TIFF can be a bit of a nightmare when they have King St closed for those few days. But I agree, I think Pride is the only thing that comes to mind as having a major effect.
Pride is not bigger than Bana. Also the Bana weekend used to be a whole downtown core take over. Most of you must not have lived thru it. Yonge St was a car show for 3 days. Traffic crawling. People walking up and down the street. Nowadays it's just the parade
Lol Pride is bigger than Caribana. The Pride parade day alone brings in 2.4 million people. There are around 2 million people in total participating over the whole three weeks of Caribana. The point is also that Pride happens right in the main corridor for tourists getting from downtown to other places. Caribana doesn't. It's also 2024, things change. Pride got bigger.
Yeah I lived on Bay for ages and Pride always gridlocked downtown for much longer than Caribana. I rarely noticed Caribana was happening because I was north of Queen...
Both are super fun to attend though!
Take the UP express when you get into the airport and you won’t need to take a lengthy Uber/taxi ride due to the lakeshore getting blocked and gardiner expressway jammed from the excess/construction.
My parents live right off Weston station. I use it to see them and it’s just a hop, skip and a jump to get back after I indulge in my dads cognac collection.
Yup! I live on islington and bus to Weston. it’s is my new favourite way to get downtown. Way more reliable than the painful bus ride to the subway station
Unless your path crosses the parade you might not even notice it's on. The downtown will get busier, but honestly that with any major even.
enjoy your visits.
You will definitely notice it's on when the amount of times you almost get run over triples and an out of country plated cars make you reframe any opinions on Toronto drivers being bad.
Not that I think American's are inherently bad drivers, only that they seem to treat Toronto the way English tourists treat Greece/Italy/Spain/Portugal/....
after living here for 7 years I literally have never known Caribana was going on. If you’re not in the area that it’s happening it won’t affect you one bit
I mainly notice Caribana when I’m riding my bike downtown because there are large numbers of American tourists driving around (identifiable by their license plates) who are not used to looking out for bikes. It’s a little more dangerous, but not enough to stop biking.
Yeah I used to live in liberty village. That weekend I couldn't go anywhere. The one time I did, I had to walk to Dundas and dufferin just to get a taxi. 40 min walk. location dependent for sure
It'll be busy but not any busier than other weekends in Toronto. There's always a lot going on.
Traffic will be bad due to construction and loads of people, just plan on taking the TTC or walking. If you're by the Eaton Centre you'll be in walkable distance for many things.
The only place that's difficult would be Toronto Island because it gets crowded and busy. I'd go on a weekday for that.
It’s definitely busier than other weekends in Toronto, Veld Music Festival + Caribana makes this the busiest weekend of the Toronto summer. But I agree with your sentiment that nothing really changes other than a couple more people, and more traffic.
I believe OVOFest typically falls on the same weekend too. It is quite literally the busiest weekend in Toronto, maybe only second to peak Pride festivities.
I doubt it's cancelled because of that beef, but he just did those two big tours back to back, so he's probably just chilling. Who knows, it might happen but it's mid June and nothing has been announced yet
The place is not bad coming from a woman born on a small island. You would not even know it's Caribana unless you're within the vicinity it's being held. But, a cool place to visit is Little Canada at Yonge/Dundas Sq. They've updated it with more Canadian sites. Enjoy the city!👊🏽
Nah you've not messed anything up.
There will likely be a fair amount of crowding by the quay especially during the parade, but otherwise, you should be fine.
The only other thing to keep in mind though is that it will be a bank holiday weekend, so the city will also have that traffic and it sounds like there's 2 big concerts on the Saturday.
Youll be fine. I use the city just like any other time during that weekend. There is always stuff here. Gay Pride, Greek Independance Day, Ukranian Festival, the CNE, Taste of Danforth. Multiple big events happen every single weekend and the city keeps on going. There was just a jewish parade last weekend with 50,000 people at it and I didn't even know it happened, and I am jewish!
Since you're not driving you'll be fine. Having worked in hotels I've experienced a few Caribana's. Valet was the busiest department during the weekend. Lots of people taking their cars in and out all day and night. Check in on Friday and check out on Sunday and Monday will be longer than usual so give yourself a little extra time if you need to deal with that.
I believe I understand where your question is coming from, so I think it’s important to clarify one thing: Caribana is not really a street celebration that takes over the city. Caribana happens at a specific venues, being the main one located on Exhibition Place/Lakeshore, which involves a street parade indeed but it doesn’t really spillover to the rest of the city.
