Toronto’s Multicultural Heart: Kensington Market & Chinatown Walk
Description
Experience the Toronto locals love as you explore vibrant neighborhoods, diverse cultures, hidden gems, and authentic local flavors beyond the tourist trail.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Explore one of Toronto's most colorful and creative neighborhoods, known for its street art, independent shops, global food scene, and bohemian atmosphere. Learn how generations of immigrants helped shape Kensington Market into one of the city's most diverse and beloved communities. Enjoy a coffee or tea at a locally owned café and sample a snack from a neighborhood food vendor while discovering hidden laneways, local businesses, and community stories.
Explore one of North America's largest Chinatowns and discover the communities, traditions, and businesses that helped shape modern Toronto. Walk through bustling streets lined with markets, restaurants, and family-run shops as your guide shares stories of immigration, culture, and entrepreneurship. Along the way, enjoy a local snack and receive insider recommendations on the area's best places to eat and explore.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Designed for curious travelers who want to explore Toronto's most vibrant and multicultural communities.
- Is this tour suitable for children? Children aged 6 to 11 are welcome on this tour. Please note that the route involves a moderate amount of walking.
- Will the tour always follow the same route and stops? Not always. Routes, stops, and food inclusions may vary due to local events, business hours, or availability. We'll always ensure you experience the best of the neighborhood and enjoy a tasty local snack.
- This tour is operated by a B Corp certified company committed to using travel as a force for good.
Reviews(154)
Our guide was Jennifer She was extremely informative and knowledgeable She did a great job
Great tour, Jennifer was a great Guide with a lot of insights.
Expert tour guide Kieran was totally responsible for making this very average content tour enjoyable and interesting. The content: Kensington Market... actually a scruffy row of rundown shops and not any sort of actual "market" is eminently skippable -- especially if you've already been to the far better St. Lawrence Market. And Chinatown... a neighborhood that essentially covers the same territory, but with Chinese signage and a few murals is also a miss. If you've traveled worldwide as much as I have and seen vibrant local markets and cultural enclaves, then you'll likely be underwhelmed by what Toronto has on offer. Both Kensington Market and Chinatown are meager, mostly decrepit and potentially threatening if wandering around alone. Fortunately, Kieran was there as my guide. He took some sorry scraps and wove them into a rich, embroidered fabric. Thank you, Kieran
I live in the city and took my visiting parents on this tour mid-September on a Tuesday. So we were the only ones, and our tour guide Robert was really great. He’s very knowledgeable and we also ended up chatting about other places we’ve visited as well. I loved we had some time to pop into some of the Kensington vintage stores as well. Snagged up a great jacket for a good price. I took down his restaurant recs and after we ended up at one of them for lunch. Highly recommend!
Very informative and interesting tour of 2 vibrant neighborhoods. Enjoyed walking and seeing local businesses
Kieran was a good guide who told interesting stories of the area. I enjoyed the tour and highly recommend it.
Wonderful introduction to Kensington and Chinatown. Jackie, our guide, shared stories about the history of the areas and personal experiences. It was truly an insider’s look at the communities and not to be missed.
First of all, I would like to highlight the exceptional work of our guide, Robert; he was very friendly and knowledgeable. This tour aims to introduce you to the different cultural communities that have helped build these vibrant neighborhoods. Through anecdotes and meetings with local merchants, you will understand that it is possible to preserve your identity in a big city like Toronto. You will also discover new restaurants and shops away from the hustle and bustle of the city.
Guide didn’t show up. After 45 minutes we called Viator who immigrated issued a refund. We walked the expected tour route ourselves afterwards. Would have liked it to have been guided.
Hi Chris, We are sorry to learn of your recent experience while hoping to explore Toronto with us. Looking at our records, it seems that the system had allowed your booking - unfortunately- within only a few hours of the noted start time. This did not allow our team to assign a leader to your departure - of just 2 people- but had others been booked onto the same date then this would not have been an issue. We are terribly sorry for this inconvenience, and assure you that we have noted this problem with our team in order to ensure this does not happen in future. Thank you for letting us know of your experience, and we hope that you still did have a great time in the city. With kind regards, Tu
Tour was MEH. Sights and locations were interesting however I just felt like it was a lot of walking and not a lot of information. Expected much more from our guide, felt like I could have done the self-guided option and learn more that way.
