Ontario's largest outlet and shopping mall — 200+ stores in a loop format that takes hours to complete. The Bass Pro Shops alone is a tourist attraction with a 12,000-gallon fish tank. Serious outlet deals on designer brands.
Neighbourhood: Vaughan · Address: 1 Bass Pro Mills Dr, Vaughan, ON · Hours: Mon–Sat 10:00 AM – 9:00 PM | Sun 11:00 AM – 7:00 PM · Phone: (905) 879-2110
Why Visit
Vaughan Mills is where you can knock out outlet shopping for 200+ brands under one roof and see an indoor fish tank bigger than most apartments. It’s the only GTA spot where Bass Pro Shops, LEGOLAND Discovery Centre, and major style steals converge.
What Makes It Unique
Unlike Toronto’s other malls, Vaughan Mills is built in a massive loop—so you do a literal lap—making it feel more like a retail expedition than an errand. The Bass Pro Shops is a legit wildlife-themed experience, and only here can you mix deals on Nike, Coach, and designer outlets with one of the GTA’s few LEGOLANDs.
Vaughan Mills is Ontario's largest single-level shopping mall and one of Canada's most distinctive retail destinations — a massive outdoor-themed loop of over 200 stores designed around the idea of an open-air main street enclosed under one enormous roof. The building is organized into six neighbourhoods, each with different architectural styling meant to evoke places like Orchard Hill, Adventure Cove, and Streetscape, which gives the mall an unusual sense of variety as you move through it.
The anchor stores include Bass Pro Shops, which occupies a theatrical space complete with a massive indoor waterfall and wildlife displays — worth visiting even if you have no interest in outdoor gear. Sport Chek, H&M, Zara, and dozens of mid-range and outlet-format retailers fill the rest of the loop. Specific outlet brands like Nike, Coach, Kate Spade, and Tommy Hilfiger operate at discounted prices compared to their full-price counterparts downtown.
Legoland Discovery Centre is located inside Vaughan Mills and offers a solid half-day for families with young children — miniature Toronto models, rides, and building challenges occupy kids while adults browse. Canada's Wonderland is literally minutes away, making Vaughan Mills a natural extension of a theme park day trip when rain cancels outdoor plans.
The food court is large and diverse, with the usual quick-service suspects joined by several Canadian and ethnic-food options that reflect the Vaughan area's demographic mix. Table service restaurants line the perimeter of the mall. Parking is enormous and free — a refreshing contrast to downtown Toronto's paid parkades. Weekend crowds can be substantial, particularly on holiday weekends, but the loop design means traffic generally moves and the scale of the building absorbs crowds better than its floor plan might suggest. Transit access is available via York Region Transit, with a dedicated bus terminal.