York suites in South Core: 12 & 14 York St, near the waterfront

A real StayToronto York three-bedroom, two-bathroom suite with sofa bed. The photograph shows this suite's living room, not a view or layout promised across the building.

The York suites are at 12 & 14 York Street in Toronto's South Core, about a five-minute walk from the water at York Street Slip and eight minutes from Union's Front Street frontage. Choose York for a short stay that puts the trains and the lake within walking distance, with ten layouts to match different sleeping arrangements.

The address is inland. If your idea of a waterfront stay is a lakefront balcony, this is the wrong building to choose on location alone.

Where are the York suites, exactly?

York is StayToronto's name for its suites in ICE Condominiums. The City's urban design awards report identifies the development at 12 and 14 York Street in South Core. The towers sit north of Harbour Street and the Gardiner Expressway; Queens Quay West and Lake Ontario are south.

If you searched for “waterfront york suites”, that is the useful correction. You walk to the waterfront from York. You do not step out of the building onto it.

StayToronto's CN Tower area page and Financial District overview describe different reasons to use this same address. For the wider station-area comparison, use our guide to choosing a base around Union.

How far is the lake from York?

Walk south along York Street, beneath the Gardiner and across Harbour Street. Love Park is on the northeast corner of York and Queens Quay West. The park is the first stop; the water is across Queens Quay.

Here are the walks side by side, measured from the mapped 12 York point:

• Love Park's southwest path entrance near Queens Quay: about 0.29 km, four minutes.
• The water's edge at York Street Slip: about 0.35 km, five minutes, crossing Queens Quay and continuing to the slip's eastern edge.
• Union Station's Front Street frontage: about 0.60 km, eight minutes, using the York Street approach and Front Street sidewalk.
• Jack Layton Ferry Terminal's ticket entrance: about 0.71 km, ten minutes, via Queens Quay and the Bay Street approach.

These are rounded OpenStreetMap pedestrian-route estimates, not timed walks from a suite door.

Love Park, at 96 Queens Quay West, has a heart-shaped pond, trees and movable seating. It is a useful place to sit before or after a waterfront walk, rather than another attraction that needs a whole morning.

Across Queens Quay, York Street Slip brings you to the harbour. Farther east, Harbour Square Park and the ferry-terminal promenade form part of the same waterfront area. For the Island ferry, the destination is 9 Queens Quay West at Bay Street, with the terminal set back south of the intersection.

For October 2026, the City's ferry page lists autumn service through 13 October, then the winter schedule to Ward's Island from 14 October. An October stay still gives you an Island option; it does not give you the summer timetable.

Which of York's ten layouts fits your trip?

The York suite lineup runs from a studio to three bedrooms. Every listed layout includes in-suite laundry, a dishwasher, Wi-Fi and air conditioning.

Start with who needs a separate bedroom. Then count bathrooms. A sofa bed adds a sleeping option; a den label does not establish another bedroom or bed.

1. Studio: the starting point for a solo traveller or couple comfortable sharing one open sleeping and living space. Choose it when a separate bedroom would add little to the trip.
2. Studio · Sofa Bed: suits friends comfortable sharing an open room and using a sofa bed. It does not provide separate-bedroom privacy.
3. 1 Bedroom: for a solo traveller or couple who wants the bedroom separate from the living area. A useful step up when one person goes to bed earlier.
4. 1 Bedroom + Den: suits a couple spending downtime in the suite who value extra space beyond the bedroom. The den is not a second bedroom or a confirmed sleeping place.
5. 1 Bedroom + Den · Sofa Bed: suits a family comfortable using a sofa bed who also values a den for time in the suite. The sofa bed is listed explicitly; the den label does not confirm another bed.
6. 1 Bedroom · Sofa Bed: suits a family happy to give the bedroom to early sleepers and use the sofa bed for others. There is no den, and the sofa bed does not give its sleeper a separate bedroom.
7. 2 Bed / 1 Bath · Sofa Bed: for a family or friends who need two bedrooms and are comfortable sharing one bathroom. The sofa bed adds flexibility, but everyone still shares that bathroom.
8. 2 Bed / 2 Bath: for two sleeping groups who value both bedroom separation and a second bathroom. This is the first layout I would compare for two couples whose morning plans start together.
9. 2 Bed / 2 Bath · Sofa Bed: suits friends with overlapping morning plans who need the sofa bed as well as both bedrooms. Choose the two-bathroom version when sharing one bathroom would be inconvenient.
10. 3 Bed / 2 Bath · Sofa Bed: the largest bedroom configuration in York's lineup. Start here when three separate bedrooms matter more than fitting everyone into fewer bedrooms with shared sleeping space.

For a family or group, my first cut is simple: if someone needs their own bedroom, remove the options that depend on a den or sofa bed for that person. That question works on any accommodation listing: “Who gets a bedroom, and who is using the additional sleeping space?”

What does staying in South Core make easier?

Union is the reason to choose York when a train arrival and waterfront walks belong to the same trip. Use the street approach along York Street toward Front Street. Our PATH guide and Union SkyWalk guide cover those networks separately; neither makes this a promised indoor train-to-suite route.

For Pearson, UP Express lists 28 minutes between Union and the airport. Walking through the station, waiting for the train and reaching your airport terminal are additional parts of the journey. The one-night stopover guide handles that decision in detail.

Along Queens Quay, 509 Harbourfront and Union-bound 510 Spadina streetcars serve Union. The 510 also has shorter branches, so the destination sign matters. For the short York-to-Union trip itself, I would walk rather than head south to board a streetcar back north.

As of 5 October 2026, an adult TTC fare is CA$3.30 by PRESTO or contactless debit or credit, including a mobile wallet, with a two-hour transfer. Monthly fare capping began on 1 September 2026: after 47 paid trips in a calendar month, further TTC trips are free when you keep using the same eligible card or device.

For the rest of the immediate area, go straight to the detail you need: where to eat around South Core, the CN Tower and Rogers Centre stay guide, or Scotiabank Arena arrivals and exits.

Who should choose somewhere other than York?

Choose York for the combination of Union, South Core and the waterfront walk. Do not choose it for a quiet residential street or a holiday built around a lakefront balcony. These are downtown towers beside a major road corridor.

If being at the foot of Yonge is the location you had in mind, compare our Yonge suites Harbourfront guide. Use the address and your intended walking route to make that comparison, rather than treating “waterfront” as a promise of a water-facing room.

Skip driving between York and the waterfront just because you brought a car to Toronto. This is a short walk, and the useful distinction is between reaching the lake and staying directly beside it.

Before you go

• Confirm the exact York suite's permitted guest count, bed arrangement and photographs. The layout suggestions above are comparisons, not occupancy limits; a building photo does not guarantee a balcony or view.
• Allow extra time beyond the mapped walks for lifts, luggage, crossings and your actual station entrance or platform.
• Check TTC service alerts and the City ferry page for your travel day. Routes, accessibility and sailings change.
• Review the complete live total and terms for your dates before booking.

StayToronto is not affiliated with Waterfront Toronto, the City of Toronto, TTC, Metrolinx, UP Express or the venues named here. Official links are provided for trip planning.

About this guide

Written by Declan Moss. Building and operating facts were checked against official or first-party sources on 5 October 2026. Walking figures were calculated from OpenStreetMap pedestrian routes on the same date. Sources are linked above.

Choose your York layout

If the South Core location fits, compare York suites for your dates, starting with bedrooms and bathrooms. If your days belong elsewhere, browse StayToronto's other downtown locations.