Cheapest option for Toronto /NYC with 2 teens

[medianewbie]

I want to take DS (18) & DD (16) to Toronto for 5-7 days. I'd really like 2 of those days to be in NYC if possible.
On a shoestring. Happy to stay Uni accommodation/ YHA accommodation (does it exist in USA / Canada ?)
Where is best to find cheap flights ?
Do I need to book visas separately?

We can go 1-10 Aug or 1st week Jan.

@Jazzappledelish
Yes that's why I'd posted - to ask advice re where best to look for cheap flights, acccomodation etc. Other posters have given me specific advice which is helpful.

I can see that if flights are, say, £500 each, accom is £500 each for, say, 10 days, then I'm short of, say, £500 each for food & spends. So, I'll need to look into accom options (point of thread) as flights are a fixed cost, & we need to eat.
Thank you to the posters who've suggested different accomodation options to the hostel / Uni accom I'd already thought of for our budget Toronto trip.

It seems odd to spend that much money to go somewhere your DS wasn't sure about/didn't like, to see if he likes it more the second time around.

I much preferred other big Canadian cities to Toronto - Montreal was amazing (IMO), Quebec was fab (much smaller though), and Vancouver was great too. Toronto was OK, but I definitely don't feel any need to go back, and it's not somewhere I'd recommend to anyone else (nothing 'wrong' with it, as such, but just preferred other places, and can't really recall anywhere that memorable).
We went in March and it was on the chilly side (although lovely and sunny), but Jan would be hopeless for doing touristy things. Canadians are properly geared up for the cold, and are used to it, but it really is quite unforgiving.

Your son has his whole life ahead of him to go back and experience Toronto again (and I'd say he'd get more out of it if he waits a while before visiting, as he is likely to look at things with a different perspective/want something different from the trip). I'd use your budget to do something else.

I lived in Scotland for 20 years and I can tell you that winter in Toronto is far, far colder. I have a son who has lived in Toronto for 15 years so been many times. I did February 2022 and I would never go again at that time again with it being that cold.
You cannot be outside for any length of time at all, even your eye lashes can freeze. It was minus 30 c while I was there, but with added on windchill it was more like minus 45 c. Honestly, If I were you I would go in August.

Airtransat flies direct from Glasgow, you add costs with luggage, headphones etc though so pack carefully. We visited over Christmas and it was bitterly cold with many attractions closed or on shorter hours. Niagara was snowed up and buses sporadic, major traffic gridlock caused by US border. You can do as a day trip but time it carefully.

Re spending money, remember to factor in the cost of tipping and sales tax, even in canada. The price you see is not what you pay and i think their standard tipping is 15-20%

It does make a dent on coffees / lunch etc out, and factoring in for other tips (taxis etc) and NYC is way worse (i know you’ve said you’ll probably skip that leg)

I lived in NYC and wouldn’t visit in August (humider than satans ball crack) or early Jan as the cold is miserable

Not sure if this is helpful however DH & I visited Chicago & Washington DC last year in February. Chicago was brutally cold (think -15c conditions) however it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. We brought long johns and wrapped up well. Once you were outside for about 30 minutes, you quickly got used to it and people are still living their lives despite the cold weather.

We loved having the museums to ourselves and seeing attractions that would otherwise be busy plus we saved at least £2k by going in the low season.

I would just wrap up well if you decide to go in January.

Yeah, this. You can't see nyc in two days.

Yes, i think spending thousands because DS is having anxiety or whatever about Toronto is misguided. Why is he "desperate "?

I've been there, and truly there isn't much of historical or cultural interest.

If you really want Canada, save up and do Montreal and Quebec.

Niagara is a low-class tourist trap town.

@ZeldaWillTellYourFortune
@ReviewingTheSituation
I'm clear about why it needs to be Toronto if possible.
Only Qu is when & how to try to make that happen with so little £.

@LittleMy77 thank you - Yes Ds has told me this from trip so we're prepared x
@Londre thank you - that sounds encouraging & what I was thinking... x
@Londonnight - ah, that is my fear re weather - yes, that's crazy cold indeed.
@LIZS - thanks, good advice. Ds flew with Transat & said they were great.

I can see that if flights are, say, £500 each, accom is £500 each for, say, 10 days, then I'm short of, say, £500 each for food & spends. So, I'll need to look into accom options (point of thread) as flights are a fixed cost, & we need to eat.

Rather than completely speculate on the flight price… why don’t you actually confirm the price? Takes a few minutes at best. I think you will see that £500 adult round trip from Glasgow is, well, optimistic.

The college trip he went on -

Did he fund? Did he track his spending? That might give you an idea of expenditure for your family.

We found everything way more expensive than you might expect, with the exception of Go Trains to Niagara who were running an offer. Dd lived over there for a while and supermarkets etc were more than here. The hotels we stayed in all had microwaves in mini communal kitchens to heat food and food deliveries were accepted. A single dish or breakfast in the hotel or eat-in restaurant was upwards of 25$. Tbh I doubt a kid on a packaged trip would be aware of the costs as so much would be included or bought at a group rate. Race across the World was all very well but spent minimal time in the area.

£500 for 10 days' accommodation is unlikely too. Minimum £200 per night per room and easily double.

you might not get direct flights from scotland in the winter, toronto might be a seasonal flight

@lucylousweetie Trip was funded so no opportunity really to price check. That is why I started the thread - to find the best places to do that research & gain any general advice from those who've been / live there.

@LIZS - thank you that is useful to know. Agree re RotW.

There’s really not many airlines that fly Glasgow to Toronto

so I echo the PPs saying - get an idea of flight cost and go from there!

There’s no secret to booking flights to Toronto.

Just Google “flights to Toronto from Scotland’s airports”

Otherwise you risk spending a lot of time and energy on planning and getting your son’s hopes up - when in reality, it is not possible on your budget

It had occured to me not to discuss this with my son before checking I could afford it thanks ...
I was simply asking what the cheapest options might be as I have not travelled for a while & I'm well aware that my budget is small.

Thank you to those who have suggested good places to check flight prices.
Thanks to those who've been helpful about hotels & tourist trips & food costs.

Using Google Flights @medianewbie I just checked flights for Glasgow / Edinburgh to Toronto for 1 - 10 Aug and for 3 people, the cheapest flights from Glasgow are £3k total and from Edinburgh £2k total.

Flying late Dec is cheaper (no surprise there) with Glasgow flights approx £1.9k.

What in Jan? Could not see any prices?

OP literally all o said was once you firm up flight costs - then you’ll know of you can afford. There’s very limited airlines that fly to Toronto from Scotland so I was just suggesting to avoid you spending lots of time on this when the crux of it is - how much are the flights!

Yes I think this

Iirc there were Glasgow flights in winter.

There are direct flights both in winter and in August, which is why I've given the OP the lowest prices for both periods in my earlier post. I wasn't making it up. 😂It takes 5 seconds to check on Google Flights, it's not brain surgery. Air Transat from Glasgow or Air Canada from Edinburgh.

Apologies

and decent price!

There is no cheap in America, Canada is a little less expensive but still expensive.
It's not just getting there, once there everything is expensive.

I can't speak for Toronto but for New York you can get cheaper accommodation if you aren't fussy but it's still £150 a night in summer and anything cheap is already booked for this year. Once in New York there's a few cheap eat options eg I found a kiosk near Times Square with 2 slices of pizza and a can for £3 (plus tax) and there's lots of mini supermarkets with hot food to go. Free options include Staten Island ferry, Harlem jazz museum, walk the high line, Central Park on foot.