I wasn't that impressed with the whole CN Tower experience, to be honest. I mean ok - as city landmarks go there are fewer sights so instantly recognisable as the CN Tower is. And seeing it for the first time, when driving into Toronto from the airport, brings on a rush of excitement like someone has just grabbed you by the throat and screamed "We're Finally Here!" in your face.
But up close the CN Tower looks tired and weary, as if the never-ending procession of snap-happy tourists over the years - all eager for that perfect view - has left the Tower itself in need of a holiday. The weather-beaten grey of its slim, stone walls and the fading paint on the exterior of its main observation floor only add to the Tower's dejected look. I'm afraid there is no other way of saying it: the CN Tower looks depressed.
Not that the Tower's operators haven’t done everything in their power to try to disguise this fact, though. From the glossy, glitzy brochures on sale at the kiosks inside the main entrance, to the eleven-foot tall plastic moose at the back door, the Tower - like so many other tourist attractions across the globe - is a slave to commercialism. Even the walkway to the elevator looks down onto a sunken mall, stock-full of official CN Tower merchandise.
But let's get down to brass tacks and talk value for money. Is the CN Tower experience worth the price tag attached? Well, yes and no. Certainly the views are fantastic and well worth paying to see, but what spoils the experience is - once again - the owners' greed for money. Not content with charging visitors the initial entrance fee (see below) Tower staff then force visitors to stop on their way to the lifts and have their photographs taken in front of an "I've Been to the CN Tower" backdrop and banner. The obvious hope is that some of the visitors might then wish to pick up a copy of the photograph on their way out; for an appropriate fee, of course. And there is no escaping the sunken mall, either: when coming back down again from the observation levels, once the views have been seen, the lifts open out into the heart of the mall. Tourists, still wide eyed in wonder at the magnificence of the views they have just seen, immediately start to salivate at the sight of the official merchandise, like Pavlov's dogs on the ding of the lift bell.
The views from the observation levels, however, are incredible. There are two observation floors to the CN Tower - the main one, 346 metres up (which costs $16 to get to), and a higher one, another 100 metres further up still, (which is an additional $5.50 to get to). Now let's face it and be honest with ourselves for a moment: if we're already looking out of a window 346 metres in the air - already far higher than any other building in the city - what more are we going to see from another 100 metres higher up? Certainly nothing that is worth paying another $5.50 for, that's for sure. Be content - pay your $16 and go to the first level; everything you'll want to see can be seen perfectly from there. And what actually is there to see on the observation levels? Well, apart from the magnificence of the 360-degree views of Toronto, including a spectacular panorama of Toronto Bay's Islands and of Lake Ontario, there is the infamous glass floor. Don’t be fooled by thinking it's only a bit of fun, either: it is terrifying! I saw kids leap onto the glass from several feet away, then bounce up and down on it to test the glass' strength, while grown men and women inched across it's edges in fear for their lives. I have to admit, it really does take a leap of faith to stride onto the glass floor. Standing on it, looking down to where the ground should be and seeing nothing but the Tower's thin sides curving sharply away beneath you, and the distant ground 346 metres below, is enough to loosen even the tightest of sphincters.
There is also the Revolving Restaurant too, of course. Making one full revolution every 72 minutes, it allows diners to see Toronto from above, while nibbling a light meal at the same time. The food is obviously a bit on the expensive side, but you had guessed that already, right?
So what am I telling you? Should you go up the CN Tower? Yes, I think you should. But don’t expect it to be a life changing experience. The views are amazing, but prices are high, staff are pushy, crowds will make things cramped and you may come away with an overall contempt for commercialism.
If you don't mind these things, you'll probably love the CN Tower. If you do then you may - like I did - find the entire experience just a little bit disappointing.
Address: 301 Front Street West.
Opening Times: Jan-Apr 9am to 10pm; May-Dec 8am to 11pm.
Cost: Observation Floor $16 (seniors $14, children $11) Skypod: $5.50 extra.
Visit the CN Tower on-line at:
www.cntower.ca