Stratford Day Trip from Toronto: Festival and Travel Tips

Stratford, Ontario, is about 143 kilometres west of Toronto, according to The Canadian Encyclopedia, and the drive is roughly two hours. It is home to the Stratford Festival, which opened in a tent on July 13, 1953. Since July 2026 GO Transit has run trains to Stratford, but the weekday timetable does not suit a day trip from Toronto, while the weekend one does. Confirm trains, buses and show dates with the operators before you travel.

Distance and driving time

The Canadian Encyclopedia places Stratford 143 kilometres west of Toronto and 52 kilometres northeast of London. A Toronto tourism guide gives the drive as about two hours, taking Highway 401 west and then Highway 8 into town. Allow extra time on Friday afternoons and holiday weekends, when highway traffic out of the city is heavier.

Stratford is a smaller place than it feels during the theatre season. The 2011 census figure given by The Canadian Encyclopedia is 30,886, and the city is on the Avon River. The same tourism guide says parking near the theatres is paid and that a festival shuttle links the lots to the theatres.

Getting there without a car

GO train. Metrolinx extended the Kitchener line to Stratford on July 6, 2026, with daily service all year. According to NOW Toronto, which reported the timetable on July 5, 2026, weekday trains left Stratford at 6:16 a.m. and reached Union Station at 8:47 a.m., and a return train left Union Station at 4:52 p.m. and arrived in Stratford at 7:28 p.m. That pattern suits commuters going to Toronto, not a Toronto visitor who wants a full day in Stratford.

The weekend timetable fits better. The same report lists a train from Union Station at 8:49 a.m., arriving at 11:16 a.m., and a return train from Stratford at 6:16 p.m., arriving at 8:45 p.m. Each trip takes about two and a half hours. News reports say Metrolinx may adjust schedules with ridership, and that not every door opens at the Stratford platform. Check the current GO Transit timetable for your date. For the station in Toronto, see our Union Station article.

VIA Rail. Corridor trains between Toronto and London have been reported to call at Stratford, but I found no official 2026 timetable, and third-party sites disagree about travel times. Confirm with VIA Rail before planning around it.

Festival bus. The Stratford Festival ran a coach service called Stratford Direct from downtown Toronto during the 2026 season. The festival’s page listed departures at 10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. from a hotel at Front and Simcoe streets and returns at 5 p.m. on performance days, with an 11 p.m. return on Fridays and Saturdays when there was an evening show. It was limited to ticket holders, needed a reservation, and the listed 2026 fare was $42 return. Details for 2027 were not available when this page was checked.

The Stratford Festival

The festival began with a local businessman, Tom Patterson, who in 1951 formed a committee to explore an annual drama festival in his hometown, partly to revive its struggling economy, according to The Canadian Encyclopedia. He brought in the English director Tyrone Guthrie, who became the first artistic director. The first season opened on July 13, 1953, in a tent, with Richard III and All’s Well That Ends Well, and Alec Guinness in lead roles. Parks Canada also dates the founding of the festival to 1953.

The tent was replaced in 1957 by the Festival Theatre, designed by Robert Fairfield at a cost of more than $2 million. The festival later bought the Avon Theatre in downtown Stratford in 1963, which seats 1,083, and in 2002 added the Studio Theatre. The Tom Patterson Theatre has been used since 1971. The name has changed over time: it was the Stratford Shakespearean Festival from 1953 to 1957 and the Stratford Festival from 1957 to 1999, with other forms after that.

The first season ran six weeks and 42 performances. Today the season is much longer. The festival’s 2026 season ran from late April to November 1, with the end date given as November 1 on its bus page. The festival announced its 2027 season in September 2026, its 75th, and one report gives a run from late April to late November. Treat that as provisional and look at the festival’s own calendar for the plays and dates.

