Toronto (Celtic) ticket, travel, hotel and pub guide

Celtic
Rogers Centre
Toronto
Pre-season friendly
Friday, July 16, kick off 19:00 local time, 00:00 UK time

Preview

This is United's first pre-season friendly of the 2010 summer warm-up campaign.

It will probably be too early for squad players who played in the World Cup to play, especially those who reached the latter stages of the competition that finishes just five days beforehand.

Having played Philadelphia Union on July 14, Celtic will play Seattle Sounders on July 18 and Sporting Lisbon in Boston on July 21.

United will go on to play matches in Philadelphia, Houston, Mexico and the Republic of Ireland before playing Chelsea at Wembley in the Community Shield.

CAA Sports have organised the match. They represent Nani, Anderson, Cristiano Ronaldo and David Beckham.

TV

The match will be shown live on MUTV, with an hour-long preview show called Countdown to kick off - USA 2010 being aired at 20:00 on Friday July 16 and again at 22:30. The match programme starts at 23:30 and ends at 02:30. All times are UK time.

There will, as ever, be internet links to video streams. Find them here from 21:00 on Friday.

Weather
During the day, temperatures will climb up to 29C/84F and it will be very sunny, though it will cool down a little by kick off. The relatively high temperature might make for a slow tempo match, especially given the fact that it is only the start of pre season.

Tickets
The Rogers Centre in Toronto holds 54,000 people.

Tickets have been divided into five price bands:
$150.00 (£100.96)
$135.00 (£90.86)
$125.00 (£84.13)
$95.00 (£63.94)
$75.00 (£50.48) excluding service charges.

The stadium website says the United end will be in blocks 118 to 125, which is in the £84.13 price band at the Bremner Boulevard end of the stadium.

Celtic are in a similar-shaped section at the other end of the ground.

This map shows where the price bands are

Tickets are on sale through Ticketmaster USA. Select the $125 tickets and 'lower bowl' and it should automatically offer you a seat in the United end.

However, the final price won't be $125.00. The website charges you a $3-per-ticket handling fee and a $12.50-per-ticket convenience charge. Then you can pay $2.50 to print out your own ticket at home or get them delivered internationally for free.

So without postage, that would make one United-end ticket £95.46.

The stadium will probably be three quarters full.

Getting there

Champion Sports Tours has two packages, but both have sold out.

Package One is a four-night trip to Toronto.

On July 15, guests will fly direct from Manchester Airport to Toronto. Flights usually take eight hours.

They will then check in to a three-star hotel and stay there for four nights.

On July 18, guests will fly back from Toronto to Manchester Airport.

The package costs £870 based on two guests sharing a twin room. People paying by credit card will have to pay a two-per-cent charge - £17.40.

Package Two is a seven-night trip to Toronto and Philadelphia, allowing guests to watch United's July 21 match against Philadelphia Union at the Lincoln Financial Field.

On July 15, guests will depart Manchester Airport and reach Toronto after one flight transfer.
They will then stay in a three-star hotel for five nights.

On July 20, the group will travel to Philadelphia.

On July 22, they will depart Philadelphia and fly to Manchester Airport.

The package costs £1,050 per person based on two guests sharing a twin room, though upgrades to four and five-star hotels are available.

People paying by credit card will have to pay a two-per-cent charge - £21.00

Insurance is available for both packages.

Independent travel - £430
Air Transat offers the best deals from Manchester

Outward:
July 12: £236
July 13: £255
July 14: £259
July 15: £303

Homeward:
July 18: £258
July 19: £275
July 20: £272
July 21: £235

So going on the July 12 and returning July 21 would cost £471 return.

Air Transat also offers the best deals from London Gatwick

Outward
July 12: £248
July 13: £271
July 14: £267
July 15: £290

Homeward
July 20: £308
July 21: £272

So going on the July 12 and returning July 21 would cost £542 return.

Book via Opodo

There are other routes available via London Heathrow, but we believe the above routes and prices to be the best.

From the airport

All international flights arrive at Toronto Pearson International Airport, not to be confused with Billy Pearson Toronto City Airport right near the stadium.

