What a fantastic year. Our 150th birthday as a country, and another 12 months of a ridiculously overbooked travel schedule. Here’s a look back at some Canadian highlights of 2017, including great BBQ in B.C., sleeping in a former brothel in the Yukon and a sleek southern Ontario winery run almost entirely by women. The “How Did I Not Know How Beautiful This Place Was” Destination of the Year: Eastern Townships, Quebec. Lovely villages, surprisingly large hills and great places to stay, including Auberge West Brome (https://www.awb.ca/en/), Spa Eastman (http://www.spa-eastman.com/en/) and Ripplecove Lakefront Hotel and Spa. (http://ripplecove.com/en/) Best sporting moment: Read more
Halifax
This story originally appeared on Postmedia and Sun Media websites in Canada… HALIFAX – This is one of the great cities of Canada; a vibrant but super-friendly spot where people aren’t in a rush and where drivers stop to let crazed Torontonians jaywalk across a busy street at rush hour. You’ll also find a wonderful waterfront, terrific food and trendy neighbourhoods to explore in a city that’s seeing a big boom in downtown condos. DINING 2 Doors Down is owned by the same folks who run the popular Chives restaurant. It’s modern and airy but also cozy, with lots of Read more
The presidential election polls in the U.S. are getting closer. Which means that maybe those folks who vowed to move to Canada if Donald Trump wins the race should be checking their Canadian maps and real estate listings. With that in mind, the folks at Hotels.com have prepared a list of 10 American cities with their Canadian counterparts, giving Hillary Clinton supporters something to work with and a better idea about what opportunities lie north of the border, where our Prime Minister garners headlines for building his body instead of building walls. Here are the Hotels.com suggestions on what Canadian Read more
That U.S. dollar is right there, smack-dab in front of your face. You’re strong-minded, but this is one staring contest you’re likely to lose, at least in the short term. Luckily, there are tons of great things to see and do here in Canada that don’t involve giving the bank a loonie in exchange for 65 U.S. cents. VICTORIA We’ll start with a city that’s usually among the warmest in Canada this time of year (normally hovering near the double digit mark). This used to be known as a sleepy government town, with tourists nattering on about tea at the Read more
Woe is the Canadian dollar, eh? Hovering below the 70 cent line, and causing many of us who like to vacation in the U.S. no end of worry.The price of oil is seemingly to blame, what with barrels going for an unheard of $30 or so these days. As oil prices have cratered, so has the loonie, sparking all sorts of business headlines about what the government should do. At the risk of repeating an age old mantra of mine, I’m disturbed by the lack of talk about tourism. Oh, sure, there’s the odd story about how our dollar is Read more
