I have been waiting for this season, not with excitement, but with resigned acceptance. We live in Eastern Canada, so while we are not hit quite as hard as the Prairies (thank God), we still get General Winter drunkenly stumbling into our city and making a scene. Here in Toronto, we just received a heaping ton of snow, and our year began with an extreme cold weather warning. To top it all off, squirrels are now trying to subsist on chocolate bars. Poor things must have been affected by seasonal depression.

This guy seems fine, at least.

If you’re like me and react to the slightest chill by waiting the season out until spring, there might not be much of a reason for you to consider leaving home. I often say I wasn’t born for this kind of weather, though an outsider might just classify me as “a wuss”. Fortunately, we have the PATH in Toronto, an underground pathway spanning more than 30 km under the Downtown Core. If you’re new to Canada, new to winter, or not willing to take chances with the cold, I’ve come up with some ideas for how to spend a day out in Downtown Toronto.

To begin, here’s a handy map. I got it from their website, so I imagine it’s the most recent.

Getting There

The PATH incorporates the Yonge-University subway line, from Queen’s Park to College. There are likely more options above ground, but this might be the most convenient, and most covered. Unless you drive. I often wonder what it’s like to have that kind of freedom.

The subway does serve as the link between some areas of the walkway, though, so depending on where you’d like to go that should be taken into account.

Entertainment

The PATH is connected to 1200 stores, and it links First Canadian Place, Eaton Centre, and Royal Bank Plaza among other shopping centres. You could very well plan your day around the shopping alone. The PATH also connects to major Downtown tourist destinations, including the CN Tower, the Hockey Hall of Fame, and Rogers Centre. You even have multiple spas to choose from.

Now, Let’s Eat!

Apart from the offerings at the food courts in shopping centres linked by the PATH, there are many other restaurants to choose from. SOCO Kitchen + Bar, one of Toronto’s newest restaurants, is accessible through the PATH. Char No. 5, a new Whisky bar, is also connected, as well as the amazing views of Stratus Restaurant. And somewhere in there, there’s a Kernel’s Popcorn stand, possibly the most appealing of them all.

Now don’t despair when the weather doesn’t behave how you wish it would. Go out and paint the town!