With this flying trip the opportunity for a long diatribe on travel tips, or to ramble on anything that looks beyond the specifics of our visit, seems presumptuous. We pitched and rolled with whatever aligned with our “in the moment” activity, attraction or connection. However, Janie and I really do think that there are very real takeaways from this one and we identified multiple moments for blog fodder. Find below our thoughts on Toronto ‘26…
Celebrating Canada: I’m not sure if there has been a more appropriate time to visit “home grown” attractions than Summer ‘26! For us that could be a sports event (ie. Jays game), a national park, a concert or play… but whatever one’s passion is we think it’s an awesome time to invest in Canada! In today’s geo-political climate it’s not easy to impact change, but I believe that actions speak loudly when we give some love to the amazing product our country offers visitors. Now, more than ever, is the opportune moment in time to take in some of our world class spaces and places.
Group Trips: As I’ve often noted, the bulk of our travel has been as a couple. I’m sure in many ways we’re not the ideal companions to travel with… our planning is at the same time flexible but linear, it has a lot of pace, is often in urban centres and holds lots of focus on history / museums / architecture. This trip included guests… and the opportunity for us to both adjust and learn from others. All our regular tips / tricks apply, but with more focus on communication being essential. I think Janie nailed it when she surmised that it is an enjoyable exercise to see travel through the eyes of others. Watching my folks see the city, attractions and experience this type of travel for the first time was a welcome privilege. Moments shared, discussions voiced, memories created… it’s “quite the something” that we will never forget or regret! A wonderful piece of learning for everyone involved… ❤️.
You get what you pay for: It is rare to find quality unless one is ready to provide reasonable compensation. On this trip we valued several instances that allowed us to fully take advantage this trip. A clear example was the accommodation that we had selected. The rental cost was more than other options in the city centre, but the location was absolutely spot on. Worth every penny to us this visit. Our dining at Rodney’s was more than we’d regularly pay for a meal, but in this case proved a highlight attraction for us in all respects. And how about the Jays tix we had the first night that Janie bought up (🫣)… amazing sight lines and you could hear the crystal clear crack of the baseball in the catchers mitt! We indeed reaped the benefits of good decisions being placed in the online shopping cart.
Travelling past 80: We watched our travel partners closely, and I kind’ve interviewed / questioned Mom and Dad the day after coming home to solicit their thoughts on what the experience was personally like for them. They gave some excellent feedback in multiple areas!
The immediate response was “If you’re able, do it”! The caveat added was it’s important to be as physically ready as possible to take on the event. I agreed, as travel can be very physically and mentally demanding. All the daily norms get a good shaking… eating different, sleeping in a new bed, and huge increases in activity all push normal boundaries. We planned as best we could for this, and remained cognizant of the need to be constantly adjusting for our group.
Connected is the theme of mobility. We all learned a lot in regard to methods of supporting this very important consideration. I believe that we, as planners, did a lot to mitigate anticipated “steps” designing a focused area for attractions, food and accommodation. We, however, most likely over planned what could be comfortably accomplished in a two day visit and the range of mobility in our group. Mom and Dad were quick to add that they would have most likely underestimated the level of activity that was required in such an itinerary.
Errors in those pieces of communication aside, we adapted quickly and learned lots about options for travellers that were available and proved huge assists. Supports such as wheelchair access (available on request in all the attractions we visited), elevator locations, pre-flight mobility arrangements and support products (re: compression socks, good footwear) increase comfort and improve quality of visit.
Technology use in the travel industry is both pervasive and prolific. Whether purchasing, validating entry, collecting information on travel arrangements or simply communication (especially when things don’t go as expected). This perhaps no more acute than throughout the flight experience, when the collision of security, boarding passes, flight details and often delays / rescheduling / cancellation all demand capacity and technology use. Our travel buddies noted the flight part of the process was very demanding, and that they relied heavily on help to make that happen. Knowing how to be prepared is a huge part of the battle. Simple things like arriving early, having chargers, and downloading necessary apps / links are all solids steps. The more prepared, the more doable travel is for all involved.
So there it is… another fine Travelling Lumsden offing in the books. Once again, huge thanks to Mom & Dad who proved excellent dory mates on this voyage, as well as Ms L for her unlimited energy and skill in making this trip a reality. We ended up making a formidable team 👍!
Love these reflections dad… there is so much to be learned from shaking things up and adapting on the fly! It looks like it was an amazing trip and that you were able to sneak a little something for everyone in there. So happy to hear the quick trip was enjoyed by all- it was a very well deserved vacation all around!
The reflections are often a “shared”
piece… I checked in with your Mom, then my Mom & Dad. It’s harder, but almost always works better when you collect multiple views and bring writing to a “communal” form. They all shared wonderful ideas and I was just the conduit. The smiles in the photos say it all I think… something maybe everyone didn’t think would ever happen actually did! As always… thanks so much for checking in!
BTW – Your writing is taking on layers Monica. Less is more in your note and your text has real voice. Well done!