Summer at the Fairmont Le Château Montebello

We visited Fairmont Le Château Montebello in the fall, but this was our first time visiting in the summer! After a looong school year, my youngest kiddo needed a fun getaway and Montebello promised (and delivered) everything.

If you’ve never been, Montebello is a treat for the whole family. The massive cedar Château wowed my kids the first time we arrived, and my daughter was just as excited this time to pull into the stately grounds and catch a glimpse of the main building, a masterpiece constructed 90 years ago from 10,000 red-cedar logs. The 300-acre property spills out towards the Ottawa River, with gorgeous walking trails and, if you can catch it, a great vantage point for the sunset.

We stayed in a newly renovated room with two double beds, which was perfect for the two of us. I think if we decide to go back as a family of four we’ll check out the deluxe rooms with two Queen beds and the pull-out sofa, which would give us some extra space to spread out.

Since we were only staying one night we decided to cram as much as possible into our mini vacation. Included in your resort experience fee are enough activities to fill an entire week. It’s truly a one-stop shop family destination!

After check-in we headed straight to the outdoor pool, because it was a gorgeous, hot day, and we wanted to soak up the sun before dinner. My daughter was delighted that they served ice cream at the bar, and I enjoyed a very tasty Mojito. The outdoor pool atmosphere is reminiscent of beach vacations down south, with plenty of chairs, umbrellas and cabanas for rent, fun music and pool floaties.

We headed back to our room to freshen up before dinner, which was at the outdoor BBQ. The covered terrace was adjacent to a pretty vegetable and butterfly garden, with views of the river. This family-friendly service is perfect for kids, as the food was brought out quickly and we could order more when we wanted - the courses included salads, fish/seafood, meat and dessert. A word of warning: if you are visiting with a young, picky child, you will need to eat almost ALL of the food. I was stuffed!

After dinner we had a nice walk along the river and stopped by the nightly campfire. We then headed over to the new playground. Inspired by the wilderness, the double-sized play area features three slides, a rustic climbing wall, a stone cross-bar, sugar maples to climb and a perched hut. My daughter loved it!

We woke up bright and early the next morning and opted for in-room dining, which was another new experience for my daughter. She had the rich, buttery crepes and I had muesli, yogurt and fresh fruit. We felt very spoiled!

We had made a reservation for the indoor pool for 9am, which is part of COVID procedures. We had the entire pool to share with only a few other families! In contrast to the outdoor party pool, indoors was quiet, with plenty of room to do laps. I was told that if you want to have a quieter experience at the outdoor pool, 10am is the best time to go!

After that we went to grab a bike rental and did an easy 3km ride, followed by a round of mini-putt. Following the noon check-out we stayed on the resort grounds for a couple of hours, and headed back to the outdoor pool for another swim. If we’d had had more time, I would have tried to squeeze in a kayak or canoe paddle along the river!

If this sounds like a lot, it IS, which is why two nights would be perfect. We’re already planning our trip for next year!

Other things you should know

• Montebello is a pet-friendly resort. We loved seeing everyone’s dogs, and the resort has a new canine ambassador named Vic, who joins 7 year-old Bello! Both are Canadian Guide Dogs for the Blind and now enjoy a quiet retirement on the resort. We tried to spot him on our tours around the grounds, but maybe we’ll catch him next time :)

• In addition to the BBQ and in-room dining (plus other dining options we didn’t visit), there are picnic baskets available in the summer. All you need to do is call down in the morning before 9am and then enjoy your picnic lunch!

• There is a Summer Fun Package available now until Labour Day. It includes 2 nights accommodation, daily breakfast, daily resort fee and more! If you’re looking for a way to celebrate before the start of school, this is it!

Disclaimer: I was provided a media rate for our room, which included the daily resort fee. All opinions are my own.

Autumn at Parc Omega

by Carly

Our family is not hugely into Halloween - for no particular reason, though the Little Man has always found it more scary than fun and so we downplay it for his sake and ours.  It wasn't a huge event for me when I was a child, so perhaps that's partly why we don't do the haunted tractor rides, the pumpkin patch or the parties.

We do, however, have a mad, mad love affair with Fall. Jake, now five, shares in this enthusiasm for Autumn.  The last two months have seen our weekends full of family related activities as mundane as cleaning out the garage and as pleasant as visits to out of town relatives.  Needless to say, Jake's been begging for a weekend activity centered around him, so this past Sunday his Nana and I took him to Parc Omega.

He'd visited with a day camp over the summer, but was frustrated by the height of the bus windows and his inability to reach the animals in order to hand feed them.  Since then he's been asking to go back.  At just over 8 months pregnant, I'm not up for wandering around a museum for hours or hiking through Gatineau Park.  But Parc Omega was a great option since you can both drive through the park, and stop from time to time to meander along the walking trails.

We saw caribou, red and white-tailed deer, bison, timber and arctic wolves, coyotes, wild pigs, blue herons, geese, beavers, moose, blue jays, raccoons, black bear, goats, ibexs, foxes, skunks and more.

Hearing Jake's squeals of laughter as the caribou and deer ate carrots he fed them through the car windows warmed my heart.  It was a perfect fall day and a lovely drive through Quebec, surrounded by beautiful hills ablaze in colour on one side and the Ottawa river on the other.

If you go . . . Parc Omega is near Montebello, about a 45-60 minute drive from Ottawa.  If you want to enjoy the walking trails, wear comfortable clothes and shoes!  The park is open year-round with prices ranging from $15-$18 per adult and $13-$7 for children depending on their age and the season.

Carrots are the preferred food of choice for the animals because they're healthy and easy to feed (long enough that little fingers don't need to worry about being nipped).  You can purchase them in the gift shop, or bring your own.  (We brought 6 lbs and went through them in minutes - I do wish we'd brought more!)

There is a canteen on-site, though like many tourist attractions, the prices are a little high.  You can bring your own picnic lunch and eat at a variety of spots throughout the park.

Depending on how busy the park is and how quickly you choose to drive through it, plan on spending at least a couple of hours meeting all the animals along the way.

Carly has red hair and occasionally the temper to match.  She loves potatoes, rainy nights, photography, her husband and her 5 year old son, Jacob.  Probably in reverse order.   She also blogs.