Overview:
Kelowna's indoor play place for kids. Plenty of activities to do in the EnergyCube, trampoline room, rock wall and craft room will keep children busy for hours.
Thoughts:
This was a great place for kids that are strong enough to do the activities on their own. Some of the things required younger children to help out a considerable amount. this would not have been a problem except that adults were not allowed on half of the equipment at all.
The toddler area does not have a lot to it with only a couple of things that the kids can climb around.
Overall it was a great place to spend a couple of hours and let the kids run around.
Price:
Infants: Free
Toddlers (1-2): $7.95
Kids (3-15): $9.95
Accompanying Parents: $3.00
Adults (16 and up): $9.95
The price for children is quite good, but when it comes to parents who are not allowed to use the equipment and toddlers who aren't strong enough to use half the stuff on their own, it could be a bit cheaper.
Pros:
Large area and a good variety of things to do for the kids. The EnergyCube is 4 levels of climbing and slides where kids can just run. The trampoline room is great with a few different things to bounce and play on.
Cons:
Pricey if you have younger kids for what they can actually use without help and the Cafe did not a have a very good variety of food to choose from. Definitely eat outside and if you need to get a snack inside.
Contact Information:
130 - 948 McCurdy Rd
Kelowna, BC
V1X 2P7
Phone: 250.765.4486
Fax: 250.765.4497
Website: http://www.energyplex.ca
Email: customerservice@energyplex.ca
Wednesday, 22 May 2013
Tuesday, 21 May 2013
Best Western Plus Hotel and Suites: Kelowna
Overview:
Located right on Harvey Ave on your way through Kelowna, this hotel features a heated pool, two hot tubs, plenty of rooms and suites, hot buffet breakfast with omelette chef on site to take your order and a restaurant and bar on the premise. The best part about this hotel is that it is one of the only ones in Kelowna that accept Airmiles rewards for rooms.
Thoughts:
The hotel was nice and well maintained. The landscaping was nice and each room came with robe and pool shoes to get you to and from the pool. Towels were provided by the front desk and coffee and tea were available in the lounge at all times. the hours for the pool were from 6:30 am to 10:30 pm giving you plenty of time to go for a swim or enjoy the hot tub. The breakfast was about 50/50. Some of the food was great, especially the al a carte omelettes, but the scrambled eggs left something to be desired.
Price:
$170 - $300
The price is a little on the high end but comparable with like hotels in the area. The best part being that you can use about 1300 Airmiles Reward Miles to book a standard room for a night.
Pros:
Nice hotel, rooms are a good size and the hotel is quite. Free hot breakfast buffet and large pool and two hot tubs. Suites are available. And restaurant and bar located on premise.
Cons:
Expensive for a hotel to just stop at for the night. Some of the breakfast buffet was not very appealing.
Contact Information:
2402 Hwy 97
Kelowna, BC
V1X 4J1
Phone: 250.860.1212
Located right on Harvey Ave on your way through Kelowna, this hotel features a heated pool, two hot tubs, plenty of rooms and suites, hot buffet breakfast with omelette chef on site to take your order and a restaurant and bar on the premise. The best part about this hotel is that it is one of the only ones in Kelowna that accept Airmiles rewards for rooms.
Thoughts:
The hotel was nice and well maintained. The landscaping was nice and each room came with robe and pool shoes to get you to and from the pool. Towels were provided by the front desk and coffee and tea were available in the lounge at all times. the hours for the pool were from 6:30 am to 10:30 pm giving you plenty of time to go for a swim or enjoy the hot tub. The breakfast was about 50/50. Some of the food was great, especially the al a carte omelettes, but the scrambled eggs left something to be desired.
Price:
$170 - $300
The price is a little on the high end but comparable with like hotels in the area. The best part being that you can use about 1300 Airmiles Reward Miles to book a standard room for a night.
Pros:
Nice hotel, rooms are a good size and the hotel is quite. Free hot breakfast buffet and large pool and two hot tubs. Suites are available. And restaurant and bar located on premise.
Cons:
Expensive for a hotel to just stop at for the night. Some of the breakfast buffet was not very appealing.
Contact Information:
2402 Hwy 97
Kelowna, BC
V1X 4J1
Phone: 250.860.1212
Monday, 15 April 2013
Clearwater Lodge: Clearwater
Overview
Located at the gateway to Wells Gray Park, the Clearwater Lodge offers modern spacious rooms with queens sized beds. Rooms come fully equipped with kitchenettes, cable tv, air conditioning and direct dial phones. All rooms have a balcony or patio. There is a hot continental breakfast and a restaurant on site.
