TORONTO GIRL SEASONAL BUCKET LIST: SUMMER 2026 EDITION

Summer is officially here!

Toronto comes to life in the summertime!

I've seen a fair amount of Toronto bashing online lately. "Toronto is boring" is a weirdly trendy thing to say but I honestly can't relate. If you think Toronto is boring, I think you aren't doing it right! Even in this terrible economy, Toronto has plenty of cheap/free things to do-- all starred entries on my list are free to enter/browse, pay-what-you-can, or by donation.

I start every season with a bucket list that I create by combing places like BlogTO, Ticketmaster, and social media for hints about what's coming up, because I hate finding out about an event the day after it happens! Throughout the season I keep an eye on sources like the West End Raccoon for impromptu weekend adventures. Now that I've got a few years of lists, I also look back to see what happened in previous years that I'd like to do again, and then look up those dates for the coming season to add to the list. You can find some of my past lists here on the blog.

If you are looking for things to do in Toronto to make this the best summer ever, maybe you'll find some inspiration on this list. As always, this is (a slightly more detailed version of) my actual list, and there are several items on it that I've never tried before, so if you are using this as a reference to build your own list, keep in mind that these aren't necessarily my recommendations, they are just things that sound fun to me!

So without further ado, here's my 2026 Toronto Summer Bucket List.

Toronto Summer Activities

• Live music! So many free/cheap shows happen at parks, festivals, and bars around the city. I like referencing @jazzintoronto and the West End Raccoon for upcoming gigs.

• I want to go to as many vintage photo booths as I can over the course of the summer, with as many pals as possible! I have a plan to make a little art piece out of them after.

• **Hang out with friends in Trinity Bellwoods Park, maybe with a picnic from Trinity Market.

• Also want to do Trinity Market's 'sip school' again-- they have a deal that let's you try a couple of wines and snack pairings and they teach you a little about each one, super fun especially on their patio!

• **Explore St. Lawrence Market and Market Street - and the Sunday Variety Market.

• Spend a day on Toronto Islands, hang out on the Ward's Island Beach and have a snack at the Island Café.

• **Pedestrian Sundays may not be a thing in Kensington Market anymore, but it's still a great place to thrift and wander.

• Visit Casa Loma for the Symphony in the Gardens series - maybe Big Band night, or Movie night.

• Sip wine and taste gelato at an On Third Thought tasting event.

• **Stop and smell the fresh flowers from the Toronto Flower Market.

• Not necessarily Toronto specific, but I've been seeing Color Walks all over my socials, and I think it would be a really fun way to explore either my neighbourhood or a new-to-me area with friends. Basically, you each pick a different color and take pictures of that color as you explore, which forces you to look at the details. I'm explaining it badly, but I promise it looks fun!

• **Watch a film under the stars at the Toronto Outdoor Picture Show.

• Catch a Jays game at the Rogers Centre.

**Experience Twelfth Night outdoors at Dream in High Park -- and have at least one (but probably many more over the course of the summer, since it's my neighborhood!) insanely delicious souvlaki wrap at All Star BBQ in the park. Honestly, the biggest hidden gem in the city!

I'm so obsessed with the All Star BBQ in High Park's souvlaki and it's been closed for winter for so long! Can't wait for it to reopen.

Festivals

• **Toronto Outdoor Art Fair

• **Do West Fest

• **Toronto Pride

• The CNE

• **Doors Open Toronto

• **Word on the Street

  
  

Museums

• Museum of Contemporary Art - Free on Fridays from 5-9.

• Art Gallery of Ontario - Free on Wednesdays from 6-9.

• Royal Ontario Museum - I really want to go to one of their ROM After Dark events!

  
  

New-to-Me Restaurants & Bars

• Drom

• Pasta Forever

• Golden Horseshoe BBQ

• The Hamptons

• Tommy’s Wine Bar
  

Revisit My Summertime Favourite Restaurants & Patios

• Tom's Dairy Freeze and the Dairy Freeze on St. Clair

• Burdock Brewery

• Paradise Grapevine - the best back patio in the city!

• Trinity Market 

• Bandit Brewery

• Sprezzatura Spaghetti Disco 

• Paradise Grotto 

• Downtown Winery 

• Danny’s Pizza Tavern
  

Concerts

• Check out the lineup at the newly renamed RBC Ampitheatre. I spy The Arkells, Kesha, BBno$, Meghan Trainor, and more that would be fun to watch from the lawn! Keep an eye out for LiveNation's music week sale-- it usually pops up early may and has cheap tickets.

• **Toronto Pride has some fun, free outdoor concerts happening.

• Other concerts that I'd love to see that are happening this summer include Noah Kahan and Hilary Duff.

  
  

Shows

• Mirvish has tons of good stuff running, including recent Broadway hits The Outsiders and Water for Elephants.

• Burlesque shows at Mama's Liquor & Lounge or A Toi.

• This one might be unexpected, but we've been loving luchador wrestling! Demand Lucha is a great time for a random and entertaining night out.

  
  

Classes & Workshops

• Pottery painting -- I haven't done this since I was a kid, but I keep seeing amazing inspo on Pinterest and now I want to paint some custom items for myself!

• Rug tufting at Chillax Studio

• Floral arranging at Viridi.

• Donut Making at Le Dolci

• Crafts at 4Cats Art Studio

• Glass blowing at Playing with Fire - I did this in 2025 and LOVED it, so it's actually not on my personal list this year but I couldn't resist including it here as inspo for you!

  
  

Out of the City

• I got a Guess Where Trip for Christmas from my bestie and I can't wait to do it. Coincidentally, I bought their Detour Diaries book for my partner, so also looking forward to taking some unexpected side quests en route to our out-of-the-city plans.

• Drive-in movie -- I went to my first ever drive-in show at this theatre last year and can't wait to go back!

• Canada's Wonderland -- we got season passes in August last year that include this whole summer somehow! We only went once in 2025, I'd love to make better use of the pass this year.

• Build my own bouquet at the Sun Harvest flower cutting farm.

• Niagara-on-the-Lake winery adventure.

• St. Jacobs + Tullamore Lavender Farm + Silver Fox Distillery.

• Take the ParkBus to somewhere I've never been before out of the city

• Revisit one of my favourite spots in Ontario, Sauble Beach.

• Cottage weekends with family and friends, which will hopefully include campfires, s'mores, lake swims, skinny dips, boat rides, and board games.

There you have it! My list of things I'd like to do in Toronto this summer. What's on your list? What did I miss on mine?