Waterfront Festival Mississauga ~ Parking, Shuttle Bus, GO Train, a google Map, and some Pictures of the Port Credit Waterfront

Update Waterfront Festival 2012 Father's Day Weekend June 15, 16, 17 No shuttle buses this year, but parking areas as usual plus Taste of Port Credit.

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It's here ! For Father's Day weekend! June 18, 19, 20 ! The Mississauga Waterfront Festival! In Port Credit (Ontario, Canada).

The MWF gets better and better, and this year promises to be fabulous!  Here are some pictures of Port Credit waterfront views and some tips on how to get to here and still be in a happy frame of mind to enjoy it all!

See some pictures of Memorial park and Port Credit waterfront area at the end of this post, but first, we have to get you here!

Free Shuttle Bus : Look for the A-frame signs
The easiest way to get to Port Credit this weekend is to take the free shuttle buses from several pick up points in Mississauga: Living Arts Centre, South Common Mall, Clarkson GO station (Clarkson Go shuttle will make an extra stop at Saddington Park and drop passengers off on Lake Street).

Shuttle Bus Hours of Operation:

• Friday June 18 -- 7:00 p.m. - 11:30.pm
• Saturday June 19 --- 11:00 a.m. - 11:30 p.m.
• Sunday June 20  -- 11:00 a.m. - 6:30 p.m.

Not only won't you have to worry about traffic and parking, you have a built in DD should you stop in at one of the many pubs and restaurants in this area.

I set up a googlemap (below) with the shuttle bus pick up points, and the GO stations in Port Credit and Clarkson. Have a look and see if this helps orient you.

GO Train
Take the GO train from Union or points east or from Oakville and points west to Port Credit Go station, then follow the crowd south and west to Memorial Park. See this post for more GO Transit info.

Drive and Park
If circumstances dictate that you must drive yourself to the Waterfront Festival, then here are some tips on finding where to park.

Parking in Port Credit is a challenge during festival times, so try to park away from the centre of the action around Snug Harbour restaurant and Memorial Park.

It well may be faster to park a few blocks away from Port Credit village and walk. And plan your route so you stay either east or west of the Credit River: Don't drive on Lakeshore through the village or across the Credit River bridge if you can avoid it. You can thank me later :-)

From the West (Clarkson, Lorne Park, Oakville)

• Go east on Lakeshore Road West, then turn right (south) on Mississauga Road. Look for on-street parking, or try the Saddington Park lots.
  
• Go east on Lakeshore Road West, then turn left (north) on Mississauga Road. Turn right on Front Street North (just before railway underpass) and look for on-street parking here on the west side of the Credit River. This is for early birds only :-)

Watch the No Parking sides of the street, and private drives.

From the east (Etobicoke, Toronto)
This is more of a challenge, as parking is at a premium in this end of the Village. Look for on-street parking on side streets, or along the waterfront south of Lakeshore and Hurontario. There are some paid lots here, but they fill fast.

Related / More information:
http://www.mississaugawaterfrontfestival.com/

Google Map Shuttle Locations, Waterfront Festival Locations
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View Mississauga Waterfront Festival Shuttle, GO Port Credit in a larger map

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Here are some of the sights on Mississauga's Waterfront at Port Credit. See you there!

Lighthouse in Port Credit ~ Memorial Park

Lakeshore Road connects the landmark lighthouse on the west side to Memorial Park on the east; this green area will be a sea of tents, stages, vendors and fun!

Lakeshore Road Pedestrian Underpass Port Credit Harbour

There is a pedestrian walkway under the Lakeshore Road bridge on the east side of the Credit River. There is a pedestrian walkway over the Credit River from the lighthouse that connects you to this underpass, so you don't have to worry about crossing busy Lakeshore Road.

Saddinton Park at Credit River Port Credit Harbour

How peaceful it looks, when there's no Festival on! This is the east boundary of Saddington Park at Front Street South; Parking is towards the west boundary at Mississauga Road South.

Sailboards, Sailboats on Mississauga's Waterfront

This is the waterfront, so look for all types of boats and watercraft along Lake Ontario and the Credit River.

