Black Lab Tours

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Black Lab Tours

Our name is inspired by the Labrador Retriever, North America's favourite dog!

05/17/2024

Discover the heart of Toronto on our Downtown Stroll! You’ll see many of the city’s most important sites including the CN Tower, the Scotiabank Arena, the historic St. Lawrence Market and the Hockey Hall of Fame. Want to learn more? Click the link in our bio!

03/08/2024

Today is International Women’s Day, so we wanted to recognize one of so many amazing Torontonians—one of the greatest hockey players ever, Angela James.

At age eight, Angela joined a boys league but after she quickly became the league’s top scorer, jealousy from a few parents led officials to change the league policy to boys only. Nevertheless, Angela persevered in finding a new league, and as she grew up became one of the world’s top players. As captain of Team Canada, she led our country to gold in not one, not two, not even three, but four world championships. To top off an amazing career, in 2010 she became one of the first two women, the first openly gay player, and the second Black athlete to be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

To learn about other inspiring women who have called Toronto home, check out the Myseum of Toronto’s online exhibit ‘The 52: Stories of Women Who Transformed Toronto’ (just search ´Myseum of Toronto The 52´ or use the link www.myseumoftoronto.com/collection/meet-the-52/).

02/02/2024

It’s , and did you know Niagara Falls had a major role to play as part of the Underground Railroad? Harriet Tubman—known as the ‘Moses of her people’—personally brought dozens of enslaved people across the Niagara River right near the Falls, where they could find freedom in Ontario.

Swipe to see the Horseshoe Falls lit up in honour of Black History Month.

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01/24/2024

This weather definitely has us daydreaming of idyllic summer days, shorts weather, and taking a walking tour to showcase our favourite city. Can’t wait to get started again in just a few short months!

01/19/2024

Did you know that Toronto hosted the first-ever NHL All-Star Game back in 1947? The format was a bit different than it is today: The Toronto Maple Leafs played a lineup of the best players from all other NHL teams—with the All-Star team just barely squeaking out a win, 4-3.   This year, the NHL All-Star Weekend is back in Toronto and to celebrate, is giving away a pair of tickets to the main events!
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⁣🎫 Two tickets to the 2024 NHL All-Star Skills™ Competition on Friday, February 2 @ 7:00pm at Scotiabank Arena⁣
🎫 Two tickets to the 2024 Rogers NHL® All-Star Game on Saturday, February 3 @ 3:00pm at Scotiabank Arena⁣
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To enter the Destination Toronto contest:⁣⁣
1. Follow
2. Tag your hockey-loving bestie⁣

Contest closes Thursday, January 25th at 9:00 am EST. Open to anyone in Ontario that is 19 years of age or older. Giveaway is in no way sponsored by Facebook/Instagram. Destination Toronto will DM the winner 😉 Good luck!!⁣⁣

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01/09/2024

One of Niagara’s coolest events is coming up next week—the Cool As Ice Gala! While we love its premium icewines, cocktails, local food, and a live orchestra, our favourite part is that it takes place in the Niagara Parks Power Station!

Have you heard of Nikola Tesla, the man who invented the modern alternating current electricity supply system we still use today? He never made it to Canada, but worked right across the border at Niagara Falls, New York, and his presence is felt in the Niagara Parks Power Station: Nine of his inventions are present, including the huge AC generators in the middle of the main floor.

The Niagara Parks Power Station is an exact copy of the American power station on the other side of the river, where Tesla worked. The American building has been stripped, however, so as you party at the Cool As Ice Gala, be sure to look around to get a sense of the power plant where Tesla would’ve worked, inspecting his inventions and helping to bring electricity to tens of thousands of people.

01/05/2024

It’s game night tonight for the , so we thought we’d share one of favourite bits of Toronto basketball trivia. Think you know the answer? Just swipe to find out!

01/02/2024

We are always so blown away by the creativity in this city! In two days, Toronto’s largest patio will become a very cool new place to enjoy winter activity!

From

A One of a Kind Winter Experience is coming to Toronto’s Most Epic Outdoor Patio!

Skating + Cabins: Open Jan 4, 2024

Ever dream of having a northern cabin with skating on a lake? We have something for you.

Winterviews is part cottage retreat part Winter Wonderland. Guests will be thrilled to find 10 private dining cabins, a cozy communal lodge, and a skating rink. This setting wouldn’t be complete without amazing food and full beverage menu highlighting specialized hot drinks.

Bringing the best of great Canadian Winter traditions to the heart of downtown Toronto, this special destination will celebrate the experiences we all yearn for during these months.

12/23/2023

School is out! So we just had to share this amazing list of activities from on now and throughout the holiday season. We hope you can get out to enjoy all that makes our city so special.

