Casa Loma: Uncover the stories behind the regal facades on an audio walking tour

Take a self-guided audio tour through one of Toronto’s oldest forests. You’ll explore the area just west of Casa Loma, Toronto’s castle on a hill. In 1910, this area was in high demand because of its grand view of the city. Wealthy industrialists competed for the finest homes by hiring the best architects. This easy walk will take you to some of the neighbourhood’s most famous houses and tell you about the characters who inhabited them.

Some of the highlights along the way include:

• Discovering the story behind the famed Neilson house and the Maclean’s magazine house.
• Hearing about Marshall McLuhan and the origins of the phrase “global village”
• Finding out about the early settlers of Casa Loma
• Seeing where Ernest Hemingway got his start as a writer
• Walking along the oldest beachfront in the city

This 30 minute tour starts at Casa Loma and finishes at St. Clair West subway station. Download the VoiceMap app, then download the tour and start it whenever you’re ready.

Meeting point

18 Austin Terrace, 18 Austin Terrace, Toronto, ON M5R 1X9, Canada

The tour starts at the little triangular parkette at the corner of Spadina Road. Before arrival, install the VoiceMap app and use the code provided on your ticket. This is a self-guided audio tour that you can start, pause, or restart any time and complete at your own pace.

End point

Wells Hill Park, 145 Hilton Ave, Toronto, ON M5R 3E9, Canada

The tour ends in Wells Hill Park an easy thirty minute walk after starting the tour.