Toronto Tours

   
Photo three above courtesy © The Niagara Parks Commission.

Toronto, "a world within a city," offers vibrant neighborhoods, fabulous attractions, plus breathtaking countryside. Sign up on your convention registration form for the tours of your choice (click here to print a form* or use the form published in the February Quotarian magazine.) But hurry—space is limited.

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Treasures from Around the World
Thursday, July 15, 9:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.
U.S.$57.00 per person

Today you will be able to travel the world through the exhibits of the Royal Ontario Museum. Although you won't have time to see the "ROM's" entire six million-piece collection, this guided tour of Canada's largest museum will take you to see the most important displays. Collections include: the popular dinosaur exhibits; authentic bat caves; collections from the Far East; historical artifacts from Canada's indigenous civilizations; costumes and jewelry from throughout the world; exotic animals; and much, much more.

Our world tour continues at Toronto's Bata Shoe Museum. Yes! A museum for shoes! Shoes have proven to be a reliable and intriguing source of information on the human experience throughout the ages. They provide the means by which we travel through our daily lives. The museum contains almost 10,000 pieces spanning 4,000 years of history. Footwear from around the world is displayed, ranging from the funereal shoes found in the Royal Tombs of the pharaohs of Egypt to the space boots worn by astronauts on the Apollo space missions. They even have a pair of Napoleon's socks!

Photo courtesy Tourism Toronto.

Our day is not done! After our worldwide treasure travels end, we will take a jaunt around the corner to Yorkville, the hot fashion spot of the city. With its distinctive boutiques—there are no "stores" in Yorkville—and its sidewalk cafes, this is THE neighborhood to see and to be seen in. Enjoy lunch on your own or "shop 'til you drop!"

Package includes:

• Welcome To The City, Inc., tour guide
• Transportation via luxury sightseeing coach
• Admission and guided tour of the Royal Ontario Museum
• Admission and guided tour of the Bata Shoe Museum
• All provincial and federal taxes (PST and GST)

Toronto City Expedition
Friday, July 16, 9 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
U.S.$25.00

Every city has its own unique history, flavor, and architecture but none seems to come together to create an ambiance quite like Toronto's. Your city expedition will be hosted by professional, trained, and accredited guides who enjoy sharing not only the stories from our history but also their unique city experiences and perspectives as well.

Your tour guide will focus on many of Toronto's most significant sites and events. Traveling back to the city's humble beginnings—the Town of York—all ten square blocks of it, and up to present-day Toronto, Canada's largest city. Your expedition will explore the sights and sounds that make Toronto such a great place as you visit notable neighborhoods, pass by breathtaking historic homes, and see many and varied sites of significance to the city's growth.

You will pass through the heart of Toronto's business district, visit the historic Town of York (the original Toronto), and see some of the most famous addresses in the city. You'll survey the old and the new, from Toronto's St. Lawrence Market (1840) to the SkyDome (1989). Each of these individual sites lends its own unique characteristics to the overall feel of the city.

Package includes:

• Welcome To The City, Inc., tour guide
• Transportation via luxury sightseeing coach
• All provincial and federal taxes (PST and GST)

Backstage Curtain Call
Friday, July 16, 1 - 4 p.m.
U.S.$25.00 per person

Photo courtesy the Elgin and Winter Garden Theatre Centre.

Join us for a very special theater tour, just a short walk from our convention hotel. The Elgin and Winter Garden Theatre Center has long been hailed as one of the most beautiful theater complexes in the world. What makes the Center so unique? It is a double-decker theater complex containing two separate, completely restored Edwardian theaters…truly a one-of-a-kind facility!

Declared a national historic site in 1982, these luxurious showplaces have undergone dramatic transformations throughout many turbulent decades. Originally the finest of the Toronto Vaudeville circuit, the theaters were "renovated" in the 1970s—the building was dissected to accommodate six smaller movie theaters.

