The Sonata Inn & Heritage Harbour House Inn – Two Inns in Charlottetown, PEI

I am very excited for this new project for the downtown area of Charlottetown. We are in the midst of so much development…new hotels, new buildings, a new convention centre! I’m so happy to see my little town, grow into a developed city.

Most of you may of heard of this project => The New Convention Centre!

I am very excited for two reasons:

1) A Convention Centre will promote new projects in PEI, and attract larger crowds (which is GREAT for us!,)

2) There will soon be a new viewpoint for lower Queen st, because of the remove of the Canadian Coast Guard building! We may be able to see the water driving down Queen St….that will be such a beautiful sight!

2012 can’t come soon enough!!

I’m still working on a few routes and day trip logs that I can share with you all…soon I’ll be sharing a plethora of random pictures that you can find on our Facebook pages

Here’s the Facebook page for Heritage Harbour House Inn & The Facebook page for The Sonata Inn

Cheers!

Yesterday, Prince Edward Island was #2 on Google’s most queried keywords!! (Now it’s probably around #8.) This is definitely from the exposure we are getting from the Regis and Kelly tapings, going on at the Confederation Landing Park over at the water front in downtown Charlottetown!

I think this exposure is wonderful. The money we spent bringing the dynamic duo here is money well spent! PEI will be profiting from this investment for years!

Thank you, Regis and Kelly, for your fantastic show and wonderful audience! You can follow them on twitter

Soon, I’ll be posting a few day trips my wife, Erin, and I have been having around PEI. We have had very limited time, especially with having to manage two inns at the same time (The Sonata Inn, and Heritage Harbour House Inn!) However, we do get some time off to enjoy some of the islands sweetest offerings, so we’ll be posting our adventures here, soon!

Oh, by the way….The Sonata Inn, and Heritage Harbour House are both on Twitter! Make sure to follow them both!

@sonatainn and @hhhouse

See you around!

Mike

Wow, it has been a busy week. We have been completely packed from July 30th, to August 5th. Yesterday was the first day in August when we had availability. Today, and tomorrow, we’re full again!!

The weather has been treating us well lately. Sunny days all around. The rain seems to only come in the evening for 5 seconds, and then it goes away! Odd!

I have not been able to experience too much of Charlottetown due to the busyness…however, I will leave you with a bit of advice for a PEI excursion.

One of my favourite routes here on Prince Edward Island, is the “Points East Coastal Drive.” It features the entire eastern coast of the island. I drew up a quick map on quikmaps.com for you to follow along.

First, you’ll find route two out of Charlottetown heading east. The first stop you’ll meet will be Mount Stewart. this little ville features the Trailside Inn, which is a lovely cafe that features live music every evening. This is normally the first stop bikers make when they travel east from Charlottetown. Try the chowder here..it is DIVINE!

Continue along route two, and you’ll soon pass Morell. This small town features a kiosk where you can rent kayaks and canoes to float along the morell river!

Continue along the two highway. You will drive along the St. Peter’s Bay, which funnels to St. Peters. This is a lovely place to take pictures, as the bay looks beautiful at any time of day.

You have to pay attention here , because if you want to visit a beach, you are going to want to head west on the 313 to head over to “Greenwich.” This little beach is absolutely beautiful, and is normally pretty quiet (or at least, it used to be!)

Come back along the 313, and turn on route 16. This route drives along the coast of PEI. You’ll pass Naufrage Harbour, and North lake harbour (they catch blue fin tuna here!) Eventually find yourself at the very edge of the island at “East Point.” East Point features a beautiful lighthouse (which doubles as the tourist information centre.) This is a GREAT place to take pictures!

Keep driving on the 16, and you’ll eventually find the signs leading to “Basin Head.” Basin Head is home to The Singing Sands. The Sand here is very abrasive, so it makes a squeaking sound when you step on it, or kick it…hence the name! Gorgeous beach!

Keep going on the 16, and you’ll hit Souris. This little town features the ferry that takes you either to Newfoundland, or to les Îles de la Madeleine. According to PEI’s Food ambassador Chef Michael Smith, there is an Indian restaurant here called “La Belle Cloche.” I have yet to try it, once I do though, I will provide my review!

In Souris, the 16 turns back into the 2 highway. So now we’ll be travelling east on the 2. You can continue on the two and eventually come back home to Charlottetown, or you can continue along the coast. If you want to explore more of the coast, turn off on route 310, which will take you to Fortune. This is the home of Chef Michael Smith, as well as other beautiful houses, and the Inn at Bay Fortune.

Continue along the 310, and you’ll see kilometers of lovely countryside. You’ll eventually intersect with Route 4. Turn left here, then turn right on Route 311 for another round of the coast.

Route 311 features long stretches of countryside…you could skip it if you’re tired. Eventually you’ll come back to Route 4. Again, if you’re tired, you can take Highway 3 back to Route 1 and back to Charlottetown. Or you can continue along Route 4 and enter Montague. I recommend the Cruise Manada tours. They feature Seal watching along the Montague river.

In Montague, find Route 17 and head east….you’ll pass lower montague, and eventually see route 347. This route will take you to Panmure Island, where you can experience a very beautiful beach here. It is mostly home to a bunch of cottages, but the beach here is public, and very unique.

Drive back on the route 17, and you’ll drive south along the edge of the southeastern end of the island. You’ll eventually hit Murray River. This small town features a great restaurant called “Finnan Haddie.” Ask for the Strawberry Chocolate Salad!

Route 17 ends at Murray river, so you’ll have to continue  south on the 4, but you’ll soon see Route 18. This route will take you along the southern and eastern tip of the island. You’ll see another beautiful lighthouse here.

Continue, and 18 will eventually turn into the 4 again, and you’ll be heading west. Eventually you will come across the “Rossignol Estate Winery,” where you can sample the dessert wines they create there. I recommend the Strawberry Rhubarb!

Once you’re finished here…continue along the 4, and it will turn into Highway 1 (Transcanada Highway.) This highway will take you through 45 minutes of lovely countryside, before arriving home to our Charlottetown Inn, on Grafton St!

This route is about 450 km! It will definitely take your entire day to experience this wonderful area of Prince Edward Island, so plan accordingly!

If you ever need help planning your trip here, drop me a line!

I finally had the privilege of eating at this new restaurant here in Charlottetown, PEI. It’s called the Alibi Lounge (or Al!bi I guess,) located on University Avenue, between Kent st, and Fitzroy St.

The first thing you notice about the place is the atmosphere. Couches, lounge chairs, a bar, and a beautiful stage gives this location quite a trendy, chic mood. The waitresses are very friendly, and greeted us warmly when we arrived (party of four.)

We were given the menu, and right away, the Sesame Chicken caught my eye…in fact, everyone except my wife chose this item for their entree. It is a pasta dish, with mixed vegetables, with thin rice noodles and Chicken coated in sesame…it was amazing! My wife had the Chicken Parmesan, and the one benefit about having a significant other, is the ability to steal..I mean sample…food from each other….the chicken was cooked to perfection, and the pasta was very tasty.

While we were waiting for our food, we perused the drink menu, and saw a plethora of interesting selections. We decided to go for a “group effort” drink, which was a large pitcher of your selection, divided by your group. We chose the “Hotel Paris,” which was a mixture of Champagne, Amaretto, and Orange Juice….SUPER YUMMY!

I was incredibly impressed by the food, but the price compared to the portion was a little skewed. However, it is a new restaurant, so I am sure they are experimenting with pricing schemes. One thing that kind of bothered me was the time it took to get the food to our table….it was noticeably long, and the lounge was not very busy at the time. The waitress was very friendly and quick with our drink orders, but the chef must have been busy with something else when we placed our food order.

I recommend this place for a hip place to visit while staying here. The Alibi Lounge is only a 9 minute walk from our Charlottetown Inn. They feature live performances most nights….something you can follow on their facebook page, or Twiiter. They also offer a Pizza Menu every Sunday!

I was invited to see Stan Rogers, a Matter of Heart at the MacKenzie theatre. Having never been a big fan of Stan Rogers, I have to say, that the talent between the performers and instrumental section was phenomenal. The show is located at the MacKenzie theatre, which is at the corner of University and Grafton St, 7 minutes of a walk from our Charlottetown Inn!

