Named after Canadian retail legend Timothy Eaton –
whose mail-order catalog and department store, Eaton’s, was a beloved
national institution until 1999, when the company declared bankruptcy –
this multi-story shopping center is the quintessential downtown mall:
big, busy, and boisterous. Opened in 1979 and heralded as the anchor
that would transform down-at-heel Yonge and Dundas streets into an
upscale destination, the complex houses some 300 stores, restaurants,
and cafés.
1 Dundas St W (with alternative entrances along Yonge St between Dundas and Queen, and at Queen St west of Yonge St) 416 598 8560
www.torontoeatoncentre.com
Open 10am–9pm Mon–Fri, 9:30am–7pm Sat, noon–6pm Sun; closed Good Friday, Easter Sunday, and Dec 25
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For 200 years, HBC
controlled North America’s lucrative fur trade. It was so powerful that
it could make laws and wage war with Native tribes. After years of
English-French battles over its posts, HBC lost its monopoly. In 1870,
it sold its land to the Government of Canada. Turning to retail, HBC
opened its first store in 1881, but kept a hand in the fur trade until
1991, when its last fur salon closed.
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Plan of Eaton Centre
Shoppers
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Grab a quick bite in the
concourse food court, or head to the charming Trinity Square Cafe, in
the Church of the Holy Trinity, for a good-value soup and sandwich.
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Ride the glass elevators, near the central fountain, for a great view of the galleria.
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Navigate PATH using the
color-coded signs: the red P steers you south, the orange A west, the
blue T north, and the yellow H east.
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Founded in 1670, the Hudson’s Bay Company is one of the world’s oldest companies
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Top 10 Attractions
Flight Stop
This sculpted
gaggle of Canada geese by renowned Toronto artist Michael Snow – so
lifelike that you almost expect to hear the birds honk – is suspended
from the vaulted ceiling of the central atrium. Fountain A
focal point of the Eaton Centre, this waterburst fountain lulls with
soothing sounds of falling water and then astonishes as water shoots 100
ft (30 m) into the air. Encircled by stone benches, the fountain is a
good spot to sit and take a break from shopping.
Galleria Natural
light pours through the soaring glass roof into the 865-ft- (265-m-)
long arcade, which links the mall’s two anchor department stores.
Designed by Eb Zeidler, architect of Ontario Place, the galleria is modeled on Milan’s 19th-century Galleria Vittoria Emanuele.
Yonge-Dundas Square Toronto’s
once-tawdry intersection is now a public square embellished with 22
fountains set flush to the ground. At its east end, Olympic Spirit
Toronto, which is staffed by athletes, offers an exciting variety of
simulator games for young and old.
The Labyrinth This circuitous grass path is modeled on the 13th-century labyrinth at Chartres Cathedral in France. Church of the Holy Trinity This
Anglican church dating to 1847 is as an oasis of calm amid commercial
bustle. Admire the turreted entranceway while picnicking on the grounds;
step inside to see the stained-glass windows. Bronze Plaque This
historic plaque commemorates Yonge Street, ranked the longest street in
the world by the Guinness Book of World Records. Yonge Street divides
East and West Toronto and is the site of the city’s first subway line. PATH From
the Eaton Centre you can access the 27-mile (16-km) underground walkway
network PATH. Linking several major attractions, including the Air
Canada Centre and Roy Thompson Hall, PATH winds through a veritable city
of stores and food courts.
The Bay The
Bay, founded by Hudson’s Bay Company, is Canada’s largest department
store chain. It sells a wide selection of merchandise, such as home
furnishings and fashion, but might be best known for its point blankets,
first used in 1670 to barter for beaver pelts with the Cree. Its
trading posts, based in the vast north of what is now Canada, were
influential centers of commerce. Scadding House Built
in 1857 for the Church of the Holy Trinity’s first rector, this
Georgian-Gothic house was moved here to make way for the mall. The
church and house, once surrounded by woodland, may be Yonge St’s oldest
building complex. The current rector lives in the house.
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