Your guide from the Ontario Heritage Foundation will tell you how workmen, sent to restore the Elgin theater "accidentally" found the Winter Garden, preserved and untouched for over 60 years. Painstakingly restored by the Ontario Heritage Foundation in 1987, the Elgin and the Winter Garden have made countless theatrical events all the more memorable.

Package includes:

• Welcome To The City, Inc., tour guide
• Ontario Heritage Foundation representative for Elgin/Winter Garden Theatre Centre tour
• All provincial and federal taxes (PST and GST)

Historic Homes Tour: Past to Present
Monday, July 19, 12:45 - 4:00 p.m.
U.S.$50.00 per person

Photo courtesy Casa Loma.

Our historic tour begins at Spadina, a homestead that has perched high above Toronto for over 170 years. You'll enjoy a grand guided tour of this authentically decorated house, each room representative of a different era. We will then leave Spadina and walk across the street to Casa Loma, the majestic 98-room castle overlooking Toronto. During this self-guided tour (you will be provided with a Sony Walkman), you'll explore the rooms, the secret passages, and the towers at your own pace. We'll then leave the castle and board the coach for a leisurely drive through Forest Hill, arguably one of Toronto's most prestigious neighborhoods. With its sprawling green lawns and imposing mansions, there is no mistaking it! Once you've arrived in Forest Hill, you've arrived!

Package includes:

• Welcome To The City, Inc., tour guide
• Return transportation via luxury sightseeing coach
• Admissions to Spadina and Casa Loma
• All provincial and federal taxes (PST and GST)

You're Not Going to Miss Niagara Falls Now, Are You?
Tuesday, July 20, 8:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.
U.S.$115.00 per person (includes lunch)

Photo courtesy © The Niagara Parks Commission.

You've made it to Toronto. Now that you've come this far, you're not going to miss Niagara Falls now, are you? Spend an afternoon with us as we witness one of the world's natural wonders. Join us as we view the sight that has inspired countless romantics: poets, painters, and daredevils. Feel the power as millions of gallons of water cascade over Niagara every minute and marvel at the historic tales of bravery, heroism, and destruction.

Our first stop will be a cruise on the Maid of the Mist. This hardy, historic riverboat will carry you deep into the mist of the Canadian Horseshoe Falls. Raincoats are provided—and you'll need them! Next, we'll visit Table Rock, only a stone's throw from the falls and an ideal vantage point for that perfect photo.

Then it's off to the historic village of Niagara-on-the-Lake, where we will visit one of Ontario's world class wineries, Hillebrand Estates. We will enjoy a guided tour of the vineyard and barrel-aging room, followed by lunch.

After lunch, there will be free time to visit the village. Dating back to the 1800's, Niagara-on-the-Lake's historic homes and shops are nestled at the mouth of the Niagara River. The first capital of Upper Canada, this relatively unknown and unspoiled treasure harkens back to Georgian/Regency times. While in Niagara-on-the-Lake, take some time to wander along Queen Street and visit the Christmas Shop, the Irish Linen Shop, or cross the street to an old-fashioned apothecary. Best known today as the home of the annual Shaw Festival (the world's only festival to exclusively produce the plays of George Bernard Shaw and his contemporaries), the townsfolk welcome visitors to this quaint and charming village from yesterday.

Package includes:

• Welcome To The City, Inc., tour guide
• Transportation via luxury sightseeing coach
• Maid of the Mist boat ride
• Tour and three-course lunch at Hillebrand Winery
• Food and beverage taxes and service charges
• All provincial and federal taxes (PST and GST)

Quota Friendship Tour:
A Two-Night / Three-Day Canadian Experience
Depart Tuesday, July 20, at 8:30 a.m., and return to the Royal York Hotel on Thursday, July 22, at approximately 5 p.m.
U.S.$525 per person, double occupancy (add U.S.$150 for single occupancy)
(Includes accommodations for two nights, activities mentioned, two breakfasts, two lunches, one dinner.)

A feast for the senses awaits you on this two-night/three-day tour of enchanting Southern Ontario, which is gracefully set down between the shores of two of the Great Lakes. Delight in a tapestry of flowering parks and gardens; meander down clear Canadian waters; stroll in quaint shops; and enjoy real Quota hospitality as you dine with Ontario Quotarians on your route from Toronto to a Canadian paradise!