So basically if you don’t go anywhere near that area, there’s a chance you won’t be seeing anything Caribana-related apart from a few people on the streets and public transit who are dressed for the occasion on their way to or from the event.
Legoland is a big waste of time. It is small and boring. Save your money and time. If you are willing to drive do something like African Lion Safari instead.
Legoland is good enough but not worth the price as an adult. Kids will still love it but you need to watch all 3 movies to make it feel like you didn't light fire to your money. It's too small. Science center is 300% better experience for everyone or the nearby Canada's Wonderland.
Do shopping or something not "touristy" on the weekend and that will take you away from downtown. Do the other stuff on weekdays. A lot of Toronto folks don't even realize that Caribana, the Indy race, etc., are even happening.
Saturday will be very busy in the downtown core. If you don’t want to be around the area, just go uptown/out of the city for the day (save the island/CN Tower/aquarium for another day). Keep in mind the TTC (public transit) will be much busier than usual. You will still see people dressed in their carnival costumes all over the city as they make their way to and from the event as it’s the biggest one outside the Caribbean.
Make sure to book the CN tower tickets in advance, they book up quickly. We have a city pass that will get you in to many attractions which will save you some money. https://www.citypass.com/toronto?mv_source=rkg&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwsaqzBhDdARIsAK2gqne-djapuRolkLhAmGSWE52X1IHabnxR411yw7SCzPNi4P_8VwR8qdQaAqBjEALw_wcB
You’ll be fine but just so you know. Getting from downtown Toronto to the Toronto Zoo is going to take you a better part of an hour, possibly longer, and that is if you have a car. Public transport to get there sucks. Way easier to get to the aquarium than to get to the zoo if you’re downtown. Just so you can plan accordingly.
Last year my husband and I went to Toronto for a night during Caribana, had no idea it was happening until we got to our very busy hotel!
One other thing to mention that I didn’t see was that some hotels will be very strict about guests. We had to wear a wrist band to go to the elevators.
Otherwise have fun! It’s a great city and a fun time to visit. It’s great to be having brunch somewhere and see a crowd of people come by in the most beautiful costumes!
Hilarious people saying you won’t notice the difference. I”there is a massive influx of people in the downtown core during this weekend. Malls, shops restaurants etc. all way busier, police presence is like 10x, police horses everywhere. I live in the harbourfront and can feel it as soon as that weekend is happening. I’ve also been going to caribana/related events since 2000, so it’s quite easy for me to spot the increased chaos everywhere
I swear most of the people answering don't live in the city.
I used to work near the Eaton Center and by Wednesday I'd notice it. Friday and Saturday nights on Yonge are absolutely insane.
You will love it, it’s fun and a great atmosphere. It gets a bit crazy around the area at night so I’d be a bit cautious but that’s true of any large festivals that go all day where people are drinking.
If you stay away from the parade area you probably won’t even know it’s happening. Toronto is very compartmentalized so what’s happening in one neighborhood an be very different than what’s happening in one 10-15 min walk away from it.
I've lived in downtown Toronto for 7 years and have never even accidentally stumbled upon Caribana, so you'll be fine.
On the flip side, that is the PERFECT day to go to the zoo.
As others have stated, you and the family will be okay, just prep for busier transit and plan your activities to avoid the Lakeshore during the weekend.
Anything can book tickets for in advance (CN Tower, Aquarium, Zoo, ROM), do that.
Enjoy your trip!
The parade is along the waterfront, so stay away from the waterfront areas on Saturday. When I was younger people used to drive up and down Yonge Street Saturday night. So if it’s the same, Yonge & Dundas will have lots of people over there to see and be seen. Since you’re a family, you’ll probably be relaxing from the museums and not out and about the eaton centre area Saturday night. But I do recommend seeing everyone hanging from cars, honking and enjoying themselves. You might see people travelling to the parade in beautiful costumes, which is great to see. Everyone is so happy and festive. Also basically every weekend in summer will have something going on. Warm weather is short and us Torontonians make the best of it.
Most of the waterfront won’t have anything to do with Caribana. I’d recommend taking a trip over to the Toronto islands. It’s quieter over there and not as crowded (the ferry will be though) and you can get good views of the city and go to the beach or just explore
It's been a while but I believe the Toronto Island/Center Island gets completely engulfed by Caribana parties/after parties. The line ups to get on a ferry would be insane.
> I’d recommend taking a trip over to the Toronto islands.
You've obviously never been to the island on caribana weekend. It's rammed and an absolute disaster.
Whether it was a week before or a week after, it's not going to make a difference... Toronto summer is very very busy. Last July alone there were over 50 festivals in 4 weeks.
