Santa arrived in Toronto on time and I decided to go and see the ole’ man himself in what’s known as the biggest Santa Claus parade in the world. Weather was going to be perfect – mild and dry.
My Plan
Don’t arrive too early and wait for hours, yet not too late and wish I had brought a ladder with me to see over the crowds!
- Parade start time: 12:30pm at Bloor/Christie.
- Exited TTC at the Museum subway station around 10:30 am
One of the best places along the route to get a good view of the floats and the parade, in my opinion, is along most of University Ave – the street & pavements are wide
Luckily, I managed to get positioned behind a family with foldable chairs for the kids. They had been there since 9:30am to get their front row seats.
Children were playing and chalking on the road whilst waiting for the parade to begin.
Then…Police cars from districts in and around Toronto were sounding their sirens – the parade was on its way!
Canada Post mail collectors were helping Santa gather all the kids’ letters.
After them, were large freight trucks (3 in all) filled to the brim with boxes of goodies which the police officers were helping the clowns hand out to the children along the route. I overheard one cop say they had over 40,000 gift bags to hand out to over 100,000 kids – those who got them were lucky!
There were lots and lots of clowns throwing candy canes and candy to the crowds as well as picking on those unsuspecting spectators with funny string.
Parade floats were wonderful works of art, some were preceded by bands. Bands from the United States were participating in the parade too.
Soon, it was time for the BIG man himself, Santa! His float was amazing. He sits high above the crowd in his sleigh with his reindeer leading the way
After 4+ hours standing, before and during the parade, it was over. The street became one large pedestrian park and the clean up began (and boy, it needed it).
This is an excellent day out for the family and for a lot of families out there, has become a ritual.
If you decide to go, make sure you have lots of snacks, food, entertaining stuff for the kids and if you leave early enough, blankets/chairs (for the adults as well) to sit on and warm clothing. Don’t forget the fluids, but not too much as it can be a hike to the nearest washroom!
I finally can say I made it to this big parade and it was well worth it!