Kayaks and Charter Fishing Boat ~ Port Credit Mississauga

Early morning kayakers and one of the deep lake charter fishing boats cross hulls at the mouth of the Credit River. Look for charter fishing boats moored south of the Lighthouse.

Sunrise Waterfront Mississauga Lake Ontario

The calm before the festival storm: If you are here at 6 a.m., you'll be treated to these peaceful, colorful views of the marina, river and lake.

See more Port Credit, Mississauga picrtures, restaurants etc : Use the search box.

GO Train Toronto Union Station to Port Credit Mississauga and Back

Schedule Update Effective June 29, 2013
GO Union to Port Credit (Lakeshore West line)  every 30 minutes.

See GO Transit for details.

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The easiest way to get from Toronto Union Station to Port Credit, especially if you do not know this area of Mississauga, may be by GO train. Port Credit parking can be a challenge, especially during summer festivals -- the Waterfront Festival, Port Credit in-water Boat Show, Canada Day, or the South Side Shuffle (jazz festival), etc.

Or maybe you're planning a Port Credit pub crawl along Lakeshore Road West; Using the GO train means you don't have to worry about a designated driver.

Port Credit GO Station

Here's the station in Port Credit. Trains run from Union Station in Toronto from 6 a.m. until quarter to one in the morning. (Use the Lakeshore West GO train and Bus schedule).

For example, on a Friday night, you could take the GO train at Union at 5:43 p.m., or 6:03, 6:43. or at 7:42 (trains leave Union hourly after the quarter to seven train.) and arrive in Port Credit station in about 25 minutes. The fare each way for an adult is $4.55 as of today's date. Return is $9.10.

On Saturday, Sunday or Holidays, GO trains leave Union hourly, at 43 minutes past the hour (roughly quarter to the hour).

Maybe you just want to stroll along the Port Credit section of the Waterfront Trail. The picture below shows what you see when you come out of the Port Credit GO station on Queen Street East (ie south side), looking down Helene Street North -- it's only a short walk to Lake Ontario (road end) and the Waterfront Trail.

View from south side Port Credit GO station

This intersection is about one block west of Hurontario (Highway 10) and three short blocks north of Lakeshore Road East (Highway 2).

If you don't know Port Credit, the easiest way to go into the village is down Helene Street to Lakeshore. All the pubs, restaurants, festival venues, etc., are along Lakeshore, or can be seen from Lakeshore.

The Credit River and the lighthouse are to the right along Lakeshore, about 4 blocks; Ten Restaurant and Wine Bar is to the left one block along Lakeshore, on the south side.

Using the Friday night pub crawl as an example, you can catch the GO train at Port Credit and head back to Union Station at 9:44 p.m., 10:44 p.m., and 11:44 p.m. (quarter to midnight; last train) (see GO schedule Port Credit).

But if you miss the last train into Union, you can take the Mississauga Transit (23 East) bus to Long Branch, then take the TTC from Long Branch to wherever you need to go in Toronto. The 23 East Lakeshore bus stops at Port Credit GO station as well as along Lakeshore Road East, and goes to Long Branch every 15-25 minutes (depending on weekday or weekend schedule) until roughly 1 a.m. Mind you, this will take a lot longer than the GO train, and cost more (two fares - Mississauga Transit and TTC).

Much faster to hop in a cab in Port Credit, and go to Long Branch -- it's about $15, depending on fare increases, and maybe 10 minutes driving time.

Here's a googlemap to help sort it all out: View Larger Map

I put the link in to the map page - I hope it works all right. When I just searched Port Credit GO station in googlemaps, it gave the view of all southern GTA. In the picture above, the GO station is 'B' and the lighthouse is 'C'.

TIP To search this blog for more Port Credit, Lakeshore, or GO transit posts, use the more accurate and satisfying google search box (not the 'search labels blogger feature, which misses most searches).

UPDATE March 14 2009
GO Transit increased fares by $.25 (25 cents) per ticket effective today.
GO Transit site will show correct fares.

Update New Year's Eve December 31, 2009
GO Transit Free tonight - see GO for information