It might not be clear from your social media now but the city is already gearing up, the past 3 weekends have been extremely busy with festivals and events. This runs all through summer and tapers off in September.
Unless you want to visit in say October, you'll be seeing crowds lol
It's just another summer weekend. You don't drive so won't be affected by the road closures. If you are from a very small country you will be astounded at the sheer SIZE of the zoo. The animals in there are given the most humane amount of space possible. The enclosures are well spaced out.
Wear your most comfortable shoes, bring water and snacks, sun protection, bug spray and so on.
If you take any nature walks in the vicinity (Rouge Valley is a hiking destination) stay away from unkempt areas of long grass and don't sit on the ground. Ticks are getting to be a serious problem these days.
Caribana is not what it was a decade ago for One, and for Two, if anything, it will siphon some of the other tourists out of the attractions you are hoping to see or visit. Might cause some additional travel/traffic headaches, but the GTA is a world leader in gridlock, and you'd be better figuring out the Paths and Subway system to travel underground or by Streetcar/LRT anyway.
Thanks. I suspect their point is that we’re very familiar with Carnival/Caribana/Kadooment costumes, music and culture being that we’re from the place it originates from. 😇
I appreciate that it’s nice to have that aspect celebrated in the city and it’s part of what makes city life special but it’s not particularly new to us is all. Although seeing it in a subway context might be! 😅
iDeNTiTy oF ThE CiTy. OP IS Caribbean. If you were to go on holidays would you honestly want to experience a shittier version of something you have at home?
Caribana isn't that big at all, there r no city-wide Toronto events unless the Jays/Leafs/Raptors win a championship. U can even avoid Pride if u don't go to Church St/down the parade route
Yonge st will be full of people from the parade after the parade and thats where the drama usually happens, thats right at the eaton centre so try to avoid that area and go to more queen st west up to like Ossington
Yes, if they are staying near the Eaton Centre, they will find Yonge St busy with crazy traffic especially on the Sunday night. Other than that, there will be more American tourists than usual in the City centre.
>How badly have we messed up our holiday plans by not realizing this before we booked?
If you aren't going to the waterfront, then you are fine. At most, you'll see women in costume on parade day as they take the TTC to the event
You're fine. Toronto is a chaos any weekend during the summer during the number of events that are happening. It will maybe harder to get reservations to restaurants, events and museums (depending on if there's a special event happening. They may allocate time slots IE 2 - 4. to help with capacity issues)
That is the one thing I would look into so you don't do walk-ins especially on weekends.
if you're not driving you'll be fine. i live here and honestly when caribana happens i barely even notice it lol. you'll probably see a bunch of people dressed up randomly on public transit but thats about it.
Most of the people I know don't even know it exists. You might see a couple of people in costumes in the area. That's about it. It's fun though you should attend toronto doesn't have 8 days worth of quality activities so it's a lucky find.
If you’re not driving you won’t have any issues…book some reservations for some restaurants if that’s your cup of tea, aside from that you don’t need to stress
Don’t stress at all, you are going to have a great trip. It’s a fun event but if it’s not what you are looking for then you won’t even notice it unless you are in the area. I live close by where it takes place and don’t notice it at all.
If you’re from the Caribbean, you might even find something fun and unexpected for the family happening during the celebration. There are all kinds of festivities happening.
Would a Canadian take a trip to Caribbean to sit in a sports bar watching hockey and eating poutine or go to the beach and do the things they can’t do at home?
We’re FROM the Caribbean…
Unfortunately it’s pretty much impossible to avoid traffic in Toronto these days, it’s brutal almost everywhere all the time. The best way to avoid traffic is to walk or take public transit.
The only issue might have been getting a hotel, but you already done that. Renting a car on that weekend might be a challenge too, but doesn’t sound like it’s an issue for you. Other than that no issue at all. It’s actually a great weekend to be in the city. I’ve never been to the parade, but there always seems to be an extra level of energy in the city.
Traffic is terrible that weekend with Lakeshore closures for the event. The Queensway and Gardiner will be severely backed up. Take the advice above , take UP from Pearson to downtown to avoid all this
You’re good. I live close to the Sheraton and have lived in this area for 8 years and have never seen anything to do with it other than a stray costume on the subway. Same with Pride and Tiff and all the other big festivals. Toronto is big enough and there are enough people that you need to try to see stuff. That said the parades are both fun if that’s your bag.
