|
One of Toronto's most striking features is its division into distinct neighbourhoods , many of them based on ethnic origin, others defined by sexual preference or income. Bilingual street signs identify some of these neighbourhoods, but architecturally they are often indistinguishable from their surroundings. The following rundown will help you get the most from the city's demographic mosaic, whether you want to shop, eat or just take in the atmosphere. But bear in mind that there is a certain artificiality in the nomenclature - Chinatown, for instance, has hundreds of Vietnamese residents, Little Italy many Portuguese. The Beaches , lying south of Queen Street East between Woodbine and Victoria Park Avenue, is a prosperous and particularly appealing district with chic boutiques, leafy streets and a sandy beach trimmed by a popular boardwalk. Glenn Gould was born here. Cabbagetown , east of Jarvis and roughly bounded by Gerrard Street East on its south side, Wellesley to the north and the Don River to the east, is renowned for its Victorian housing. Its name comes from the district's nineteenth-century immigrants, whose tiny front gardens were filled with cabbages. Chinatown is concentrated along Dundas between Bay and Spadina. This is one of Toronto's most distinctive neighbourhoods, with busy restaurants and stores selling anything from porcelain and jade to herbs and pickled seaweed. The Gay and Lesbian Village , with its plethora of bars, restaurants and bookshops, is centred around Church and Wellesley. Greektown , a burgeoning neighbourhood along Danforth Avenue, is located between Pape and Woodbine. With scores of authentic restaurants, this is the place to go for Greek food. Kensington Market , just north of Dundas between Spadina and Augusta, is the most ethnically diverse part of town, combining Portuguese, West Indian and Jewish Canadians, who pack the streets with a plethora of tiny shops and open-air stalls. Little India is along Gerrard Street East, running one block west from Coxwell Avenue. Visually, it's not too appealing, but the area does have a number of fine restaurants. Little Italy - the so-called Corso Italia - runs along College between Bathurst and Clinton, and is one of Toronto's liveliest neighbourhoods. Little Portugal , a crowded, vital area packed with shops and neighbourhood food joints, is focused on Dundas, west of Bathurst as far as Dovercourt. Queen Street West , between University and Spadina, has one of the highest retail rents in the city and is home to all things trendy and expensive. The students and punks who once hung around here have moved on to what is known as Queen West West, between Spadina and Bathurst. Yorkville , just above Bloor between Yonge and Avenue Road, was "alternative" in the 1960s, with appearances by figureheads of the counterculture like Gordon Lightfoot and Joni Mitchell. Today, the alternative jive of the place is long gone, and the district holds some of Toronto's most expensive clothing shops and art galleries, as well as several good bars and restaurants.
Your Tip for Torontos neighbourhoods
Help other backpackers! Write your own guides and backpacking tips to Torontos neighbourhoods - they will appear instantly on this page - Please only write a tip/guide to Torontos neighbourhoods - visit the main Torontos neighbourhoods forum to ask a question!
Please do not post links to your site here (they won't work) - please use the Torontos neighbourhoods webguide section below! Thanks.
| 
