I haven't lived in the Toronto area for over 10 years, but from my memory: Ontario Science Centre is great and Casa Loma is very interesting. The Toronto Zoo is good if you like zoos and the Royal Ontario Museum is good if you like museums. Ontario Place is an amusement park which I remember being lots of fun when I was a kid. The CN Tower is the defacto landmark, but I was so young the last time I went there that I have no memory of it. - Laurence Gonsalves

By the way: Canada's Wonderland (just north of Toronto) is very similar to Great America, so you probably don't want to even consider it. - Laurence Gonsalves

I don't think we're ready for theme parks yet what with Camilla being only 4 (and quite averse to trying new experiences) and Thomas just having turned 1. - April Buchheit

Yeah, I didn't think so. That list was roughly in order of descending "a good place to take very young kids"-ness, though in addition to my "haven't lived in the Toronto area for over 10 years" disclaimer I should add that I've only been a dad for 6 months, so I probably don't have my suitable for kids sense finely tuned just yet. :-) - Laurence Gonsalves

When I was a kid I loved Ontario Science Center, Ontario Place, Toronto Island, and the CN Tower. I haven't lived around there in 5+ years, so I can find out from friends some good places to eat at.... Just let me know! - Karen Padham Taylor

I agree with Karen. Those are all the things we did when I went to Toronto as a child. - Gabe

Say hi to Geddy, Alex and Neil, eh. - Josh Haley

Find peasant style Chinese food you can no longer find in the Bay Area unless you make it yourself. - John Lam

CORRECTION: You asked about Toronto, not Rochester. The following only applies to Rochester: You can go to the most popular greasy spoon dive in Rochester: Nick Tahou's Hots: http://www.garbageplate.com/ You'll probably want to die afterward, but it is good tasting but maybe 0% healthy. You'll see all types there - men in business suits + the homeless, etc. - O.Shane

I would add the Hockey Hall of Fame, since it is Canada you are visiting:) And if you want a slice of something more like the Mission in SF try Queen St. West, or College St for coffee shops, funky shopping etc. The new Distillery area east of Jarvis is a cool renovated industrial building with great new restaurants etc. - Johnny B

Laurence's and Karen's lists are very good. If you're there late August, you might try the Canadian National Exhibition, a kind of strange mixture of midway rides and agricultural show (though my memory of this is 30-40 years old now, so who knows what it is like today). You should probably stop briefly in Niagara Falls on the way to Rochester. - Howard Trickey

Howard: We'll definitely stop by Niagara Falls on the way to Rochester. I probably shouldn't get too ambitious in terms of doing a bunch of stuff as the kids may not tolerate visits to museums and theme parks (frankly, we adults may not, either). Is there a good hotel to stay where it's within walking distance of nice coffee shops, restaurants, and shopping? Realistically, I think what we'll end up doing is just walk around. - April Buchheit

Last time we went to Toronto we spent a lot of time shopping on Bloor Street (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki...). We also ran into David Beckham trying on sun glasses in a department store (YMMV). Toronto also has a great Chinatown. Let us know when you'll be in Rochester :) - Benjamin Golub

I agree with Ben about Chinatown. It's a great place to eat. We went to Bright Pearl Seafood Restaurant for Dim Sum (http://www.brightpearlseafood.com/). If you want to just walk around, The Distillery District (http://www.thedistillerydistrict.com/) is pretty quiet and relaxing, with a few boutique shops. They have Segways too! I'm not sure whether this is really suitable for kids but the Steam Whistle Brewing (http://www.steamwhistle.ca/) brewery is a good place to sample their beer after a quick tour... - Tony Ruscoe

Richtree is a fun place to eat with kids. If you drive to Rochester, make sure you check the border wait times at the three crossings. The wait times can vary quite a bit (electronic maps seem to favor the Lewiston bridge, which can be busier) but the travel times are similar http://apps.cbp.gov/bwt/ or 1-800-715-6722. You can see the falls from the Rainbow bridge. If there still was a ferry, I'd recommend that :-). - Erik Erkelens

Royal Ontario Museum isn't too bad and they have a kids section somewhere. Definitely go to Queen St West, also Bloor St. Oh, maybe Harbour Front has things to do too: http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/ - Rudolf Olah