Canada Trip.co.uk

“A Local’s dream” quoted one of the many onlookers as this very well is a dream that is now a reality, watching the many Olympic games on TV while growing up I had always wanted to see the Olympics in person, and the Vancouver 2010 games made part of that dream come true. On December 20th, 2009, my home town of Thorold was given the honour to be host to the Olympic torch’s path.

 I departed my house at 2:15PM and arrive in downtown Thorold to this sight: 

(One group of the many groups that made up the  hundreds of patriotic Thorold residents that showed up to show their support of the olympic games.)

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Posted in British Columbia, Canada Trip.co.uk, Niagara, ON, Ontario, Vancouver, Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics | 1 Comment »

Now by now, I’m sure we all have had a good glimpse about how Canada is so far, primarily in the Summer months. But, Autumn (Or Fall) is now upon us, and i have to admit, this is now my favourite time of year. Some like sun, i actually like cosy log fire lit rooms.. So, Canada as we all should know is represented internationally by its bright bold red and white flag, with a brilliant red Maple leaf at its centre.. And its this i want to touch on in this article.

Yes, they really do get that red!

When you ask most people, think of some colours you’d see as representing autumn.. Most say Brown, Yellow or Orange.. In Canada, you get a whole variety of these colours, as well as Reds. Sometimes reds so vivid, you would seriously wonder how it is possible for a tree, a thing from nature to paint its leaves such brilliant red! Of coarse, there are other places you may see red leaves, but Canada truly is the best place on earth you will ever get to see this in such a quantity.

No doubt you may have even came to look at this article because you may be interested in actually seeing this for yourself, so i don’t really think i need to ‘big up’ this firework display of colour too much, but one thing i will say – is this is one of those things you MUST do before you die! So better sooner than later!..

Interestingly there are particular places in Canada you’d be best to go to should you really want to catch nature in its full glory when in Canada and so if your main reason for visiting Canada is to see the leaves Ontario, Quebec or the Maritime provinces are probably your best destinations! Here are the best places, within those provinces – and just as important – the times in which you’ll want to plan your trips. (more…)

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Posted in Nova Scotia, Ontario | 2 Comments »

The Canadian National Exhibition has been around for well over 75 years, taking place on the outskirts of downtown Toronto, this exhibition shuts down an area of 8 city blocks around the Direct Energy Center in the historic ‘Exhibition Place. The exhibition started in 1879, after the success of the last years traveling fair, it has always been host to the most state of the art technology. The shops and attractions have always represented the interests of the Canadian public, which has drawn in well over 6 million people from around the world in the last 10 years of the CNE.

(The kids fair ground at the CNE, Photo© 2009)

In this article I’ll take you through the pride of Canada’s aviation history, and long time partner of the CNE, the Canadian International Airshow.

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Posted in Ontario, Toronto | No Comments »

Well, i decided to re-feature this place simply because, although it was our third drop in to this little interest spot, the last time we went (a couple of weeks ago) we actually got to see it in operation! So i thought I’d share with you some photos so you can see exactly how this Goliath of a lock works!

Although it was a pretty cloudy day, it was pretty neat to see such a huge structure moving, and it was a lot quicker than i thought it would have been too! check out the short video:
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Well here’s the first of the big brands you’ll see when you’re out in Canada, and it really is my favourite. When you’re out in Canada DO NOT come home without having had at least one cup of Hot Chocolate, and if you like that – then try the French Vanilla Coffee!

Tim Hortons

Tim Hortons is a coffee shop, doughnut shop and a place to eat all rolled into one – and on top of that it’s Canadian! These places are dotted absolutely everywhere, so stop off, relax and enjoy their hot chocolate with a doughnut or two. Or, try their timbits, which are doughnut holes – you can either choose what flavours you want or you can ask for a random variety. The other fantastic thing about Tim Hortons, other than everything tastes so good – is the price. While we were out a couple of weeks ago, we got two extra large Tim Hortons Hot Chocolates (1pt cups), and a box of 10 timbits – and it came to exactly $5!
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Posted in Alberta, British Columbia, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Places to Eat | No Comments »

While visiting Canada, if you’re in the Muskoka region, why not take a trip to a place where you can see for yourself what things used to be like before the world of modern life crept into the area?