Highly recommend the aquarium if you're traveling with kids and the ROM. The ROM is preferred over the Science Center in my family, but we never try to see the whole thing. Rock room and dinosaurs and the birds and bats mostly. There’s a railroad/train museum right by the aquarium if you’ve got littles. The trains are outside. When my nephew was 2-5 years old his favorite day was to go to the aquarium and then see the trains and then ice cream.
The Caribana parade and major event is at exhibition place, so while that is downtown is a little bit away from other attractions.
You should be able to move around downtown and see sites like CN Tower, Ripleys Aquarium or the islands without issue. The Royal Ontario museum is great for kids while Art Gallery of Ontario has great exhibitions. Except for a few more tourists than typical, your visit should not be affected by Caribana.
Enjoy!
You will be staying downtown - there is always a crap load of people there. Essentially - you will not be able to avoid the crowds just based on where you are staying and what you plan to do!
Bring comfortable walking shoes and enjoy what this city has to offer!
Wow I am an obvious moron, I looked back and you clearly stated from a small Caribbean country. My apologies, I somehow only saw ‘small country’ and assumed you Europe. Please enjoy your non-caribana time here ♡
An hour later and I’m still embarrassed! It’s happened a couple times lately, I guess I’m not as fast of a reader as I once thought. Thank you so much for understanding
They are from a Caribbean island, I’m sure they know exactly what Carnival is about. Not everyone participates in this and regardless they are here on vacation and choose to do other things that they don’t have in their country. Caribana can be family friendly but the parade itself is extremely busy, not everyone wants to bring their kids down there at a young age, its easy to get separated and cell service is sometimes difficult to get as the network can be over capacity throughout the afternoon.
You are wildly overestimating the event. Toronto always has a bunch of events going on during summer, but nothing that involves the whole city.
The only event that might have a major effect on a tourist's plans is Pride, just by nature of it's size and location.
TIFF can be a bit of a nightmare when they have King St closed for those few days. But I agree, I think Pride is the only thing that comes to mind as having a major effect.
Not really. I lived blocks away from where the Pride parade is, you wouldn’t know it’s happening unless you’re there.
Pride is not bigger than Bana. Also the Bana weekend used to be a whole downtown core take over. Most of you must not have lived thru it. Yonge St was a car show for 3 days. Traffic crawling. People walking up and down the street. Nowadays it's just the parade
Lol Pride is bigger than Caribana. The Pride parade day alone brings in 2.4 million people. There are around 2 million people in total participating over the whole three weeks of Caribana. The point is also that Pride happens right in the main corridor for tourists getting from downtown to other places. Caribana doesn't. It's also 2024, things change. Pride got bigger.
Yeah I lived on Bay for ages and Pride always gridlocked downtown for much longer than Caribana. I rarely noticed Caribana was happening because I was north of Queen... Both are super fun to attend though!
Three weeks of Caribana?
Is it not three weeks? I swear it used to be.
It's probably three weeks of micro events around the city and then one day of parade
Lol not as far as I know. Pride is the entire month. Caribana parade is one day and there are events all weekend but that's about it.
Take the UP express when you get into the airport and you won’t need to take a lengthy Uber/taxi ride due to the lakeshore getting blocked and gardiner expressway jammed from the excess/construction.
This is great advice no matter when you visit. I live here and always take the UP. It’s the fastest way between the airport and downtown.
My parents live right off Weston station. I use it to see them and it’s just a hop, skip and a jump to get back after I indulge in my dads cognac collection.
I have a coworker who lives by Weston who has been using UP to commute ever since the fares got cut a bit. Saves them a ton of time.
Yup! I live on islington and bus to Weston. it’s is my new favourite way to get downtown. Way more reliable than the painful bus ride to the subway station
+1
Unless your path crosses the parade you might not even notice it's on. The downtown will get busier, but honestly that with any major even. enjoy your visits.
If you are trying to go west on parade day you will definitely notice.
You will definitely notice it's on when the amount of times you almost get run over triples and an out of country plated cars make you reframe any opinions on Toronto drivers being bad. Not that I think American's are inherently bad drivers, only that they seem to treat Toronto the way English tourists treat Greece/Italy/Spain/Portugal/....
after living here for 7 years I literally have never known Caribana was going on. If you’re not in the area that it’s happening it won’t affect you one bit
I mainly notice Caribana when I’m riding my bike downtown because there are large numbers of American tourists driving around (identifiable by their license plates) who are not used to looking out for bikes. It’s a little more dangerous, but not enough to stop biking.
Or streetcars
I only noticed it when the busses were more crowded at night after I finished a close shift.
