I think its great to have a fairly large open space in the midst of all the digital hoopla where on most days theres a bunch of people doing absolutely nothing. we dont get enough of nothing in the city. in the summer you often see children playing in those fountains that shoot up from the concrete slabs of the squares floor. youll also, on weekends, not see much of the squares floor at all, because its filled with booths for crafts and so on in their market. people need an even space that has no walls, that is accessible to everyone and is for everyone. its nice also that it seems to pour right into the large intersection that now has that four way light for pedestrians. the square also has t.o. tix which is a great spot to get affordable theatre tickets for large to smaller theatres around the city. it might be nicer somehow, if there were more trees there though, so maybe someone could sit in the shade, but i dont know, i suppose they wouldnt be able to have as many events there if it was that way. either way, its like our own piazza...might be nice to have cobblestones though...better go to the distillery. read more

Like Time Square but much less exciting. There will be tons of events held in the square (vast majority will be free) especially during the summer. Located right across from the Eaton Centre. Movie theatres, shopping, dining all available. Nothing unique though as everything nearby will be big company chains. read more

I've heard people (and occasionally been guilty myself) describe Yonge-Dundas Square as "Toronto's Times Square." Lord help us if that's true, because Yonge-Dundas Square sucks. And I mean, much, much worse than Times Square does. Sure, they have free concerts and movies in the summertime, but overall it's just a big patch of concrete surrounded by mall stores, commercials, and oh yeah, sponsored events (worlds biggest shawarma made by CBC for Little Mosque on the Prairie, anyone?). Their are some random ugly brushed metal seats, random creepy buskers (the good ones stay far away from here) and some unpredictable fountains. In general, I know people who've been here a long time who say that the area is a million times better than it used to be, both in terms of the tone and the space. And generally I don't think it's that bad that the city pimps the space out - after all, it's preferable to tax dollars having to pay for what is essentially our largest tourist zone. read more

This a nice place. It reminds me of Times Square in NYC. When I was there, I was able to catch a free lunch time concert I also grabbed dinner at a restaurant nearby. While I think this place is great, I did not get to experience much here. Not sure what a person can do here unless they are here for a purpose such as a concert or movie showing. It really is a big open space if there is no special event going on here. There were lots of young people hanging out here in the evening. Seems like a hotspot for the underage locals. Big differences between YD Square and Times Square were the cleanliness and less crowded. read more

Yonge and Dundas Square is filled with crazies. Everywhere. I like: - The events space - The TOTIX booth - it's not as great as TKTS in New York, but there are still some deals to be had here - Cheap restaurants - Salad King is just north. It's great. Paramount is just to the south. - Proximity to theatres, such as the Mirvish theatre - The patios up above - go up to the top level of the building on the NE corner. Get on the patio of one of those restaurants for a great view! Beware - you might have to wait a while. Watch out for the following: - The Jesus guy who will scream and scare the crap out of you as you're walking past - The guys who want to sell you their CDs, which may or may not be blank. - The black history guys who will call you racist if you don't give them money. There is a parking lot on Victoria street, just to the east of here. It's reasonably priced considering where it is. read more

It's kind of like a Times Square wannabe, but it's a good effort. Busy, tons of big billboards with flashing lights and giant screens, an all way pedestrian crosswalk, including diagonal crossing, a water fountain that the kids seem to like, a ticket booth for discount tickets of events around the city, a subway stop, a big mall and movie theater, etc etc. All in one intersection, not bad. The actual square itself is just a big open er, square, full of tables and chairs for people to sit on and stuff (actually the more I think about it, it's more like a polygon). There's room for a stage, where they have live performances and other events like movie nights, and there are always special events going on here. It almost always has people in and out and seems like a popular spot to check out for tourists as well. read more

Yonge-Dundas square is home to many events over the course of the year. The summer months sees it home to a weekly movie (Tuesday nights) which ranges in genre from year to year. At different points in the year there will be different video game tents set up by Best Buy or Future Shop. There are also many concerts that happen here, but trying to plan for it is kind of a crap shoot. I never seem to hear about anything that happens, here, which makes me wonder about their advertising. On days when the space is not being rented out for a jillion and one different events, you'll find several different tables and chairs set up for anyone to use. It's a fun place to just sit and chat or hang out on a warm summer day. Also, in the summer, you'll see the fountains going strong, and flying up and down. It's practically a water park, and you can often see kids (or the young at heart) playing in the water. read more

There was a gigantic xboxOne in the square for the past three days but get this...IT WASN'T EVEN REAL! Well, a girl can dream. read more

