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Growing up in Toronto, Mississauga always seemed like a large characterless suburban commuter city filled with massive housing developments, strip malls and industrial areas.
So when we finally decided to leave the city and settle down in Mississauga, we had a lot of apprehension about making the move to the city we felt was characterless, bland and boring. Years later we’ve found that this is far from the truth.
Filled with tons of great neighbourhoods, parks and hidden gems, Mississauga has tons of great places to explore. Here are a few of the favorites that we’ve discovered during our time here.
Top places to see in Mississauga:
Port Credit
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With the name of the neighbourhood originating quite literally from being a port at the mouth of the Credit River, Port Credit is a favourite of many Mississauga residents.
Being a city in itself, until 1975, Port Credit is filled with tons of great restaurants and shops. Commonly known as the Village on the Lake, Port Credit has one of the largest marinas in the area and tons of beautiful parks along the lake.
The Port Credit Memorial park that sits along the banks of the Credit River is host to tons of great festivals over the summer and home to the Port Credit Memorial Area, the oldest surviving and last examples of a barrel-vaulted ceiling arena in Mississauga.
Streetsville
Known as “The village in the city”, Streetsville has the highest concentration of historical buildings in Mississauga. A walk down Queen street maintains it’s quaint small town feeling with its cute shops, cafes and restaurants.
Streetsville is named after its founder Timothy Street, rather than just a street. Timothy and his surveyor Richard Bristol were given the parcel of land in 1918 after completing the survey for the second purchase of land from the Mississaugas. By 1835 Streetsville had attracted many business-minded individuals and was fast becoming the political and economic centre of surrounding townships.
Streetsville has fought to maintain it’s small village charm, resisting amalgamation into the town of Mississauga in 1962, but was eventually annexed in 1974 when Mississauga reincorporated as a city.
Rattray Marsh Conservation Area
Only a few kilometres from the main Port Credit area is Rattray Marsh. As the last remaining marsh between Toronto and Burlington this conservation area offers a unique getaway from the city.
There are long raised boardwalks along the marsh and a quiet natural cobblestone beach, with great views of Toronto in the distance. Rattray is so peaceful and quiet, with tons of beautiful nature all around, it almost feels like you’ve been transported hours away to cottage country.
Small Arms Inspection Building (SAIB)
One of our more recent discoveries, this arts and culture hub of Mississauga has played an important role in Canada’s heritage.
Originally built in 1940, this building housed a large munitions plant manufacturing rifles and small arms for the Canadian army through the second world war till 1974. Two-thirds of the workers were women, changing the role of women and recognizing their significance in the workforce in Canada. Scheduled for demolition in 2008, the City of Mississauga intervened and designated the building under the Ontario Heritage Act. In 2018 the building was renovated and reopened as the arts and culture hub it is today.
The small arms munitions building is host to many great events ranging from mac and cheese festivals, creative writing workshops, art exhibits and portrait painting meetups. On days that the building is not hosting an event, the 18,000 square foot facility is left open as a creative collaboration space where anyone can come in, set up a desk and chair and enjoy the beautifully restored building. Definitely one of our favourite places in the city.
Adamson Estate
The Adamson Estate has a history dating all the way back to 1805 when the Crown granted Joseph Cawthra, of Cawthra road, approximately 200 acres of land shortly after the Mississauga Purchase. The land was used mainly as the Cawthra’s summer residence until 1899 when it was gifted to Joseph’s granddaughter Mabel upon her marriage to Agar Adamson. In 1919 after the first world war, the Adamsons returned to settle down on the estate. Agar replaced the previous cottage with a beautiful Flemish mansion to commemorate the areas in Europe where he had fought in the war.
In 1971 the city of Mississauga acquired the land, converting it to a park for public use, with the Royal Conservatory of Music leasing the main house. These days the beautiful lakeside estate is a favourite for group and wedding photography, especially with the Colonial Revival style buildings and beautifully maintained gardens.
Other points of interest are the great eastern white pine, the provincial tree of Ontario, throughout the Estate and the family pet cemetery surrounded by a wrought iron fence with stone pillars and memorial plaque.
Celebration Square
Located near Mississauga’s civic centre, many consider Celebration Square to be the heart of Mississauga. During the summer months, this large open space hosts tons of great community events. During the week there are farmers’ markets, yoga and pilates classes and even free movies, where you and your family and friends can bring a few lawn chairs or set up a blanket in the large grassy area to enjoy.
