CdnbMatt Posted July 13, 2007 Share Posted July 13, 2007 Ontario Place is a smallish odd park. If I am not mistaken it is owned by the government of Ontario and built sometime in the 70's. My understanding is that it was originally built as a showcase for the province of Ontario and was going to be kind of an "Innoventions" type of thing. Back when I was a kid I can remember this place being more true to their vision as they has pods where annual exhibitions were displayed. They even had something called the "Nintendo Power Pod" where you could try out Nintendo products that were still over a year before released in stores. It was here where I first got to play Mario 3 months before anyone else. They do have an Epcotesque sphere with houses the world first permanent IMAX theatre. Along the way they seem to have lost their way and the park hangs on the brink of obscurity. It really is a place meant more for the kiddies. I'd say skip this park if you are looking to add to your count as the actual number of coaster credits at this park is exactly 0. I could see from the parking lot that we would be fighting through crowds all day. One of the two main entrances to Ontario Place......why they need two I'll never know. The crowds were really starting to get on my nerves. This was new this year.... Fruitalicious...the only fruit they had was 88c bananas and apple slices with caramel dip. Otherwise about a million kinds of bagels. A view of Toronto from Ontario Place. Gotta love the *cough* clean air. This pic shows about 85% of the parks rides. This was a 5 year old's dream. They can choose from about 20 different power wheels cars to spin around in. These mannequins really...freaked..me ...out...... what's the deal...why do they have to look like that. How many parks do you know that offer free mini golf with admission. No lying, three seconds later I got a hole in one. Although small, the slides at their water park are pretty good. One of those toilet bowl slides. this one doesn't your back like some others I've been on. If you are ever in Puerto Vallarta....DO NOT go on their toilet slide. Trust me. This is my "shout out" to those cheaters on the Spain trip.... I wish I was there with you. Too bad he wasn't making a fist to I could pound it like Ryan. Ontario Place's "geometric sphere"...you won't find a wand hanging over this ball. Oh...it housed the IMAX threatre. Insert giant wand here. The park has some attractive spots. They are getting ready for their Chinese Lantern Festival. The Wilderness Adventure Ride. Probably the most thrilling tihing at this place. It actually is good in terms of scenery, but the drop is a tad small. A shot from the queue area of the Wilderness Adventure Ride. No wonder they don't want you climbing on this rock. One slip and you're doing a face plant into a boat full of kindergarteners mid drop. It really is a nice looking flume ride. Ciara's upset about the lack of coaster credits. That or she just caught me checking out the girl that just walked by. This is like something out of a nightmare... about fifty.... 7 foot tall statues wrapped in plastic. Probably just waiting for us to walk in a little further before making their move. While inside this mirror maze, it was really impossible to tell if I was looking at the camera or a reflection of the camera. If I try really hard I can pretend I am dating hot twins. I think this is the closest I can get to that dream. Sorry about the angle...I forgot to rotate the pic. I have always wanted to go on the hanging tube of death to the slide of death but I knew for past visits I was too tall for this ride. This is fun, a giant never ending foam ball fight. i wish I had a video to show all the things to do in here. About 3 seconds after taking this photo, I got nailed in the side of the head by a dad and his kid shooting a ball gun. I got my spinny forwards and backwards kid car ride credit. The ride op was yelling at the kids as they were getting on and off. Beavertails........these things are really really good. it's basically salted fried dough covered in whatever you want. This one is with hazelnut spread. I think you Americans call them Elephant Ears. Uggh...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CdnbMatt Posted July 13, 2007 Author Share Posted July 13, 2007 Ooops........I posted the photos in the exact opposite order that I wanted to. I am sorry...I'm new at this! Ok....they photos are supposed to be viewed from bottom to top now........I guess I missed the "attach photos in the order viewed" instructions. I'm sure you'll all get the idea anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigstevet07 Posted July 13, 2007 Share Posted July 13, 2007 Puerto Vallarta and "toilet slide" do not sound good together. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