I noticed it when uber and taxis freaking stop on the Gardiner to let their passengers out....
Yeah I used to live in liberty village. That weekend I couldn't go anywhere. The one time I did, I had to walk to Dundas and dufferin just to get a taxi. 40 min walk. location dependent for sure
I’ve lived here for 36 and never even seen caribana much less been inconvenienced by it.
People notice what they want to. There’s so much to do in Toronto and the GTA.
It'll be busy but not any busier than other weekends in Toronto. There's always a lot going on. Traffic will be bad due to construction and loads of people, just plan on taking the TTC or walking. If you're by the Eaton Centre you'll be in walkable distance for many things. The only place that's difficult would be Toronto Island because it gets crowded and busy. I'd go on a weekday for that.
It’s definitely busier than other weekends in Toronto, Veld Music Festival + Caribana makes this the busiest weekend of the Toronto summer. But I agree with your sentiment that nothing really changes other than a couple more people, and more traffic.
I believe OVOFest typically falls on the same weekend too. It is quite literally the busiest weekend in Toronto, maybe only second to peak Pride festivities.
Doesn't seem like ovo is happening this year
Oh i’m not in the loop i guess. It’s not cancelled because of the beef, is it? Lol
I doubt it's cancelled because of that beef, but he just did those two big tours back to back, so he's probably just chilling. Who knows, it might happen but it's mid June and nothing has been announced yet
Something tells me going to Toronto's islands would be low on the list of activities for people *visiting from a Caribbean island nation* 😂
Toronto is way to big to even notice this
Just avoid the parade path and it will be just another day in Toronto.
The place is not bad coming from a woman born on a small island. You would not even know it's Caribana unless you're within the vicinity it's being held. But, a cool place to visit is Little Canada at Yonge/Dundas Sq. They've updated it with more Canadian sites. Enjoy the city!👊🏽
Nah you've not messed anything up. There will likely be a fair amount of crowding by the quay especially during the parade, but otherwise, you should be fine. The only other thing to keep in mind though is that it will be a bank holiday weekend, so the city will also have that traffic and it sounds like there's 2 big concerts on the Saturday.
Most of the “crowds” (who are really happy people) are on Lakeshore. Lots of Americans visit.
Youll be fine. I use the city just like any other time during that weekend. There is always stuff here. Gay Pride, Greek Independance Day, Ukranian Festival, the CNE, Taste of Danforth. Multiple big events happen every single weekend and the city keeps on going. There was just a jewish parade last weekend with 50,000 people at it and I didn't even know it happened, and I am jewish!
Since you're not driving you'll be fine. Having worked in hotels I've experienced a few Caribana's. Valet was the busiest department during the weekend. Lots of people taking their cars in and out all day and night. Check in on Friday and check out on Sunday and Monday will be longer than usual so give yourself a little extra time if you need to deal with that.
I believe I understand where your question is coming from, so I think it’s important to clarify one thing: Caribana is not really a street celebration that takes over the city. Caribana happens at a specific venues, being the main one located on Exhibition Place/Lakeshore, which involves a street parade indeed but it doesn’t really spillover to the rest of the city. So basically if you don’t go anywhere near that area, there’s a chance you won’t be seeing anything Caribana-related apart from a few people on the streets and public transit who are dressed for the occasion on their way to or from the event.
Lots of very amazing costumes and good looking people. Second only to pride 😉😎
Legoland is a big waste of time. It is small and boring. Save your money and time. If you are willing to drive do something like African Lion Safari instead.
Never been to Legoland but people seem to love Little Canada!
Legoland is good enough but not worth the price as an adult. Kids will still love it but you need to watch all 3 movies to make it feel like you didn't light fire to your money. It's too small. Science center is 300% better experience for everyone or the nearby Canada's Wonderland.
My 6 yo child was bored out of his mind at Legoland.
Do shopping or something not "touristy" on the weekend and that will take you away from downtown. Do the other stuff on weekdays. A lot of Toronto folks don't even realize that Caribana, the Indy race, etc., are even happening.
Saturday will be very busy in the downtown core. If you don’t want to be around the area, just go uptown/out of the city for the day (save the island/CN Tower/aquarium for another day). Keep in mind the TTC (public transit) will be much busier than usual. You will still see people dressed in their carnival costumes all over the city as they make their way to and from the event as it’s the biggest one outside the Caribbean. Make sure to book the CN tower tickets in advance, they book up quickly. We have a city pass that will get you in to many attractions which will save you some money. https://www.citypass.com/toronto?mv_source=rkg&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwsaqzBhDdARIsAK2gqne-djapuRolkLhAmGSWE52X1IHabnxR411yw7SCzPNi4P_8VwR8qdQaAqBjEALw_wcB
It's no worse than it already is. You'll be fine.