There are SO many fun activities happening this holiday season. If you’re looking for some things to do, here’s a list of what’s open and closed this holiday long weekend:

Outdoor City events and locations
✨ Cavalcade of Lights at Nathan Phillips Square – open and on until Jan 7
🎆New Year’s Eve Fireworks at midnight along the downtown waterfront or livestreamed – celebration begins Dec 31 at 10 p.m.
⛄Welcome TO Winter- skating, tobogganing, trails – all open
⛸️Outdoor and indoor skating rinks – open seven days a week from 10 a.m to 10 p.m
🐰High Park animal display – open over the long weekend from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
🐷Riverdale Farm – open daily all weekend from 9 a.m to 5 p.m.

Indoor City events and locations
🖼️Toronto History Museums – all open (except the Market Gallery) regular hours on Dec 24 and from Dec 27- 31
🎵Union Station Indoor Roller Express Rink – open throughout the holidays except Dec 24- 26
🌱Centennial Park Conservatory – open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
🏛️Cultural Centres and Art Galleries – open throughout the holidays. Assembly Hall is open Dec 27 to 29 and will be closed on Dec 23 and 30. Clark Centre and Cedar Ridge are closed from Dec 23 to Jan 1.
🏊Community Rec Centres – open on Dec 24 and 31 until 4:30 pm. Closed Dec 25 & 26, Jan 1
🏢City Civic Centres – Toronto City Hall, City’s Civic Centres, tax and utility counters, Toronto Archives are closed Dec 25, 26, and Jan 1.

12/19/2023

For today’s Trivia Tuesday we’ve got a question about The Beatles. Think you know the answer? Leave a comment below then swipe to find out, and swipe once more to see the Fab Four having a pillow fight right here in Toronto!

12/05/2023

There’s nothing we love more than celebrating our amazing guides. Recently Gareth and Tom took a group of locals on a day trip, and the guests had some very kind words to share. Thank you Jim for joining us!

Any guesses where we took the group?

12/01/2023

From the and in Toronto to the in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario is blessed with many beautiful historic hotels to check out. But as far as we know, this will be the first one inside a former power station! Thanks to for the scoop. We can’t wait to stay in the former Toronto Power Station overlooking Niagara Falls!

11/29/2023

We’d like to introduce another one of our guiding team, Tom! Tom is a sound and media expert by day, a chef by night, and a lover of Toronto 24/7. He looks forward to welcoming you on his tour!

11/24/2023

The annual Santa Claus Parade is happening this Sunday!

Do you know where the world’s first-ever Santa parade took place?

Right here in Toronto!

It was literally just one guy dressed as St. Nick who walked from Union Station to Eaton’s department store, but it was so successful it became an annual event.

Over the years Santa has flown in on a plane, arrived with a herd of live reindeer, and one year even had to climb into a third-storey window. Swipe to see the sketchy contraption they set up for him to get to it (you can tell health and safety standards were more lax back then).

Hope to see you out on Sunday!

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11/15/2023

Think you know the answer? Post your guess below, then swipe to find out!

08/30/2023

We said ‘big smile’ and some of our guests really delivered. 😎 We are loving these sunny, beautiful late August days on tour!

08/28/2023

A few locals and a few guests for a very fun Sunday tour!

08/21/2023

Even the statue seems like he’s smiling on this fun private tour for a couple in from Miami! They especially loved the story about how the NHL was founded as revenge against a much-hated local hockey team owner so Gareth had to get a good hockey photo with them.

08/18/2023

All smiles on this private tour with Gareth and a guest in town for a game. Based on her t-shirt, can anyone guess her favourite sports team?

08/14/2023

When most people visit Nathan Phillips Square to see our city halls, they stick to the main level. But if you walk up to the viewing platform surrounding the square, you get an awesome perspective of both city halls! Definitely worth checking out to see a different view of one of Toronto’s iconic sites.

08/09/2023

And the answer is…Star Trek! In a 1969 Star Trek comic, Captain Kirk and Spock beam down into a city on a foreign planet with a building that looks exactly like Toronto’s City Hall. You can see the space-age structure in person on our Downtown / Old Town Stroll!

08/07/2023

One of our favourite stories about Toronto’s new city hall is that it was considered so modern in the 1960s that it was featured in a major ‘sci fi’ series as an alien planet. Anyone know which series? We’ll post the answer on Wednesday!

08/04/2023

In the 1970s, the Royal Bank of Canada wanted to show off their wealth by building the tallest tower in the country but were prohibited due to city height limitations. So what did they do instead? Mixed real gold into the building’s 14,000 panes of glass! You can see the striking tower on our Downtown/Old Town Stroll tour!

