Toronto

A tower of 553m with a glass floor that leaves the street visible underfoot. Walking the outside ledge on a harness is a separate activity and needs booking.

Trading has gone on here since 1803, and the present hall dates to 1845. Cheese and meat counters fill the lower level, and a farmers' market joins it on Saturday.

A tangle of small shops and kitchens, closed to cars on summer Sundays so only people move through. Murals cover the buildings until the lanes read as a gallery.

Fifteen minutes by ferry from downtown, and no cars are allowed over. From the south shore the towers line up in one row above the water.

A crystal shaped glass extension was driven into the old stone building, so two eras meet at the join. Dinosaur skeletons and Chinese holdings occupy separate floors.

A whisky works of 1832 was left standing and filled with shops. The lanes are laid in brick, which makes thin soles uncomfortable.

Close to a kilometre of back lane wall is covered end to end with paint. The work changes often, so the same wall carries something else on a second visit.

A timber spiral stair climbs inside the glass front of the building. Northern landscapes by a group of seven Canadian painters take up a floor.

The cherries open together in late April, and cars are barred from the park that week. The bloom lasts a little over ten days, so daily updates are posted.

A private castle finished in 1914 with ninety eight rooms. An underground passage runs out to the stables and is walked through.

An aquarium right below the CN Tower, opened in 2013. You ride a moving walkway through an underwater tunnel while sharks glide overhead. Evening slots draw fewer families with children and feel calmer.

A museum of jerseys and gear from hockey's history. The final room is the domed hall of an 1885 bank building, with the Stanley Cup at its centre. It links to the underground mall, so in winter you can reach it without going outside.

The square in front of City Hall, finished in 1965, where two curved towers wrap a disc-shaped chamber. The 3D Toronto sign in front is the photo stop. In winter the reflecting pool freezes into a free skating rink.

Inside a shoebox-shaped building sit 4500 years of footwear. Each floor changes theme, from ancient Egyptian sandals to stage shoes worn by celebrities. It stands on Bloor Street in the university district.

A museum of Islamic art and culture, opened in 2014. Fumihiko Maki's white stone building faces a garden set with five dark pools. It sits northeast of downtown, so the usual way there is by bus.

White clay cliffs rise up to 90m along the Lake Ontario shore. Bluffer's Park at their foot has a sandy beach and a marina. The clifftop edge keeps collapsing, so stay behind the fences.

A brick factory that started firing in 1889, now turned into parkland and a cultural venue. The kilns and chimney still stand. A farmers' market runs on Saturday mornings, and trails lead to ponds in the old quarry behind.

Opened in 1989 as the first major stadium with a fully retractable roof. The Blue Jays of Major League Baseball play here, with games through the summer. On fine days the roof opens during play and the CN Tower comes into view.

Canada's largest zoo, in the Rouge Valley at the city's eastern edge. Areas are grouped by continent, and the walking distances call for a full day. At the polar bear pool an underwater window shows them swimming.

Over 30km of walkways join the basements of downtown towers, on record as the world's largest underground shopping complex. In winter commuters reach their offices from the trains without stepping outdoors. It is a maze; colour-coded signs help.

Built in 1913 with one theatre stacked on top of another, and both still stage shows. The upper one hangs real dried beech leaves from its ceiling to look like a forest. A guided tour shows both.

A downtown beach where sand and rows of pink umbrellas replaced a lakeside car park. Next door, ships unload raw sugar at the refinery. Swimming is not allowed, so people sit in the sand.

A fort where the city was founded in 1793, attacked by American forces in 1813. It holds Canada's largest group of buildings from the War of 1812 era. In summer interpreters in period uniform demonstrate musket fire.