On Saturday we visited the Toronto Christmas Market (December 3-18) in the Distillery District. Once forgotten, but rich with history, the Distillery is now a vibrant arts and culture spot that has revived the neighbourhood east of Parliament and south of Front Street.
The Christmas Market was beautiful and enchanting – Santa’s Lane, a carousel and ferris wheel, carollers, story tellers, brass bands, elves leaping through the cobble stone streets, twinkling lights, European food vendors, and a 45 foot Christmas tree trimmed with 18,000 lights.
Take a look at our photos.
Tips:
Dress appropriately for cold weather and outdoor activities.
Plan to visit early, the Market was very busy in the afternoon. Longer lines and much more difficult to push a stroller through the cobble-stone streets.
There are plenty of children’s activities – Forest Maze, Santa’s House, arts and crafts, story time, and the carousel and ferris wheel.
Pack snacks and plan ahead for meal time. We decided to eat lunch in a cafe instead of picking up food from the outdoor vendors. Most cafes were busy, but it was a nice break being inside, seated, and warm.
Bring your camera. The Market is such a unique place and quite beautiful with all of the Christmas decor and lighting. There are plenty of opportunities to capture special moments (like this photograph below - my son taking his very first bite of cotton candy).
Are you planning to visit the Toronto Christmas Market?
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We were there Saturday evening with a 6 year old and a 2 year old and we had a fabulous time! I thought $3 a ride pp was a fair price to be able to enjoy a ride off season, though there is limited room for a parent to stand beside the horse on the Merry-Go-Round. The lights and music throughout made for a magical holiday feel which we all enjoyed. We made a point of going when it was dark out (though we knew it would be busy) just to be able to enjoy the lights. We picked up a lovely glass ornament at “Christmas in the Beach” to add to our tree this year, which my daughter selected. A great little evening out with the kids, I highly recommend the visit!
We were there on Saturday as well. This was our first time, and I have to say I was really disappointed. The ferris wheel/carousel (which sounded as though it was about to fall apart any second) was extremely expensive at $6 for two tickets. The vendors were selling items at extraordinary prices, things that you could find anywhere. The forest maze was very small, making it difficult for two families to pass eachother, and Santa’s House was merely a tent. We found the arts and crafts poorly laid out, again making it difficult when many families were trying to get in there, especially with strollers. The atmosphere of the Distillery District is one of a kind… but with small kids in tow, we weren’t about to go into the shops, which contained many breakables. Personally, I wouldn’t go again, and would not recommend it to others. Now… if I were to go without kids at night? sure… but thats a blog for a different type of site…
Hi there Kim,
Sorry to hear that your experience was so different from ours – we had a wonderful day. We arrived early in the morning and it was the ideal time for families to explore and participate in activities (the afternoon was very busy).
c.
Great post Catherine. Really want to try to make a visit with the girls now!