Since this was to be a short trip, there wasn’t a lot of planning we had to do to prepare outside of finding out how to get there and where to stay. We had packed the night before and managed to fit our stuff easily into one small carry-on bag while my wife and I each had a backpack with our laptops and electronics in case we had to do any emergency work. I also scheduled a Lyft for the morning before going to bed (and set two alarms just in case!)

Where’s my Lyft?

When I schedule a Lyft I usually get a notification within a few minutes that someone has accepted the ride, but I hadn’t seen one before I went to bed. When I woke up with my first alarm, I saw I still didn’t have a notification. Searching through the app I realized I hadn’t actually confirmed the scheduled Lyft the night before. Oops!

Luckily we had plenty of time and I requested one once everyone was awake. The ride arrived at almost the time I had intended to schedule the ride so it all worked out. I’ll have to be more careful next time.

Airport Experience

We were dropped off at the curb next to the Porter Airlines desk at the international terminal at Boston Logan. I had filled out most of the information online but we needed to go to the counter to get our boarding passes printed out. Luckily there was only one group in front of us. We had our boarding passes within a few minutes and were headed towards security. The separate PreCheck line wasn’t open but the agent gave us a special pass so we didn’t have to take our shoes off.

We split up to grab breakfast as there wasn’t a Priority Pass restaurant in the terminal we were in. We then headed to the one Priority Pass lounge that was open to grab some snacks and rest for a few minutes before our boarding time. The Air France lounge that we prefer in that terminal was not open that early in the morning.

Once our boarding time approached we headed back to our gate to find they had just started boarding. It wasn’t clear if there were any boarding zones as everyone seemed to be boarding at once. That said, it was a small plane so it didn’t take long. Interestingly we ran into the director of the Spanish immersion preschool our boys went to when they were younger. Apparently, she was traveling to Toronto for the weekend as well. You never know who you’re going to run into when you travel!

The Novelty of Propeller Planes

This was the first propeller plane the boys had ever been on. The basic economy tickets we had purchased didn’t come with pre-assigned seats but we got lucky that on check-in we got assigned a whole row to ourselves in the 2 + 2 layout of the aircraft. The boys each took a window seat to get a better look at the propellers which were just outside their windows.

Some people have an aversion to propeller planes but I don’t mind them. The cabin of our plane was worn but more spacious than a similar-sized regional jet. Propeller planes don’t go quite as fast as jets, but the trip was short it would only be a few minutes longer. They aren’t any louder than a jet and they kept the ticket price down. What’s not to love? The flight was short and uneventful. In other words, it was a perfect flight!

Welcome to Canada

When we arrived we had to go through Canadian Immigration. We were near the end of the line going through the automated machines to answer all the standard immigration questions. It only took a few minutes and the room was empty by the time we got our passports stamped without drama.

We then followed the signs to ground transportation where we’d pick up a Lyft to our hotel. It was a relatively long walk down an escalator and back up an elevator on the other side. The reason for this is that the airport is on an island a few hundred yards from shore. The first time I flew into the airport I had to take a (free) ferry boat to shore. The underground corridor was less interesting but a lot more efficient.

On the shore side, we followed the signs to the app ride pickup area. The airport is really small so it wasn’t terribly hard to find. We hailed our Lyft and the ride was there within a few minutes and we were off to our hotel.

Checkin and Lunch

We arrived at the Toronto Centre Sheraton hotel after a short 10-minute ride. It’s located in the city center (centere?) as you would guess from the name. It has an impressive lobby with a large check-in area. There was a separate check-in area for elite members so we went there. While we were quite early for check-in time, they found us a room and even upgraded us to a suite. Status rules!

The room itself was small, but it did have a separate bedroom so it was an actual suite. We also had a fantastic view of the CN tower right out of our window. The living room was small and had a pull-out sofa so we called down to get a rollaway bed as well. The room was only big enough to fit one of them so one of the kids would have the couch to themselves.

We then headed out to find something to eat. My wife had found a burger place nearby using her phone. I hadn’t bothered to switch out the SIM card on my phone because I knew her’s would work in Canada without issue.

We make our way to South Street Burger Company which was just a few blocks from the hotel. It looks promising, though I wouldn’t recommend it after eating there. The meat was dry and tasteless. The soda tasted like it was pure syrup. At least the staff was friendly.

Pool and Family

Back at the hotel, my in-laws arrived for a visit. The boys played with their cousin for a little bit before they all decided to head down to the pool. It was on a rooftop of one of the buildings that were part fo the hotel complex (the hotel is pretty big).

The pool was unique in that half of it was covered and the other half was outside and exposed. In the winter they close some doors to keep the enclosed part warm but one of the workers said you can swim under the doors out into the other part of the pool even in the winter. It sounds cold, but maybe it’s fun for the kids!

There were several pool noodles and other pool toys the boys were playing with. There were several other families there enjoying the nice day. It wasn’t the most serene pool I’ve ever been to but it wasn’t stressful or annoying as there was a fairly large pool deck with an area away from the pool filled with people relaxing in the sun.

Dinner and Dessert

After a few hours in the pool, it was time to go back up to the room to relax for a bit and catch up. Once the boys started getting hungry we decided to head out to dinner at a place called King Taps. It’s a bar type restaurant and seems like it would be overflowing for lunch and after work during the workweek as there were multiple large bank office buildings nearby. It was the financial district. This was early on a Saturday on a holiday weekend so it wasn’t busy yet.

The menu was upscale bar food and was fairly high quality which everyone enjoyed. As it got a little later the place started to fill up and got fairly busy, even for a weekend. There were lots of TVs and some great music in the background. We all had a great time.

After dinner, we started walking around the city center located just a few blocks away. We all felt like some ice cream and there was an ice cream truck near the park. It only took cash and I didn’t have any Canadian money so we headed to the Baskin Robbins it the nearby mall. It was still good!

We walked around the park some more enjoying the city before heading back to the hotel and splitting up. The in-laws were headed home and we’d catch up with them the next afternoon at their house.

Back in the hotel we set up the beds and enjoyed the nighttime view of the CN Tower before drifting off to sleep and forgetting to take a picture of it. DOH!