6 Days in Toronto and Beyond
Six Days: Ottawa Gets a Real Night This Time
The extra day over a five-day trip goes entirely to Ottawa, and it’s the single best upgrade available on this itinerary. A day trip to the capital gets you Parliament Hill and a rushed lunch; an overnight gets you an actual evening in the city, a second museum, and a morning that isn’t spent watching a departure board. Montreal still doesn’t fit here, that needs a seventh day, but Ottawa done properly is worth the trade.
| Day | Focus | Getting there |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Union Station, Queen’s Park, Hockey Hall of Fame | UP Express, 25 min from Pearson |
| 2 | Kingston, out and back | VIA Rail, 2 to 2.5 hrs each way, 60-140 CAD |
| 3 | Toronto’s Canada 101 (CBC, Argonauts, one neighbourhood) | On foot and TTC downtown |
| 4 | Niagara Falls, out and back | GO Transit, 2 to 2.5 hrs each way |
| 5 | Ottawa, arrival and evening | VIA Rail, 3.5 to 4.5 hrs each way, 40-100 CAD |
| 6 | Ottawa morning, return to Toronto | VIA Rail back to Union |
Book these before you go
- VIA Rail’s Ottawa seats climb fastest on Friday afternoon and Sunday evening trains, book weeks ahead.
- Compare Ottawa hotel rates before locking in a return train, since you’ll want one night there.
Day 1: Arrival and the correction that matters
UP Express to Union Station, about 25 minutes, adult fare 12.35 CAD cash or 9.25 CAD with PRESTO, seniors half price, kids under 12 free, beats a 60-70 CAD taxi through traffic. Ten minutes in Union Station’s Great Hall, a 1920s Beaux-Arts rail palace built jointly by Canadian National and Canadian Pacific.
Walk to Queen’s Park, the Ontario Legislative Building, free, and hold onto why: Toronto is not Canada’s capital, Ottawa is, chosen in 1857 as a compromise between four cities that couldn’t agree the job belonged to any one of them. Afternoon at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Brookfield Place, 45 CAD adult admission, the real Stanley Cup on site. Dinner downtown, early night.
Day 2: Kingston, out and back
Early VIA train to Kingston, roughly two to two and a half hours each way, fares commonly 60-140 CAD depending how far ahead you booked. Old limestone downtown, Fort Henry, the start of the Thousand Islands, lunch on Princess Street, or book a Kingston day tour if you’d rather not plan the route yourself. Evening train back to Union.
Day 3: Toronto’s Canada 101
CBC’s headquarters and broadcast centre sits on Front Street, producing content for the entire country while most visitors walk past without a glance. The Toronto Argonauts, the CFL team, formed in 1873, have played under the same name longer than any other pro sports club in North America, older than the NHL. The Tim Hortons myth: Hamilton, 1964, an actual NHL defenceman, not Toronto, whatever the location density downtown implies.
Spend the afternoon properly in one immigrant neighbourhood. Canada’s multiculturalism policy dates to 1971, the first country to adopt one officially, and Toronto is where it reads as daily life: roughly half the population born outside Canada, 160-plus languages spoken. The in-city guide has the neighbourhood breakdown. Dinner there.
Day 4: Niagara, the lightweight rail option
GO train to Niagara Falls, about two to two and a half hours each way, still Ontario, a legitimate scenic day but not the different-culture payoff the next two days deliver. The Ontario-focused guide covers the falls and wine country in the depth they deserve if you want more than a look. Evening train back.
Day 5: Ottawa, arrival and evening
VIA to Ottawa, roughly three and a half to four and a half hours depending on the train, one-way fares commonly 40-100 CAD, more if booked late. Check into the capital rather than racing the clock: Parliament Hill and the Peace Tower in the afternoon light, dinner in the ByWard Market, an evening walk along the canal if the weather holds. This is the night the five-day version of this trip doesn’t get.
Day 6: Ottawa morning, return to Toronto
A proper morning in a national museum, whichever fits your interest, before an afternoon VIA train back to Union. Save Montreal for a longer trip; looping through it from here would mean either backtracking through Toronto or cutting Ottawa short, and neither is worth it on six days. Last dinner downtown in Toronto before you fly out.
Before you go
Loonies and toonies are in your pocket within the hour of landing, Canadian dollars aren’t US dollars despite the shared symbol, check the real rate. Federal bilingualism (official since 1969) explains the English-and-French signage on the trains and at the airport even though Toronto itself runs almost entirely in English. Every rail leg here is domestic, no passport, a photo ID covers you if VIA asks. If Montreal is the piece you don’t want to skip, the 7-day version loops both capitals into one trip, and the full guide has the routing.