The weekends are where this award-winning public space really shines. Mississauga is an amazing multicultural city, Celebration square hosts tons of events representing all of the great cultures in the city. There are Vietnamese festivals, Philippino food bazaars, Taste of Japan, Ribfests, Bollywood monster mashups the list goes on forever, with a unique event hosted each weekend.
Celebration square even was home to Jurassic Park West during the Toronto Raptors epic 2019 Championship run. In addition to all the events being hosted, the large fountain closer to the civic buildings is a great place to bring your kids to cool off in the hot summer months or an awesome skating rink during the winter.
Karyia Park
Hidden away not too far from Square one is Kariya park, a beautiful Japanese garden created in honour of Mississauga’s sister city, Kariya Japan.
The park was designed in consultation with counterparts in Kariya to ensure the essence of the city was captured. Many plants native to Kariya including the beautiful lavender-hued Iris laevigata or rabbit-ear iris, Kariya’s official city flower, that was used in developing the garden.
The park features a path the meanders through beautiful rocks, shrubbery and ponds. There are also several cherry trees, making it a favourite for Mississauga residents to check out the cherry blossoms when in season.
The pavilion at the north end of the park houses a friendship bell that was donated by Kariya as a symbol of the bond between the two cities. Following Japan’s sensitivity to aesthetics, rhythm and balance, Kariya Park is a perfect getaway from the hustle and bustle of Mississauga’s city center.
Riverwood Park
Riverwood Park is a 150-acre park dedicated to the culture, nature, history and art of Mississauga. Home to the Riverwood conservatory and Visual Arts Mississauga this park packs a 1,2 punch of events, activities and classes for you and your kids.
The park lies by the beautiful Credit Valley. With some of the paths have been set up with tactile and interactive exhibitions that teach visitors about the valley’s rich history. Start from 415 million years ago, through First Nations and early colonial times, up to modern times.
The park’s beautiful garden has been curated by the conservatory and maintained by volunteers. During the summer you will find pieces of art hidden throughout the park during the Art in the Park event.
Etobicoke Creek Trail / Covair Dr
Fei Ji Lai Le! Fei Ji Lai Le! The plane is coming! The plane is coming! One of the fondest memories I have of my grandfather is heading out to Pearson and watching the planes land. Fei Ji Lai Le! Or The plane is coming he would yell out every time an airplane would approach.
Right at the east end of Britannia, there’s a small little parkette, there you can see an entrance to the Etobicoke Creek Trail. A trail that follows the western edge of the airport and a great place to watch planes. For those who bike and don’t mind sharing the road with cars, follow Courtneypark to Covair Dr for a long flat stretch of road that runs parallel to the airport. It’s one of the best ways to take in the airport, it almost feels like you’re riding with the planes.
Erindale Park
Following the Credit Valley from Burnhamthorpe down to Dundas and covering an area of over 222 acres, Erindale Park is the largest park in Mississauga. The park sits on the site of an old electrical dam since filled in and the area remediated.
These days, the park is the home of tons of open green spaces and gorgeous views of the ravine and old dam. There are tons of great trails to explore including part of the David J. Culham Trail, a 14km trail that follows the Credit Valley and passes many historic mills, homesteads, farms and dams. During the winter there is a tobogganing hill to bring your kids to and Erindale Park is a great place to go cross country skiing with its wide-open spaces and beautiful snow-covered trees.
Erindale Park is one of the best places to see the foliage in the fall, you may even see the salmon swimming up the river too, if you’re lucky. Truly a park for all seasons.
Lake Iroquois Shoreline
A quick point of interest as a bonus. What some may not know, is that Lake Ontario is actually the remnants of a much larger lake that existed over 13000 years ago, at the end of the last ice age. Lake Iroquois was approximately 30m above present lake Ontario, with its shoreline lying 2-4km inland from Lake Ontario’s. Some of the most notable examples being the Scarborough Bluffs and the Davenport Hill that Casa Loma sits upon. Located at Mavis and Dundas is also a great example of the remnants of the old shoreline.
Dundas Ave rides high above the neighbourhood below and you can catch some amazing views of Lake Ontario and the Toronto skyline in the distance.