niiicolaaah Posted July 13, 2007 Share Posted July 13, 2007 Great photos, I LOVE Ontario Place. I love the log flume and the mazes. Do they still give you a card to carry around and stick in those things in each maze? (hopefully you know what I'm talking about). I miss the lego and nintendo pavilions! Oh, and I HATE HYDROFUGE!! I always seem to land on my head... never riding that again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CdnbMatt Posted July 13, 2007 Author Share Posted July 13, 2007 Ya they do still have those card readers....problem is though they have gotten rid of about half of the maze for some reason..AND.. the outdoor hedge maze part has been completely cut down so it is no longer a maze...just an odd outdoor part. The Lego pod was the best! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Homer Posted July 13, 2007 Share Posted July 13, 2007 Looks like a nice little park for young families to spend a day at. Nice photo TR! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrownStreak Posted July 13, 2007 Share Posted July 13, 2007 Its best to visit Ontario Place during CNE- admission is free and then you can buy an all-day ride pass for the Ontario Place rides and then you have the coasters and stuff at CNE. You guys should check out Centre Island Park while your there too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrhambone Posted July 13, 2007 Share Posted July 13, 2007 We were in Toronto last weekend, and Ontario Place was our fallback plan if we needed a time filler. Looks like our kids missed a fun stop! But wait a minute – when we were at the Ontario Science Centre (awesome place!), the IMAX intro said that they were the only IMAX dome theater in Ontario (it even says it on their website!). So if Ontario Place has one, does that mean the Science Centre is scamming everyone? Great shot of the CN Tower – we went all the way to the very top. Would have been a great view except for the *cough* clean air! One other question – is the 401 always jammed solid on a Saturday afternoon? It was worse than the DC beltway at rush hour! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carnage Posted July 13, 2007 Share Posted July 13, 2007 Funny, on Canada Day I rode that toilet bowl water slide and it felt like my back was getting ripped open. But wait a minute – when we were at the Ontario Science Centre (awesome place!), the IMAX intro said that they were the only IMAX dome theater in Ontario (it even says it on their website!). So if Ontario Place has one, does that mean the Science Centre is scamming everyone? And Marineland advertisings Dragon Mountain as the worlds largest steel roller coaster. Ontario isn't known for turth in advertising. One other question – is the 401 always jammed solid on a Saturday afternoon? It was worse than the DC beltway at rush hour! 401 is Toronto's largest parking lot. Although it's worse in certain areas. The worst area is from Weston Rd. (near the 400), all the way past Yorkdale. That section is total hell. Ooops........I posted the photos in the exact opposite order that I wanted to. I am sorry...I'm new at this! Ok....they photos are supposed to be viewed from bottom to top now........I guess I missed the "attach photos in the order viewed" instructions. I'm sure you'll all get the idea anyway It's because the preview shows your pics backwards. But it will still post them in the correct order. So as long as you add your pics in the order you want, it will post like that. (regardless of what the preview shows) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CdnbMatt Posted July 13, 2007 Author Share Posted July 13, 2007 But wait a minute – when we were at the Ontario Science Centre (awesome place!), the IMAX intro said that they were the only IMAX dome theater in Ontario (it even says it on their website!). So if Ontario Place has one, does that mean the Science Centre is scamming everyone? The one at the Science Centre is actually an Omnimax Theatre.....which is their name for "Imax Dome"....which is unique in the way that it is a dome over your head instead of a flat screen in front of you. So they are correct in saying that they are the only Imax dome in Ontario. That being said they could be a tad clearer in what they mean.....easy to get confused. Carnage is right....the 401 is always a mess. I went to LA expecting horrible traffic, but it was nothing compared to what we get daily here. Oh and thanks for the posting tip.....thats exactly what happened...they preview showed it backwards....so I fixed it....then in the end it was backwards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrhambone Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 The WORST part of the traffic was Friday afternoon, going from the Zoo to Casa Loma. The 401 was jammed solid, and we were running out of time. So we got off the 401 at Bathurst and tried to turn left at Eglinton Ave. It took us five cycles to make the left - and only because we ran the light! Going back to our hotel in Mississauga took nearly an hour! Yep - LA traffic is a piece of cake compared to Toronto! