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

Neighbourhood Guide: The Toronto Beaches

July 3, 2015

The summer season is one the best times to be in Toronto yet sometimes, city living in the summer can be hot, muggy and crowded (even though our short term rentals Toronto are centrally located). The Toronto Beaches (or “The Beach,” as it has been intensely debated), located on the eastern edges of the Greater Toronto Region is one of those neighbourhoods which feels like a little village, enabling you to escape the city without having to leave it. Here are a few of our favourite things to do if you have a day to explore the Toronto Beaches.

1. Explore the Martin Goodman Trail. The trail extends from east to west from the three separate parts of the beach along the lakeshore: Balmy, Kew, and Woodbine. The best way to see this is by biking if you’re coming from our furnished apartment rentals at our downtown locations. That said, you can easily walk, run, or rollerblade the three beaches. If you map this out with a few key pit stops in between to picnic or to go to a restaurant on Queen Street East, this is a scenic way to explore the city.

2. Swim! Though the water is deemed safe by the Toronto Department of Public Health (you can check for updates here and on your smartphone), you can also take the opportunity to swim at the Donald D. Summerville Olympic pool. Located at the foot of Woodbine Avenue and in the heart of Woodbine Beach, the pool is currently undergoing a $3.75 million capital renovation project to be completed in time for the Pan Am Games. If you are here for a longer term stay with your family or you like to swim, you may want to consider enrolling your kids in the Toronto Swim Summer Camp, or as an adult, enrol in the masters swim program or triathlon club.

3. Volleyball. If you pass by the western edge of Woodbine Beach, also known as Ashbridge’s Bay, you’re lucky to see rows of volleyball nets with lively players jumping up to the net with the music blaring to the skies. Want to go beyond people watching and try your hand at a spike? Check out the Ashbridge’s Bay Beach Volleyball Team or find a league through Beach Blast or the Ontario Volleyball Organization.

4. Events. The Toronto Beaches are home to many events, especially in the summertime. The biggest event is the Beaches Jazz Festival in

Boardwalk- Woodbine beach, Toronto | Photo Credit: Don Gunn

mid-July, which spans for two weeks. All event listings are here.

5. Watch a Movie. Beyond the boardwalk is a lively strip on Queen Street full of businesses, including the Fox Theatre. Located on the fringe of the Beach, this repertory theatre has been in business for over a century and is another way to discover the area and also watch a good film that you may have missed in the theatres.

Whether you’re living in Scarborough, Mississauga, Markham or North York, the Toronto Beaches are a wonderful area to explore and come back to from time to time when you want to escape the “city.”

Feedback and Reviews, Lifestyle talk

A Guide to Decorating Your Furnished Condo

April 30, 2015

Whether you’re a business traveler in Toronto on an extended stay, a family looking for a longer city vacation, or a film or TV industry pro moving in for the summer shooting season, part of what makes a furnished rental great is the unique character you can’t get from a hotel room. But part of the draw of furnished rentals is the ability to personalize that space you’ll be living in for weeks or months into a home away from home.

Here are a few low-cost, simple tips on decorating your furnished condo décor—and creating a gorgeous Toronto nest that truly feels like it’s yours.

Start With Colour, and Texture, and Light…

The simplest antidote to a furnished rental that’s not yet found its voice is texture and colour. Most Toronto furnished rentals come with a very clean look that makes adding your own personal touches easy, without having to break out paintbrushes or power tools. Patterned rugs, couch cushions or throws and small lamps can all bring a condo space to life without much investment—and portably enough to bring home with you!

Want a warm, rich, South Asian-meets-bistro feel? Visit Morningstar Trading, which specializes in Rajasthani imports, for hand-carved wooden vases, bright fabric, plush embroidered cushions, and small furniture pieces that bring colour into a room.

If you love the clean, rustic, and airy feel of reclaimed-wood furniture and eggshell-white walls? The Drake General Store, an offshoot of the Drake Hotel specializing in Canadian designers and brands, has a wide selection of log-cabin Canadiana, including carved-stone coasters, soft throw blankets, and needlepoint cushions.

For a clean, minimalist aesthetic, check out Harbord Village’s Things Japanese, a cozy source for everything from shoji screens to soften the afternoon light to wood-and-paper table lamps, vases, decorative boxes, and rollable, portable inked wall scrolls.

