Ontario Honeymoon? [General]

2011 Nov 8
Hey,

So I got married on Saturday, but just started a new job so I couldn't really take any time off this week. Instead, we're going to do a bit of a road trip this coming weekend.

What's a good getaway destination in Ontario, Western Quebec, Northern US? Food, beer, wine, etc. are all important. Just be for the weekend so we won't need a tonne to do. Nice hotel/B&B, restaurant(s), and maybe a pub or two would be great.

NOTL is already up there, so if you have any recs let me know. Thanks in advance!

2011 Nov 8
NOTL is a really far drive and Southern Ontario is boring. If you want to spend less time on the 401, I'd suggest Montreal (2hrs drive), or for a slightly longer drive and nice views - Vermont (4hrs drive).

i really love the plateau (mont royal) area of montreal. i've stayed here a few times, they do a wonderful brunch, late night milk & cookies, afternoon cheese (bring a bottle of wine, load up your plate of cheese and take it up to your room while you rest up before dinner).
www.aubergedelafontaine.com/

there are lots of fantastic places to eat in montreal, plus you can wander around the markets or old montreal. i love just walking along rue st. denis.

2011 Nov 8
prince edward county is nice. wineries, boutique shops, nice restaurants & B&Bs, beautiful time of year.
wineries-->Norman Hardie, Closson Chase, Huff Estates...

Vermont is supposed to be very nice as well. Lots of craft beers, cheeses, and other food centric places to visit, not to mention beautiful scenery.

Other recommendations...

1000 Islands

Mont Tremblant ($$$)

Montreal
restos in Montreal...Joe Beef, Club Chasse et Peche, Le Filet, Cava, DNA, La Chronique
hotels in Montreal...Le Germain, The Geault, Le Crystal, The Nelligan

Algonquin Park

rent a cabin for the weekend in Barry's Bay or even Calabogie (1 hour away!)


2011 Nov 8
Congratulations!

A few ideas come to mind depeding on how much you want to spend and how far you might want drive.

In Ontario, I would certainly consider Niagara On the Lake. Its a very nice touristy town (in the positive sense) and you have all those wineries you could visit. There were a few nice restaurants there too (but its been a while). You would probably be looking at a 6 hour drive I think.

Quebec City is always nice. If it were me I would stay as close to the old city as possible. Limitless possibilities in terms of food.

You could also stay near old montreal as I find that a very romantic setting and again, I think there are many nice restaurants.

L'eau à la Bouche is a restaurant/hotel/spa in Quebec that I have heard very good things about (especially the restaurant) but I have never been there. Here's a link: dev.leaualabouche.com

I have never stayed in Vermont but driven through it and always marked it down as a place to go for a 2-3 day holiday. Perhaps others could make some suggestions.

I would also recommend Prince Edward County which I was in during the Summer of 2010. There is a great Cheese Shop/Cheese Maker there and some fun wineries (Long Dog is there if I have the name right).

Finally, Portland Maine is a very nice town though its been 7-8 years since I was there. Its a 7-8 hour drive if I remember correctly - so that might be too far. If you do go, Fore Street is a remarkable restaurant that I found to be reasonably priced - at least for that sort of restaurant but I was there 7 years ago so much may have changed.

Hope you have a wonderful time whatever you decide.

2011 Nov 8
Let me STRONGLY recommend the Eastern Townships, in QC less than an hour south of Mtl.

Great scenery, AMAZING food, a really nice wine route filled with great wineries and arguably even better cideries and the people are fantastic. And did i mention the amazing food? Because it is amazing.

www.easterntownships.org/

www.laroutedesvins.ca/en/

and if you're feeling the foodie...

www.fondissimo.ca/

www.lespechesdepinocchio.com/

...among others...

Oh and congrats!

2011 Nov 8
Yes - Congratulations! I was so excited about food, I forgot to say it.

Also, my comment about Southern Ontario being boring was really just about the drive through Southern Ontario to NOTL being boring. I love NOTL!

I think you should first decide how long you want to spend travelling, how long you want to spend in your hotel/b&b room and if you want to do anything other than eat or drink. When I stayed in Vermont, we stayed in a lovely B&B. It was pretty isolated, so we did a lot of walking and driving around small towns. If you just want to go and park for the weekend and shop & eat, you may want somewhere a little more city than country side.

OSoloMeal's suggestions all look great! I think I may have to try some of that out. Also, you can drive down around the St. Lawerence and do some touristy things like whale watching. You don't have to go as far as Quebec city. In Ottawa, we are really so close to so many great things, all within a 4 hour drive of the city.

One other suggestion is a weekend of pampering at Montebello. They have lots of great activities, though not sure what would be happening in November.

2011 Nov 8
Hey HFF, I grew up in Southern Ontario, and I was ready to object to your contention that it's boring until you clarified that you meant Niagara, which for us was "up north" LOL.

Stowe Vermont is a good weekend destination with great inns, spas and food. Many of them are smaller and very romantic. Our favorite is Stowehof.

www.stowehofinn.com/

Congratulations and have fun!

2011 Nov 8
Congrats Brian!
I (and my dw too) think Quebec City is a very pretty and romantic destination and there are lots of places to stay in the old city. It's a bit far at nearly 5 hours but closer than NOTL. Prince Edward County is another good suggestion, closer, lots of places to stay and good restos and wineries, and *bonus they have a promotion on this month with some nice packages at countylicious.ca/.

2011 Nov 8
Also "The Lodge" at Turning Stone has one of the best spas I've ever been to. It is part of the larger Turning Stone Casino Resort, but there is great coal fired pizza, diner food and Dinosaur BBQ all nearby. Not a great deal of upscale dining, but lots of good regional food.
www.turningstone.com


2011 Nov 8
montebello, is great. the fairmont there is amazing, so nice just to walk around or chill by the massive fireplace and have a nice drink. Spa is nice too. Only an hour drive too

2011 Nov 8
Congrats. Lots of nice places in the area actually, such as walking trails in Gatineau Park. Last week there was a chilly morning where a mist rose from the still surface of the Gatineau River with the rays of the sun shining through, and the trees on both banks still wearing some fall colors. I saw it on my bike commute in, and it was as perfect a scene as you could ever wish for.

2011 Nov 10
Congrats!! Check out my trip last march into montreal on a hunt for food and wine... boy did we find it. Pick and choose some amazing places and just have fun.
chowhound.chow.com

Prince Edward Country is great too, but I found it was lacking in food stops, mostly wine, which can get costly stopping every few hundred meters at a winery. :)

2011 Nov 10
PEC is all good but more about the wine than the food. You won't starve tho' but the variety is limitted and the high points few.

I prefer the ETs as a destination for wine and food and scenery. Amazing spas too if you're into that. Or your spouse is. :)

Montebello... the Chateau is lovely and does very good food. Only downside is that there isn't much more than the Chateau there. And Park Omega if you're into that. Otherwise i find that area isn't much of a tourist zone.

Closer to home i think that Wakefield and specifically the Wakefield Mill Inn is worth a look, altho Anne Desbrisay was unimpressed with the restaurant in a recent review. The Inn is worth an overnight. Two nights might be a stretch unless you're doing something else in the area.

2011 Nov 10
Thanks for all the suggestions folks. Alas, we weren't the only ones hoping to get away this weekend and most places were all booked up, so we're going the tried-and-true Montreal route. Hoping we might be able to snag a couple seats at PDC Friday or Saturday evening, we'll see!