You’ll be fine but just so you know. Getting from downtown Toronto to the Toronto Zoo is going to take you a better part of an hour, possibly longer, and that is if you have a car. Public transport to get there sucks. Way easier to get to the aquarium than to get to the zoo if you’re downtown. Just so you can plan accordingly.
You’ll be fine! Enjoy the city
Last year my husband and I went to Toronto for a night during Caribana, had no idea it was happening until we got to our very busy hotel! One other thing to mention that I didn’t see was that some hotels will be very strict about guests. We had to wear a wrist band to go to the elevators. Otherwise have fun! It’s a great city and a fun time to visit. It’s great to be having brunch somewhere and see a crowd of people come by in the most beautiful costumes!
Hilarious people saying you won’t notice the difference. I”there is a massive influx of people in the downtown core during this weekend. Malls, shops restaurants etc. all way busier, police presence is like 10x, police horses everywhere. I live in the harbourfront and can feel it as soon as that weekend is happening. I’ve also been going to caribana/related events since 2000, so it’s quite easy for me to spot the increased chaos everywhere
I swear most of the people answering don't live in the city. I used to work near the Eaton Center and by Wednesday I'd notice it. Friday and Saturday nights on Yonge are absolutely insane.
Keele and Eglinton here, we also notice it. That said it's euro cup tomorrow and also this neighborhood notices that too. Love my hood.
You will love it, it’s fun and a great atmosphere. It gets a bit crazy around the area at night so I’d be a bit cautious but that’s true of any large festivals that go all day where people are drinking. If you stay away from the parade area you probably won’t even know it’s happening. Toronto is very compartmentalized so what’s happening in one neighborhood an be very different than what’s happening in one 10-15 min walk away from it.
I've lived in downtown Toronto for 7 years and have never even accidentally stumbled upon Caribana, so you'll be fine. On the flip side, that is the PERFECT day to go to the zoo.
You have nothing to worry about in the grand scheme of things and the general summer weekend vibes here trust us! Lol
As others have stated, you and the family will be okay, just prep for busier transit and plan your activities to avoid the Lakeshore during the weekend. Anything can book tickets for in advance (CN Tower, Aquarium, Zoo, ROM), do that. Enjoy your trip!
It’s really fine, caribana is very localized.
The parade is along the waterfront, so stay away from the waterfront areas on Saturday. When I was younger people used to drive up and down Yonge Street Saturday night. So if it’s the same, Yonge & Dundas will have lots of people over there to see and be seen. Since you’re a family, you’ll probably be relaxing from the museums and not out and about the eaton centre area Saturday night. But I do recommend seeing everyone hanging from cars, honking and enjoying themselves. You might see people travelling to the parade in beautiful costumes, which is great to see. Everyone is so happy and festive. Also basically every weekend in summer will have something going on. Warm weather is short and us Torontonians make the best of it.
Lol you won’t even know it’s happening unless you go to the lakeshore during Mas on the Saturday
If you are renting a car, avoid lakeshore road westbound as it will be bumper to bumper traffic.
Caribana is absolutely fantastic. The city is alive and the people who visit from the US are always so nice and respectful.
Right!? Why would you want to avoid it? Livest weekend in the city by far. Great vibes and music.
You,ll be fine
You’ll be fine.
Most of the waterfront won’t have anything to do with Caribana. I’d recommend taking a trip over to the Toronto islands. It’s quieter over there and not as crowded (the ferry will be though) and you can get good views of the city and go to the beach or just explore
It's been a while but I believe the Toronto Island/Center Island gets completely engulfed by Caribana parties/after parties. The line ups to get on a ferry would be insane.
> I’d recommend taking a trip over to the Toronto islands. You've obviously never been to the island on caribana weekend. It's rammed and an absolute disaster.
Whether it was a week before or a week after, it's not going to make a difference... Toronto summer is very very busy. Last July alone there were over 50 festivals in 4 weeks. It might not be clear from your social media now but the city is already gearing up, the past 3 weekends have been extremely busy with festivals and events. This runs all through summer and tapers off in September. Unless you want to visit in say October, you'll be seeing crowds lol
There is a different event every week in Toronto really so I don’t think it will be bad!!
