# Richmond Hill (Ontario)

Richmond Hill is a city in Southern Ontario in the central portion of York Region. It's part of the Greater Toronto Area, about 20 km north of the downtown core of Toronto.

## Understand

Richmond Hill is the third most populous municipality in York Region and the 28th most populous municipality in Canada. Richmond Hill's population has grown from 102,000 in 1996 to over 195,000 in 2016. Richmond Hill used to be a village and had an interurban running to it from Toronto. As the suburban boom in Toronto started after WWII, Richmond Hill eventually grew to become another suburb in the 1970s and 80s. Today, Richmond Hill hosts a significant Chinese population on its east end and a significant Persian population in the north.
The old part of Richmond Hill runs on Yonge Street from Major Mackenzie Drive to Crosby Avenue.

## Get in
### By bus

York Region Transit (YRT) operates bus service in York Region (including Viva express buses). From Toronto, take either the Viva Blue bus or YRT Route 98/99 from Finch Subway Station on TTC subway Line 1 Yonge-University. These bus routes will take you along Yonge Street through the centre of Richmond Hill with a major stop at 43.840028-79.4255561 Richmond Hill Centre Bus Terminal. Viva Blue will make fewer stops than YRT 98/99 so it will generally be faster. The ride will take about half an hour. Or you can board TTC subway Line 1 towards Vaughan Metro Centre and connect to Viva Orange service at Vaughan Metro Centre or YRT at Pioneer Village station.
GO Transit operates several routes that connects nearby towns and cities to Richmond Hill. GO Bus Routes 40, 41, 52, 54 and 56 all stop at Richmond Hill Centre. GO Bus Route 40 is an express service connecting Hamilton and Mississauga (Square One and Toronto Pearson International Airport) with Richmond Hill on hourly basis (every 30 min during rush hour on weekdays) seven days a week. Route 41 operates on Monday to Friday between Hamilton and Pickering via Richmond Hill Centre and Scarborough Town Centre at 30-min intervals. Route 52 is a weekend and holidays service between Highway 407 station and Oshawa every 2 hours. Route 54 operates on Monday to Friday between Highway 407 station and Markham via Richmond Hill Centre every hour. Route 56 operates at 30-minute intervals on Monday to Friday between Highway 407 station and Oakville via Richmond Hill Centre. All of the GO bus routes also stop at Highway 407 station on TTC subway Line 1 on its way to and from Richmond Hill Centre. Visitors coming from west or south of Richmond Hill can change bus at Square One Terminal in Mississauga or Highway 407 station in Vaughan to reach Richmond Hill.

### By train

GO Transit provides train and bus service between Toronto and Richmond Hill with stops at the 43.838531-79.4231282 Langstaff GO Station, 43.875753-79.42623 Richmond Hill GO station, 43.940895-79.3984784 Gormley GO station and 43.975833-79.3972225 Bloomington GO station on weekdays. However, this service is more useful for commuters rather than visitors with trains running either inbound to Toronto in the morning rush hours or outbound in the afternoon rush. GO bus route 61 stops at these GO Train stations mentioned above but lacks late afternoon and evening service from Richmond Hill to Union Station. There is no GO train or bus service between Toronto and Richmond Hill on weekends and holidays.

### By plane

Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ) in Mississauga is the nearest major airport. GO Transit operates Route 40 – Airport Express hourly, seven days a week between Terminal 1 and Richmond Hill Centre Terminal. The one-way fare is $8.05$^{(asofJune2023)}$ and the trip takes 20 minutes. Taxis from the airport to Richmond Hill will cost between $66-84.

### By car

Richmond Hill is easily accessed by major highways. Highway 404 connects from Toronto northwards to Newmarket. This highway serves as the political boundary between Richmond Hill on the west and Markham on the east from Highway 7 north to 19th Avenue and Whitchurch-Stouffville on the east from 19th Avenue north to Bloomington Road. Richmond Hill is also just north of Highway 407 toll road.

