Fort York National Historic Site
Fort York National Historic Site
4
11:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
11:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
11:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
11:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
11:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
11:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
Explore Canada's largest collection of original War of 1812 buildings and take part in year-round special events on this 43-acre site.. Built in 1793, Fort York National Historic Site is the birthplace of urban Toronto. It is best known as the location where the Battle of York came to its violent climax in 1813 during the War of 1812. The Fort served as the city's primary harbour defence between the 1790s and the 1880s, and was the home of a military garrison until the 1930s. Today, its defensive walls enclose Canada's largest collection of original War of 1812 buildings. Every year, thousands of people visit the site to explore its fascinating history and enjoy its public programs. Fort York is one of 10 historic sites operated by the City of Toronto. Toronto's Historic Sites engage visitors, inspire passion, challenge ideas and connect the past to the present.
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- coalharborvanVancouver, Canada279 contributionsExcellent War of 1812 MuseumFree to enter and with free guided tours, this is a must do for any history buff visiting Toronto. The story of Fort York is the story of the beginnings of Toronto and the museum does an excellent job preserving and displaying the most important historic site in the city. From its construction to the devastating American attack and its renewed existence after, it takes you into a world long gone that shaped Canada today.Visited April 2024Traveled soloWritten April 6, 2024
- TravelerUK149 contributionsInteresting historic siteThis is a good place to visit if you are into military history or just history in general. I got there right before one of the free tours started. They last about 45 minutes and you learn more about the fort and the daily life of the solders that lived there. I spent the rest of the time walking around the buildings, some you could enter, others you couldn't. I was there around 2 hours. There are washrooms in the visitor center and within the fort near the shop. It was a little confusing finding the entrance to the visitor center. It was the 4th door down along Fort York Blvd.Visited May 2024Traveled soloWritten June 8, 2024
- aatbenderDandridge, Tennessee475 contributionsExcellent tour with knowledgeable staffMy wife and I plus a friend visited from out of town and we were very impressed. Knowledgeable staff provide an excellent tour through the fort complex. So much of the original fort remains intact and well maintained. And it’s a free visit! Take advantage of it.Visited June 2024Traveled as a coupleWritten June 20, 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.0
257 reviews
Excellent
92
Very good
107
Average
43
Poor
8
Terrible
7
TravelerUK1
PA49 contributions
May 2024 • Solo
This is a good place to visit if you are into military history or just history in general. I got there right before one of the free tours started. They last about 45 minutes and you learn more about the fort and the daily life of the solders that lived there. I spent the rest of the time walking around the buildings, some you could enter, others you couldn't. I was there around 2 hours. There are washrooms in the visitor center and within the fort near the shop. It was a little confusing finding the entrance to the visitor center. It was the 4th door down along Fort York Blvd.
Written June 9, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
nobigdeal
Chicago, IL56 contributions
Jun 2023 • Family
Took the kids (9 and 13) for a low cost morning during our recent trip to Toronto. We didn't join a tour, just walked around on our own. The 13 year old proclaimed it "boring" but the 9 year old and both adults enjoyed the walk. We thought there was just enough reading to keep you informed but not so much that it got tedious. The best part was that it was free! We were happy to introduce our American kids to another perspective on history (especially the indigenous perspective), and we appreciated how well maintained and welcoming this exhibit was. Thanks Toronto!
Written June 12, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ben
Vancouver, Canada1 contribution
Sep 2021 • Couples
Excellent info on history and war culture from onsite experts. Well laid out site with lots of hands-on access to war memorabilia. Highly recommend it for families for learning more of Canada’s history right in our own backyard!
Written September 27, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
minimize940314
Los Angeles, CA3,547 contributions
Dec 2022
Could have been better. It was great to see this historic place in the middle of a busy city, but the site had not been well managed. Therefore, some structures were rebuilt, so it lost the originality a bit. However, it was still unique, and a great place to learn history of the region.
Written August 21, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
aatbender
Dandridge, TN475 contributions
Jun 2024 • Couples
My wife and I plus a friend visited from out of town and we were very impressed. Knowledgeable staff provide an excellent tour through the fort complex. So much of the original fort remains intact and well maintained. And it’s a free visit! Take advantage of it.
Written June 20, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
John L
Greenwich, CT80 contributions
May 2012 • Friends
In New York, there's nothing at all left of the old Dutch "wall" along Wall Street and precious little else from colonial days or New Amsterdam/New York. Obviously London has almost nothing of its Roman days as Londinium Augusta, or Paris as Lutetia Parisiorum. But when you visit another great metropolis, you can visit an installation dating from its very early days as York, Upper Canada (now Toronto, Ontario). The first Fort York was built in 1783 by John Graves Simcoe, a flimsy wood place to cover the natural harbour he liked. In 1813, that was burned and destroyed by the U S Army (BAD swap! In retaliation, the British burned Washington, DC!). It was immediately beefed up into roughly what exists today, and successfully chased the Americans away when they tried again in 1814.
A bonus: the Fort is operated as essentially a museum by the City of Toronto, and the people who work in the entrance shop are more docents than T-shirt peddlers. Indeed, you will be amazed at the little shop: quality history books (military and social) plus some decent toys, games, and reproduction stuff, instead of the usual tourist junk made in some far-away sweatshop.
