My sister has been living in Toronto, Canada, for a few years, and I had the chance to visit her twice. We went to very beautiful places while I was there, but one of my favourites is this one, Casa Loma (the Spanish translation of "The house on the hill").
...:: ABOUT CASA LOMA ::...
Casa Loma was built by a Canadian millionaire, Sir Henry Pellatt. He entrusted the arquitect E.J. Lennox with the construction of a medieval castle. The construction works lasted from 1911 to 1914, and about 300 people were necessary to carry them out. The total amount of money Sir Henry spent to build Casa Loma was about 3,500,000 dollars.
Sir Henry lived in Casa Loma with his wife less than 10 years. He was ruined and had to leave the castle. Now it is owned by the city of Toronto.
...:: WHERE IS CASA LOMA? ::...
Toronto is a hugh city but it's quite easy to find one's way there. There are two main streets: Bloor (it goes from East to West) and Yonge (from North to South), and all the other streets are parallel or perpendicular to both of them.
Casa Loma is at Austin Terrace, just at the intersection of Davenport Rd. and Spadina Ave. It's very close to downtown. The best way to get there is by bus, by tube or by streetcar. There is a parking at the grounds of the castle, but it's not worthwhile getting there by car.
...:: WHEN CAN YOU VISIT IT? HOW MUCH DO TICKETS COST? ::...
Casa Loma is open:
daily from 9'30 a.m. to 5'00 p.m. (last admission is at 4'00 p.m.)
on December 24th from 9'30 a.m. to 1'00 p.m.
on December 25th it closes
the grounds are open from May to October.
The ticket prices range from 16 to 8 Canadian dollars:
adults (18 - 59) $ 16
seniors (60 +) $ 10
youth (14 - 17) $ 10
children (4 - 13) $ 8.75 dólares
children (3 -) free
These prices include a self-guided digital audio tour in 8 languages (English, French, Japanese, German, Italian, Spanish, Mandarin and Korean).
...:: LET'S GO IN ::...
The building of Casa Loma has four floors and a surrounding grounds. Let's see what is in each zone.MAIN FLOOR
Great hall
Library
Dining room
Conservatory
Serving room
Peacock alley
Sir Henry's study
Smoking room
Billiard room
SECOND FLOOR
Sir Henry's suite
Sir Henry's bathroom
Lady Pellatt's suite
Lady Pellatt's bathroom
Guest suite
Windsor room (Sir Henry hoped to have the Royal Family as guests in this room)
Round room
THIRD FLOOR
Rifles museum
Stairs to the towers (Scottish and Norman, I never remember which is which)
Garden room (with a spectacular view to the gardens)
Servant's room
LOWER LEVEL
Gift shop
Castle café
Swimming pool
Wine cellar
Tunnel to stables
GROUNDS
Stables
Carriage room
Gardens (5 acres of land which surround the castle)
Potting shed
...:: THE END ::...
Casa Loma is very close to the town centre, which is full of huge buildings, so it's really surprising to find a castle there. Anyhow, I recommend the visit. :-)
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