Canada's Wonderland, Vaughan, Ontario via TTC

The journey from downtown Toronto to Canada’s Wonderland begins at St. Andrew Station at 173 King Street West. Riders travel 40 minutes to the Vaughan Metropolitan Centre Station (VMCS) via a subway line operated by the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC). Riders complete the journey by traveling 25 minutes via a bus operated by York Region Transit (YRT).

This is the accessible entrance that has an elevator for the riders who need it. There are staircase entrances across the street going down to the subway platforms. This elevator is precisely located on street at the University and King West Entrance, Southeast Corner (145 King Street West). The elevator is not owned by the TTC but is extra wide with large buttons to press, with voice assist.

This image, taken at a quarter after nine on a weekday morning, shows a rare break in the foot traffic on the accessible walkway after rush hour cleared out. At the far end of the walkway are steps from the street-level stairs entrance for St. Andrew Station. The elevator can stop at the Level 2 Concourse, which has a food court. The food offerings looked good. Although rush hour was over, there were still a few people there.

The next stop for visitors is to purchase a fare card or pay the fare on Level 2. The fare machine takes cash and coin, as well as credit and debit cards. This is called a Presto machine. Presto cards are available in Google Wallet and Apple Wallet. There are no attendants at this station; Osgoode Station has attendants. The next stop after ticketing is to go through the gates to the subway platform; there is an accessible gate.

The Presto machine takes up to a fifty dollar bill and gives out up to $19.95 in change. There is no more weekly pass; an adult day pass can be purchased for $13.50. An additional fare of $4.40 must be purchased at Vaughan Metropolitan Centre Station (VMCS) to ride the YRT bus out to Canada’s Wonderland. Or, it can be purchased on the bus.

This is the Level 3 subway platform. To the left is the northbound train to Vaughan, and to the right is the train going to Finch Station via Union. This is the Yellow No. 1 Yonge-University subway line, which is the oldest subway line in Toronto, beginning in 1954. Nowadays, it has a north-south U-shaped direction with 38 stations. The Yellow line is jammed with people during rush hour, some hanging onto the straps.

The northbound Yonge-University Yellow Line subway arrives at precisely 9:35 am on Tuesday, July 2, 2024. As of this date, a single TTC ride for an adult is $3.35, an all-day pass is $13.50, monthly is $156.00, and a twelve-month pass is $143.00. Children 12 and under are free. Youths between 13-19 and seniors 65 plus over are discounted. Riders with mobility concerns and their companions may get discounted tickets.

Toronto’s transit system is one of the world’s most expensive public transportation networks, according to CTV News. Canada’s largest privately-owned network stated that as of March 2023, “Torontonians are already paying more than most other cities for transit when compared to average incomes.” Single-fare price at that time was $3.25.

Toronto residents, according to the CTV News article, spend about four percent of their income on transit. This puts the city at the fourth-most expensive transit network in the world. The top-three expensive cities listed are São Paulo, Brazil, at 14.2 percent; Istanbul, Turkey, at 7.5 percent; and London, United Kingdom, at 7.4 percent. The article noted that fares would rise by ten cents in April to reach the current rate of $3.35.

The Yellow Line No. 1 subway, the Yonge-University train, arrived at the Vaughan Metropolitan Centre Station (VCMS) at 10:20 am, with the ride lasting 45 minutes. The subway was underground, then above ground, and then underground again. The train was loud, and rattled quite a lot; but was still better than driving, of course.

Canada’s Wonderland has online TTC directions. The park is located at 1 Canada’s Wonderland Drive in Vaughan. These directions match Google’s. Take Line 1 to VMCS. Then walk six accessible minutes mostly indoors to the Smart VMC Bus Terminal North Bound. Take the 320 YRT bus at platform 8, ride four stops and get off at Jane Street and Norwood Avenue. Then walk six minutes over level ground to enter the park.

Transit riders leaving the TTC Yellow Line subway platform at VMCS will walk northward, underground, on a level grade to the Smart VMC bus terminal. There are stairs and an elevator to go to the York Region Transit (YRT) bus terminal. The maps at right have that information. Above ground, Millway Avenue runs parallel to this corridor, and Apple Mill Road is the street intersection. Highway 7 and Jane Street are nearby.

Everything about this terminal offers incredible accessibility. Amenities are plentiful throughout and clean. VMCS is very new, with an opening date of December 2017, designed by Grimshaw Architects of London, UK. There are underground connections going to Vaughan’s public library and a YMCA. The pedestrian corridor goes north to the YRT bus terminal and south to rapid bus routes for both YRT Viva and Brampton Zum.

This screen has real-time information. At 10:34 am, the screen shows that the purple YRT Bus 320 will depart in one minute from Platform 8 for the Major Mackenzie West Terminal, North Bound. The Major Mackenzie West Terminal is located at Canada’s Wonderland. Google and CW both recommend taking the “Major Mackenzie West Terminal NB” 320 Bus and getting off at the intersection of Jane Street and Norwood Avenue.

The Major Mackenzie West Terminal NB 320 YRT bus has arrived at 10:35 am. This northbound bus has three stops before it reaches the corner of Jane Street and Norwood Avenue. (That third stop is at Vaughan Mills; do not get off there.) The ride lasts for fifteen minutes. There is supposed to be a two-hour transfer window for Presto cardholders between the TTC and YRT under Ontario’s One Fare Program.