Bring the Spring In

One of the simplest ways to put your mark on a space is by bringing something green home. Most Toronto fruit markets will have a selection of potted herbs once the warm weather hits, and a spilling, vibrant mint in a brightly coloured hanging planter from Roncesvalles Village’s Scout or your local hardware store can both brighten up your space and contribute materially to a homemade mojito.

If you’d rather smell your plants than taste them, small florists like Church-Wellesley Village’s Ladybug and Yorkville’s Sweetpea’s not only take online orders for long-lasting floral arrangements, but deliver to your door. And for the budget-minded, there’s nothing better than a tall Mason jar and a handful of daffodils from the corner variety store.

Beautiful and Useful

There’s a reason coffee table books were so popular in the sixties: They were objects, almost carelessly placed, that told your guests a story about what you love. Small, useful objects like coasters, cushions, handmade notebooks, and more make your mark on a space, and help you inhabit it completely.

Almost every neighbourhood in downtown Toronto has a monthly flea full of the useful-and-beautiful, with vendors offering vintage, handcrafted, quirky, and just fun items in their own neighbourhood. There’s a flea in Leslieville and The Parkdale, and more. Admission rarely goes above two dollars, and they’re an increasingly gr Decorating Your Furnished Condo eat source for good décor finds—and a fun day out.

Having a few old favourites on the nightstand can also go a long way, and specialty Toronto bookstores like Ben McNally Books for literary fiction mavens, The Sleuth of Baker Street for mystery hounds, Bakka-Phoenix Books for science fiction, fantasy, and horror fans, or TYPE for lovers of art and design can supply you with your best-loved bedtime stories to reread or shelve prominently—and make your space feel that much more like home.

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Ultimately, decorating your furnished condo rental in Toronto is halfway about the experience: Each object you bring home to brighten your space is a piece of Toronto you’ve gotten to know, a walk you took, or a neighbourhood you’ve discovered. And it’s a great way to enjoy the time you spend here—and build a few great memories when it’s time to head home.

Lifestyle talk

Working in Toronto

March 3, 2015

As Canada’s largest financial center and a population of 2.7 million (and 6 million in the Greater Toronto Area/GTA), Toronto is a vibrant city in which to work and live. This can be illustrated by the number of short term rentals DelSuites has, across the GTA, now currently ranked number one by TripAdvisor in specialty lodging in Toronto and fifth consecutive winner of the Consumer’s Choice Awards in the Furnished Condo Rental category. We have touched upon the quirks of living in the city but here are a few things you should know about working in Toronto.

1. Industries – Working in Toronto
The main industries in Toronto are finance, technology, and construction. It is home to the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSE) and to the third largest concentration of private IT companies after San Francisco and New York. Due to the 2015 Pan Am Games, construction has boomed in the metropolis for building of facilities and condominiums. According to a report in the Toronto Star, the surge in new jobs has been in health care, education, public administration, trades, finance, real estate, insurance, professional services, scientific and technical services, transportation and warehousing, accommodation and food services, and information, culture and recreation.

2. Education
According to the World Atlas (2014), Canada is the most educated nation in the world. 51% of the population has tertiary education and most jobs require a post-secondary diploma or degree. Toronto has one of the most prestigious universities in the world, University in Toronto. However, education with co-operative education or practical work-terms are gaining in popularity and success to working in the city. Examples include: George Brown College (known for hospitality and culinary arts); Ryerson (known for its media and journalism program); Humber College (known for its Public Relations program) and Sheridan College (known for its animation arts program).

3. Unemployment Rates
As of December, 2014 the unemployment rate is 7.2 percent, according to Statistics Canada. The labour market is very competitive and should you move to the city, it is important to make sure you have savings in case your job hunt takes longer than usual (on average four to five months).

4. A Shift from Full-Time to Part-Time
As part of shifts in the economy, employers are increasingly hiring workers on a part-time or contract basis, according to this report in the Toronto Star. This helps employers budgets by not paying for extensive benefits or pensions. As a result, many workers in Toronto have more than one job or are becoming entrepreneurs.

5. Networking
In an urban center like Toronto, where 40% of Canada’s jobs are situated, getting a job here is more about who you know rather than what you know with the competition of skills and education among its workforce. Networking is key, especially at trade conferences in your industry as well as informal meetups according to interest. LinkedIn and social media are also key tools for employers to find you.

To help you with your job search working in Toronto, do check out this section of job boards on the city of Toronto’s website in its Employment and Social Services category.

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, 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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