Perfect getaways for kids

Need a perfect getaway with your kids this summer. Resorts of Ontario can help and in fact, our resorts excel at providing a superior family oriented experience. We specialize in the family experiences by providing kids programs specific to age group. You can rest easy knowing that your child is being cared for by trained staff whose job is to make sure all the kids are having fun. And while your kid is off on daily adventures, you can go for some of your own fun or relaxation by taking in a game of golf, treating yourself to a favourite (or newly discovered) spa treatment, or just sitting in quiet area of the natural Ontario resort settings.

Some of the activities your child(ren) will enjoy at our resorts are mountain biking clinics, golf clinics, learning to fish, wakeboarding and waterskiing, tubing, playing games and more. While each resort is different the bottom line is having fun. At Blue Mountain their Kids program, will keep your little one smiling all day with their different themed adventure days, plunges in their pools and even tennis clinics. Kids Korral at Horseshoe Resort, will take your kids through the discovery of something new each day by teaching different activities and skill levels based on the age group your child fits into. Cleveland’s House Resort’s – Cleve’s Kids Club offers “Ontario’s largest and most extensive children’s program.” Here your kids have an emphasis on fun and learning in a safe environment up to 18 years old. At Cleveland’s House, they also have programs to get the whole family involved with their talent shows, amazing family race nights, bon fire nights and more. At Fern Resort, your family will have so many fond memories that you’ll be looking forward to your return visit. Whether you go for the kids programs, the entertainment, dance parties to cooking classes they offer something for everyone. The VIK Club (Very Important Kids Club) at the Delawana Inn, Spa and Conference Resort is a supervised day camp for children ages 3-12 and includes arts and crafts, rock climbing, land sports and water activities, and more. There are several resorts that offer children’s programs and I encourage you to visit the family resorts section of our website.

As the day winds down, you can catch up with your kids on their fun-filled day over some of the fantastic meals prepared by the resort chefs. Don’t worry, the chefs still have kids in mind and prepare meals for the palates of youth and adults alike with a variety of menu options to choose from. When you have finished your meal, relax and sit back for some of the nightly entertainment provide which includes everything from water skiing shows, family friendly comedians and shows and even outdoor movies.

There is still lots of time left in the summer, so pack the car and come on up to our place for your great family friendly adventure.

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New Ontario family vacation ideas

Across Ontario, the province’s largest resort association, Resorts of Ontario, has come up with some exciting new family deals this summer. Here are a few examples, along with the prices for comparison.

The notorious pirate ship Wenonah II on Lake Rosseau. Photo: Karen Campbell

Clevelands House on Lake Rosseau in Muskoka, prides itself on its family programming. This summer, it has teamed up with The Real Muskoka Experience to offer a new Pirate Ship Dinner Cruise on the Wenonah II every Thursday night, beginning July 2nd. Mini three-night Vacations with meals start at $675 per adult at Clevelands House. Children from three to eleven years pay half the adult rate. Special family discount packages are available on certain weeks throughout the summer. Click “rates” for further details on their website.

For active teens, Killarney Mountain Lodge on upper Georgian Bay near Killarney Park has guided hikes, sea-kayaking and canoeing, great homecooking and its cavernous recreation hall with its shuffleboard, table tennis, heated outdoor pool and giant sauna is a popular teen hang out. A three-night adventure package with meals included is priced from $575 per person.

In the Kawartha Lakes, Scotsman Point Resort is celebrating its 60th anniversary with a specially priced Celebrating Families package for the weeks of July 7-11 and August 29-September 5. Known for its great fishing, child-friendly waterfront and home baking, the resort’s two-bedroom apartment units and two-bedroom cottages are priced on these weeks at $949 and $999 respectively. Three-bedroom cottages, which can sleep up to seven, are priced from $1249. Taxes are extra. All units have fully equipped kitchens, colour TV, electric heat and gas BBQ’s.

Glen House Resort is in the Thousand Islands, an integral part of the Frontenac Arch Biosphere Reserve, part of a UNESCO World Network of Biosphere Reserves. This resort has indoor and outdoor pools, sauna, tennis, an exercise room, volleyball, games room, fishing charters, hiking trails, a beach, canoe, kayak and pedalboat rentals, and its own 18-hole championship golf course. Its three-night Explorers Package includes a room with deluxe breakfast from $58 (per person, per night, double occupancy) and for $60 extra, per person, there is complimentary use of all amenities plus a choice of two out of these three attractions: a 1000 Islands Cruise, a four-hour boat & motor rental, or a live performance at the 1000 Islands Playhouse.

Here is a more complete listing of family resorts.

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Family activities, pirates and wooden boats at Clevelands House

Sunset on Lake Rosseau from the wharf at Clevelands House Resort

I love the new Pirate Ship Cruise for kids at Clevelands House Resort. It’s a dinner cruise for the kids on Thursday nights from 5-7 pm aboard the notorious Muskoka pirate ship Wenonah II. Clevelands House is probably the last remaining of all the grand hotels that were built in Muskoka at a time when rail and water were the only way to get there. Today this resort is very family-oriented. They’ve got 55 qualified counsellors to care for and entertain infants to teens. Check out the Cleve’s Kids Club! Parents can take advantage of their babysitting and something they call “hallsitting” – kind of like the hall monitors we had back in school.

