Planes, Trains and Automobiles: Via Train Travel and Business Class

I am a frequent Via train traveller. For those day trips to Toronto, or the occasional trip further to Ottawa, you can't beat the comfort of travel by train. And frankly with the cost of gas, sometimes train travel ends up being almost the same amount when you do the math. Up until recently, I always selected supersaver or enconomy class travel. I figured it was the cheapest way to go, so it made sense. I have often eyed the business class with envy and wondered what extras they might get for the price. At the end of last year, I had a chance to travel to Toronto to talk at the budget consultations that were being conducted by Ontario's Liberal government and Finance Minister Dwight Duncan. It was a super opportunity for our non  profit, the Canadian Coalition of Adoptive Families (http://www.canadiancoalitionofadoptivefamilies.ca/ ) to put forward ideas that we believe save money in the long run and support adoptive families as well. Anyways this time I thought that on the way back from Toronto I would give business class a try just to see what I was missing. The cost is $20 more one way and I was keen to know what kind of frills that bought me. I paid for the trip myself as we have no funding whatsoever for our no profit. So I was at liberty to test out biz class for this blog. Here is what I found:


*To start with I had access to the lounge for business class. It was overcrowded on the day that I came back - a Friday night - but nicer than sitting in the drafty public area of Toronto's Union Station.
*We boarded the train first.
*We got dinner on the way back, which was great because I would have landed in town at 8 p.m. and after a full day I would have then been on the hunt for the nearest Subway. The food wasn't thrilling, but we had a choice of salmon or chicken and the chicken really wasn't half bad. To put in perspective it was better than airplane food.
*Alcoholic beverages were served and the wine was free flowing.
*Coffee and other beverages also available at no extra cost.

So from a thrifty mama perspective was the extra $20 worth it? Ab-so-lutely! I really was pleasantly surprised and I would do this again. Not every time, but when someone else is paying for sure and when I am travelling as I did alone and on the way during a dinner hour, this business class makes sense.

I give Via train business class travel $$$$ 1/2 out of $$$$$.

Also I think there is a benefit to this travel in the middle of the winter because waiting in Union Station is extremely drafty. Once, I went to Toronto while ill to take part on a press conference and came back with pneumonia. I just wanted to sleep and had three hours to burn waiting for my train. Wish I had sprung for the business class then!

The opinions on this blog are all my own.

Cottages: How to Save Money

It is a truly Canadian tradition - that of heading to the cottage every year to soak up our two months of summer. Let's face it, this is a unique Canadian thing. There may be cottages in other lands, but we have perfected this idea of escape. I have been doing this every summer from the time I was a toddler and it is at the very least a habit for us. We meet extended family once a year and crowd into a tiny cottage, barbecuing food, and roasting ourselves on the beach. My children are now accustomed to this every August. As we head there again this weekend, I have a few thoughts to share on saving money at the beach. People always ask us do you rent or own? We rent each year. I have always found word of mouth is the best way to find a clean and affordable spot. My mother, a retired teacher, has been able to find us a very affordable spot each year. We have never paid more than $500 a week.

There have, over the last few years, cropped up a number of web sites that also offer cottage rentals. Some I have spent hours searching for a decent rate. Many begin at $1200 per week per family. http://www.ontarioswestcoast.ca/ gives a run down on Huron Shores cottages
and http://www.rentcottage.com/ has been in business since 1995. This site was formerly called the Bruce Peninsula Huron Shores Cottage Rentals. This one has several quality cottages in Port Elgin, Goderich and Southampton area.
The newspaper is another option. Often people post their properties there, but these tend to go quickly. Kijiji, Craigslist and other sites like these are options as well. They can be hit and miss and you may be relying on pictures that are hopefully accurate to make your decision. There are always options to buy, but the properties are extremely expensive. There are options to build or buy cottages in Sauble Beach area on land owned by First Nations people. This is an affordable way to do it if you don't mind knowing that you own your property and yet not the land on which it is built. The hotels and motels book fast in the area and are often not as enjoyable or family friendly as cottages where you can cook for yourselves and save some money. So I guess what I am saying is that when it comes to cottages: it's all about who you know not what you know.

