Art Galleries Worth Checking Out in Toronto

Baldwin Beach by Carl Yoshihara.

Every time I travel, I moan inwardly whenever someone suggests visiting an art gallery.

That’s not to say that I’m not an art gallery kind of gal. In fact, my memories of Europe are a blur of galleries as Helka was studying for her admissions exams to art school in Finland at the time. And on my first trip to New York, I let Chloé drag me into and out of numerous museums, including MOMA and the Guggenheim (which, amongst other things, houses a collection of Mark Rothko’s prints).

What I am saying is that cities often have unique art galleries that visitors might bypass in favour of the bigger, better advertised brands. The easiest way to find out about different museums and art galleries in your destination city is to check out local listing--or if you're researching in advance, Wikipedia is also a surprisingly good place to start.

Best part? Often these museums aren't as busy, have a "pay what you can" scale and may help contribute to a unique understanding of wherever you're visiting.

Here’s some examples in Toronto that aren’t the AGO:

Top 5 Activities on Roatan, Honduras

Court and I were the last of the group to arrive; along with my cousin Katherine and three other friends, we'd rented a condo in West End. It had been just over six months since I'd last been to Roatan. But as soon as the plane landed, I knew that I was ready to be back.

While most people go to Roatan to learn to scuba dive, I've never been very good at meeting the status quo. In fact, I've actively avoided even snorkelling in scuba hotspots like Australia and Thailand. My second trip to Honduras was going to be no exception.

The truth is, I was tempted to just hang out on the porch of Frank's Cigar Bar all week, which is admittedly my favourite island activity. (If you’ve visited West End more than once, you’ll quickly know how the area earned its “Roatan Shore” nickname.)

But Sophie insisted that Roatan had way more to offer. And she's kind of an authoritative source—in addition to living in Honduras for over two years, she also now works for West Bay Tours, a company that specializes in boat and island tours.

So I put my vacation in her hands and I wasn't disappointed. Here are the five must-do activities for any girls' trip to Roatan: