The Queen greets members of the Federation of Filipino-Canadians Wednesday at the Festival of Ontario in Toronto. Photo: Frank Gunn/CP

The Queen and Prince Philip arrived Wednesday in Toronto — the latest stop on their 12-day cross-country tour to mark the Queen's 50 years on the throne.

The royal couple were met by a long line of dignitaries including Ontarios Lieutenant-Governor James Bartleman and Premier Ernie Eves on the tarmac at Pearson International Airport.

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• Winnipeg welcomes the Queen

Backgrounder: Royal Visit 2002

A row of 10 officials, most of them politicians, and their spouses lined the route from the plane to a waiting car.

As Minister-in-attendance, Federal Transport Minister David Collenette and his wife, Penelope, were to accompany the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh in car ride from the airport to the Royal York Hotel in downtown Toronto.

The royal couple will visit the National Trade Centre at Exhibition Place on Wednesday afternoon to take in a series of displays highlighting Ontario over the last half century.

They will view exhibits from more than 80 arts, business, cultural and social groups including presentations by Stratford Festival performers, National Ballet dancers and Girl Guides. Three thousand exhibitors and 4,000 guests were expected to be on hand.

The highlights of the Toronto portion of the trip will include watching a CBC retrospective to mark the broadcaster's 50th anniversary and a gala event at Roy Thomson Hall on Thursday, where Prime Minister Jean Chrétien is to be host.

On Friday, the royal couple will leave for New Brunswick where they will spend time in Fredericton and Moncton before arriving in Ottawa on Saturday. In the capital, the Queen will observe a moment of silence at the national war memorial. On Tuesday, the royal couple will depart from Canada.

After beginning the tour Friday in Nunavut, the couple flew to Victoria. They arrived in Vancouver on Sunday where the highlight of that portion of the trip was the Queen's celebrated puck-dropping at a Vancouver Canucks hockey game.

On Tuesday, the Queen arrived in Winnipeg to throngs of fans who waved flags and offered flowers to deliver a warm welcome under a cold, grey sky.

Thousands jammed the Forks, a park and market at the junction of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers, to welcome the royal couple.

They had an eventful afternoon. There was one hitch in the festivities. As the Queen and Prince Philip made their way across the Red River to St. Boniface in a water taxi, the boat broke down and had to be towed the rest of the way.

The mishap forced the Queen to climb across into the second boat so she could get ashore.

There was also an evening of performances by Manitoba musicians ranging from the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra to singer Loreena McKennitt. The event was capped when the Queen flipped a switch on spotlights to illuminate the refurbished Golden Boy statue atop the Manitoba legislature.

It was the Queen's fifth trip to Winnipeg since 1951, when she first visited the city as a princess. Her last visit was in 1984.

With a report from Canadian Press