posted 09-07-2004 18:33               

In July we went to Gites du Fjord in Quebec. You can see my review.

Deerhurst and Taboo are highly desirable and do not come up very often I understand. There are not that many units I and probably the owners do not exchange very much especially for the summer months.

Those are my thoughts but I am no expert. I would love to get one of those for the summer and have had a search going two years in a row for a few resorts in the area. This year we ended up with Gites du Fjord and next year we will be going to Virginia because I expanded my search when nothing came up and I was told by RCI that my chances were not good for Deerhurst or Taboo. I wouldn't mind Collingwood but that did not come up either.

We go to our own resort for winter skiing but are not interested in the summer months because we want something close to water.

posted 09-12-2004 08:30               

Join me in the hot tub at www.tstips.com

posted 09-12-2004 09:43               

I know there is a full kitchen in the 2-bdrm unit, however, we may not want to cook after returning from a day of sightseeing. How is the restaurant on-site? Are there other restaurants within close proximity (15-30 minutes) that you would recommend? Thanks so much for your assistance!

posted 09-12-2004 13:03               

The resort inself has a couple of restaurants. Silks is the expensive one but we only ate breakfast there once. It was OK. Another one is the Go-West(or something like that) Again, we ate there only once for dinner. It was nice. I think that there is another one but I am not sure. We generally make all our meals in the unit. I buy a lot of stuff at M & M Meatshop and take it from Toronto in a cooler in the winter.

If you enjoy biking/walking, Horseshoe/Carriage Hills has trails. We only tried the biking trail but did not enjoy it. Orillia has a nice boardwalk for walking and biking along the lake and there are lots of restaurants nearby. There is also a boat tour from Orillia but it may only be available in the summer.

posted 09-12-2004 13:31               

The Sunshine Festival Theater Company in Orillia has a performance of "OL'BLUE EYES" which is a tribute to Frank Sinatra during your stay. Never saw any of their performances so I could not vouch for the quality.

There are a few art studios in Orillia and even one not too far from Carriage Hills - Ron Lockhart Gallery. He paints local landscapes and wildlife. When you check in at the reception desk be sure to take a bunch of fliers for the different things that interest you.

posted 09-12-2004 20:10               

Thanks for your suggestions. I will definitely check out the Orillia website. It sounds like we may want to stop at a grocery store on the way to Carriage Hills...I guess we can't just hop in the car and find a quick bite to eat nearby! Besides, if we are on the go the entire day, it may be more relaxing to fix something simple at the unit in the evening.

We also thought about visiting Toronto on a day trip. I heard it is expensive to park in Toronto, and that it is difficult to find parking in the "tourist" areas. But, if it is anything like San Francisco, then it won't be a shock. Thanks again for your response. TUG members always come through on my travel questions...like a personal travel agency!

posted 09-13-2004 09:51               

We just spent a week a Carriage Ridge, the low end part of the Carriage Hills complex. The Horseshoe Resort, where you check in and where the on-site restaurants are located is about a 10 minute drive from the Carriage Hills.

Presuming you come up the 400, there is an IGA about 3 miles west of Carriage Hills on route 22. Other than that, you have to go into Orillia or Barrie for food.

The walking and biking trails on site are poorly maintained. They do have a nice map showing where they are, however.

Be wary about driving into Toronto. The 400 south (about 90 km) is busy, but not impossible. However, the 401, which runs east-west across the northern part of Toronto can be brutal, especially since there is some on-going construction. There really isn't an expressway into downtown Toronto from the north.

Besides Orillia, I would suggest a day or two in Midland. Not only is there SainteMarie Among the Hurons, but also the adjacent Wye River Nature Center. Midland also has about 30 historical murals painted on various buildings. It will be getting close to the end of the season, but a cruise in the 30,000 Islands is worth considering, too.

All in all, Carriage Hills is not a destination resort, so make plans to explore all the neat things in the surrounding area.

posted 09-13-2004 18:44               

If you go into Toronto, there are highways that go north and south. The 404 highway goes south and then turns into the Don Valley Parkway. The 400 south does not continue all the way to downtown, so you would have to take a east/west route to get to the DVP(Don Valley Parkway). As Art mentioned, this would be the 401. There is also the 427 that goes south into Toronto on the west side of the city. It's not so bad but try not to do this in rush-hour. Avoid 8:00 - 9:30 am and 5:00 -6:30pm driving. The other alternative is to drive into the north end of the city to the end of the subway line and park the car there. Then you can take the subway downtown.

posted 09-14-2004 06:13               

Best way to see everything in Toronto is park your car ASAP(not cheap but not NY either) and use the excellent subway or transit system - 10 tockens for $8. You will get everywhere faster, see more while not having to continually search for hard to find parking, and leave Toronto far more relaxed.

Some Toronto sights: Royal Ontario Museaum, Ontario Art Gallery, CN Tower (restaurant at top which is pricy but good food and wonderful view), Skydome, Parliament Buildings, Laurance Street Market (closed Sun.), Harbour Front (south of Gardner at Yonge & good area to park), Toronto Island (ferry from Harbour Front). All are along or within a few minutes walk from the subway. Also great for all ages is the Ontario Science Centre at Don Mills Road & Eglington which is a block west of the Don Valley Parkway.