https://www.vikingcruises.com/As much as I enjoy sailing, I am always excited to get off the ship and explore the ports of call.
I am on the Viking Polaris, one of the cruise line's new Expedition ships, docked in Toronto, the first port of the Canadian Discovery itinerary.
I board a motor coach for an informative tour of Toronto's midtown before arriving at Casa Loma, "House on the Hill," a sprawling castle-like mansion. During our ride to the castle, our guide tells us about the estate, its owner, and how it became a museum owned by the city.
In 1903, financier Sir Henry Pellatt purchased 25 lots. The mansion was constructed between 1911 and 1914 for $3.5 million, covering 64,700 square feet with 98 rooms.
During the depression after World War I, the City of Toronto raised property taxes from $600 per year to $1,000 monthly. Pellatt would enjoy life in the mansion for less than ten years, leaving in 1923. The city seized Casa Loma in 1924 for unpaid taxes, leaving the building vacant for years.
Today, Casa Loma is one of Toronto's top tourist attractions. Each year, more than 650,000 visitors tour the mansion and the estate gardens.
Sir Henry Pellatt
Sir Henry Pellatt, the dreamer behind Casa Loma, was born to his British parents in Kingston, Ontario, in 1859. Ambitious from his youth, Sir Henry Pellatt left his studies at Upper Canada College when he was 17 to pursue a career in commerce in the family business. By age 23, he became a partner in his father's stock brokerage firm, Pellatt, and Pellatt. That year, he married Mary Dodgeson.
Travels to Europe gave him a love for fine art and architecture, which would spur his vision of Casa Loma.
Pellatt joined the Regiment for The Queen's Own Rifles of Canada as a Rifleman and rose to become the Commanding Officer. Knighted for his dedication to the Regiment, Pellatt later served as the Honorary Colonel and was promoted to Major-General upon retirement.
In the late 1920s, investors operated Casa Loma briefly as a luxury hotel. During Prohibition, it became a popular nightspot for wealthy Americans.
In the 1930s, CFRB broadcaster Claire Wallace spent a night at Casa Loma to gather material for a story about ghosts and supernatural phenomena. She later broadcast an appeal to save the building from demolition. Her broadcast, heard by the vice-president of a local Kiwanis Club, subsequently was leased in 1937 by the Kiwanis Club of West Toronto, later the Kiwanis Club of Casa Loma, which began operating the mansion as a tourist attraction.
Touring Casa Loma
As the motor coach approaches the mansion, I glimpse the sprawling gray castle. After a few outside photos, I enter a massive two-story room and begin exploring this impressive mansion.
Some rooms, like the library and conservatory, have few furnishings, while others appear as if Sir and Lady Pellatt might enter the room at any moment.
I wander from room to room, taking photos and admiring the carved wood features, ornate ceilings, and lavish furnishings.
With the first and second floors initially completed, the third floor was left unfinished when the Pellatts lived here. It is now used as the Regimental Museum for The Queen's Own Rifles of Canada today.
In the basement I follow a tunnel under the street to the 4,380 square foot stables, potting shed, and Hunting Lodge. Also in the basement is a theatre where the planned pool was set to be. The film chronicles the Pellatt’s’ lives and the construction of Casa Loma. There is a gift shop and café as well.
Casa Loma is also a popular location for use in film and television. It has served as a location for movies such as X-Men, Strange Brew, Chicago, Warehouse 13, Crimson Peak, Titans, where it stands in for Wayne Manor, and many other productions.
It was also temporarily transformed into Hogwarts for the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and The Beast's Castle for Disney's 2017 live-action Beauty and The Beast remake of the 1991 animated film.
If you go:
Casa Loma is an interesting, historic, and beautiful destination. I was allowed several hours to tour it and enjoyed the freedom of going at my own pace.
Viking Cruise Lines offers included and paid excursions. There are a variety of tours at every port that appeal to several interests. For more information, click here.
For more information about Casa Loma, click here.
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