mist garden toronto

The mist garden is one of Toronto's secret cooling spots

Tucked away in Yorkville is the ultimate urban solution to those summer days that are just too hot to handle: a mist garden, complete with leafy shade, seating, and spritzes of water to cool you down.

Belonging to the ultra-bougie Four Seasons, this mist garden sits on Yorkville Ave. and, surprisingly, is completely open to the public, meaning you can get a bit of that $700-per-night hotel room experience minus the exclusive price tag. 

mist garden toronto

The Mist Garden is located next to Yorkville's Four Seasons Hotel. 

The small urban garden was designed by Nak Design and prolific public space designer Claude Cormier + Associés (the same firm behind the cat- and dog-themed parks).

mist garden toronto

The rose garden has red seats where people can enjoy the shade. 

Designed in a rose shape (which is best appreciated from an aerial view via a room at the Four Seasons), the area is a swirling green oasis of yew trees, boxwood shrubs, and barberi bushes, replete with scattered red chairs for the ultimate summertime escape. 

The design is an extension of the hotel's forecourt, where red and grey granite form rose patterns around a towering four-storey cast-iron red birdbath. 

mist garden toronto

The Mist Garden is an extension of the hotel's forecourt, which has a four-storey bird bath. 

Despite its grandeur, the birdbath actually plays second fiddle to the garden's more interactive main feature: a rose-inscribed wall designed by a the Montreal-based sculptor Linda Covit.

This cool-looking barrier becomes the backdrop for the thick clouds of mist which spill out of grates from the ground in a refreshing show that lasts for about two and a half minutes. 

mist garden toronto

The mist comes out every ten minutes and lasts for around two to three minutes. 

Making an appearance every ten minutes, the fog definitely never gets intense enough to reach all the little garden loungers, but if there's an easterly wind you might get lucky and catch some revitalizing droplets on yourself. 

The spritzes start at noon every day and last until 11 p.m. at night, when the mist get some added dreaminess with the help of some soft glowing lights. 

The mist is activated during the summer only. It usually starts around the May long weekend and continues through Labour Day. The mist is controlled by someone inside the Four Seasons Hotel.

mist garden toronto

Lead photo by

Tanya Mok


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