I always feel like the odd one out on this topic because I love winter. I'm also not a beach person. I grew up on the Jersey Shore, but I still prefer mountains to the ocean. I would rather sit around a fire pit at a mountain cabin, wearing jeans and a sweater, than lay on the beach in a bikini trying to get a good tan. That being said, I'm not opposed to exotic beaches. A trip to Hawaii several years ago was one of the best trips I ever went on! But given the choice, I tend to choose colder, more mountainous locations.
For the past 6 years I've done a lot of traveling in Canada. I follow figure skating closely and have managed to go to the Canadian National Figure Skating Championships for 5 of the past 6 years. It has been a great opportunity to take a winter vacation. The location of the championships changes each year so I buy my tickets and then plan a vacation based on whatever city we are in that year.
The downside to traveling to Canada in the winter is that you'll find about half of the local attractions in each city, closed for the season. The upside to this is that it's easy to decide what to see, because you don't have to choose between too many options with too little time! You'll also find yourself in touristy locations without all of the tourists, which makes for more enjoyable experiences (in my personal opinion).
This past years Canadian Nationals were held in Halifax, Nova Scotia. I'd never been to Nova Scotia so I jumped on the chance to go. We ended up planning out a 2 week trip that took us to see friends in Buffalo, New York first.
When I was living in Washington state, one of my best friends was my friend Allison. She was the first friend I made in Washington and we have remained good friends to this day. Her husband was stationed on Whidbey Island with the Navy and when he got out of the Navy they moved back to their home town of Tonawanda, New York - which is right next to Buffalo. We've started an annual tradition of going to the ice wine festival in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario each year. I've tacked this onto the beginning or end of my Canadian vacation for 3 years now.
The Niagara Wine Region area of Ontario is the world's largest producer of ice wine. What's ice wine, you ask? We didn't know the answer either at first. My very basic explanation of it is this:
The grapes freeze, and then juice is squeezed out of them. Because they're frozen, there are only a few drops of juice. This creates a thicker, sweeter wine. Bottles of ice wine are about half the size of a normal bottle of wine and twice as expensive. But it is absolutely delicious! A more thorough explanation of ice wine can be found here: All About Icewine
During the ice wine festival you can buy a Discovery Pass that gives you 8 tickets for tastings at 8 wineries of your choosing. Each winery gives a sample of wine along with a sample of some kind of home cooked food. The food varies from appetizers, to main courses, to desserts.
This was Ross' first trip to Ontario and his first experience with ice wine. Allison, her husband, and I decided to try some new wineries this year, but we also took Ross to our favorite ones.
Before meeting up with Allison and her husband Steve for the day, Ross and I drove out to the town of Jordon, Ontario (part of the Niagara Wine Region) to Flat Rock Cellar. We wanted to sample their new ice wine - Patrick Chan On Ice. Patrick Chan is the reigning National Champion in Canada for men's figure skating. This past year made him an 8 time national champion. He recently got his name on his own ice wine. He personally sampled and picked out the type he was going to name after himself with the winery. We decided to check it out simply for the novelty of it. It turns out that it wasn't just a novelty. It was actually the best ice wine that we tasted this year. We went home with a bottle of it for ourselves and a bottle for the people that I work for. We also carried it with us to the last day of the National Championships and during a practice session for the Exhibition Gala we were able to get Patrick Chan to autograph the bottle!
At Flat Rock Cellar
It's a blurry picture, but the only one we have of Patrick Chan signing the bottle
Ross and me with Patrick Chan and our autographed bottle of his ice wine
Allison and me at Chateau des Charmes
Our other favorite, and our "must do" every year is Peller Estates. We stumbled onto this place somewhat accidentally our first year. At every winery we stopped at, at least one person asked us if we had been to Peller Estates yet to try their marshmallows. We were a little confused about the excitement. We had seen them listed in the Discovery Pass brochure but we just assumed that marshmallows were simply marshmallows and we opted to try places with food that sounded more interesting. However, after multiple people mentioned it to us we decided to go see what all the hype was about. We were glad that we did! It turns out that their marshmallows are homemade and have ice wine in them! They are absolutely delicious and after that year we found ourselves being the people asking others if they had gone to Peller Estates yet. Not only are the marshmallows delicious, but the atmosphere there is a bit different from the other wineries. Its more casual and relaxed - because of the marshmallows. They have fire pits outside where you can roast them and there are always tons of people there. Each year it has been the most crowded winery that we've stopped at. They also tend to give out two samples of ice wine instead of one. If you're ever in the Niagara-on-the-Lake area during the ice wine festival stopping at Peller Estates is a MUST. My personal review is here.