08/02/2023

There’s nothing we love more than sharing great reviews of our guides! Our lead guide Gareth had a group our yesterday and here’s what one guest had to say: ‘He was friendly and made the trip interesting and fun, his tour was great for helping us learn about the history and culture of Toronto. I would totally recommend these guys, Gareth is a great guy and we feel as if we now have an insiders feel for the city.’ Way to go Gareth!

07/31/2023

Gareth out on a private tour on a beautiful weekend afternoon. As proud dog owners, our guests were especially taken with the fountain at Berczy Park - definitely one of our favourites too!

Address

Toronto, ON

Telephone

+14169848846

Website

http://www.BlackLabTours.com/

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Videos

One of Toronto’s best attractions: Graffiti Alley 🎨🖌️ . . . #graffitialleytoronto #toronto #streetart #rickmercer #tourismtoronto

Where’s your favourite spot along Queen St W? . . . #toronto #tourismtoronto #queenstwest #graffitialley

🌈 Have you been to Toronto’s Pride Festival? With over 40 years of history, Pride has grown into a massive celebration of diversity and inclusion each June. . . . #torontopride #pridemonth #loveislove #2slgbtq #inclusionmatters

Did you have a chance to check out the Taste of Little Italy this weekend? . . . #torontolife #littleitalytoronto #walkoffame #italiansdoitbetter #torontosummer #torontohistory

Have you heard of Jean Lumb? She was the first Chinese-Canadian woman to receive the Order of Canada. Watch to find out why! . . . #tourismtoronto #chinesecanadian #chinatown #spadina #dundas #torontohistory

From its humble beginnings in the early 1900’s to becoming a world renowned institution, Mount Sinai has been at the forefront of healthcare and innovation. Thank you to all the dedicated healthcare professionals who have made a difference in countless lives over the years! . . . #mountsinaihospital #torontohistory #jewishhistory #torontopride

Have you seen this picture of Joseph Bloor? Well it’s one of the very first photos ever taken in Toronto! . . . . #torontohistory #selfie #archived #toronto #tourismtoronto

Have you heard of this Casa Loma story? The perfect spot for architecture and history enthusiasts! . . . #toronto #torontotourism #casalomatoronto #canadianhistory #worldwar2

Looking for the best way to explore Niagara-on-the-Lake? Sentineal Carriages has you covered! With passionate guides, these horse drawn tours are a delightful way to explore a town filled with great sights, great food and great people. 🐴 🎩 Find them at the corner of Picton and King street next to the Prince of Wales hotel or book online at https://www.sentinealcarriages.ca/ . . . . #niagaraonthelake #tourismniagara #horselove #horsetour #canadiantour

Have you heard the incredible story of Marilyn Bell—the first person to swim across Lake Ontario? So much about what she accomplished blows us away, but maybe what’s most incredible is how old she was when she completed this feat. Do you know how old she was when she swam across the lake? Check out our video to find out!

Discover the delicious history of Greaves jam! Since 1927, they’ve been crafting pure, old-fashioned jams, jellies, marmalades, and condiments using only the finest ingredients. Visit their historic shop at 55 Queen Street in Niagara-on-the-Lake, where tradition meets taste. . . #GreavesJam #NiagaraontheLake #GourmetPreserves #JamLovers #CanadianProducts #ShopLocal #HistoricShop

What’s the smallest chapel you’ve ever seen? Whatever it is, we think we might have you beat with the Living Water Wayside Chapel just outside Niagara-on-the-Lake - it’s not even 80 square feet! Check out our video to see this tiny, charming attraction.

You’ve maybe heard of the ‘Painted Ladies’ of San Francisco - colourful Victorian houses, one of which was made famous as the setting of the TV show ‘Full House’. But did you know Ontario has some beautiful Painted Ladies of its own? Check out our latest video to find out where and see them in all their resplendent glory!

Looking for something sweet or savory in Niagara-on-the-Lake? Look no further than the Budapest Bakeshop, a labor of love by Anett and Todd Kane since 2018. With a rich Hungarian heritage, Anett’s upbringing in the family kitchen gave her the inspiration for their signature treat: Chimney Cakes, or Kürtőskalács in Hungarian. These sweet yeast dough ribbons, spun in rotisserie-style ovens, come out golden-brown and ready for toppings. Now with a second location in Port Dalhousie, they continue crafting each Chimney Cake from scratch, offering a sensory bakery experience like no other. 🍰🇭🇺 . . . #BudapestBakeshop #ChimneyCakes #HungarianHeritage #Niagaraonthelake #Foodie

Critical question: are you a cat person, or a dog person? Either way, Berczy Park in Old Town has something for you! Check out our latest video to learn more.