Muskoka Heritage Place is a trip back in time to an authentic pioneer village – all fully furnished genuine muskoka buildings including General Store, Church, Inn, Barn, Blacksmith Shop, dwellings and a trapper’s cabin. You will also find a First Nations’ Museum Exhibit & Encampment, the Muskoka Museum, Costumed Narrators, Farm Animals and Gardens and hands on demonstrations! If you’ve been to Beamish Open air museum in the UK, this place is a smaller version of that style of attraction, all based around a time gone by in Muskoka, Ontario. (more…)

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Posted in Lake Simcoe, Muskoka, Ontario | No Comments »

While visiting Juni (our adopted raccoon, if you didn’t know already) at Muskoka Wildlife Centre, I saw a stand with some leaflets on, one of them was initially what I thought to be simply a flyer to let people know all the places they could visit while visiting the Muskoka area, but what it actually was – was a way to see more in Muskoka and save while doing it!

So here’s what it’s about: (more…)

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Posted in Lake Simcoe, Muskoka, Ontario | 1 Comment »

Horse Shoe Valley Resort is a winter and summer resort just outside of Barrie, Ontario, and is  my favorite place to travel to in Ontario.

(The main entrance to the Resort Hotel, Photo ©2009)

This resort is proof that Canada is a diffrent country every time the seasons change, in this article, I’ll give you a taste of the summer fun at this mountain top resort. (more…)

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Posted in Lake Simcoe, Ontario | No Comments »

Now. like I’ve said before, I’ll always keep my eyes open for deals on flights, especially to Toronto, and there’s only one place i look these days – I’ve looked everywhere else and Canadian Affair beats everyone else hands down on costs.

Fancying a week away in October? Canadian Affair are doing outbound flights from Manchester to Toronto for £129 on 13th October and a return flight on 22nd October for £131.50 – 2 return flights to Canada for 2 people coming to an incredible £522.80, INCLUDING all taxes!

Toronto as seen from the CN Tower

Or, if you’re planning on booking for next year – try May
Flying from Gatwick – flying out on Sunday 2nd May the flight to Toronto is only £129 and if you fly back May 16th – 2 return flights to Toronto would only cost £648.40 including all taxes.

Flying from Manchester – flying out on Saturday 1st May the flight to Toronto is again only £129 and if you fly back Sat May 15th, again two return flights to Toronto would only cost £648.40 including all taxes.

Check out the prices for yourself at their Website!

So, what about my experience with Canadian Affair? Well every time i have ever visited Canada, i have always booked through Canadian Affair. This is because back in 2005 i went hunting for the best prices and Canadian Affair won hands down every single time. Since then I’ve been on 12 separate flights booked by Canadian Affair and I’ve never had any major problems what so ever. (more…)

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Posted in Flights/Car Parking/Hire etc, Ontario, Toronto | No Comments »

I love letting you all know of little hidden secrets and gems, ones which many would never find sometimes even in a lifetime.. so one of these places that I’d like to introduce you to – is the Country Fare & Inn. To do it though, I’m going to set the scene, with the story of how we came across it!

While we were out in Canada last week, we went to a family wedding, and the reception was at a place, around a lake we’d never been round before. Unfortunately, after we’d picked up the truck and had driven out to the area, we had forgotten the name of the place we were going to and we had to rely on the sat nav to take us to the place it suggested. One thing about the place our sat nav had taken us was that even if this place wasn’t the place the wedding reception was going to be – it sure had one amazing view over a beautiful lake, surrounded by sheltered bays, all bathed in woodland with the slight glimpse of the odd cottage scattered along the shoreline on the far sides. We weren’t blessed with the best weather that day, and there were quite a few clouds around, not to mention the large looming raincloud off to the left of us, so i hopped out of the truck and took some photos of this beautiful scenic lookout – beside a store.

View over Baptiste Lake on a slightly cloudy day

We set off to Bancroft to get something to eat while trying to decide on what was best to do – we just couldn’t remember the name of the place the wedding reception was at and we were doubting our sat nav.. had we put the right address in 118 village road? or 188 village road.. so we headed back to that store, where the sat nav wanted us to go – with the beautiful view and tried to ring someone who would know on the pay phone just outside. Unfortunately the person we were trying to ring was in a no-signal area. . . but as the rain started to pour, things started to click in place. This place wasn’t just a store. On closer inspection, having got out of the truck one more time, there seemed to be tables set, down some steps behind the store. This gave us a little hope. We knew we were in the right area so we decided the best thing was to wait, and see if we saw anyone we knew passing by in their vehicles..
Finally, someone did.. and parked right up beside us! This place, as we finally were reminded – was the Country Fare & Inn, Baptiste Lake!

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Posted in Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario | No Comments »