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Community Events, Family Vacations in Toronto, Lifestyle talk, Toronto Family Travel

The Best Winter Getaways Near Toronto

January 5, 2015

When the snow falls during our long winters, your first inclination may be to stay warm underneath the blankets in your furnished apartment at DelSuites. But there is a winter wonderland out there for you to explore only a few hours away from Toronto. Here are our favourite winter getaways near Toronto for you to get outside and enjoy the snow (or stay somewhere else fireside).

Scandinave Spa, Blue Mountain
The Scandinave Spa at Blue Mountain offers the best of both worlds: ski through the snowy hills with a chance to soak in a hot spring at the end of day. Minutes away from downtown Collingwood and Blue Mountain resort, the baths include thermal and nordic waterfalls, hot bath, cold plunges, a Finnish sauna and an eucaplyptus steam room (so you can smell just as good as you feel). Massage treatments are also available in addition to an onsite bistro with healthy options. Located in the heart of the Bruce trail, this is another relaxing option after a long winter hike (should you want to opt out of a ski adventure). The resort offers a number of creative weekend packages.

Deerhurst Resort
Muskoka is just as serene and relaxing for a weekend escape in the winter as it is in the summer. Deerhurst Resort, in the heart of Muskoka, is the place to rejuvenate. There’s plenty to do nearby such as cross country skiing, snowshoeing and ice skating, included in your resort fee. For a true adventure, hop on a dog sled through Northern Ontario Wildnerness or take the family along on sleigh ride. Snowmobiling and snowboarding are more activities to choose from at the nearby Hidden Valley Highlands and Arrowhead Provincial Park. (Algonquin Provincial Park is also relatively close to the resort.) At the end of the day, cozy up by the fireplace in the renovated rooms, or look out out on to the icy lake from the comfort of your bed, an ideal time to sleep in.

Niagara Falls Icewine Festival
Niagara Falls wine (and icewine) region, Niagara-on-the-Lake, is extra special in the winter when it celebrates its icewine festival, now in its 20th year. Throughout three weekends in January (January 9-11, 16-18, 23-25), tour the wine route with a discovery pass. The pass lets you explore the best of eight different wineries where you can sip and savour on local icewine, table wines, and cuisines, without paying the $10 surcharge at each winery. There are lots of activities during the festival including gala evenings, ice Street Villages to explore, and finding a fire to roast marshmallows along the wine route. In Twenty Valley, don’t miss the dinners with famed chef, Michael Smith.

Hockley Valley
Located less than two hours away from our furnished apartment rentals in downtown Toronto, Hockley Valley near Orangeville is an ideal ski and stay escape plan. A perfect weekend winter getaway near Toronto. Ski or snowboard the different terrains (four day packages for holiday lessons are available). Not a ski bunny? Try the varied spa services on site, which include packages for men as well.

Prince Edward County
The “other” wine country located near Belleville, Ontario is a quick two hour drive away from Toronto. This year’s big draw? The Drake Hotel’s stylish county outpost, The Drake Devonshire Inn. Complete with a stylish Canadiana farmhouse theme, this is the perfect place to cozy up over Hudson Bay blankets on Muskoka chairs and look out over the lake. The inn has two packages this winter: the Winter Warrior Package (including a seat at chef Matthew De Mille’s table) and the Indoor Indulger Package, which includes a $100 credit towards in-room spa services or a Drake Devonshire wine tour. Speaking of wine tours, if you like to do-it-yourself, check out the Taste Trail, where you can sip and nibble throughout some of Ontario’s best wineries. Our picks are: Norman Hardie, Closson Chase, and Karlo Estates.

You don’t have to go far to feel far away from your suite or apartment in Toronto. Winter is just as fun outside of the city!

Downtown Toronto, Lifestyle talk, Toronto Family Travel

Top Shops in Toronto for Christmas Shopping

December 23, 2014

Whether you’re a corporate traveller or a local, finding that perfect present for your loved ones can be a challenge. You may want to find a unique shop that isn’t in the mall or an excuse to explore the different neighbourhoods to support local businesses. Here are our favourite top shops in Toronto customized for your Christmas or holiday shopping needs.

