What's a stranded girl to do?

August 22, 2009 8:44 AM

Albertan, in Ontario for a family get together in Durham- I long to visit friends for a day in Toronto - So far I have a way INTO To., early Wednesday morning...getting BACK to Durham is the problem. The other hitch is, I will be getting into To. at around 5am...what on earth can I do to pass the time between then and say...brunch with friends at a reasonable hour?

So, my question is two fold:

a) Any suggestions on Transportation from toronto, ontario to Durham, Ontario on a Wednesday afternoon/evening

and

b) Any suggestions on way to pass the time on a Wednesday, in Toronto, from 5am until say...10am?

Thanks MeFites!

posted by miss_scarlett to Travel & Transportation (10 answers total)

a) The GO Train is your friend. GO Transit

b) Well, obviously many things will be closed. But it's a nice time to check out the waterfront parks.
posted by smitt at 8:52 AM on August 22, 2009

(Woops, I thought you meant the Durham region, not Durham, ON. Ignore my GO Train suggestion.)
posted by smitt at 8:53 AM on August 22, 2009

Just to clarify, are you asking about the town of Durham (in Grey County, a long way north-west of Toronto) or the Region of Durham, east of Toronto.
posted by FishBike at 8:56 AM on August 22, 2009

Assuming you mean the town of Durham, Greyhound or the Grey Bruce Airport shuttle seem to be your best bets. Both take about two hours.
posted by Sys Rq at 9:14 AM on August 22, 2009

(Although, in both cases, the bus leaves before noon.)
posted by Sys Rq at 9:15 AM on August 22, 2009

Response by poster: Yes, Durham in Grey County (where the tornado went through...sigh)
posted by miss_scarlett at 9:26 AM on August 22, 2009

Best answer: b):

http://www.nowtoronto.com/minisites/24hour/

in particular:

http://www.nowtoronto.com/minisites/24hour/food.php

and

http://www.nowtoronto.com/minisites/24hour/icafes.php

Or if you don't want to sit inside the whole time, maybe you could print a map with a few of these places and duck into them as you wander.
posted by skwt at 10:23 AM on August 22, 2009

It's not open at 5am like it is on Saturdays, but the St. Lawrence Market opens at 8am on Wednesdays, and is a neat place to while away a couple of hours.
posted by ilana at 10:34 AM on August 22, 2009

I just took a gander at the Greyhound schedule and I don't see the 2 hr trip Sys Rq mentioned. I do see a bus leaving for Durham from Guelph at 7:45pm. You could transfer from one of the frequent Toronto to Guelph buses (that trip takes about 1.5 hrs). That would probably be a bit cheaper than an airport shuttle, though it would take way longer. If you have the entire evening free for traveling and don't want to trek out to Pearson Airport, I'd go with Greyhound.
posted by ashputtel at 5:17 PM on August 22, 2009

ashputtel: Try typing "Toronto" and "Durham" into the appropriate boxes on the front page. The Toronto to Owen Sound route stops in Durham.
posted by Sys Rq at 9:43 PM on August 22, 2009