Riverdale Farm — Attraction in Toronto

For those looking for a trip with a lot of interaction with nature and away from the city, Riverdale Farm is certainly a place to visit.

In addition to having ample space for walking, lots of greenery and lots of flowers that bloom in spring, the place also has some animals for children to get to know (calves, sheep, pigs, chickens, ducks, horses, turkeys, chicks), all very well looked after.

♿️The farm has facilities for all visitors, especially visitors with disabilities; with a spacious entrance, allowing wheelchairs and two other people to pass along the side, ramp for access to the farm's internal entrance, adapted bathrooms with support bars, access ramp and doors with automatic opening and closing. All internal paths on the farm have access via a smooth road, making it possible to use walkers, crutches and wheelchairs. For visitors with visual impairments, the team of caretakers is always present on site to provide support. The structure of the farm is excellent, and in addition to the adapted toilets, there are two conventional bathrooms further down the farm (under the bridge). For mothers and fathers, the main area of ​​the farm has changing tables for children.

For visitors who want to spend a long period of time at the site, the farm has several picnic tables spread out, to cater to the comfort of visitors.

The space normally closes at 5pm and at the entrance there is a notice about opening hours and closures due to holidays or other activities.

To get there by public transport, you can get off at Weslley station on the yellow line, and take bus line 94 or walk about 25 minutes to the location. Along the way you will find many shops such as restaurants and grocery stores. For those traveling by car, there is paid parking around Riverdale Park.

It's definitely a trip to get out of the daily routine and be more connected...

even though the place doesn't officially advertise as a petting zoo, it seems that some animals really enjoy such activity (particularly goats and sheep). It is a great place to visit, especially for kids, who are delighted to see "in person" creatures (there are horses, cows, goats, sheep, hens, bunnies, pigs and turkeys) they only know from books or tv/computer screens. weekends are super busy, try to visit Mon-Fri if you have a chance. I only wish animals would spend more time outdoors - it seems that bunnies and turkeys are permanently locked in in a barn, as are hens for most of the time I am there. also if there was more grass - the cows and horses have sand covered corrals - would be great it were grass instead - but maybe the maintenance would too difficult/costly? anyways, it is a lovely park - apart from the buildings, barns and pens there are also two ponds and many paths to explore (and benches to sit on and relax). there are very well maintained and clean washrooms and water fountains. I really miss the pre covid times when the front of the Simpson house (that's the large beautiful building right by the entrance, in which washrooms are located) wasn't fenced off and visitors could stroll around and sit on benches there. not sure why the area is closed off long after the covid restrictions were lifted. maybe they just forgot about it? I spent so many hours there, reading, relaxing and just enjoying the place. When you get hungry walk across the Riverdale Park to the corner of Winchester and Sumach Streets - there is a food place with very reasonable prices and quite diversified menu (fries, burgers, hot dogs, ice cream, coffee, soft...

I’ve been coming to this little farm in the city for years. Brought my little girls when they were tiny and needed to run around and Discover wonderful sites, including the farm animals. It’s a great opportunity for city kids to get a little taste of farm workings, although perhaps the more glamorous side of it of course! This past weekend we went to their spring celebration, open house and watch the sheep shearing, , which was pretty nice it was done the old-fashioned way with a giant pair of scissors! As well, we got to pet a baby goat and hear about goats from the workers of the farm. There are some nice old buildings and meeting houses and inside one was a TORONTO spinners and Weavers guild doing a demonstration on how to prepare the sheared wool for spinning, and then either weaving or knitting /crochet &showing their creations. They even had a little activity aimed at kids to make a little lamb with some of the wool -it was adorable. I sincerely wish I had taken advantage of their Riverdale farm camps for kids, but I wasn’t in the know....