Written by Jocelyn Wong and Rachel Lau
Ontario has lifted almost all restrictions on the general public, effective February 28, aside from the mask mandate. This includes the proof of vaccination for non-essential indoor areas and capacity limitations, including restaurants and fitness centres. However, Premier Doug Ford commented, on the 27th, that Ontario isn’t anywhere close to removing the mask mandate. As for international travellers, fully vaccinated adults are no longer required to take PCR tests. They can take rapid tests the day before arriving in said country. Exceptions to this are applied to children. View some of the COVID statistics used to make the decisions in Canada below.
Source: “COVID-19 Data Explorer.” Our World in Data, 2019, ourworldindata.org/explorers/coronavirus-data-explorer. Accessed 4 Mar. 2022.
Some activities you could do after the restrictions are lifted:
- In-person sports watching
MLSE (Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment) stated that The Toronto Maple Leafs and Raptors are preparing for reopening after COVID restrictions are lifted in Ontario. How exciting is that!
Photo by Andre Furtado from Pexels
2. Concerts venue
As other entertainment businesses are reopening without mandates and restrictions, it is time for you to support your favourite artists! Some upcoming artists that are coming to Toronto in March are; Mitski, Tones and I, Girl in Red, and many more!
Photo by Aditya Chinchure on Unsplash
3. Social Gatherings
There are no longer limits to the size of gatherings for both indoor and outdoor. Go socialize and interact with people!
Photo by Steven Lasry on Unsplash
4. Dine-In in Restaurants
Now, restaurants are not required to ask for proof of vaccination, though some are still maintaining this policy. But now, you can go out and eat with your family without this mandate!
Photo by Alex Haney on Unsplash
5. Festivals
Many festivals are running again due to the reopening of Ontario. TIFF(Toronto International Film Festival), Luminato Festival, CNE and others are returning with a big comeback! Now you can have more options and choices to choose from when you decide to do something fun!
Photo by Filip Mroz on Unsplash
Works Cited
Neufeld, Abby. “Ontario Lifts Nearly All Major COVID-19 Restrictions.” Toronto, CTV News, Mar. 2022, toronto.ctvnews.ca/ontario-lifts-nearly-all-major-covid-19-restrictions-1.5800169. Accessed 4 Mar. 2022.
Newton, Paula. “Canada Eases Covid-19 Testing Rules for Vaccinated Travelers.” CNN, CNN, 15 Feb. 2022, http://www.cnn.com/travel/article/canada-eases-testing-rules-vaccinated-travelers/index.html. Accessed 4 Mar. 2022.
The Canadian Press. “Ontario slightly accelerates lifting restrictions on sporting event attendance.” TSN, Bell Media, 14 February 2022, https://www.tsn.ca/ontario-slightly-accelerates-lifting-restrictions-on-sporting-event-attendance-1.1759634. Accessed 3 March 2022.
Ziafati, Noushin, and Holly McKenzie. “Ontario reacts as province lifts most COVID-19 restrictions | Globalnews.ca.” Global News, Corus, 1 March 2022, https://globalnews.ca/news/8652310/ontario-businesses-residents-reaction-covid-restrictions-lifted/. Accessed 3 March 2022.
Titan Times 