Day 1

• Ontario is richly blessed with almost 500,000 lakes and close to 40,000 miles of rivers. Almost one in every 10 square miles of land is a protected wilderness park. Nothing compares with the spectacular natural beauty that is encompassed here. On Tuesday, we will drive up to the Muskokas, a four-season holiday destination, where we will take a cruise on an old-fashioned steamship—the RMS Segwun. Muskoka is known worldwide for its picturesque lakes, elegantly gabled resorts, Victorian mansions, and beautifully maintained historic wooden boats. Lunch will be included. This cruise has been voted as the best large Ontario attraction for the past two years.
  
  
• After our cruise we will travel to Orillia, Ontario, home of one of Quota's most active and friendliest clubs! We will stay at Orillia's Stone Gate Inn, known for its gracious hospitality and comfortable accommodations. Amenities include an indoor pool, hot tub, and the cozy Fireplace Lounge. We'll have time to relax prior to our evening dinner and fellowship festivities to be held at the nearby Stephen Leacock Historic Museum. Orillia and District 18 Quotarians will join us there for an evening of Quota fun and fellowship.

Day 2

• On Wednesday morning, following breakfast, we will travel to Midland, located on the Georgian Bay with its picturesque Harbor and the newly completed waterfront trail for walking and biking. The summer season affords an opportunity to view beautiful horticultural displays, and the town boasts an array of boutiques, restaurants, and services, as well as the historic murals painted on various buildings throughout the downtown core. Today we will visit Sainte-Marie among the Hurons, a re-creation of the French Jesuit Mission, which stood on the site from 1639 to 1649. Our Quota Friendship Tour continues with a special lunch at the home of 2003-2004 District 18 Governor Marie Dobson-Dunlop. Members of Quota's Huronia club will join us there. After lunch, we will visit the Martyrs' Shrine—a place of pilgrimage—and a spectacular lookout site on the beautiful and clear Georgian Bay.
  
  
• Wednesday afternoon we will head down to Niagara Falls, arriving in the late afternoon. You will be awed by the mighty grandeur of Niagara Falls—rightly considered one of the world's greatest natural wonders. We will stay at the conveniently located Hilton Niagara Falls where the rest of the evening, including dinner, will be on your own. Enjoy the many wonderful attractions or try your luck at the Niagara Falls casino.
  
  

  Above, right: Photo courtesy © The Niagara Parks Commission.

Day 3

• Following Thursday morning breakfast, we will depart for a morning cruise on Niagara Fall's famous Maid of the Mist (raincoats provided!). Feel your heart quicken as you cruise right into the basin of the famed falls.

  
  Photo courtesy © The Niagara Parks Commission.
  

• After our cruise, we will start our return to Toronto. En route, we will visit Niagara-on-the-Lake, home to delightful 19th-century streetscapes. We will stop to see the town's spectacular Floral Clock with an exquisitely designed "floral face," which is replanted twice each season. Then we will visit the Butterfly Conservatory, a lush tropical rainforest setting where we will explore an ingenious network of pathways among lush, exotic flora. Everywhere there are exquisite butterflies floating in the warm, moist air or spreading their iridescent wings on leaves and flowers.
  
  
• Afterwards, you will have the chance to enjoy lunch on your own and shopping in the various boutiques in this exquisite and charming town. We will arrive back at the Royal York Hotel at approximately 5:00 p.m.

Package includes:

• Transportation by deluxe motor coach
• Two nights accommodation including hotel tax and baggage handling
• Hanover Holidays tour guide
• Two breakfasts (deluxe continental in Orillia)
• Two lunches
• One dinner
• RMS Segwun cruise
• Admission to Sainte-Marie among the Hurons
• Admission to Martyrs' Shrine
• Maid of the Mist cruise
• Butterfly Conservatory
• Visit to Floral Clock
• Free time at Niagara-on-the-Lake for lunch on your own

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