Kobo and Fairmont: An Intriguing Partnership

This is one of the coolest partnerships in travel amenities and publishing that I have seen in some time here at thriftymommagogo. Today Kobo, the ereading service sold far and wide at Chapters/ Indigo and Wal-Mart, among other retail outlets, announced it has partnered with Fairmont hotels and Random House. Fairmont Gold travellers will be permitted use of a Kobo preloaded with numerous popular fiction and non fiction titles carried by Random House. Kobo and Fairmont recognize that travellers occasionally forget their books, or don't want to travel with bulky heavy hardcovers. Let's face it hardcovers can weight the luggage down a fair bit. So, thinking out of the box and planning for the future, Kobo, Random House and Fairmont have made Kobo ereaders available on check in at select properties in the US and Canada. The ereaders will be loaded with reads by Alexander McCall Smith, Sophie Kinsella and Bret Easton Ellis. Fairmont Gold is described in a press release as "a private, dedicated area offering guests the experience of an exclusive oasis with personalized service and enhanced amenities." Upon returning the Kobo eReader, guests will receive a special offer for $2 off select Random House titles redeemable at www.kobobooks.com/randomhouse. The opportunity to try a Kobo ereader is a benefit of belonging to the Fairmont President’s Club (FPC), the brand’s guest loyalty program. It is free to join and it provides guests with special benefits and privileges designed to reflect individual travel preferences and offer an enhanced level of service. Benefits include private check-in, complimentary room upgrades, and high-speed and wireless Internet access. Guests can enroll at time of booking or online at www.fairmont.com/fpc. For more information on the Kobo visit http://www.thriftymommastips.blogspot.com/ for a full review. Thriftymomma was lucky enough to have one here to try out for three weeks. It was a true treat! The KOBO retails on average for about $149, but as recent as last weekeend this was marked down to $128 at both Wal-Mart and Chapters. I love that all three of these companies, Fairmont, Random House and Kobo, are thinking globally outside the box with a eye to the future. This clearly enhances a guest's stay at Fairmont and is very clever branding. What a smart move!

Fort Rapids January Deals

Looking for a fun winter getaway with the family, check this out. Columbus, Ohio's Fort Rapids indoor waterpark has several very cool deals this January. I've been to this water park with my family and I reviewed it back in August. (Only five and a half hours from London and a nice drive, really) It got a four out of five rating and frankly I would absolutely go back again as our whole family enjoyed this stopover in Ohio. January Splashtacular deals start at $99 a night. For this month only stay overnight at Fort Rapids and pay only $99 for the water park passes. That means you stay for free essentially. Like many stayover water park resorts you can stay one night and play at the pool and slides for two days, which makes the trip worthwhile. Also for a limited time (until Jan. 22nd) Fort Rapids is offering 20 % off birthday parties. Let me tell you I think any kids who did this for their birthday party would be the coolest kid in their class, regardless of how old they were.

Also this month comes Science and Splash deals that are running in partnership with COSI, Columbus, Ohio's excellent science museum for children. Love both of these places, so call now and book starting at $179 a night for this package with four passes to COSI Museum, four passes to the water park and a cheese pizza. I would think you'd want to stay for two nights to get the most out of this deal.

Call 1-877-33-Splash to book and quote January Splashtacular or Science and Splash deals.

Also ABC's SuperNanny has a casting call at Fort Rapids on January 16th if you wish to be subjected to that kind of thing...from 11 to 5 p.m. They should be able to find some children and or parents behaving badly at a waterpark, huh?

Delta Winter Deals

Delta Hotels across Canada are ushering out the year with competitive pricing just in time for ski season in many areas. Delta Winter Getaways campaign is on now and can also be accessed through http://www.travelalerts.ca

Prices start at $99 a night in some areas and are for travel between now and March 31, 2010. Vacation getaways include Kelowna hotels, Whister and Banff, seen at left. Delta hotels are great family resorts and several in Toronto area have excellent amenities for family. Delta Meadowvale Mississauga, while I have not been personally, looks amazing. It boasts the longest indoor hotel waterslide in the GTA (165 feet) and bills itself as a family fun destination in Mississauga. Children up to 6 years old eat free and those aged 7 to 12 are half price. Many Toronto destinations are just as exciting this time of year as they are in the summer. Ontario Science Centre is a great and affordable location to visit and incredibly educational as well. Also visit any of the area's museums for a weekend. The Delta Chelsea in Toronto has long been known as an amazing family resort. So this year if planning to take a winter trip or even a short break from the every day why not stay at a Delta resort? For more information and a chance to win one free Friday night stay at a Delta resort follow @DeltaHotelsLtd. For more on Meadowvale see www.deltameadowvale.com

Saskatoon Inn review

It's not often that I am so pleasantly surprised by my accommodations that I race to the computer, eager to commend the venue and its staff. This week while staying in Saskatchewan at the Saskatoon Inn and conference centre, 2002 Airport Drive, I couldn't help but do just that. From check in to check out the service here was exceptional. To begin with I arrived much earlier than check in time on a Wednesday, not intentional just the way flights worked out. A convenient airport shuttle was perhaps a five minute wait and baggage appeared without delay at Diefenbaker Airport. Despite the fact that I was a good two or three hours before their suggested check in time of 3 p.m. my room was ready and much to my surprise, it was larger, cleaner and generally exceeded all of my expectations. While in town for the FASD (Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder) conference put on by the Saskatchewan Prevention Institute, I ventured around town briefly to see the downtown area and visited the Midtown Plaza. An apparent highlight of the shopping tour is the city's new Lululemon store, across the street from the mall. The conference organizers did an expectional job here selecting this Inn. The setting was beautiful and the food was good. There is a fitness centre, small but worth a visit, a winding shallow pool that looks more like a river and a good deal of natural materials went into the internal architecture of the building. The only tiny complaint I could begin to think of was the slow speed of room service. But the restaurant on site Botanica was lovely and service there was very good. Not a whole lot of variety there though. While I loved this spot for business and couples travel it is not ideally suited to family, unless your children are quieter travellers than mine.

thriftymommagogo recommends the Saskatoon Inn as a $$$$ 1/2 out of $$$$$.