At first it may seem strange that I passed up the opportunity to bring my whole family along on a press trip to Summerland, BC this past weekend. Finding a destination that can accommodate a family of 5 can be challenging (and often unaffordable), so one would think that I would jump at the chance to travel with my whole family in tow.
Bringing my little swarm of bees did cross my mind. I knew that there would be other families in our group – families with babies, toddlers, teens, moms and dads, and even pregnant moms filled the roster of guests who would be joining us. But I had been longing for a getaway with my oldest for awhile, and I knew that she would benefit greatly from some one-on-one bonding time with mom. So I packed our bags, created a “Road Trip” playlist for our 5-hour drive, and we hit the road for our mother-daughter weekend excursion to the Okanagan.
My girl was full of questions, and as we drew closer to our destination, I could feel the air fill with anticipation. She wanted to know every detail of our itinerary, the names of the people who would be joining us, and whether or not there would be girls her age. I did my best to answer, and hoped that she wouldn’t be overwhelmed by the unfamiliar faces and surroundings when we arrived.
When we arrived at our destination, the Summerland Waterfront Resort & Spa took our breath away. We squealed in unison as we dashed towards the sparkling lake, and skipped down the dock to soak up the view. Our anticipation subsided and we were bursting with excitement.
When we opened the door to our two-bedroom suite, our jaws dropped. We had stayed at several BC resorts, but none had been as spacious as this one. With 2 full bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 3 TVs, a large deck, and a fully-equipped kitchen, we realized that we would have had more than enough room for our whole family.
We were mere minutes into our trip, and we were already eagerly planning our next visit.
When we met up with the rest of the Vancouver Mom bloggers, I could feel my girl seize up, her 8-year-old shyness taking over. She locked eyes with a few of the girls who looked on wearily in her direction, but was hesitant to make the first move.
My fellow moms and I sat the girls at the same table and wandered away chatting, and it didn’t take long for the girls to introduce themselves and start playing together. They became fast friends, and were inseparable for the rest of the trip.
Our weekend was a blur of adventure. Saturday started with a visit to the beautiful Okanagan Crush Pad winery, where we sipped on an array of wines while the children visited farm animals and strolled through the vineyards. Then a pop in at Summerland Sweets where the children sampled 20 flavours of gourmets syrups while the adults sipped on fruit wines from the on-site Sleeping Giant Fruit Winery.
We stopped at the Trout Creek Trestle Bridge to snap photos of the Kettle Valley Rail Trail, and then hopped over to Tickleberry’s for some sweet treats and some highly-anticipated ice cream cones.
After our treats, we headed over to the main event of the day – the Pig Out Festival. Full of activities for kids (including the hours-of-fun jumping pillow pictured below), food and wine samplings from over 30 award-winning BC wineries and restaurants, and live music, the family-friendly festival was the perfect place to spend the afternoon sipping, sampling and mingling with friends.
Our day full of adventure was all thanks to the expert planning of our tour guide, Karen of Authentically Okanagan, a custom travel tour company who knows how to marry the popular wine hot spots with the kid-friendly hidden gems of the Okanagan to make the perfect visit for families and friends.
The rest of our visit was spent by the pool, visiting, splashing, and bonding, enjoying the comforts of a first-class resort with a laid-back family-friendly feel.
I fell in love with Summerland, and will definitely be back – next time with the rest of my family! And I brought some of the weekend’s good vibes home with me to save for later.
For more on all there is to see and do in this beautiful BC destination (beside golfing and wine tours), stay tuned for my story on BC Living.
