is an agency of the Government of the Canadian Province of Ontario , an entertainment attraction, located approximately 4 km west of downtown Toronto on the shore of Lake Ontario , just south of Exhibition Place . Built in 1971, it consists of three beautifully landscaped man-made islands. Buildings and attractions were built on these islands making it the world-renowned park it is today. The park is targeted at a family audience with emphasis on children's activities. Central to the complex is a public marina and a major concert theatre.
The park has a seasonal operating schedule and is closed in the winter, with the exception of the Cinesphere IMAX theatre.
The park was created from landfill dumped into Lake Ontario, creating artificial islands just south of Exhibition Place. Ontario Place was conceived to attract tourists to Toronto and in part to appease the City of Toronto which was frustrated at the high level of government investment that flowed to rival city Montreal for both Expo 67 and the 1976 Summer Olympics .
The original park has been altered since its inception. The popular outdoor concert stage 'The Forum' was torn down in the mid-1990s and replaced with the Molson Amphitheatre .
- Construction start date: March 17 , 1969
- Opening day: May 22 , 1971
- Total cost: $29,000,000 ''(Canadian funds, not adjusted for inflation)''
- Initial park size: 360,000 m² (96 acres), 206,000 m² (51 acres) created by landfill
- First-year admission price: $1.00 Adults, $0.50 for Children
- Seating: The Forum: 8,000, Molson Amphitheatre: 16,000
Ontario Place has rides and attractions, including the world's first permanent ''.
- The Cinesphere is a Geodesic Dome -shaped structure which contains the theatre. It is similar in style to 'Spaceship Earth' at EPCOT in Orlando Florida, except the latter is a complete sphere.
East Island - Market Square
- Whiz Kids - Kids car ride
- Cyclone Speedway
- Mini Bumper Boats
- First Flight
- Free Fall
- Mini Greens
- Super Slide
- Treehouse Live Stage (Formally Festival Stage)
East Island - Soak City
- Water park with various slides and pools
- --- Waterplay
- --- Purple Pipeline
- --- Pink Twister
- --- Hydrofuge
- --- Rush River
Centre Island - Marina Village
- Cinesphere
- Atlantis - Restaurant/Club
- OP Driving School
- Bumper Boats
- Cool Hoops
- Marina with Lake Ontario access
West Island - GO Zone
- Bob's Boat Yard (Peddle Boats)
- H20 Generation Station - The largest outdoor climbing structure in Canada
- Atom Blaster
- GO Zone Stage
- Microkids
West Island - Adventure Island
- Wilderness Adventure Ride - Log ride
- MegaMaze
- Mars
- Gemstone Mining
- The HMCS Haida (G63) is a decommissioned WWII Destroyer that was open to the public. In the early 1960's, the ship was going to be scrapped, but volunteers raised enough money to have it saved and towed to Toronto . It opened as an attraction in August of 1965 at the pier on York Street. The city had planned to build a 'Serviceman's Memorial Park' near Princess' Gates at Exhibition Place . When the organization 'Haida Inc.' ran into financial problems, the ship was taken over by the Province of Ontario and moved in 1970 to the Ontario Place site, where it was turned into an attraction. It was also used as a Sea Cadet training camp. In 2002 it was bought by Parks Canada and taken to a new home in Hamilton, Ontario for some much needed restoration and incorporated into a new marine museum in that city.
- was an outdoor concert venue that was an architectural landmark torn down to make way for the Molson Amphitheatre: it featured covered seating under a unique tent-like, metal framed, solid roof, with extra seating on the open surrounding, grassy hills. While having only half the Seating Capacity of the current Ampitheatre, it had (arguably) better sound, bench seating, and offered a far more intimate theatre-in-the-round experience; featuring a rotating stage which gave every seat in the house, in turn, an excellent view. It also had the benefit of being generally free with park admission. Featured events included an annual Toronto Symphony rendition of Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture, complete with the firing of the guns from the nearby HMCS Haida , and often performances by well established acts, such as BB King , Pat Metheny and Canadian Bruce Cockburn . Unfortunately, due to a riot by Teenage Head fans in 1981 (purportedly instigated by their manager, who allegedly was interested in the publicity) rock acts where thereafter banned from the venue. However, perhaps the greatest loss with the passing of The Forum, is a sense of an integrated experience with the rest of Ontario Place; since the concert was usually included as part of the inexpensive admission.
Ontario Place has vehicle access to Lakeshore Boulevard and the Gardiner Expressway . It is adjacent to the south of Exhibition Place where connections to TTC and GO Transit services are provided.
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