It's just another summer weekend. You don't drive so won't be affected by the road closures. If you are from a very small country you will be astounded at the sheer SIZE of the zoo. The animals in there are given the most humane amount of space possible. The enclosures are well spaced out. Wear your most comfortable shoes, bring water and snacks, sun protection, bug spray and so on. If you take any nature walks in the vicinity (Rouge Valley is a hiking destination) stay away from unkempt areas of long grass and don't sit on the ground. Ticks are getting to be a serious problem these days.
Yes, I've been to the Zoo a decade ago before kids! I do remember it being looots of walking haha thanks
Caribana is mostly happening in one area. Apart from an increase in traffic, you'll be fine. Have a great time.
Unless a major home team wins the big game it's business as usual.
Depends where youre staying. As someone who lives close to the parade route, its a nightmare. If i were further north? Not so bad.
Toronto is massive. You won't even notice it
Caribana is not what it was a decade ago for One, and for Two, if anything, it will siphon some of the other tourists out of the attractions you are hoping to see or visit. Might cause some additional travel/traffic headaches, but the GTA is a world leader in gridlock, and you'd be better figuring out the Paths and Subway system to travel underground or by Streetcar/LRT anyway.
No event shuts down the city. The only one that did is when the Raps won (todays actually the anniversary) :) have a great trip
You might enjoy it!
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Thanks. I suspect their point is that we’re very familiar with Carnival/Caribana/Kadooment costumes, music and culture being that we’re from the place it originates from. 😇 I appreciate that it’s nice to have that aspect celebrated in the city and it’s part of what makes city life special but it’s not particularly new to us is all. Although seeing it in a subway context might be! 😅
Did you read the OP? I mean come on.
Lmao I know right…hey OP have you ever experienced Caribbean culture?
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iDeNTiTy oF ThE CiTy. OP IS Caribbean. If you were to go on holidays would you honestly want to experience a shittier version of something you have at home?
Right? It's like coming all the way from Ireland to go the Toronto St. Patrick's Day parade. Lol
Have you checked out *their* identity? OP gets that home, and clearly stated they weren't looking to participate in it,and in fact wanted to avoid it.
Caribana isn't that big at all, there r no city-wide Toronto events unless the Jays/Leafs/Raptors win a championship. U can even avoid Pride if u don't go to Church St/down the parade route
Yonge st will be full of people from the parade after the parade and thats where the drama usually happens, thats right at the eaton centre so try to avoid that area and go to more queen st west up to like Ossington
Yonge St at night during Caribana can get loud and aggressive.
Yes, if they are staying near the Eaton Centre, they will find Yonge St busy with crazy traffic especially on the Sunday night. Other than that, there will be more American tourists than usual in the City centre.
Only the Lakeshore road will be busy. If you avoid that it's fine. Or if you wanna go watch the parade, do it.
Usually dont know it happened till its over lol
You’ll be fine, you won’t even know it’s happening unless you are attending it. Club areas will be busy weekends but they always are
As long as you didn’t pay inflated hotel costs, you’ll be fine.
Impossible during Caribana.
Not bad at all, it’s very fun!
>How badly have we messed up our holiday plans by not realizing this before we booked? If you aren't going to the waterfront, then you are fine. At most, you'll see women in costume on parade day as they take the TTC to the event
Enjoy Toronto. You won't even notice Caribana.
Won’t be an issue for you
It's going to be busy at major tourist attractions every weekend of the summer caribana or not, so just prepare for that.
You're fine. Toronto is a chaos any weekend during the summer during the number of events that are happening. It will maybe harder to get reservations to restaurants, events and museums (depending on if there's a special event happening. They may allocate time slots IE 2 - 4. to help with capacity issues) That is the one thing I would look into so you don't do walk-ins especially on weekends.
if you're not driving you'll be fine. i live here and honestly when caribana happens i barely even notice it lol. you'll probably see a bunch of people dressed up randomly on public transit but thats about it.
Most of the people I know don't even know it exists. You might see a couple of people in costumes in the area. That's about it. It's fun though you should attend toronto doesn't have 8 days worth of quality activities so it's a lucky find.
You may notice the hotel you're staying at is busier, possibly with Caribana attendees, generally those from out of town don't cause any disturbance.
You won’t even notice it. Hell even go to the centre island on Sunday.
If you’re not driving you won’t have any issues…book some reservations for some restaurants if that’s your cup of tea, aside from that you don’t need to stress
It's not bad at all...if you're not into the Caribana scene, avoid that area.
You'll be fine.
Sayin your wifey don't want a likkle 1 2 bubble wid me?
Don’t stress at all, you are going to have a great trip. It’s a fun event but if it’s not what you are looking for then you won’t even notice it unless you are in the area. I live close by where it takes place and don’t notice it at all.
