Canada

Summer just might be the best time of year to take a family vacation in *Whistler, the Canada ski town about two hours north of Vancouver. The crowds are thin, the weather is gorgeous and the hotel rates are low. There’s plenty to do (though no skiing, of course), good …

I love Canada for family vacations. It offers a taste of French, Scottish, Irish and British cultures without the long flight to Europe. It also offers beaches, two coasts of local seafood, beautiful national parks and adrenaline-pumping adventure activities—often for less money than a similar vacation in the U.S. Below, …

We always do a lot of walking when we’re in Montreal, partly because we tend to do a lot of eating in Montreal. There is nothing like a Canadian winter day to make you want to something hardy and warming. And this French Canadian city offers plenty of options. Here …

Montreal is not a pretty city in the winter — what city is? But look beyond its grey building exteriors and slushy streets and it’s a really fun city. It’s full of good things to eat, has lots of culture, and even in winter offers opportunities to get outside and …

Read about Sidney and Victoria on Vancouver Island. My family and I chose to live in Sidney, BC because it’s less rainy than Vancouver, but we love the latter city and  are lured to it several times a year by its spectacular setting— on the sparkling Pacific beneath snow capped mountains—great …

Visiting Sidney? Read more about Vancouver and Victoria. When we contemplated returning to Canada with our young family after a decade overseas we wanted a friendly, walkable town with plenty of (cheap or free) things to do with kids like the summertime. We found Sidney, a former fishing town on …

We decided to visit Quebec City over spring break, when it was still pretty wintery and grey. With its sophisticated French food, museum culture and focus on history, Quebec didn’t  seem like the ideal place to vacation with  a 4-year-old when we first arrived. But over the five days we …

Read about things to do in Quebec Maybe we just timed it right or benefited from the off season, but Canada’s airports seemed filled with helpful people and were a breeze to deal with, even having to navigate immigration, customs and baggage claim between connecting flights. Here are some tips to …