Drake General Store
As an outpost of the Drake Hotel, the Drake General Store set the trend for shops where you could find quirky treasures with a Canadinana twist and has since expanded to locations at the Hudson Bay Company across Ontario. (Also known as the ideal store for holiday shopping.) Vintage Canadian postcards and engraved key chains with popular song titles like “That’s the Way Love Goes” are perfect stocking stuffers; the Areaware Harry Allen piggybank is a design item worth the splurge; and Canadian brands –from Drake’s own signature cross items to Share and Aborist– factor heavily into the Drake’s eclectic and curated selection. These novelty goods are ideal for the playful, curious person in your life.

Kid Icarus
For the person who loves paper, Kid Icarus offers a selection of quirky handmade cards and paper products. Want to make your own? Screenprinting and linoleum carving workshops are available. This is a great option for someone who wants an experience. Shop and explore in two locations: Kensington Market and now, Parkdale.

Love the Design
Located in the tony Summerhill neighbourhood, no-one has a better selection of vintage decor finds that will add that extra flair to your home. That perfectly weathered cabinet, kooky light, or second-look accessory is all available in the equally gorgeous set-up of the store. Owner Christine Flynn also makes her own customized artwork and custom stationary, some with a Toronto twist (the linoleum streetcar piece comes to mind or list of Toronto street names and subway stops come to mind). A destination in itself.

Cambie Design
If you’re looking to add flair to your furnished suite or apartment rental or a piece that you can take home with you, Cambie’s home accessories are good options. Cambie is famous for their colourful, hand-spun alpaca wool and acrylic-made blankets sourced from Peru. Beyond the blankets, rugs, housewares, and vintage furniture are available for purchase. It is a great way to support local shops and local communities around the world.

Advice from a Caterpillar
Located in the tony Summerhill and Rosedale neighbourhood, this children’s store has everything your family needs. Designer clothes, decor, toys, nursery, travel, and lifestyle products for the parents are all available in this curated and sophisticated shop. Our picks include:Janod Story Box Farm, Hansa deer bambi and the Hoppop bato child plastic bath.

BYOB Cocktail Emporium
This cool and eclectic emporium to cocktail and bar resources is your one-stop shop for your home bar needs. Also ideal for a unique holiday gift, stock up on funky glassware, DIY beer and wine making kits, hard-to-find Japanese cocktail shakers, and much more. If you need to host a party in your furnished suite, this truly is one of the most niche shops in Toronto.

Though these are incredible stores for your holiday shopping needs, they are great stores to visit year-round. So if you are in Toronto for a short term stay, these are some of the most unique top shops in Toronto. It’s also a great way to explore the different areas of the city from Parkdale to Uptown.

Community Events, Downtown Toronto, Entertainment, Food & Recipes, Lifestyle talk

Top Food and Drink Festivals in Toronto

December 17, 2014

In the past couple of years, Toronto has become a destination for food and drink enthusiasts. In addition to the number of innovative and ethnic offerings available (not to mention those cheap eats), there have been just as many creative food festivals and events. Here are a few of our favourite food and drink festivals in Toronto that’s happening this holiday season into 2015:

Drake Does Chrismukkah
December 19, 2014 6pm
Before the Christmas crunch, feast on the best of various cultural traditions of the holiday season at The Drake Hotel. The hearty meal (including prime rib, yorkshire pudding, latkes, and apple crumble among the samplings) is only $29.95. Reserve in advance before December 19 to participate in this cheerful occasion.

Guest Chef Pop-Up Series at Drake One Fifty
January 20-21, 2015
This fun injection of the Drake Hotel in the heart of Toronto’s Financial District hosts some of the best chefs from North America and beyond. The first pop-up dinner of 2015 will feature a Portuguese fusion menu from David Santos, ex Per Se, and now of Louro in NYC.