## Get around

With attractions spread out and free parking available at practically everywhere, car is the most common and easiest way to get around.

### By bus

York Region Transit operates the municipal buses in Richmond Hill. Bus service is adequate, although you should check the timetables to make sure you don't waste your time waiting for half an hour. Service along Yonge street and Highway 7, where most of the interesting destinations are, are excellent, and even if you miss your bus, the next one generally comes soon. Stops offering VIVA bus service have electronic timeboards that will give you the arrival times of the next three buses. Since these times are estimated through a GPS connection to each bus, the times are generally accurate. Most bus routes do stop at Richmond Hill Centre for easy connection to other routes.
A ride within Richmond Hill counts as one zone and will cost $4.00. The tickets are time-stamped and valid for two hours. You can pay by cash, Presto card or use its mobile app for payment. You can also purchase multiple tickets at a discount. Remember to validate your ticket before a ride in the machines by the bus stops (for VIVA) or onboard (for YRT bus). There will be a slot for you to insert the ticket to be timestamped.

## See

* 43.8763-79.45281 Mill Pond, 321 Mill St (about 1 km east of Yonge St via Wright St and Mill St). This picturesque park has a pond with a fountain, ducks and greenery along the shores. The pond used to power a sawmill, long since gone. (updated Nov 2024)
* 43.8769-79.43682 Richmond Hill Heritage Centre (Amos Wright House), 9 Church St N (1 block east of Yonge St, north of Centre St), ☏ +1 905-780-3802. Tu 1-4PM, Th 4-8PM, Sa 10AM-4PM. The heritage centre is in a restored 1840s Regency-style cottage that was home of Amos Wright, the first Reeve of Markham Township. The cottage is in Amos Wright Park with gardens having herbs, heritage plants and roses. (updated Aug 2016)
* 43.9491-79.4363 Wilcox Lake (At the corner of Bayview Avenue and Bethesda Side Road). A kettle lake in the Oak Ridges moraine and a provincially significant wetland. Free. (updated Nov 2024)

## Do

* 43.8763-79.4521 Concerts in the Park (Mill Pond), 321 Mill St (about 1 km east of Yonge St via Wright St and Mill St). There are Thursday evening concerts at the gazebo in the Mill Pond park in July and August. Attendees are advised to bring their own chairs for seating. (updated Aug 2016)
* 43.8619-79.4232 David Dunlap Observatory, 123 Hillsview Dr (at the end of a long driveway), ☏ +1 905-884-1281. This is a working observatory operated by the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. Visits generally require a purchase of a ticket for a specific, scheduled event. (updated Mar 2023)
* 43.8773-79.43913 Richmond Hill Centre for the Performing Arts, 10268 Yonge St (at Wright St), ☏ +1 905-787-8811, boxoffice@rhcentre.ca. 631-seat performance space for professional musicians, actors, dancers & comics. (updated Nov 2024)
* 43.8769-79.43634 Museum of the Streets (tour starting at the Richmond Hill Heritage Centre), 19 Church St N. The Museum of the Streets is a self-guided walking tour of sites in Richmond Hill, with an explanatory sign posted at each site. The website has a PDF map. Free. (updated Aug 2016)

## Buy

* 43.8544-79.43461 Hillcrest Mall, 9350 Yonge St (NE corner of 16th Ave and Yonge St), ☏ +1 905-883-1400. Large indoor shopping centre with department stores and food court. (updated Oct 2021)
* 43.84479-79.383472 Times Square, 550 Highway 7 East (NW corner of Highway 7 and Leslie St). A small-size mall with Chinese restaurants and stores (updated Jun 2020)