The pirate ship is a perfect fit for a resort which was built to look like a boat 140 years ago when, who knows, maybe there was the odd pirate stalking the Muskoka Lakes. Bob Cornell, whose family is only the third to manage the resort in 140 years spoke to me recently. Great guy to talk to. He started his resort career at Clevelands House as a bellhop in 1949. His son-in-law is Ted Carruthers, the current General Manager of the resort. The Minett family, the original owners of Clevelands House, homesteaded here in 1869, and it wasn’t long after that that they were in the resort business. As well as building Clevelands House, the Minetts were also in the boat building business. Minett boats, and later, Minett-Shields Boats, set the standards for the great wooden boat building history of the Muskoka area. Bob Cornell remembers well the 1917 “Mineta” that used to take resort guests on excursions around the lake.

More Clevelands House history can be found here.

If you’re thinking of a holiday in Ontario this summer, check out Resorts of Ontario for family/summer packages. Packaging activities together with accommodations can save money! This is an example of a “Family adventure” package – Ultimate HORSEplay Adventure at Horseshoe Resort. This package includes two night’s accommodation, daily breakfast, two-hour Rhino Safari (ATVs), Tree Top Trekking Adventure, two 18-hole rounds of golf, two Kids Korral Adventure Day Camp and one dinner at the Crazy Horse! Rate based on two adults and two children (ages 11 and under). Price is $800.00 plus tax and resort amenity fee.

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Golf at Ontario Resorts

The Ridge at Manitou, next door to the Inn at Manitou. Photo credit: Clive Barber

One of the advantages of working in the Canadian tourism industry is that I get to play a lot of golf on different courses across the country. In the province of Ontario where there are over 800 courses to choose from, we’re working with Resorts of Ontario this year. Many of its one hundred resort hotels, lodges, country inns and cottage resorts either have golf on-site or they have playing privileges at private and public courses nearby. Several have famous golf architects attached to them like Brookstreet‘s Trent Jones course near Ottawa. It’s owned by Sir Terry Matthews who also owns the Celtic Manor in Wales, the venue for the 2010 Ryder Cup. Others may not be as well known but they still offer challenging play. A couple of weeks ago, I asked the resort owners if they would send me their golf news for 2009. Many included their new golf packages as well and there are a number of good deals. Here’s is just a small sample of what I was sent:

Pine Vista Resort in the Kawartha Lakes, is partnering with Wildfire this year, a new McBroom-designed course just five minutes away. • Clevelands House in Muskoka, has its own ‘executive 9’ which is great for families and this year it is also packaging with The Rock, the redesigned Nick Faldo course, one minute away. Also in Muskoka, Deerhurst Resort has a new Island & Highlands golf package that includes a round of golf for two at Deerhurst Highlands and Bigwin Island. Its 18 hole Lakeside course is also good for families. • At Bayview Wildwood, guests can opt to play two out of five courses on a two-night package offered all summer long with dinners and breakfasts included, starting at $344pp/do. The choice of courses are: Hawk Ridge, South Muskoka GC, Bonaire GC, Lake St. George GC and Settler’s Ghost. • Closer to Barrie, Carriage Ridge Resort partners with Settler’s Ghost, Horseshoe Highlands with Horseshoe Valley and Hawk Ridge, and has an early spring rate starting at only $89pp/do. • The Briars on Lake Simcoe, has a mid week spring special that includes two nights, two breakfasts and two rounds of 18 for just $129 per person per night based on double occupancy. Cart is additional.

Lots more can be found by clicking on “Golf” at Resorts of Ontario.

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Family Connections at Resorts of Ontario

It’s a family business at many Resorts of Ontario. Some resorts have been owned and run by the same families for generations. And it’s not uncommon to hear of guests who have returned to their favourite resort for decades. Many of the resorts’ histories have been documented too. Here’s a small sample.

In the early 1920's the Mordolphton Camp was sold, renamed Severn Lodge and opened to the public.

Back in the late 1800s fishing and hunting clubs were all the rage in Ontario. Present-day Severn Lodge once served as the Mordolphton Club, a private Pittsburgh-based fishing club with wealthy railway men as members. They would travel by private Pullman car to Waubaushene before making their way to the club on the north shore of Gloucester Pool near Georgian Bay. The fishing is still great in this region of Ontario. Just ask anyone at Muskeys Landing in Port Severn where fishing is a main activity.

Fern Resort uses a tagline first coined by the owners’ great grandfather; “The home of rolls & honey”. He was a successful Ottawa baker in the early 1900s. His famous buns are still baked daily and served with his favourite honey, Crerar’s, which has been making honey in eastern Ontario since 1914.

Fern Resort, near Orillia, has been run by the same family for five generations.

One of Haliburton’s first pioneers, James Holland planted the trademark willow trees that still grow along Willow Beach Cottage Resort’s waterfront in Haliburton.

Viamede Resort, Pine Vista Resort and the Irwin Inn are all part of a remarkable Stony Lake community steeped in tradition. An example is the annual Stony Lake Regatta which is almost a century old. This year it will be held on August 3rd.

In 1946, the Chernuck family left Russia to begin a new life in Canada. By chance they noticed a Montreal Gazette classified announcing a large farm for sale on Rice Lake and they purchased it for $10,000. Today the land is still owned by the Chernacks and is known as Golden Beach Resort.

The marina at Golden Beach Resort on Rice Lake.

The Delawana Inn Resort in Honey Harbour first opened its doors in 1897 as Victoria House. For 15¢ you could take the steamer Odessa from Midland across the bay to Honey Harbour and the hotel. Under the Grisé family, it became the Delawana. My friend Janet, a Cleveland-area travel editor, still has fond memories of vacationing at the “Del” in the 1950s with her family.

When Charles Minnett, the original owner of Clevelands House in Muskoka, ordered his hotel’s first register in 1883, he asked the printer to label it Cleeve Lands after his birthplace in England. The printer mistakenly changed the name to Clevelands, and it was never corrected.

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