ANTIGUA – I didn’t find what I had hoped for in my shower. But I found a new, favourite hotel. I spent a few days on this lovely Caribbean island last week. The first few nights were at a very nice place called Sugar Ridge. The last night was one of the top places I’ve ever laid my head. And that includes a lot of incredible hotels, folks. The road to get to Hermitage Bay Resort is rather, um, unassuming; a bouncy dirt track with potholes big enough to hold a Smart Car or, as one local told me, big Read more
travel
Celebrities and travel, it seems, go together like popcorn and butter. Travelocity.ca has released the results of a new national survey which showcased the top 12 celebrity travel moments of 2013. Interestingly, Canadians appear to be evenly split on pop prince Justin Bieber, whose much publicized brawl in Britain earlier this year, tied for both the most and least memorable moment of 2013. “Bieber’s antics while travelling the world have been highly publicized and this was really the moment that started it all,” said Travelocity.ca resident travel expert, Brian Simpson. “So, it’s no surprise it’s the moment that resonates most Read more
California Restaurant Month coming, Farewell to a Canadian tourism legend and New Year’s at the Ritz
Quite the week here in Toronto for tourism/travel types. And I haven’t even attended a Christmas party yet! Things kicked off nicely – very nicely – on Thursday when the folks at California Tourism put on a ridiculously tasty lunch at a cooking showcase spot downtown. Southern California chef Suzanne Goin, who owns four restaurants and also has a chef husband who runs a few of his own, made some of the tastiest treats I’ve tried anywhere. Just amazing. Mind you, California has incredible, year-round produce to work with. And Goin used it; luscious red grapes she pounded with a Read more
On Tuesday we had WestJet unveiling its new Disney-branded plane with Mickey Mouse. Today, Air Canada did them one better (and probably more) by announcing its new Boeing 787 Dreamliners will fly the Toronto-Tel Aviv route starting next July with a cool, new interior. Among the improvements on the Dreamliner will be higher humidity, special lights to help ease jet lag, bigger windows and more overhead storage. Of course, a lot of the benefits will go to folks paying the bigger bills. Folks at the front of the plane will get bigger TV screens, fancier seats (some that lie flat), Read more
SANTA BARBARA, CALIFORNIA – This drop-dead-gorgeous city in southern California already has endless beaches, bountiful sunshine, urban wineries selling delicious local wines and killer restaurants featuring a huge array of local cuisine. Now they’re working on a permanent, new market complex that should open next year, one that could rival Toronto’s St. Lawrence Market or the wild and wonderful Pike’s Place in Seattle. It’s just not fair that an area that already has such natural beauty and can probably make almost everything except maple syrup is kicking it up a notch like that, but nobody ever said tourism was fair. Read more