The northbound purple 320 bus let all Canada’s Wonderland passengers off at the southeast corner of Jane Street and Norwood Avenue. The empty bus continued onward. This bus shelter, on the righthand side of northbound Jane Street, is located in front of the CIBC Banking Centre. Passengers crossed westward on Norwood Avenue at the signaled crosswalk. Norwood Avenue dead-ends here.

This large group of bus passengers will now cross Jane Street, westward, to reach the pathway going into Canada’s Wonderland. (Jane Street is also known as York Regional Road 55.) After crossing Jane Street, which has a curb-cut, amusement-seekers will reach the level-grade designated pathway into the park itself. It is a pleasant stroll to the front gate.

This is the front gate at Canada’s Wonderland; park-goers have already been screened at the metal-detecting and bag-checking station behind the camera. The traverse-time for the distance between Jane Street and Security is about five minutes. It took just a minute to pass through the ticketing gate. Be sure to look your best, as years-old season pass photos can be updated on the spot by a ticket-checker.

The front gate at Canada’s Wonderland faces west out onto International Street with a breath-taking view of the patriotic Floral Flag Garden, the Royal Fountain, and Wonder Mountain. Also shown in the photo is the International Street Bridge and Victoria Falls. International Street, to either side of the Royal Fountain, is the first themed area that visitors encounter. The best next stop is Celebration Canada.

Canada’s Wonderland opened in May 1981 and is Canada’s largest theme park with 330 acres or 130 hectares. As of 2022, Canada’s Wonderland was the most popular seasonal theme park in North America at 3.8 million people. Lazy Bear Lodge, a wilderness-themed restaurant that overlooks the park’s Frontier Canada area, opened in September 2022. Lazy Bear Lodge is the park’s largest dining venue.

The platter offering at the Lazy Bear Lodge comes with the choice of one entree, one side, and a potato roll. Drinks are extra. The smoked beef brisket platter comes with a potato roll and smashed herbed potatoes. The price is $19.99 plus tax, which adds about $2. Cedar Fair parks, including Canada’s Wonderland, are cashless and utilize electronic payment methods. There are cash-to-card kiosks inside the park.

This is the hickory smoked chicken platter with a 12 oz (355 ml) drink. The drink is not included with the platter. Besides beef brisket and the baked chicken, other entrees include pulled pork, chicken tenders, and smoked cauliflower burnt ends. The spring mix salad and vinaigrette dressing are delicious. Other side dishes include smoked buttered green beans, smoked beef drip beans, and creamy macaroni salad.

Lazy Bear Lodge is a celebration of all things Canada. This lodge has two decks and seating for five hundred people, with timber, natural flagstone, and granite. In the back of the restaurant is a fireplace with a chimney. This worker is carving the smoked beef brisket as park guests come through the serving line. As today’s date is so close to Canada Day, Celebration Canada festivities are just around the corner.

The serving line has the food options laid out. Desserts are on the left-hand side. Large cookies, which look like those at Ohio’s Cedar Point and Kings Island, are $3.99 plus tax. Food offerings look similar across all Cedar Fair parks, with a little local variation. As of July 1, Cedar Fair has merged with Six Flags, with the Six Flags La Ronde park in Montreal. There are 42 combined parks now, including one in Mexico City.

Celebration Canada takes place in the Grande World Expo area, which is midway down the left side of International Street. The dates for the 2024 festival are June 28 through July 7, which encompasses two weekends. This festival marks the celebration of Canada Day, which occurred on July 1, 1867, when separate colonies in British North America joined into one dominion that was named Canada. 

The website, Canada.ca, states, “In 1535, two Aboriginal youths told French explorer Jacques Cartier about the route to kanata; they were actually referring to the village of Stadacona, the site of the present-day City of Québec. For lack of another name, Cartier used the word “Canada” to describe not only the village, but the entire area controlled by its chief, Donnacona.” The Smoke Trail Singers group performing today is based in Scugog, Ontario.

At 4:25 pm the sun has gone in and it is time for the hour-and-a-quarter journey via bus and subway back toward downtown. The accessible walkway starts here, and the exodus of tired amusement-seekers toward the intersection of Jane Street and Norwood Avenue begins. Departing park guests stroll past the Dragon Fyre roller coaster and then veer toward the right, staying on the pathway until they reach the bus stop.

This is the northwest corner of the intersection of Jane Street and Norwood Avenue. Behind the shelter is the Dragon Fyre roller coaster. Although unreadable here, the amber LED board at this shelter works just fine and provides real-time updates. The south bound YRT 320 bus will arrive in just a few minutes. Across the street is the St. Louis Bar & Grill, and kitty-corner are the CIBC office and the northbound bus shelter.

The ride from the Jane Street/Norwood Avenue South Bound bus shelter on the YRT 320 purple bus back to the VMCS lasted for fifteen minutes. The Ontario One Fare Program did not work as advertised, in which Presto ticket holders could ride both the TTC and YRT for one fare. The program is complicated by transfers and types of tickets. Could not riders buy an enhanced ticket for the entire region that always works?

The icons for the TTC Yellow Yonge-University No. 1 subway line are like wayfinders through the VMCS terminal back down to the Yellow subway platform. The very architecture of this station seems to keep people moving to their transit points as there are few if any places to sit. Taking Toronto’s transit system is easier than driving the hour-plus route through congested highways to and from Canada’s Wonderland.