The town

Settlement began in the 1830s, when the Canada Company chose and named the townsite on the Avon River as a focal point for settling the Huron Tract, according to The Canadian Encyclopedia. Stratford became a city in 1885. For about eighty years the railways were the main employer, with divisional offices and steam-engine repair shops, and the city lost about 2,000 jobs when diesel replaced steam in the 1950s. The theatre festival, founded in the middle of that period, is now the town’s best-known attraction. Our article on Toronto’s nineteenth-century railways covers the wider story of the lines that tied Ontario towns to the lake ports.

A Toronto tourism guide lists the riverside park and its swans, a path of about five kilometres along the Avon, the Stratford Perth Museum, and a Saturday-morning public market. It also notes that many downtown shops close on Sundays. Hours change, so check before you go.

Planning a day

With a matinee: arrive by late morning, eat lunch downtown, see an afternoon show, then walk the river before the return trip.
Without a show: the town and the river park can fill a half day. The tourism guide suggests May, September and October for milder weather and lighter crowds.
Evening show: a return the same night depends on the train or festival bus times, so check the last departure before you buy a ticket.

The same guide advises booking tickets six to eight weeks ahead for popular weekend evenings, and arriving at the theatre about thirty minutes before curtain. Ticket prices vary by production and date, so see the festival’s box office rather than relying on a figure here.

Other trips from Toronto

Stratford fits well with other places in southwestern Ontario; our guide to places near Toronto lists more. If you want theatre in Toronto itself, the Royal Alexandra Theatre has its own history. For other day trips, see Niagara Falls and Muskoka, or the Toronto festivals calendar if your visit could overlap with a city event.

Frequently asked questions

How far is Stratford from Toronto?

The Canadian Encyclopedia gives 143 kilometres west of Toronto. The drive is about two hours in normal traffic.

Can I take the GO train to Stratford for the day?

On weekends, yes, according to the timetable reported in July 2026: a morning train from Union Station and an evening return. On weekdays the trains run toward Toronto in the morning and back in the late afternoon, so a day trip does not fit. Check the current GO Transit schedule.

When was the Stratford Festival founded?

Its first season opened on July 13, 1953, in a tent. The idea came from Tom Patterson in 1951, with the director Tyrone Guthrie as the first artistic director.

Is there a bus from Toronto to Stratford?

The festival ran a Stratford Direct coach for ticket holders during 2026, with a listed fare of $42 return. Confirm whether it runs in 2027 and what it costs.

When is the Stratford Festival season?

The 2026 season ended on November 1. The 2027 season was announced in September 2026, and one report gives late April to late November. Check the festival’s own calendar.

Sources

The Canadian Encyclopedia, “Stratford Shakespeare Festival”
The Canadian Encyclopedia, “Stratford”
Parks Canada, “Stratford Festival” (June 2019)
Stratford Festival, Stratford Direct bus information, 2026 season (accessed October 2026; page text seen as a search excerpt only)
Metrolinx, “GO train service to Stratford begins July 6” (2026)
NOW Toronto, “GO train service to Stratford launches Monday as Kitchener line expands” (July 5, 2026)
CP24, “GO train service returning to Stratford with daily trips to Toronto” (April 17, 2026)
CTV News Kitchener, “Stratford Festival reveals 2027 season lineup” (September 24, 2026; headline only, body not available)
Toronto Tourism, Stratford day trip guide (unofficial; accessed October 2026)

Last verified: November 2026

Cite this page

APA: History of Toronto. (2026, November 1). Day Trip to Stratford from Toronto: Festival, Trains and Town. https://historyoftoronto.ca/blog/day-trip-stratford-from-toronto

MLA: “Day Trip to Stratford from Toronto: Festival, Trains and Town.” History of Toronto, 1 Nov 2026, https://historyoftoronto.ca/blog/day-trip-stratford-from-toronto. Accessed .

Chicago: History of Toronto. “Day Trip to Stratford from Toronto: Festival, Trains and Town.” Last modified November 1, 2026. https://historyoftoronto.ca/blog/day-trip-stratford-from-toronto.

The pages have no named author, so the site is given as the author. Add the date you read the page if your style asks for it.