It is 17 miles north west of the city centre.

Air Transat flights arrive into and depart from Terminal 3 (pictured).

To get into town, catch the 58A bus from outside the Terminal.

It runs every 15 minutes from 06:00 to 02:00 and takes you to Lawrence West Bus Station right at the heart of town, a few blocks north of Union Station.

From there, you can get a taxi to your hotel for pretty cheap, or get the subway.

If you're staying elsewhere in town, there are other bus services too. Go here for details

A taxi into town from outside the terminal to the city centre would cost about $40


To the stadium

The Rogers Centre lies on the banks of Lake Ontario in the Toronto Entertainment District.

Getting there is easy. It's so unbelievably close to the centre of town that you would probably spend more time queuing for a train or in traffic on a bus than you would walking.

From Union Station, walk south west down Front Street West and turn left onto Blue Jay Way. It's a pleasant 10-minute walk and it's very well signposted.

If you're travelling from elsewhere in the city, or from a different city, perhaps by car, this information guide will be helpful.


Hotels (All prices are per person, per night in a twin or double room)

Bargain - £23.19
Canada's Best Value Inn at 650 Evans Avenue, is a comfortable two-star hotel in the Alderwood part of the city.

This is 10 miles west of Toronto centre, but it's just one straight road into town and to the stadium.

You can walk five minutes to Long Branch Go Station and get the train into Union Station on the A line.

Budget - £35.30
One of the best value hotels in Toronto is the Clarion Hotel and Suites at 592 Sherbourne Street in St James Town.

It's a two-star rating can be deceiving. The tradition décor makes the surroundings grand, and the breakfast buffet comes highly recommended.

Comfortable - £45.10
Situated right next to the Garden District, the three-star Ramada Plaza (pictured) brings style and class at a reasonable nightly price.

It has a fitness centre, swimming pool and even squash courts. It's just a few blocks north of Union Station and within easy reach of all the sights.

Luxury £56
On the same road a few doors down at 225 Jarvis Street, the Grand Hotel and Suites is a stylish way to do Toronto. The grand deluxe rooms are spacious and luxurious.

It has a fitness centre, swimming pool and spa. It's best feature is the rooftop patio, which has brilliant views of the city.

All these hotels can be booked through booking.com and can all be cancelled free of charge up to 24 hours before arrival. Payment is usually taken on arrival at the hotel, but check terms and conditions carefully.

Top 10 Sights
1.CNN Tower (breathtaking views of the city)
2.Casa Loma Castle
3.Art Gallery of Ontario
4.Royal Antario Museum
5.Toronto Zoo
6.Toronto Sculpture Garden
7.Toronto Islands (beaches, amusement park)
8.Ontario Place Water Park
9.Air Canada Centre (for basketball and ice hockey games)
10.Harboufront Centre (marina and gardens)

Pubs
The city has plenty of bars and restaurants that speak for themselves, but there is one particular attraction Reds will want to check out.

The Main Event Sports Bar and Grill, at 2368 Yonge Street, is set to be the base for reds during this trip. There are loads of screens and you will be able to watch MLS games.

It is the 'headquarters' of the Toronto Manchester United Supports Club. Here's a sample of the atmosphere. Not very OOT, is it?



The club's chairman, Michael Singer, said he hoped the pub would host many reds and that the club will be planning many events. Here is their website.

You can also email Michael directly for help, information and possible special offers on hotel bookings. Email chairman@muscc.net

Practical information
The currency is the Canadian dollar. At the moment, Althams gives the best conversion rate.

Police/fire/ambulance – call 911 in an emergency. For police, call 416-808-2222 in a non emergency

Toronto General Hospital is at 200 Elizabeth Street near the University of Toronto and Queens Park and College Metro stops.

Internet cafe – try Net Space at 275 Queen Street in China Town.

The British Consulate -General is at 777 Bay Street. Details of services here.

If you're calling home or UK mobile phones from Toronto, remove the first 0 and add 01144.

More resources
City map

Downtown map

GO Schedule finder
Travel guide