Went with several friends for the free outdoor movie hosted at Dundas Square on Tuesday nights. The movie playing was The Goonies. I had never seen this movie before, so I had a great time being the "only one" who apparently that had never seen this classic. The night was not hot or cold. We all wore pants and a light sweater. We also stopped off at McDonald's and got some snacks, plus a couple of bags of chips. The crowd was not rowdy, and everyone stayed pretty quiet throughout the film. I highly recommend checking out one of their movies. I am shattered that I will be away on vacation on the night they plan to play The Godfather. I have never seen The Godfather, and this would have been a cool venue to watch it in. read more

See all

Meh...pretty non-descript square at the corner of Yonge/Dundas. Lots of free events to do in the warmer months...movies, concerts, festivals...plus the water fountains for kids (or the kid in all of us). Brought some out of town friends here while playing travel guide/host and they were pretty underwhelmed with it. They did think it was cool that there's a place you can purchase tickets for live theatre at a steep discount (for a show the same day) Nicely decorated for the Christmas season. Biggest complaint is the dude (in front of the Eaton Centre) with a microphone and amplifier, spewing out his version of religious beliefs...his voice bounces off buildings and is quite loud and off-putting. read more

I'll admit that the loud and attention grabbing billboards aren't my most favorite thing in the world. But it seems to fit the atmosphere of this large square though, which has become a bit of a central gathering point in the heart of the downtown Toronto. What is cool about is that no matter what time of year it is, there is always something happening on the weekends here - whether snow, rain, sleet or shine. The only downside to the square is that I find it a bit of a dead space during the weekdays. They try to run events, but I usually find it pretty quiet during the week days. The TO tix booth is here, if you're looking "discounted" performing arts tickets. read more

Lovely square with free wi-fi and lots of musical concerts! Today they were launching some kind of news channel and giving away free sunglasses - they were pretty cool by the way. It is located very close to a Yonge subway and not very crowed during summer time - to my surprise. read more

Sankofa Square - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

See all

I've read mixed reviews about this place. I wasn't sure what I would encounter on a Sunday night. I was thinking it might be dead considering everyone probably has to work the next day or so? Wrong!! It's loud ,resembles Time Square in NYC, and well...I think an event was being held around there so maybe that added to the congestion. There are a lot of shops and eateries so it's hard to choose where to go, especially if you're not familiar with the area. The Eaton Center is not far away and I definitely wanted to stay away from that place considering what I saw in the Y-D Square. While the area is very appealing, the outskirts (like after you leave Y-D Square), feel a bit ghetto. But that's just me... read more

City Hotspot surrounded by Shopping! This square in the city's commercial district is a hot spot for live performances and outdoor music. There is always some event going on there - every time we walked through it was a different group or type of entertainment. Its like a small, cleaner and more open Times Square or Leicester Square. Very fun and hopping! read more

Springrolls chain in general is a good mid-range "old faithful" - chances are it won't be spectacular, but you can expect adequate pan-Asian food and reasonably friendly service. Unfortunately, their Atrium on Bay location has once again failed to meet even these relatively low expectations. Food was fine, but the server was pretty abysmal - either nowhere to be found when I needed something or was there to take a plate away or ask (insistently, I might add) how I was doing just when I had my mouth full. Nope. Not how it's done. But pointing at a $13.99 special and explaining how it comes with a choice of an appetizer and a dessert, and then bringing a $22 bill is a little too close to fraud for my taste, No, thanks. One star well earned! read more

There are many large screen TVs here that only show ads. I waited to watch a TV show but none ever were shown. If you want to be told you will burn in hell for refusing to accept Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Saviour there is a nice man who will tell you this. There are also nice Muslim men who will talk to you about a prophet named Muhammad. There are also frozen robots who I suspect are actually men wearing makeup and pretending to be frozen robots for spare change. When I think about it, I realize I don't like this place very much. read more

Not impressed w/Toronto's version of time square - there's really no attractions here or reason to visit

Dundas Square is essentially an empty space--that's a good thing and a bad thing. Let's start with the good: I'm a big fan of open spaces in otherwise crowded, downtown environments, and the urban-planning mess of lower Yonge was crying out for a bigger vision. A whole bunch of squalid buildings were torn down, and bigger ones built ringing the square. Now for the bad: the new buildings consist of the typical corporate mexaplex crap, and won't age very well. And Dundas Square itself is little more than a concrete plain; there's little in it that distinguishes it aside from a few fountains and a curvy portico that looks like an OCAD class project. I actually think comparisons with Times Square are rather apt. In both cases, notorious sleaze has been swept away in favour of soulless retail commerce, and a little local colour was lost in the transition. Look at Trafalgar Square in London to see how to modernize an urban square for the twenty-first century. read more

