Weekend Escape: The Blue Mountains

Most people think of The Blue Mountains in Ontario (not to be confused with the Blue Mountains I recently visited in Jamaica) as a winter destination. And while I wholeheartedly recommend experiencing the magical winter wonderland, I recently discovered its beauty during the less frigid months and want to share some highlights. Yes, those of you who haven’t jumped on the I-heart-winter bandwagon can also enjoy this spectacular region. Here’s how…

Stay At The Westin Trillium House – In my opinion, this is the place to stay when visiting The Blue Mountains. It’s central (walking distance to all of the restaurants and shops in Blue Mountain Village), has modern and very spacious suites and offers up some pretty dreamy views…

DAY 1 

Have Breakfast At Oliver & Bonacini Café Grill on the main floor of the Westin. The sun-filled restaurant is a great place to enjoy eggs benny and a cup of joe to energize you for the day.

Spend The Day At Scenic Caves Nature Adventures where you can trek 55 feet above a 200-year-old forest and soar like a bird on Canada’s longest twin zip line. Then enjoy a picnic lunch onsite before taking a stroll on the suspension bridge and wandering through their ancient caves. If you’re not an adrenaline junkie – fear not – the caves and bridge are enough reason to visit this gem.

Sip On Afternoon Bevvies At Magnone’s – You’ll want to soak up as much sunshine as possible while you can. For that, I suggest heading over to Magnone’s to sip on sangrias by Mill Pond. It’s a great place to relax and watch the sun set on a gorg afternoon.

Enjoy Dinner At Pottery Restaurant – This resto was recently given a much-needed facelift and now has a nice contemporary feel. In the process of revamping the space, they also added new dishes to the menu while keeping some of the old favourites.

DAY 2 

Devour Breakfast At Sunset Grill – This cheap and cheerful breaky spot is a busy one so make sure to get there early! And the bonus of visiting The Blue Mountains in the spring/summer/fall is that you get to enjoy their beaut patio as you kick off your day.

Explore Blue Mountain Village – There are some great little shops and food stops in the village (for a quick bite check out Chuck Burger, Mile High Poutine and BeaverTails). They also have tons of live music, free activities and special events to keep you and your friends/fam entertained. Um, and they have mini-golf at the base of the mountains!

Melt Your Stresses Away At Scandinave Spa – Ok, this may be my favourite part about visiting The Blue Mountains during any season. I LOVE this spa and always make sure to pop by on my visits to the region. Trust me, you do NOT want to miss out on this slice of heaven. The Scandinavian baths will leave you feeling like jello. Give yourself at least three hours here. At least…

Eat Your Way Through The Apple Pie Trail – Yup, there is an apple pie trail. That should be enough reason to head to the region alone. Hop in your car and drive down country roads on this self-guided culinary tour. You can devour everything from apple pies and apple galettes to apple cider and caramel apple lattes! There is literally something for everyone (including for my photog: mmm Vegetarian Beet Apple Burger).

I hope my weekend itinerary inspires you to visit The Blue Mountains when it’s not blanketed in snow! If you have any other local favourites, please share your recos so I can add them to my list. I’ll definitely be back soon since this beaut Ontario gem is only a couple hours drive from Toronto.

The accommodations and most meals and activities were complimentary as part of several press trips to the region. As always, all reviews and opinions are entirely my own.