Thoughts
Under new management the service has greatly improved at the hotel. The continental breakfast was offered on weekends now, which was a big plus. Although the restaurant hours were still a little hard to hit. There is a large pool, hot tub, sauna and fitness area but these were closed for maintenance during our stay.
The rooms are a nice size but no suites are offered. All rooms have outdoor access to either a balcony or a patio overlooking a large field or direct access to parking.
Price
$90-$120
The price is average for a hotel and probably a good deal as it is the only hotel in Clearwater with an indoor pool.
Pros
Indoor pool, continental breakfast and clean and quiet. The price is good and the service seems 100 times better under the new management.
Cons
Restaurant hours are mainly for prime dinner time leaving you having to find somewhere else to eat most of the time. Pool and hot tub seem to be down a fair bit (3/4 times staying), so not sure if aging parts are keeping it down.
Contact Information
331 Eden Road
Clearwater, BC
V0E 1N0
Phone: 250.674.3080
Fax: 250.674.3084
Email: clearwaterlodge@mercuryspeed.com
Located at the gateway to Wells Gray Park, the Clearwater Lodge offers modern spacious rooms with queens sized beds. Rooms come fully equipped with kitchenettes, cable tv, air conditioning and direct dial phones. All rooms have a balcony or patio. There is a hot continental breakfast and a restaurant on site.
Thoughts
Under new management the service has greatly improved at the hotel. The continental breakfast was offered on weekends now, which was a big plus. Although the restaurant hours were still a little hard to hit. There is a large pool, hot tub, sauna and fitness area but these were closed for maintenance during our stay.
The rooms are a nice size but no suites are offered. All rooms have outdoor access to either a balcony or a patio overlooking a large field or direct access to parking.
Price
$90-$120
The price is average for a hotel and probably a good deal as it is the only hotel in Clearwater with an indoor pool.
Pros
Indoor pool, continental breakfast and clean and quiet. The price is good and the service seems 100 times better under the new management.
Cons
Restaurant hours are mainly for prime dinner time leaving you having to find somewhere else to eat most of the time. Pool and hot tub seem to be down a fair bit (3/4 times staying), so not sure if aging parts are keeping it down.
Contact Information
331 Eden Road
Clearwater, BC
V0E 1N0
Phone: 250.674.3080
Fax: 250.674.3084
Email: clearwaterlodge@mercuryspeed.com
Tuesday, 26 February 2013
ChongQing Restaurant: Vancouver
ChonQing is a nice little Szechuan restaurant in Vancouver, offering a variety of Chinese dishes for both lunch and dinner. The Commercial Dr. location is walking distance from the SkyTrain station and is the largest location. The other Vancouver location on Robson St. is the smallest but probably the best location for accessibility and the Burnaby restaurant is across the street from Metrotown Mall on Kingsway.
Cost
The price for lunch was a bit expensive around $9 per plate but the portions were enough to fill you for sure.
Contact Information
4909 Kingsway
Burnaby, BC V5H 2E5, Canada
(604) 558-0101
11:00am - 10:30pm
2808 Commercial Drive
Vancouver, BC V5N 4C6, Canada
(604) 254-7434
10:00am - 10:00pm
1260 Robson Street
Vancouver, BC V6E 1C2, Canada
(604) 568-0303
11:30am - 10:30pm
Thoughts
It is only assumed that all the locations are similar in décor and taste as the Commercial Dr. restaurant. Overall it is a nice restaurant, the food was good the décor looked to be recently updated and looked very modern. The service was not what I was used to, not that the people were rude but other than taking the order and delivering the food we did not see the staff. Maybe this is part of the atmosphere they are trying to create. The price was a bit high but the portions were huge. I would definitely visit again given the opportunity.
Website
http://cqrestaurant.com/
Cost
The price for lunch was a bit expensive around $9 per plate but the portions were enough to fill you for sure.
Contact Information
4909 Kingsway
Burnaby, BC V5H 2E5, Canada
(604) 558-0101
11:00am - 10:30pm
2808 Commercial Drive
Vancouver, BC V5N 4C6, Canada
(604) 254-7434
10:00am - 10:00pm
1260 Robson Street
Vancouver, BC V6E 1C2, Canada
(604) 568-0303
11:30am - 10:30pm
Thoughts
It is only assumed that all the locations are similar in décor and taste as the Commercial Dr. restaurant. Overall it is a nice restaurant, the food was good the décor looked to be recently updated and looked very modern. The service was not what I was used to, not that the people were rude but other than taking the order and delivering the food we did not see the staff. Maybe this is part of the atmosphere they are trying to create. The price was a bit high but the portions were huge. I would definitely visit again given the opportunity.