It is not just of interest to military types. Although the Fort is beautifully maintained and has a number of good exhibits on 19th century weaponry and militaria, it is a lovely spot all on its own. While it is no longer on the waterfront (Lake Ontario is now some distance south), there is a considerable drama in standing among these old ramparts - - which served as a miltary base through two world wars) and look up at the skyscrapers of downtown Toronto close by, or look up at the Gardner Expressway passing on an overpass to the south. One would need to be soul-less indeed not to meditate on what those brave men who defended their New World homeland from the invaders two centuries ago would think if they came back and saw their familiar old Fort, but surrounded by a huge, rich, safe, clean, world-class metropolis. Pondering this just a few days ago, on my third visit over the years, I concluded that those old soldiers would say "YES! Now that's what we were fighting for, eh?"
A bonus: the Fort is operated as essentially a museum by the City of Toronto, and the people who work in the entrance shop are more docents than T-shirt peddlers. Indeed, you will be amazed at the little shop: quality history books (military and social) plus some decent toys, games, and reproduction stuff, instead of the usual tourist junk made in some far-away sweatshop.
It is not just of interest to military types. Although the Fort is beautifully maintained and has a number of good exhibits on 19th century weaponry and militaria, it is a lovely spot all on its own. While it is no longer on the waterfront (Lake Ontario is now some distance south), there is a considerable drama in standing among these old ramparts - - which served as a miltary base through two world wars) and look up at the skyscrapers of downtown Toronto close by, or look up at the Gardner Expressway passing on an overpass to the south. One would need to be soul-less indeed not to meditate on what those brave men who defended their New World homeland from the invaders two centuries ago would think if they came back and saw their familiar old Fort, but surrounded by a huge, rich, safe, clean, world-class metropolis. Pondering this just a few days ago, on my third visit over the years, I concluded that those old soldiers would say "YES! Now that's what we were fighting for, eh?"
Written May 21, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
RallyGuy
Toronto3 contributions
Great displays, excellent preservation (most buildings) or recreation (one or two) of 19th century fortifications.
Displays, housed in the various buildings on the site, are excellent. Well presented, engaging, interesting and available in many languges. Especially interesting to me was the diarama of the town of York in 1790's. Facinating to see what my home town looked like in it's early few years.
The displays are very good at highlighing the fort's important role in the city's history.
Highly recommended for those who wish to know more about the city's history, the War of 1812 or 19th century north american fortifications and soldiers' lives.
The officers garrison and mess hall, complete with functioning kitchen are of particular interest.
Don't let the intial sparse impression of the open grounds fool you - there's lots to see and do.
RK
Toronto
Displays, housed in the various buildings on the site, are excellent. Well presented, engaging, interesting and available in many languges. Especially interesting to me was the diarama of the town of York in 1790's. Facinating to see what my home town looked like in it's early few years.
The displays are very good at highlighing the fort's important role in the city's history.
Highly recommended for those who wish to know more about the city's history, the War of 1812 or 19th century north american fortifications and soldiers' lives.
The officers garrison and mess hall, complete with functioning kitchen are of particular interest.
Don't let the intial sparse impression of the open grounds fool you - there's lots to see and do.
RK
Toronto
Written October 29, 2006
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
zebecToronto
Toronto669 contributions
May 2012 • Solo
I am a History major. I'm also a recently retired schoolteacher with a special interest in things historical. Please trust me when I tell you that this Fort is so dry, so barren, so lacking that only the most obssesed Fort fanatic could possibly ever find value in visiting. On second thought, I would bet that such a fanatic would soon be looking at their watch and wondering where else to decamp to. Its just too basic. City fathers might have done better had they made the fort part of a larger Pioneer Village-type complex. As it stands, you will be bored to tears and regretting the loss of your admission cost. Fort Henry is a smazillion times better. I am done. The end.
Written April 7, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Kathy B
Toronto67 contributions
Who can believe there's any public attraction with free parking anymore? Nice, low key attraction for a morning or afternoon, quick history lesson.
Written June 17, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Richard-Roadman
Heerhugowaard, The Netherlands398 contributions
Oct 2019 • Friends
This is the place to learn about Toronto history. Perfect restorated and preserved buildings and artifacts on the actual site of the historica fort itself. In the visitorcenter there is a short movie which get you started in the history, and from the center it is a short walk to the site itself. There are hourly tours around the fort included, but the site is also pretty selfguided with the informationpanels provided. When interested in historyand specially Toronto’s (why you see everywhere the name York for instance?) this place is a must. Easily reachable with the streetcar and can spend a few hours here.
Written October 13, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hello Paul, did you try using the Visitor Centre as an access point? It is fully accessible and meant to be the entrance for Fort York. Great way to begin and finish your visit. Cheers
Written July 18, 2015
Sun 19 July, 7am,
Dear Michael:
Yes I entered through the south gate, the Visitor Centre. I addressed the lady at the admission desk, and do not remember the exact conversation, but I asked if the Native Festival was free, and she answered, no, I had to pay admission. I showed her the Festival flyer, and said the internet website said the Festival was free, to which she replied, yes the Festival was free, but it was being held outside the Fort, and if I went into the Fort I would have to pay admission. Perhaps she misunderstood me. It seems one group of persons at FY did not know what the group was doing.
"It is fully accessible..." - if you can reach it! I am physically fit, and only need a cane occasionally. I can walk down the stairs from Bathurst Street, around the construction fences and construction equipment, the lawn, and the rest or the obstacle course, but what about a man in a wheelchair, or a woman with a walker? If the East Gate was open, handicapped persons could have simply walked in. It is a good thing I made a reconnaissance before I brought any of Evangel Hall's other residents!
Yours truly,
Paul
Written July 19, 2015
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