This week’s Heads Up post has a little something for everyone. For food lovers, there’s the scoop on a new Swiss restaurant in Renfrew, prime rib in Rideau Ferry and a restaurant promotion in the Outaouais. Are boutique hotels your thing? You can learn about a gorgeous one in Quebec City. Not planning to go far from home? I have you covered with a gourmet at-home dinner box and a new Netflix rom-com shot in our backyard. I’ll even tell you how you can get up to $100 worth of gas, just by staying in a hotel! Read on for details.
Cover photo courtesy of Le Monastère des Augustines.
Bay of Quinte is giving away gas
Heading to the Bay of Quinte area—Belleville, Trenton and surrounding communities—in the next few months? You could be eligible for free gas from the local tourism board! Stay two nights at a participating hotel and get $50 in gas. Stay three nights and get $100. And if you drive an EV, no problem—you’ll get a gift card instead.
Prime rib and holiday brunches are back at CC’s on the Rideau
CC’s on the Rideau, a pretty waterfront restaurant in Rideau Ferry, will be serving up prime rib dinners on November 8 and 22. Tables are first come, first served. The restaurant is also bringing back its popular holiday brunches on December 1, 8 and 15, and you can make reservations for those.
You might be able to snag last-minute tickets to Can*Con
Most tickets are already sold out for this week’s Can*Con Sci-Fi, Fantasy and Horror Literature Convention at the Sheraton Ottawa Hotel (November 1 to 3), but if you check the event’s social media, you might score a last-minute ticket.
Eastern Ontario is getting a major new cycling loop
Big news for cyclists (as well as hikers who like to walk really long distances): The new Eastern Ontario Rail Trail Partnership has received $80,000 in federal government funding to create and promote a 360-kilometre cycling loop across several existing trails: the Frontenac K&P Trail, Renfrew K&P Trail, Algonquin Trail, Ottawa Valley Recreational Trail and Cataraqui Trail. Collaborating on the project are the counties of Frontenac, Lanark and Renfrew, the Township of Rideau Lakes, and the Town of Smiths Falls, with support from the Ontario’s Highlands Tourism Organization. The partners will be sprucing up the trails and bringing local businesses on board to support the project. They hope to begin promoting the loop in 2025–26.
Dinner in a Box is already 50% sold out
Okay, so this isn’t really a road trip—it’s more of a stay-at-home adventure—but it’s a good cause, so I’m giving it a shoutout anyway! Dinner in a Box is a fundraiser for the Snowsuit Fund, which provides warm winter clothing to children in need. This year, the swanky dinner for two by Beckta has a modern Italian theme and includes cocktails, wine, beer and gift items, all delivered to your home on November 30. Half the boxes are already spoken for, so if you’re interested, you might want to order sooner rather than later.
You can spot Eastern Ontario locales in new Christmas rom-com
Yes, the folks who make those heartwarming/cheesy holiday movies have been back in Eastern Ontario! Hot Frosty is about a young widow who magically brings a snowman to life as a smokin’ hot dude (I just report these plots, folks, I don’t write ’em). It was shot in Ottawa, Pakenham, Brockville and other Eastern Ontario locales earlier this year, and it’s coming to Netflix on November 13.
Outaouais restaurant deals are available now
Don’t forget that the Outaouais en menu restaurant promo started on October 31 and runs until November 16. Deals on multi-course meals are available in restaurants across the region. (My husband and I will be sampling the fare at Le Cellier in Hull later this week, courtesy of Tourisme Outaouais).
A new Renfrew restaurant serves Swiss specialties
Renfrew welcomed a new restaurant on October 16. Swiss Alps serves Swiss and German dishes, and you can hear clips of an interview with the owner in this Arnprior Today post.
You can stay in a former convent in Quebec City
A few years ago, I stayed in the lovely Le Monastère des Augustines, a former convent in the historic section of Quebec City that’s now a boutique hotel. It’s a gorgeous spot, and this Hotel Scoop article captures it beautifully. (The photo at the top of this post is an exterior shot of the hotel at dusk.)
Speaking of Quebec…you can also see whales
According to this recent Islands article, you might not be too late to see whales in the estuary of the St. Lawrence River this year—but you’d better hurry. The whales leave this area east of Quebec City and head to warmer climes in early November. Alternatively, you could start planning for next year; peak whale-watching season runs from July to mid-October.
Looking for more tips on things to see and do in and around Ottawa? Subscribe to my free weekly newsletter or order a copy of my book, Ottawa Road Trips: Your 100-km Getaway Guide.
As the owner of Ottawa Road Trips, I acknowledge that I live on, work in and travel through the unceded, unsurrendered territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabeg Nation. I am grateful to have the opportunity to be present on this land. Ottawa Road Trips supports Water First, a non-profit organization that helps address water challenges in Indigenous communities in Canada through education, training and meaningful collaboration.