Website
http://cqrestaurant.com/
Monday, 18 February 2013
Departure Bay Beach: Nanaimo
Located right in the middle of Nanaimo is Departure Bay. The constant ferry and float plane traffic gives visitors something to watch for while visiting this beautiful spot. Great views of the west side of Piper's Lagoon and the north end of Newcastle Island. A couple of restaurants and a kids park are here as well.
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| Departure Bay Beach in Nanaimo |
Newcastle Island, ferries, birds and float planes are just some of many sights that can be found down on the beach at Departure Bay.
Wildlife:
Birds and if you are lucky some deer of even marine life that may have happened in to the bay.
Visit-ability:
Nice spot for a picnic or a quick swim during the warm summer days especially if you are staying in the area and only have a couple of hours.
Thoughts:
The beach itself is quite rocky, but during the summers there is an area that is bouyed off for swimming and the logs are moved around for "privacy" areas along the beach. Across the street area ocuple of restaurants and a gas station with a convenience store so that you can get some snacks or food if you did not bring lunch or dinner along with you. At the end of the beach there is a kids play park run by the Kinsmen. If in the area it is a good spot for an afternoon but if you are driving the beaches a few kilometres up the road in Parksville are much better.
Rating:
4/10
BC Ferries - Queen of Cowichan
We took this ferry on the Horseshoe Bay to Duke Point route. It is the older model that is still being used. Unfortunately it allows for more people than there is seating for and is difficult to find enough seats together for a family. The restaurant serves some White Spot Triple-O's hot food, sandwiches and deserts and there is a cafe as well serving some cold food, coffee and tea. The children's play area had a slide and a couple of car type things with steering wheels. there was an arcade with some newer games but each one was $1 per play. A gift shop also sold some B.C. related things and your usual magazines and chocolate bars.
I am not a big fan of these older ferries, especially after being on the new ones with plenty of seating space. If at all possible I would definitely recommend checking the boats on the route you are taking to see if you can get on one of those.
I am not a big fan of these older ferries, especially after being on the new ones with plenty of seating space. If at all possible I would definitely recommend checking the boats on the route you are taking to see if you can get on one of those.
Tuesday, 12 February 2013
Othello Tunnels
A line of tunnels were built through the Coquihalla Gorge which are known now as the Othello Tunnels. There are spectacular viewing opportunities available on the trail, through the tunnels and on the bridges. The Coquihalla Canyon park highlights the Kettle Valley Railway that passes through the canyon and 5 tunnels which were built in 1914.
View:
Great views of the Coquihalla River and some fantastic spots for photos in and around the tunnels.
Wildlife:
Not much along the trail althouggh you may get lucky and see a black bear.
Time:
About 40 min to the end of the tunnels and back.
Visit-ability:
Good spot to stop and stretch your legs or if you are in the Hope area to stop in for part of the day.
Website:
http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/bcparks/explore/parkpgs/coquihalla_cyn/
Open:
Spring to Fall, closed for Winter
Thoughts:
I like this quick little stop to see a part of Canadian history and nice quick walk through nature. Just outside of Hope makes it easy and fast to get to and the trail is easy to walk on. The tunnels took about 10 minutes to get to the first one and the whole trip is about 40 minutes with stops for pictures and to enjoy some of the scenery.
Rating:
7/10
View:
Great views of the Coquihalla River and some fantastic spots for photos in and around the tunnels.
Wildlife:
Not much along the trail althouggh you may get lucky and see a black bear.
Time:
About 40 min to the end of the tunnels and back.
Visit-ability:
Good spot to stop and stretch your legs or if you are in the Hope area to stop in for part of the day.
Website:
http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/bcparks/explore/parkpgs/coquihalla_cyn/
Open:
Spring to Fall, closed for Winter
Thoughts:
I like this quick little stop to see a part of Canadian history and nice quick walk through nature. Just outside of Hope makes it easy and fast to get to and the trail is easy to walk on. The tunnels took about 10 minutes to get to the first one and the whole trip is about 40 minutes with stops for pictures and to enjoy some of the scenery.
Rating:
7/10
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