## Eat

* 43.8729-79.43741 BB Cafe & Pastry Boutique, 10067 Yonge St (½ block south of Lorne Ave), ☏ +1 905-237-6565. In addition to lots of sweets, this cafe serves some nice sandwiches and espresso-based coffees. (updated Aug 2016)
* 43.8778-79.43912 Covernotes, 10268 Yonge St (SW corner with Wright St). A coffee shop in a heritage building, which used to be the Richmond Hill High School built in 1897 and used as a school until 1924. The interior is as quaint as the building's exterior. (updated Sep 2017)
* 43.8442-79.38773 Jubilee Square, 280 West Beaver Creek Rd (at NW corner with Highway 7). This mall has a cluster of Asian-cuisine restaurants (Chinese, Japanese, etc.) (updated Aug 2016)
   * Akasaka Japanese Restaurant, Jubilee Square. Sushi and tepanyaki. (updated Jul 2016)
* 43.861-79.39454 Congee Wong 天皇名粥, 1 Spadina Road, ☏ +1 905-883-1668. 11AM-9PM. Affordable, authentic, and plentiful Cantonese cuisine. (updated Jul 2024)
* 43.8514-79.40825 The One Fusion Cuisine 聚龍軒, Unit 9, 9019 Bayview Ave, ☏ +1 905-882-9388, info@theonefusioncuisine.com. 9AM-10PM. Great place for dim sum. Be sure to arrive early on weekends, or else you will be waiting in line! (updated Jul 2024)

## Drink

Almost all bars are located along Yonge St or Highway 7.
* 43.854009-79.4324441 King Henry's Arms, 9301 Yonge St Unit 2a, ☏ +1 905-787-0900. 11AM-2AM. Traditional pub. (updated Mar 2025)
* 43.86452-79.4362162 The Three Crowns Pub, 9724 Yonge St, ☏ +1 905-508-1111. M 5PM-midnight, Tu-Th noon-midnight, F Sa noon-2AM, Su noon-10PM. British pub. (updated Apr 2022)
* 43.8455-79.43173 Archibald's Pub, 8950 Yonge St, ☏ +1 (905) 889-0235, archibaldspub@gmail.com. M-W 11AM-1AM, Th-Sa 11AM-2AM, Su noon-1AM. First pub in the city. (updated Jul 2022)
* 43.8469-79.3754 Marlowe Restaurant & Bar, 155 York Blvd, ☏ +1 (905) 771-8645, events@themarlowe.ca. M Tu 11:30AM-11PM, W Th 11:30AM-midnight, F 11:30AM-2AM, Sa 5PM-2AM (closed Su). (updated Jul 2022)

## Sleep
### Budget

* 43.8888-79.44071 Travelodge Richmond Hill, 10711 Yonge Street (just south of Elgin Mills Rd), ☏ +1 905-884-1007. (updated Jan 2024)
* 43.9466-79.45632 Canada's Best Value Inn Richmond Hill, 13100 Yonge Street, ☏ +1 905-773-3333. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: 11AM. (updated Jul 2024)

### Mid-range

* 43.84535-79.381533 Best Western Parkway Hotel Toronto North, 600 Hwy 7, L4B 1B2 (NE corner of Highway 7 and Leslie St), ☏ +1 905-881-2600. (updated Nov 2024)
* 43.84568-79.380044 Sheraton Parkway Toronto North Hotel & Suites, 9005 Leslie St (NE corner of Highway 7 and Leslie St), ☏ +1 905-881-2121. (updated Nov 2024)
* 43.849032-79.3821385 Holiday Inn Express & Suites Toronto - Markham, 10 East Pearce St, L4B 0A8 (Highway 404 to Highway 7 westbound, turn north on Leslie St; the hotel is on the east side), ☏ +1 905-695-5990, frontdesk@hiexmarkham.ca. Despite the name, the hotel is in Richmond Hill and not in Markham. (updated Nov 2024)

## Connect

Richmond Hill Centre bus terminal and Richmond Hill Public Library locations provide free WiFi.

## Stay healthy

43.869754-79.4503091 Mackenzie Richmond Hill Hospital is on Major Mackenzie Drive just west of Yonge Street.