Toronto Top Five Recommendations

Toronto Top 5 Recommendations looking down from the top of the CN Tower
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Traveling to Toronto, Canada and not sure what to prioritize visiting? I have some great recommendations for you! I found this city so amazing and loved it and I hope you will too!

Here’s the short list of my top 5 recommendations for Toronto:

What to See and Do in Toronto

CN Tower

Shop on Queen Street West

Where to Eat and Drink in Toronto

Fring’s (Drake’s Restaurant)

Sweet Jesus Ice Cream

Pravda Vodka Bar & Lounge

and here’s a preview of all the places mentioned:

List of All Toronto Recommendations Mentioned:

Places to Eat and Drink in Toronto:

Mi Taco

Fring’s

Sweet Jesus Ice Cream

Pravda Vodka Bar & Lounge

Tim Hortons

Shangri-La Hotel Bar

Earl’s Restaurant

Points of Interest in Toronto:

CN Tower

Shopping on Queen St. West

CTV Building

King Street

St. Andrew’s Church

Shopping in Toronto:

Shoppers Drug Mart

Lavish & Squalor

M Boutique

Tatyana

Rudsak Collection

Jealousy Beauty & Life Store

Tribal Rhythm Vintage

Aritzia

Gifts from the Earth Gallery & Boutique

NYX Makeup Store

tiff.shop

Related Post: A Tourist in My Own Hometown of Toronto

Detailed List of Toronto Recommendations

CN Tower

Not going to the CN Tower is like going to Paris and not going to the Eiffel Tower. This is such a huge landmark of the city and the views are fantastic.

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The CN Tower in Toronto, Canada

The best time of day would be to go about 2 hours before sunset to give you time to buy tickets and get to the top. Definitely splurge for the Skypod which gives you a nice 360 view and is less crowded. Take lots of pictures then go to Horizons which is the more casual restaurant and have some Canadian beers while watching the sunset. Then check out the city once the sun has gone down to get that pretty night view.

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Ticket for the Skypod CN Tower Experience
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Me posing at the top of the CN Tower

My Travel Camera – Sony A5100

BTW these photos were taken with my Sony A5100 Mirrorless Digital Camera which is the most incredible travel and selfie camera EVER. It’s a mirrorless digital camera which means it’s more compact than a DSLR. It has a beauty filter that helps blur the skin. It also color correct automatically to make your photos more vivid. AND you can automatically transfer photos wirelessly to your phone and post on Instagram immediately!

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View of the Toronto Blue Jays baseball stadium from the top of the CN Tower
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View of Toronto from the top of the CN Tower
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View of Lake Ontario from the top of the CN Tower
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The menu for Horizons restaurant at the top of the CN Tower
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Drinking Canadian Beers at Horizons Restaurant at the top of the CN Tower

Shopping on Queen Street West

This is the main shopping area in Toronto and I went 2 different days so obviously it was one of my favorite things. Some of my favorite stores were Lavish & Squalor, Rudsak, Aritzia, M, Brandy Melville, Jealousy, Tatyana, and Urban Planet.

Mi Taco

When you’ve shopped until your feet are dying and you’re starving to death pop into Mi Taco for delicious Chipotle-esque Mexican food and free Wifi.

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Lunch at Mi Taco Taqueria on Queen St. West in Toronto.

Shoppers Drug Mart

One of my favorite places on Queen St. West was actually Shoppers Drug Mart which is a drug store that also has a ton of high-end department store makeup (Urban Decay, Lancome, Benefit, etc.).

Lavish & Squalor

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Lavish & Squalor Boutique on Queen Street West
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Inside Lavish & Squalor on Queen St. West in Toronto.
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Inside Lavish & Squalor on Queen St. West in Toronto. They had a lot of great gifts for guys and the staff is super friendly.
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Inside Lavish and Squalor on Queen St. West in Toronto.

M Boutique

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M has what I call “blogger clothes” super trendy and look-at-me, yet affordable. Love it.

Tatyana

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Tatyana is a vintage inspired boutique on Queen Street West
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Inside Tatyana which has 50’s and 60’s pin-up style (but new) clothes and accessories.

