The Best Things to Do in Toronto in December 2026
A December list that tells you when to go, not only where. Ranked on whether the thing is worth the cold and the queue, with the free options weighted up and the overpriced-mulled-wine traps kept in but flagged with the hour that fixes them. Skating, markets, light installations and the indoor rooms that rescue a minus-eighteen afternoon. Checked 2026-08-17.
The podium
— top 3 by community votesSkating at Nathan Phillips Square under the Cavalcade of Lights
The rink under the Toronto sign is free, it is open all December, and it is the one holiday activity downtown that costs nothing if you bring your own skates. Cavalcade of Lights lights the square with a large tree and installations from late November into early January, with the tree-lighting on the last Saturday of November and free skate rentals starting in the first week of December. Confirm the exact 2026 dates on the City listing.
The Distillery Winter Village -- go on a weekday, before 4 pm
This is the tourist trap on the list, and it is still worth going -- you just have to go correctly. The 2026 village runs November 12 to January 3. In recent seasons, daytime entry has been free and evenings from 4 pm on the busiest days have been ticketed at around $15; the operator said 2026 ticket details would be published in September, so confirm. Go on a weekday morning, walk the cobblestones with a coffee, and skip the evening entirely.
The Nutcracker at the Four Seasons Centre, December 5 to 31
The National Ballet of Canada's Kudelka production has run every December since 1995 and plays December 5 to 31, 2026 at the Four Seasons Centre on Queen West. It is the single best-produced holiday thing in the city and the only one on this list where the ticket price buys something you could not get anywhere else. Weekday matinees in the first week are consistently the easiest seats to get and the calmest room.
The Allan Gardens Christmas Flower Show -- free, and heated
A Victorian glasshouse packed with poinsettias, amaryllis, paperwhites and evergreen boughs, free to enter, opening in early December and running into the first week of January. In recent years the Palm House has been lit nightly from around 4:45 pm, which is the version most people miss. On a bitter afternoon this is the best free hour in the city: it is humid, it smells of soil, and nobody is trying to sell you anything.
The ROM on a third-Tuesday free night
The Royal Ontario Museum is open daily 10 am to 5:30 pm, and on the third Tuesday of each month general admission is free with hours extended to 8:30 pm. That single evening is the best-value indoor plan of a Toronto December, and it is the one most locals forget exists. Everything else about the ROM in December is normal -- the free Tuesday is the reason it is on this list rather than any seasonal programming.
The Bentway Skate Trail under the Gardiner
A 220-metre figure-eight trail threaded between the concrete bents holding up the Gardiner Expressway. Free to skate with your own blades and no time limit; rentals have run around $13 for a two-hour block, with free rentals on opening weekend. It typically opens around December 20, which means it only covers the back third of the month -- do not build a mid-December plan around it without checking the date.
Aga Khan Museum -- free on Wednesday evenings
One of the best-designed buildings in the city and the most underused museum in Toronto, largely because it sits at Eglinton and the Don Valley Parkway rather than downtown. Open Tuesday to Sunday, 10 am to 5:30 pm, with Wednesdays to 8 pm and BMO Free Wednesdays giving free admission from 4 to 8 pm. It is open on statutory holidays except December 25, which makes it a rare open door during the holiday week.
Christmas at the Castle and the Holiday Lights tour, Casa Loma
Casa Loma runs a daytime Christmas at the Castle experience and a separate after-dark Holiday Lights tour of the grounds through December into early January -- illuminated pathways, themed displays and photo opportunities. In recent seasons the daytime run has been roughly 9:30 am to 5 pm with the lights tour from about 5:30 pm to 10 pm, priced around $45. The 2026 date range and pricing are announced in the autumn, so confirm.
The Ontario Science Centre at its Harbourfront Centre interim site
Important correction for anyone working off an old guidebook: the Don Mills building closed abruptly in June 2024 over structural risk and is permanently shut. The Science Centre now runs an interim location at Harbourfront Centre -- around 86,000 square feet, roughly 15 percent of the old site, including KidSpark and an Innovation Station. The permanent Ontario Place building is under construction and is not expected until 2029.
Saturday market and a ravine walk at Evergreen Brick Works
Open daily and year-round, with the farmers market every Saturday from 8 am to 1 pm in the covered former brick factory. The December version is root vegetables, preserves, baking and a lot of hot drinks, and the sheds mean weather is largely irrelevant. Pair it with the Don Valley trails out the back, which are at their best in December -- bare, quiet, and empty of the summer crowd.
St. Lawrence Market for the holiday food shop
The South Market runs Tuesday to Friday 9 am to 7 pm, Saturday 7 am to 5 pm and Sunday 10 am to 5 pm, closed Mondays. December is when it earns its reputation: this is where the turkey, the cheese board and the baking supplies come from if you are actually cooking. Holiday hours differ from the standard week, so check the market's holiday-hours page before making a special trip in the last fortnight of December.
Pocket Planet at 10 Dundas East -- formerly Little Canada
The animated miniature-Canada attraction rebranded from Little Canada to Pocket Planet, same location on the B2 level at 10 Dundas Street East. It is 45,000 square feet with more than 40,000 miniature figures and 100-plus animations across eight zones, and the visit runs about 90 to 120 minutes. Open Sunday to Wednesday 10 am to 6 pm and Thursday to Saturday 10 am to 9 pm, last entry 8 pm.