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YoshiFan Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 I went to Ontario Place in 1996 when it had free admission if you went to the CNE. The Nintendo area was awesome. It was a month before N64 was released and I was counting the days until the system was released and then they had the system out to try. Playing Mario 64 for the first time was amazing. I started talking to one of the workers there about how I had my system pre-ordered and that I was really looking forward to getting the system. She gave me a Donkey Kong Country promotional video and a N64 shirt for free. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CdnbMatt Posted July 14, 2007 Author Share Posted July 14, 2007 I wonder hambone if you ever had the pleasure of driving on the DVP while you were here... that's quite a treat Those pods that housed Nintendo and Lego now sit empty....actually I think there is a night club of all things in one of them now. A shame.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrownStreak Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 ^I'm sorry I have to say the QEW between the Queen-Louie Bridge and Toronto is the worst, especially between Hamilton and Toronto- its too narrow and they built up right next to it so they can't widen it. When I lived in Tonawanda NY I dated a guy in Toronto and I drove up there every weekend for over a year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dandaman Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 The few things I remember about Ontario Place, back when I went in '99: - the maze and the card reader things - FREE mini-golf! - Cinesphere - some random boats - a seagull stealing my mom's pizza slice - FREE MINI-GOLF!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moofygirl Posted July 15, 2007 Share Posted July 15, 2007 Thanks for posting the photos. Wow, what a change from the past. When I was little my parents used to take me there in the 70s. They used to have a really neat playground close to where the waterpark is now. No rides though. Actually the old water park freaked the heck out of me when I was about 7 years old. My friend's Dad took us there for the day. I'd never been on a water slide before. It was the kind where you had to sit on a potato sack like mat to go down it. Did I mention I couldn't swim? Nope. Well anyway as I'm sliding down I hit the pool at the bottom. I went under. I remember flailing about trying to get to the surface. I swear to God, the life guard that pulled me out had a cigarette in his mouth. He was in the water, and was smoking while acting as a lifeguard. Craziness. Ah, the 70s. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Magnumfan Posted July 15, 2007 Share Posted July 15, 2007 Nice pictures. Ciara's very beautiful! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zoltan_Kodaly Posted July 15, 2007 Share Posted July 15, 2007 Thank-you so much for this TR!! The only thing there that really interested me was the Wilderness Adventure, and no friends of mine would pay admission to go on a flume ride, though now that I know there's free mini golf I can maybe convince someone! What's funny is I work on the Exhibition Grounds- at the South end- and the view out my office window is Soak City and the small kiddie ride area, and yet I have no idea what the rest of the park looks like, so thank-you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrhambone Posted July 15, 2007 Share Posted July 15, 2007 I wonder hambone if you ever had the pleasure of driving on the DVP while you were here... that's quite a treat! Yep - we drove the DVP (Don Valley Parkway) Saturday morning going from the CN tower to the Science Centre. Fun drive, but there was no traffic. Despite the traffic, I would definitely go back to Toronto! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CdnbMatt Posted July 18, 2007 Author Share Posted July 18, 2007 The few things I remember about Ontario Place, back when I went in '99: .......some random boats Honestly, I am glad you reminded me of those.... up to a couple of years ago they had these small (about go kart size) boats with outboard motors and a track set up in lake Ontario. It was another free attraction requiring a drivers licence. It was basically go karts on water...pretty fast too. They used to have a really neat playground close to where the waterpark is now. No rides though. Actually the old water park freaked the heck out of me when I was about 7 years old. They closed that playground last year...now it just sits looking ugly...I am not sure if they have any future plans for that area. I was freaked out by that old waterpark too. The slides were concrete and if you slipped off the mat your skin was in big trouble. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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