest buildings in the country. Admission is $25 for adults but free for anyone 25 and under. An annual pass is $35 for adults.
THE WORLD OF CHAMPS
You might think that the Toronto Raptors priced themselves out of the market by winning the NBA championship or, as the banner inside the Scotiabank Arena suggests, the world championship, but that’s not the case. The Raptors set prices for games based on demand. You’d probably have to take out a second mortgage to see Kawhi Leonard and the Clippers or Lebron James and the Lakers, but I went online the other day and found that Ticketmaster had seats for games against lesser teams (such as Charlotte) for as little as $41.25. The website also was listing standing-room-only seats for several games for less than $40. A hot dog and a large beer will cost half of that again, but at least you saved on your ticket.
SOMETHING IS AFOOT
The Bata Shoe Museum is a pretty compelling place to visit. Located at Bloor and St. George next to the University of Toronto, the museum features marvelous displays (they have 13,000 artifacts in all) that range from embroidered Chinese slippers to shoes made out of bear fur for Japanese samurai warriors.
You’ll also find celebrity items, including some funky Elton John platform shoes, Karen Kain’s ballet shoes and a Beatle boot from John Lennon. The museum also presents lectures (one coming up is by someone from the Smithsonian in Washington D.C.) Admission is $14, with good discounts for students, seniors and kids.