On the Woodbine lands in Toronto's west end, Great Canadian's resort brings a marble-and-glass floor, a fresh hotel tower, a live theatre and a run of restaurants together into the city's biggest new entertainment complex, alongside the historic racetrack.
The floor is huge, new and gleaming — a deep bank of slots, a wide table pit, a high-limit room and a poker section, all under bright, high ceilings. If you like a casino that feels like a genuine event, this delivers it at full scale.
The size is both the draw and the caveat: it's exciting on a Friday and can feel a little impersonal on a quiet afternoon. Head for the high-limit area when you want the volume of the main floor to fall away.
The hotel tower is brand-new, so the rooms are crisp, bright and well-equipped, with the clean lines and big windows of a modern build. They're genuinely comfortable, even if the outlook — city fringe and racetrack — isn't the reason you'd come.
Everything connects indoors, which makes the whole complex easy to navigate in any weather. It's a polished big-resort experience rather than an intimate one; lovely for a lively weekend, less so if you're after character.
The dining is a real strength — a marquee steakhouse, a busy food hall and casual rooms — and the live theatre pulls touring names to round out the night. The event space and the racetrack next door add still more to do without leaving the site.
It's built to keep you inside and entertained from dinner to the small hours, and on that count it succeeds. The honest caveat is that it sits on the city's edge near the airport, so it's more a destination complex than a downtown base.
For a brand-new resort of this scale the value is fair, particularly midweek, and its west-end position is handy for the airport and the highways even if it's a trek from downtown. Weekend and show nights are priced for the demand.
Come for the biggest, shiniest casino night in the GTA and it's hard to top. Come looking for downtown character and you'll want to stay elsewhere and visit.
The GTA's flagship casino-hotel: bright, brand-new and built for a full night out, if a touch corporate at the edges.