Rudsak Collection

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Rudsak Collection is a boutique on Queen Street West in Toronto
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Inside Rudsak on Queen St. West in Toronto.
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Shoes at Rudsak on Queen Street West in Toronto

Jealousy Beauty & Life Store

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Great Asian beauty store – Jealousy Beauty & Life on Queen Street West in Toronto

Tribal Rhythm Vintage

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There’s tons of vintage stores on Queen St. West including Tribal Rhythm Vintage
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The entrance to the vintage store Tribal Rhythm on Queen Street West in Toronto
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View of the stores on Queen St. West in Toronto.

Aritzia

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Aritzia is an amazing Canadian boutique that has awesome clothes. Must visit! Canadian Treasure!

Gifts from the Earth Gallery & Boutique

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Giant Crystals in the front of Gifts from the Earth Gallery & Boutique on Queen Street West in Toronto, Canada.

NYX Makeup Store

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There’s a NYX Makeup store on Queen St. West for all the beauty junkies.

Fring’s – Drake’s Restaurant

When I read on Thrillist that Drake has a restaurant in Toronto and everyone is loving it, of course I knew I had to check it out. Fring’s was nothing short of a culinary delight. The inside is gorgeous too and filled with flowers. It’s a little pricey, but the cool atmosphere, tasty food, and bragging rights were worth it.

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Salad and appetizer at Fring’s Restaurant in Toronto, Canada
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Short ribs & truffle fries at Fring’s Restaurant which is owned by Drake and in his home town of Toronto.
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Me and Jenna at Drake’s restaurant Fring’s in Toronto. I still haven’t cracked the code and figured out what this sign means.

Sweet Jesus Ice Cream

I mean, how could I resist a super popular ice cream place with an adorable name like “Sweet Jesus”? At Sweet Jesus they have mega sized cups and cones of specialty creations and they are really tasty. Prepare to wait in line, but it will go by quickly and it’s absolutely worth it.

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Sweet Jesus Ice Cream Chalkboard sign in Toronto says “Bless Your Mouth”!
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The menu at Sweet Jesus Ice Cream in Toronto
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Art inside of Sweet Jesus Ice Cream in Toronto
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Drinks menu at Sweet Jesus.
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Left- Campfire S’mores, Right- Cookies Cookies Cookies and Cream both desserts from Sweet Jesus in Toronto.

Pravda – Vodka Bar & Lounge

When you want to go experience some nightlife and have a really fun time at an upscale (but not crazy expensive) bar/club/lounge definitely check out Pravda. You can get a flight of vodka’s with accompanying caviar, there’s a huge freezer tasting room behind the bar where the bartenders wear fur coats, and they have live musicians stand on the bar and play the Russian national anthem at midnight, what more could you ask for?

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Me and Jenna at Pravda Vodka Bar in Toronto.
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Red tasting freezer behind the bar at Pravda.

More Toronto Recommendations

Tim Hortons

Can you go to Canada and not try their Dunkin Donuts equivalent- Tim Hortons? I got the Tim Bits YUM.

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Tim Bits from Tim Hortons

Shangri-La Hotel

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Cocktails at the Shangri-La Hotel in Toronto. The menus come in these little books.
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Sangria at the Shangri-La Hotel in Toronto.

Earl’s Restaurant

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Late night apps and bear drinks at Earl’s.

tiff.shop

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tiff.shop in Toronto- great place to buy gifts.
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Some gifts for sale at tiff.shop. I love the Toronto heart picture.

Here’s a few more pictures I snapped while wandering around Toronto:

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Some gorgeous architecture in Toronto, Canada

CTV Building

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The car coming out of the wall at CTV in Toronto
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Homes and businesses in Toronto
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Dog sculptures in Toronto
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Beautiful building in Toronto

King Street

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Some restaurants on King St. in Toronto. Notice “Joe Mamas” they love a silly name in Toronto.
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Donut worry, be happy.

St. Andrew’s Church

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St. Andrews Church in Toronto, Canada

For more Toronto recommendations check out A Tourist in My Own City.

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Author: Lindsay

Lindsay is the creator of Blushing in Hollywood a beauty, dating, travel and lifestyle blog based in Los Angeles, California.

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