Canada Life Place in London: Knights Games and Concerts by Car from Toronto

What is Canada Life Place, and what is on there?

Canada Life Place is the downtown arena in London, Ontario, at 99 Dundas Street, and it is the home of the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League. Many readers still know it as Budweiser Gardens. It opened in 2002 as the John Labatt Centre, took the Budweiser Gardens name in 2012, and became Canada Life Place after a naming agreement finalized in October 2024.

The arena's own site, Canada Life Place, lists the current calendar. At the time of writing it shows Knights home games, a run of touring comedians and concerts, family productions and the Broadway in London series, which the site gives as running from November 2026 into May 2027. Exact dates change each season, so check the official calendar and your ticket before you plan the day.

This guide is written from the curb: where cars park, how the drive from Toronto behaves, and what to do when the event ends late and you have a long way home.

When to go: Knights season and the concert calendar

The Knights play an OHL schedule that runs from the autumn into the new year and through the winter. Several of the early home games on the arena's calendar fall on Fridays, which is also the busiest night for traffic leaving Toronto. Concerts and touring shows are spread across the year, with Broadway in London running through the colder months and family shows such as ice productions appearing in February.

The practical point is that an evening event in London is not a short outing from Toronto. Doors, a three-hour show and the drive back add up to a late night. If you can attend a weekend matinee, or stay overnight, the day is easier.

The arena box office is open Monday to Friday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and on event days from three hours before the event. That window matters if you need to resolve a ticket problem or buy accessible seating in person.

Getting there from Toronto: the 190 km run

London is about 190 km from downtown Toronto, normally two hours on Highway 401 in clear conditions. See the Toronto to London page for the corridor. Highway 401 carries heavy truck traffic all week, and Friday afternoon is slower than a Tuesday morning.

Allow extra time for Friday departures leaving the GTA between 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. If the doors open at 6:30 p.m., leaving Toronto at 3 p.m. is a sensible target for a 7 p.m. puck drop on a weekday, with time for parking and dinner. Weather matters in winter: squalls and icy patches can slow the 401, and a delay is better absorbed with a margin than with speed.

Chauffeured service takes the driving out of the trip, which is the main reason groups book it. The booker shows the exact fare for your address and vehicle before you pay. Our London, Ontario limo page covers the city, and the London airport page explains arrivals at London International.

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Arriving at the arena: parking and the walking approach

Canada Life Place says it has over 8,000 parking spaces within walking distance of the building. Its parking page lists lots in the downtown area, including the South Lot at Canada Life Place at 100 King Street, the Covent Garden Market lot at 130 King Street, Museum London at 421 Ridout Street North and several lots along York, Talbot, Queens and Clarence streets. The lots are a mix of operators, and the page links to each operator for rates and rules.

The arena does not publish a drop-off zone for chauffeured vehicles. Our approach is to confirm the exact meeting spot with you in advance and to choose a street where the car can stop legally and leave quickly after the event. A side street a short walk from Dundas is more reliable than the front of the building on a Knights night.

If you drive yourself, pay attention to the lot that makes the post-event exit easiest. A lot that is a block further from the doors often empties faster than the one directly beside them.

The pickup plan after a late finish

An arena crowd leaves at once, and Dundas Street and King Street fill in the first quarter hour. A pickup plan that works looks like this.

1. Agree a meeting street away from the doors before the event.
2. Leave the building a few minutes before the end of the third period or the final song if you have a long drive ahead; otherwise wait inside for the first wave to clear.
3. Message the chauffeur when you are on the agreed corner, not before.
4. Settle the group, check seat belts and children's seats, and confirm the destination.

For an evening that finishes at 10 p.m., the drive back to Toronto takes roughly two hours, which means midnight arrival at best. If anyone in the group needs to be at work the next morning, staying the night in London may be the wiser plan.

Transit, VIA Rail and the other ways to get there

London Transit Commission buses serve downtown, and the arena site tells visitors to check local bus routes on London Transit. For a visitor from Toronto, the train is a real option. VIA Rail's Toronto to London page lists an average trip of 2 hours 27 minutes over 185 km, with 41 departures a week. The London station is on York Street, in the downtown core, a short distance from the arena.

The train wins for a solo traveller who plans to stay the night. For an evening return to Toronto, check the last train times against the end of the event before you commit; if there is no convenient return, a chauffeur or an overnight stay is the safer choice.

Groups, families and corporate hospitality

Hockey nights draw groups: families, colleagues, minor-hockey teams and clients. An Executive Sprinter carries 12 to 14 passengers with 12 or more bags, which suits a staff outing or a family reunion. A Luxury SUV carries up to six with five or six large bags, and an Executive Sedan takes up to three. Stretch limousines and mini-coaches are confirmed at booking. Our party bus and Sprinter van pages explain the larger options.

For corporate hosts taking clients to a game, the corporate car service page covers account billing. It helps to book the return in the same booking as the outbound trip, so the group does not wait on the corner after the event.

Children, accessibility and seats

Child, toddler and booster seats are available when requested at booking, and the request should go in with the reservation, not at the curb. Canada Life Place has an Accessible Seating page on its site, and the box office can answer seating questions. Tell us about mobility needs so the chauffeur can plan a pickup point with a short, level walk.

For families travelling from Toronto, the car seat limo page covers the rules. Younger children are better off napping in the car on the way home than sitting up through a late finish, and an overnight stay is easier on them.

Weather and the winter drive

A winter night on the 401 is a different drive from a summer afternoon. Snow, freezing rain and reduced visibility can slow the trip well beyond two hours. If the forecast is poor, the right choice is to leave earlier or to stay the night, not to rush. A chauffeur has no incentive to push the schedule, and our dispatch monitors conditions along the route.

Summer events bring a different pattern: long daylight, construction zones on the 401 and the Friday cottage and weekend traffic. In all seasons, give the trip a margin.

Combining the arena with a Stratford or St. Marys day

London sits in the middle of southwestern Ontario's theatre and small-town circuit. A group coming for an afternoon show can combine it with the Stratford Festival or a stop in St. Marys. Our Stratford Festival guide and the Stratford and St. Marys day explain the logistics. The Kitchener-Waterloo limo page covers the route in between.

For a night downtown in Toronto before or after, the Scotiabank Arena guide shows how that venue works.

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A sample Knights night from Toronto

Here is how a straightforward weeknight or Friday trip can run for a group of six from the west end of Toronto. The group is collected at about 3 p.m., which gives a two-hour drive, a margin for the 401 and time to park or be dropped before the doors open. Dinner is in London before the game, not at a drive-through on the way, because the arena concourse fills quickly once doors open.

After the game, the group walks to the agreed side street and the chauffeur is already waiting. The first twenty minutes of the drive are slow while the city clears, then the 401 opens up. Children sleep, adults finish the conversation, and the car reaches the GTA around midnight. The next morning is not a write-off, because nobody drove.

That is the main argument for hiring a car on this trip, and it is a practical one: it removes the late-night 401 from the evening, and it keeps the group together. For a smaller outing of two adults and a matinee, the train may be the better plan. Say so to yourself honestly before you book. A matinee on a Saturday afternoon with a hotel in London is a different day from a Friday night that has to end in Toronto.

Booking and cancellation

Reserve once your tickets are confirmed. Enter your address and the booker gives the exact fare before payment. Cancellation is no charge with more than 72 hours' notice, 10% at 72 hours or less, 50% at 48 hours or less, and 100% at 24 hours or less or on a no-show, measured from the scheduled pickup time. More local guides are in the events section, and the fleet page lists the vehicle classes.