Hi. My family plans to walk 20 minutes from a hotel near the corner of King and Younge Streets to the Rogers Centre this November. Google Maps has us walking West on King then onto Wellington, John and Front Streets getting near David Pecaut Sq.
In general, are these streets safe to walk?
I'm guessing you're talking about Toronto, but you dont really identify the city. What time of day?
Oh my gosh. I’m so sorry, yes, Toronto. Thanks.
The time of day would be at 5pm and then again later at night around 11pm. Thanks again. I should have said that.
That's a lively area for a walk. If you are attending an event at Rogers Centre, there will be plenty of people on the streets at 11 pm. Depending on the part of November, a lot of them will be chilly and stepping lively. You might walk north to King Street and catch a streetcar east for a less brisk return to Yonge Street.
Safety? Like any big North American city, there are some street people, easily ignored. Downtown Toronto is still a residential city beside the high-rise offices and big stores, which adds to security.
The TTC (Toronto Transit Commission) carries many people, safely. Here is its website: https://www.ttc.ca
Hint: For more Internet searching, it could help to use the local spellings: Yonge St., Rogers Centre.
Thank you for your help.
You'll be going through the financial district, which can get a bit empty at night, but then again, 11pm isn't very late.
As someone mentioned, concerts/events tend to have huge crowds of people walking to the nearest transit stations at once, starting before the concert even ends.
The most you might feel unsafe is coming across homeless/mentally unwell people. Don't be afraid to act "rude" if you feel unsafe; ignore them, walk away, cross the street or take a detour if you feel you need to.
The route should be reasonably safe, but on a November night in Toronto, take a look at the Path/Skywalk as an alternative to protect from the cold and/or rain. The Skywalk is a glass-enclosed elevated sidewalk that connects Union Station with the CN Tower, right next to the Rogers Centre. Rogers Centre was originally called the Skydome, and the Skywalk was built to link it to the subway at Union Station. It’s part of “The Path”, which is a maze of underground walkways in downtown Toronto (but you can’t get lost in the Skywalk whereas you need a map and tour guide for the underground maze). To get to Union Station from your hotel, head south on Yonge two blocks to Front Street, and turn right (at the Hockey Hall of Fame).
What helpful people you all are. Thank you again!
I was on a tourism website for Toronto when I came across the PATH. I never knew that existed and was going to make that my next research topic. Thanks for letting me know about the Skywalk.
Thanks again.
I was just in Toronto the first week of the month. Walked back to my lodging at 1:00 AM, from University and Queen St to the Scotia Bank Center area (down University to York). No issues, smaller groups of people milling about here and there.
Not recommending this to anyone, just reporting my experience.
As for mazes, Union Station was confounding to me, even though I've been through it several times (this was my first visit back in almost 5 years). I actually found it easier to navigate during the massive construction project a few years ago.
I walked those same streets with my wife and young son and never felt the slightest bit unsafe. Our awesome hotel, the Hotel Victoria, was basically right where your hotel is.