Roundhouse Winter Craft Beer Festival
January 31, 2015 11am-5pm
Just steps away from our 300 Front Street property, sample craft brew from over 20 breweries at the Winter Craft Beer Festival. Hosted by the Steam Whistle Brewery and just outside its doors at the Roundhouse Park, warm up over the outdoor fires with beer in glass sample mugs from great breweries like Oast House Brewers, Flying Monkeys, and Lake of Bays. Food trucks will also be on site if you get hungry. The first 500 attendees at the gates will get a free festival toque.

Recipe for Change 2015
February 26, 2015, 6-9pm
Recipe for Change is FoodShare Toronto’s annual fundraiser for innovative school food programs and sustainability within the food industry. This party brings together over 30 exciting chefs, two craft brewers and four wineries at the historic St. Lawrence Market. It’s a fun party for a great cause.

Whether you’re in town for a quick visit or on business, or you are staying in a furnished apartment rental or suite for the long term, these festivals are a tasty way to stay warm throughout the winter.

Community Events, Lifestyle talk, Toronto History

Toronto in the 1950s

December 10, 2014

The Toronto in the 1950s was still growing and pre-dated the era of skyscrapers which started to boom in the 1960s. After the Second World War, many British children were sent to Toronto for safety while their fathers were in the war. The city continued to expand into the suburbs and it was officially a major city in this era. A mark of Toronto’s prosperity was the construction of the Yonge Subway–it opened to the public in 1954– and a highway to the suburbs, which were located in Don Mills, at the time.

With the end of the war and the repeal of the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1947 (LINK TO 1920s post here), Toronto boomed and made way for an influx of immigrants. Germans, Italians, and Eastern Europeans were our first major wave of our multicultural community. British immigration was on the decline by 20 percent. This pattern continued into the 1960s, with an exotic mix of newcomers including more Europeans, West Indians, South Asians, and Vietnamese.

Residents moved back downtown from the suburbs in the 1960s and this is when the core started to thrive. Yorkville was not the tony neighbourhood of affluent people it is now. Rather, it was the hippie capital of the metropolis, chock full of coffeehouses where legends like Joni Mitchell and Gordon Lightfoot performed.

Though Toronto in the 1950s might have not been as exciting as the Toronto of other eras, it was still a definitive period of the growth of our urban landscape, which thrived into the 60s and 70s.

Photos

Community Events, Lifestyle talk, Toronto History

Toronto in the 1920s

December 5, 2014

If you take a look at Toronto’s skyline today, it is hard to imagine what it was like back in the 1920s when there wasn’t a skyline along Lake Ontario. Toronto was a port city and became the chief aviation centre for Canada during the first World War.

Its mining boom fueled Bay Street, renowned as being the centre of the city’s financial district. An influx of immigrants were starting to settle here, mainly from the British Empire. Far from being the multicultural and diverse metropolis it is today, there was a lot of hostility towards immigrants. The most famous example of this was the Chinese Immigration Act, better known as the Chinese Exclusion Act. Chinese immigrants were denied entry into the country from 1923 until 1947. Into the 1930s, discrimination continued for other immigrants including the Jews, at the height of the Great Depression. People were still coming to the town known as Muddy York and it’s population doubled to over a half million in the 1920s from its previous decade.

Another law passed in Ontario was the Ontario Temperance Act in 1916. The law prohibited the sale of alcohol in the province but smugglers were still importing alcohol illegally. Prohibition also increased drug use in Ontario, notably morphine. The Act was discharged in 1927.

Notable landmarks were built in Toronto in the 1920s. Though the area down by Lakeshore west is home to Sunnyside Pavillion and entertainment venue Palais Royale, in the 1920s Sunnyside Beach was the site for the Sunnyside Amusement Park, which opened on June 28,1922. Our main train station, Union Station, which transports passengers within Canada, opened on August 6, 1927. The TTC –the Toronto Transit Commission–opened in 1921 and was created as a result of a referendum. Its first streetcar was erected onto city streets the same year.

Toronto was far from the thriving metropolis it is today but it in the 20s, it was on its way.

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