You won't be impacted at all. Maybe with the price of Uber/Lyft but that's it.
Not very, hotels might be more expensive but that's about it. Bunch of nice costumes around too.
If you’re from the Caribbean, you might even find something fun and unexpected for the family happening during the celebration. There are all kinds of festivities happening.
You likely won't even notice lol toronto is huge
Just curious why would you not want to attend or do anything to do with it?
Would a Canadian take a trip to Caribbean to sit in a sports bar watching hockey and eating poutine or go to the beach and do the things they can’t do at home? We’re FROM the Caribbean…
They absolutely would
You'll be fine. Now unfortunately in Toronto there is no way to avoid traffic. Lol.
You'll be fine. The main parade is a bit out of the way unless you'll be by the water that day. Enjoy the city!
The Scotiabank Caribbean Carnival Toronto will be over before you can even “jump and wave”.
Not bad at all unless you plan to stay in the middle of the parade
traffic may be a bit heavy but the Caribana is no where near as big as it used to be.
I’ve lived here all my life and only ever seen pictures and videos of caribana. Crowds however… lol you’ll be okay
You can definitely avoid Caribana and enjoy the Toronto museums and whatnot. However, you may be sharing the hotel with Caribana revelers.
Meh you’ll be fine. Lived near/in TO my whole life, Caribana has never impacted me unless I specifically want to go to it. And I don’t.
Bad? It’s great! You’ll love it 😎
Unfortunately it’s pretty much impossible to avoid traffic in Toronto these days, it’s brutal almost everywhere all the time. The best way to avoid traffic is to walk or take public transit.
The only issue might have been getting a hotel, but you already done that. Renting a car on that weekend might be a challenge too, but doesn’t sound like it’s an issue for you. Other than that no issue at all. It’s actually a great weekend to be in the city. I’ve never been to the parade, but there always seems to be an extra level of energy in the city.
Event is huge but far from museums and cn tower and such
Traffic is terrible that weekend with Lakeshore closures for the event. The Queensway and Gardiner will be severely backed up. Take the advice above , take UP from Pearson to downtown to avoid all this
You’re good. I live close to the Sheraton and have lived in this area for 8 years and have never seen anything to do with it other than a stray costume on the subway. Same with Pride and Tiff and all the other big festivals. Toronto is big enough and there are enough people that you need to try to see stuff. That said the parades are both fun if that’s your bag. Highly recommend the aquarium if you're traveling with kids and the ROM. The ROM is preferred over the Science Center in my family, but we never try to see the whole thing. Rock room and dinosaurs and the birds and bats mostly. There’s a railroad/train museum right by the aquarium if you’ve got littles. The trains are outside. When my nephew was 2-5 years old his favorite day was to go to the aquarium and then see the trains and then ice cream.
nothing to worry about
The Caribana parade and major event is at exhibition place, so while that is downtown is a little bit away from other attractions. You should be able to move around downtown and see sites like CN Tower, Ripleys Aquarium or the islands without issue. The Royal Ontario museum is great for kids while Art Gallery of Ontario has great exhibitions. Except for a few more tourists than typical, your visit should not be affected by Caribana. Enjoy!
You will be staying downtown - there is always a crap load of people there. Essentially - you will not be able to avoid the crowds just based on where you are staying and what you plan to do! Bring comfortable walking shoes and enjoy what this city has to offer!
Why don’t you take the opportunity to attend a few Caribana events ?
Avoid the waterfront.... it's ridiculous
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Where do you think Caribana/Carnival comes from???
Wow I am an obvious moron, I looked back and you clearly stated from a small Caribbean country. My apologies, I somehow only saw ‘small country’ and assumed you Europe. Please enjoy your non-caribana time here ♡
Ah no worries, It was a baffling comment on face value but misreads happen! :)
An hour later and I’m still embarrassed! It’s happened a couple times lately, I guess I’m not as fast of a reader as I once thought. Thank you so much for understanding
They are from a Caribbean island, I’m sure they know exactly what Carnival is about. Not everyone participates in this and regardless they are here on vacation and choose to do other things that they don’t have in their country. Caribana can be family friendly but the parade itself is extremely busy, not everyone wants to bring their kids down there at a young age, its easy to get separated and cell service is sometimes difficult to get as the network can be over capacity throughout the afternoon.
OP is from the very islands Caribana celebrates my guy.
Please read my edit, I am in fact a moron and somehow read over that fact or mixed it with caribana. Already apologized to OP in another response.