Definitely Toronto's lesser version of Times Square. One of the places in which you will see hordes of people and traffic. As per Times Square this brings out the quacks of the city. Whether it's someone drumming on plastic pails or religious freaks trying to preach their word you see it all and then some here! During summer there are many events planned and corporate promotional events however not much of it interests me. You may think it's awesome of cool but I just believe it's a busy intersection! read more

iPhone has messed the maps up. Shows Yonge/Dundas Sq. at Bay & Dundas, meanwhile it's a block east on the s/e corner of Yonge & Dundas. Bay & Dundas is actually Atrium on Bay. read more

It's a nice square in downtown Toronto which is used for different events such as music and so on. It's illuminated by night mostly from big advertisements screens. We had had a good time there while enjoying some drinks. Some funny people talked to us because they represent an idea or a product. So, it was really an amusing experience^^ read more

From the crowds of people to the drummers banging the hell out of bikers and break dancers head spinning in any temperature to religious preachers Yonge and Dundas is the heart of Toronto read more

This cluster-mess of lights and billboards and tall buildings are reminiscent of a slightly cleaner Time Square. It's smaller and more crowded. Time Square is entire intersection of a few streets; this is just one corner. It's awfully bright, and you wonder why we had a complete blackout and wasting energy. Parking in the evening is not especially affordable, unless you spend some money at Pickle Barrel ($10) or Spring Rolls ($20) - 3 hours parking. Or you can go to Ryerson with a $6 flat rate in the evenings. Anything else you may as well take the subway. Any time there is an event here, it would make sense to block off the streets. It's always full of people,so if you hate crowds, don't come. The last event I went to here was the lighting of the tree ceremony. There was Samba Squad Performing and a Circus that was flying through the square. Cool for kids (I think), but was a Yawner for us. However, this public space does give the city opportunity to have events in the so-called city core. Prior to this, they can only do things at City Hall. This is a much more convenient alternative. In the summertime, there are chairs, public wifi and some funny fountains for the kiddies to run around in. I do wish that the design was more functional than a giant slab of concrete. Maybe even a coffee stand (dare I say Starbucks or Second Cup), and have patio space for when there is not a special event. And I wish they would dim those lights on the billboards. I mean, really who's looking that them? You can really only appreciate it from far away. It's distracting for the folks driving. read more

Went there for the free movie screening of Serenity. I loved the setup, good sound, good seating.

This central downtown spot is often crowded with people, but it's also a great place to take a moment to admire the craziness of downtown Toronto. The fountains are great in the summer, and there is normally enough space to pop a squat and enjoy a bit of sunshine before you head off to someplace else. read more

Good band playing, lots of shops, lots of people. It's a microcosm of a busy Manhattan square.

Toronto's answer to New York's Time Square, Yonge-Dundas Square is the meeting point for Toronto shoppers who come to the Eaton Centre Mall across the street and the public performance space that is in between the mall and the CityTV studios. Summers are usually packed with locals and tourists, and on occasion the hopping fountains shoot gusts of water that always attracts the attention of kids and tourists alike. Only nuisance here is traffic as crossing the street can be challenging, and the religious nuts trying to peddle their religion in front of the Sears (soon to be Nordstroms) department store entrance. Nice stop for tourists, but not a must see. read more

I like this place, it reminded me of Times Square in NYC, except it's much smaller and not overcrowding with tourists left and right. It's very nice, with the billboards and signs, and can be peaceful. I come here and people watch, children playing in the fountains, folks skateboarding, singing, performing, etc. And there's plenty of room to sit and relax, take it all in. Definitely a must do for anyone visiting Toronto! read more

The only reason I go to Dundas Square to take a glance at religious moronic nut-jobs standing around and screaming to the sky about satanic rituals or what not. It's a fun place read more

Maybe a different review from others, but i was there in June to see Matthew Good play for free. The place was packed like you wouldn't believe, but after a couple songs we made it into the alcohol area. There was tons of room for my buddies and me, and the outdoor venue made for a really different feel. Different in a great way. I've seen Matt 4x now and that was a concert I won't forget, and for no admission. Incredible deal. read more

This thing is horrible! A flat concrete slab surrounded by mass crapitecture festooned with cheesy ads. The sightlines for concerts are terrible and you're continuously assaulted by blinking, flashing crassness. The restaurants are all fast food, mall chain variety and you can't even enjoy a beer or drink on the dinky little tables and chairs that are randomly strewn about or during any of the so-called 'festivals'. Compared to most squares in major cities around the world, this is a complete embarrassment. read more