Sometimes my only plan for a day in a cool city is a nice walk in the sun. I might have a building or two in mind that I’d like to see and to photograph, a restaurant I want to try, or something else that draws me to a particular walk in a particular area, but the main scheduled activity is just a nice stroll.

On a day like that, I might search the area I plan to walk to see if there is a museum or other interesting place that might serve as an anchor, a place to reach on my walk to guide the direction I wander.

Today was such a day. I’d wanted for a while now to see Toronto’s Old City Hall and the newer version, and to get to explore the side of downtown that basically sits between the Dundas and Queen stops off the Line 1 subway. Add in a visit to Tim Horton’s (no visit to Canada is complete without a donut and a coffee from Timmy) and a pop into an LCBO liquor store to research a piece I was writing on Canadian attitudes toward Americans in 2025, which you can read here, and it was about an hour or so of planned activity.

Those portions went smoothly. Old City Hall is a stunner, a clock-tower bedecked Romanesque beauty that is currently closed. Built in 1899, it served as city hall until 1966, and then as a courthouse until 2023. I’m not sure what the city currently has planned for it, but perhaps when the construction of a new subway line outside is done, work can go forward on turning this gem into something as glorious as it deserves.

Toronto’s new city hall sits across the street. It consists of two semi-circular rather brutalist buildings and a sort of spaceship-looking dome between. Used as the logo for the city, I have to admit that it is a large step down – to me – from the old building, although I’m sure it is more modern and larger. The highlight is the fountain and iconic Toronto signage in front, a scene used as a backdrop for basically everything that has ever been set here.

So there I sat, eating my Tim Horton’s apple fritter (they didn’t have maple cream, sadly), wondering what to do with the remainder of my morning. A couple options presented themselves, but one jumped out: Little Canada. This attraction advertises itself as a chance to see all of Canada in miniature. Pretty cool, I thought to myself, and if it’s anything like Hamburg’s Miniatur Wunderland (click here to read about that amazing place) I’ll be in for a treat.

I finished my last bite of fritter and my last few sips of coffee, debated another donut, decided it ran counter to my goal of getting some good exercise with my walk, and proceeded out. Little Canada actually sits inside of a building connected to the Dundas station, so it wasn’t exactly out of my way for my planned route. I passed by more pretty buildings, and a wonderful Pride display – props to Toronto for truly celebrating – and entered Sankofa Square.

Advertised as Toronto’s version of Times Square, it really isn’t, other than the big screen billboards. But hey, another photo was added to the record for my day, and another cool square in a city full of them.

Then it was into a building across the street and down a couple escalators to Little Canada itself, where I presented my Toronto VIP pass generously provided to me by Destination Toronto for complimentary entry. (Otherwise it is about CA$40 for adults.) I was told that I was now a giant about to enter tiny Canada, given basic instructions (follow the arrows to not miss anything), and shown a photo of a little moose painted to look like a Canadian flag that each exhibit had three of to find a la Where’s Waldo. (Spoiler: I found exactly zero without help. But it was a fun touch.)

Little Canada opened in 2021, and was inspired by the incredible Miniatur Wunderland I mentioned before. The concept is similar, although limited to Canada. As one walks through, one enters different “regions” corresponding to actual Canadian cities and provinces. These range from Toronto (obviously) or Niagara Falls to Quebec, Ottawa, and even one that represents all of the Maritimes in one! Buildings are actual models of existing buildings, with other landmarks done in the same way. Some are handmade from wood, while others are 3-D printed, but all are hand painted. It’s quite an impressive setup and an insane number of hours of work to do each of these scenes properly.

Highlights for me were the Toronto display and the one for the Pacific Coast, but only because I’ve been to both of these places recently enough to identify specific buildings I’d visited. And yes, there is even a miniature Little Canada in a totally meta move.

It was almost as much fun exploring other locations, and reading the signage that explains what the various buildings are as well as some insider tips on how they were built. And if I didn’t see an answer to a question I had, uniformed staff were all over, both roaming and escorting children’s fields trips. One wonderful employee even helped me find a moose so I wouldn’t feel left out.

There are a couple other fun touches at Little Canada. First, I spent about ten minutes watching people painting miniatures that will ultimately go into one of the new exhibits under construction. (Rooms for the North, the Rockies, and the Prairies are in process, and the Montreal portion is being refurbished.) Second, while I didn’t participate, one can pay to have a 3-D scan of oneself that will lead to a miniature YOU to be placed in an exhibit of one’s choice.

Finally, there is one exhibit that isn’t in Canada at all, as we think of it. In 1917, during World War One, Canadian soldiers fought at Vimy Ridge in northern France. A thankful French government built a monument to Canadian efforts here (Canadians obviously fought all over, but this was especially important) and declared that the small patch of land would be Canadian soil. Well, Little Canada has that in miniature also, as well as signage about the battle. It is awesome and poignant.

I searched in vain for a couple more of the moose statues (seriously, these are hard to find in such detailed scenes) and then it was an easy two minutes to the subway. My day at Little Canada and walking this portion of downtown Toronto was complete. A day of sun, a day of cool architecture, and a day of being a sightseeing giant… it was a good day.

Thank you so much to Destination Toronto for the gift of my Toronto VIP pass. I had so much fun seeing the city, and sights like Little Canada, with it!

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