Ross with his very first ice wine marshmallow
Allison and Steve
All of us roasting our delicious marshmallows
Ross and me
We checked out a few other wineries, but Chateau des Charmes and Peller Estates remain two of our favorites to this day.
After a fun day of ice wine, we wrapped up the evening at the Irish Harp Pub in downtown Niagara-on-the-Lake. Click here for my personal review. Somehow, in a restaurant that was so crowded you could barely move, we managed to get the best seat in the house - right next to the fireplace, which, after a VERY cold day, was absolutely perfect!
The day after our Discovery Pass tastings, Ross and I headed off on our own to a tour of Konzelman Estates Winery. We had stayed at a hotel in Niagara Falls for a night and when the owner heard we were going to the Ice Wine Festival she gave us a pass for a free tour and tasting. Konzelman is unique in that it is the only winery in the area that actually sits right on Lake Ontario. The wine was great, but instead of going home with ice wine, we ended up going home with a bottle of their peach wine - which I highly recommend! Click here for my personal review of the tour.
Konselman Estates Winery
Ross and me by the Konzelman Vineyard
Ross and me on the Konzelman Tour
Amazing that even with hardly any people there, we still couldn't get a picture without someone else in the background.
He wasn't as excited as I was about winter
Ross' next Canadian experience was trying the delicious dessert that is known as a BeaverTail. I tried my first BeaverTail in Ottawa a few years ago and loved it. It's simply fried dough that looks like the shape of a beaver tail and then topped with some kind of sickeningly sweet topping. Canadians love them, especially Canadians who live in Ottawa (which is where the original BeaverTails stand is). They're all over Canada though so Ross has his first taste at a stand in Niagara Falls.
As for lodging on this trip, I have to make two recommendations. We spent 4 nights in the Buffalo/Niagara area (we flew into the Buffalo airport). Our first night and last night were spent in the Rex Motel in Niagara Falls. This was the second time that I stayed there and both stays have been beyond excellent. It's an interesting place. From the outside it looks like an old run down roadside motel. The price (at least the price in winter...I don't know the average price for summer) seems to concur with the run down motel look. We paid about $55 CAD which at the time equaled about $40 USD. While I love things that are inexpensive, that price had me worried the first time that I stayed there. Typically, its unlikely that you're going to have a good experience at a hotel when the cost is only $40 a night. But the Rex Motel defies that theory. It has consistently been in the #1 spot on TripAdvisor (here is their review page), and the reviews aren't lying.
Yes, from the outside it looks old and run down. But the inside is so well cared for and loved by the owners. A family from Bulgaria came to Ontario, bought the place and fixed it up. They decorated every room with a different theme and it is absolutely SPOTLESS. I honestly think it's the cleanest hotel that I have ever stayed in. The owners also go out of their way to make sure that you are comfortable and that you have every thing you need while in town. This was the place that gave us the free tour pass for Konzelman Estates. We also got great recommendations for places to eat. All I can say is don't let the price of this place scare you away. The customer service is excellent. It is by no means a 5 star resort, but if you want clean, comfortable and customer service oriented - this is the best place by far. Click here for my review from this past January. And click here for my original review from 2 years ago.
In Niagara-on-the-Lake we stayed a wonderful Bed and Breakfast in the historic downtown area - the Rogers Harrison House. Our experience was excellent and we would definitely recommend them to anyone. My personal review is here and tells you all you need to know about our experience.
The Rogers Harrison House in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario
Side yard of the Rogers Harrison House
Stay tuned for Part 2 of our trip: Halifax!
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