So, you want to be a travel writer? Can’t say I blame you. I spent 32 years at the Toronto Star, the last five as the paper’s travel section editor. I left in August of 2013 to work as a freelance travel writer, and have worked for dozens of newspapers, magazines and websites in the interim period. I’ve been to every province in Canada and the Yukon and to dozens of countries on most of the continents in the last 11 years, including far-flung spots in Australia, Asia, Europe, South America, The South Pacific and the Caribbean. It’s been a Read more
Classic cocktails mixed with bourbon from the world’s oldest bourbon distillery. And fresh, inventive cuisine from one of Canada’s top chefs. Sometimes I pinch myself about how lucky I am in life. Last Wednesday was one of those times. A small group of food writers and travel folks were invited to Arcane Nightclub on King West (461 King St. W. if you want to be precise) for a bourbon and food pairing, sponsored by Buffalo Trace Distillery of Kentucky and chef Claudio Aprile, who hopes to open Xango restaurant within the Arcane space prior to the start of the Toronto Read more
A fabulous addition to a classic Muskoka getaway. And a new way to get there. I was lucky enough to spend a little more than 24 hours up in Muskoka last week, allowing to take a quick peek at the new Deerhurst Resort outside Huntsville and also to fly home from Muskoka to Toronto on the first Porter Airlines flight. More on that in a bit. I can’t quite figure out how it happened, but this was my trip to Deerhurst in maybe 36 years. Which is pretty crazy for a travel guy that absolutely adores Muskoka. But there you Read more
THIS ITEM ORIGINALLY APPEARED IN A SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT FORM AT www.travelpulse.ca, where I work as senior editorial director. The folks at Expedia recently conducted an airplane and hotel etiquette survey with Canadians and came up with some fun – and somewhat bewildering – results regarding smelly passengers on a plane and the borrowing of someone else’s clothes at an Air BnB/vacation rental. The item I found astonishing is that 68% of Canadians feel that it’s inappropriate at a vacation rental to wear clothes or shoes that belong to the host. That’s cool, but it pretty much suggests that one out Read more
Happy Canada Day to all my friends and family! I was going through my emails on this lovely summer’s day in Toronto and spotted a new study from the Canada Goose clothing company that says 95 per cent of Canadians are proud of their country, which is great. The study also found that 64 per cent of Americans have considered moving north of the border, which I suppose means I was ahead of the curve by 38 years and two months, having landed on these shores via my Honda Accord hatchback on May 1, 1981, following a drive from my Read more
I’ve often written that tourism slogans and campaigns may not matter much in the end. But I could be wrong, and I like the inclusive feeling of this new one from my own city of Toronto. Tourism Toronto today (June 19) announced it’s launching a new destination marketing campaign called “Let Yourself In.” The campaign comes fresh on the heels of the multicultural Toronto Raptors capturing the NBA championship and capitalizes on the city’s sense of welcome and diversity. The campaign also arrives as Toronto celebrates another record year in visitation, having welcomed 44 million travellers into the city in Read more
Newly refreshed rooms. A real sense of history. And a tremendous location. The Hotel Pennsylvania has been one of the top places to stay in New York City for decades, and it shows no signs of slowing down in its 100th anniversary year. I recently was in town for a night and managed my first-ever stay at the hotel, located on 7th Avenue and 32nd Street; directly across from Madison Square Garden and Penn Station. It may not be the centre of the universe, but darned if it doesn’t feel like it. They’ve refurbished a number of rooms and have Read more