The show features Joey Kitson, Terry Hatty (from The Guess Who,) Julian Molnar, and John Connolly. I actually went to school with John when I was younger, and I am very impressed with this budding local artist. He opened for Gordie Sampson recently at the Confederation Centre, and we were very impressed by his compositions and stage presence, good job John.

Joey Kitson, a native of Charlottetown, had some wicked lead vocals in many of the Stan Rogers arrangements, while Julian delivered many passionate melodic lines throughout the show. Terry Hatty made everyone laugh during his solo rendition of Stan Rogers’ “The Idiot,” (I loved the part where the musicians called him an idiot right at the end.)

Speaking of the musicians, I was incredibly impressed by the music, churned from only three musicians. A guitar player, a pianist, and wonderful violist. The violinist , Christina Bouey, is the daughter of a friend of ours, and really helped create a beautiful celtic environment with her masterful playing….a real treat.

I recommend everyone to see this show. The Mackenzie theatre, or “The Mack,” features caberet seating, where drinks can be purchased. It provides a great environment to relax with friends around the table and listen to some good performances.

I went to see “Gadelle,” yesterday with my wife, and a friend of ours. Gadelle is a four women Acadian band, filled with incredible talent and energy! I was incredibly impressed by the versatility of this band…the four performers were changing, and exchanging instruments left and right….tapping their feet, singing and cheering! It was a BLAST!!

The four performers: Louise Arsenault, Helene Bergeron, Caroline Bernard, Paige Gallant light up the stage with their enthusiasm and energetic playing. Each of them who play different instruments, then break up into tap dance, and back to playing, all while vocals would tell the story of the song.  The crowd could not help but tap their feet and move their bodies to the rhythm, it was enchanting!

I highly recommend this show for anglophones and francophones alike…it is performed at Studio 2 in the Confederation Centre of the Arts. You will not be dissapointed. Remember, the Confed centre is only a 5 minute walk from our Charlottetown Inn!

I have been trying to book a tour with The Harbour Hippo, but it has been incredibly difficult. Obviously, I don’t have a lot of time during the day, so I can only enjoy PEI with my wife, on a early to late evening basis.

The Harbour Hippo claims to runs from 10:15am to 8pm, but we have been unsuccessful to board, twice now, around 6pm, due to their minimum passenger requirement of 10 people.

This is unfortunate, although I understand the operating costs may not be worth it for any tours under ten…but it is still very inconvenient to walk all the way there to find out you are out of luck for a tour…although the walk is not far from our Charlottetown Inn.

My recommendation: Call them ahead of time, and ask what the passenger load is for a particular time that you want to go…or ask when the passenger load is larger so that you can pick a time that will definitely depart.

I just went with the wife to see “Whitney Rose, and Kirsten Jones,” at The Guild, in the Charlottetown. What a great performance! Whitney Rose is actually a PEI native, who is living in Toronto. Her alternative country tunes really created a spark with the audience last night. She has an amazing voice, and resonates well with Kirsten Jones, another alternate country singer. It was an awesome show.

The Guild is a great place to check out some  live entertainment. They host comedy shows…benefits, and countless small plays and skit shows. The Guild is only a 7 minute walk from our Charlottetown Inn, On the corner of Richmond and Queen st. It is basically across the street from the Confederation Centre of the Arts.

I highly recommend most of the performances at The Guild. The production values are not as high as the Confederation Centre, as it is a small stage. However, there is a lot of brilliant local talent showcased there; and I always recommend seeing at least one performance. Tickets are normally cheap, between 10-20 dollars (even less if you are a student!)

I went crazy with the camera today, July 3rd, 2009. I took more shots of the breakfast we served today at my Charlottetown Inn, The Sonata Inn. I focused more on the muffins, scones, and cinnamon rolls this time. We served Potato Strata today as well, I managed to snap a few pictures of it before the guests gobbled it all up.

I placed the pictures in the gallery on the Bed and breakfast page here => http://www.sonatainn.com/breakfast.html

I also placed it on the facebook page

Cheers

Downtown Charlottetown features quite a treat when exposed to a walker. Especially from our location, walking into and around the city is very enjoyable, and I figure I would explain a route that I tend to reveal to guests when they come here.

First and foremost, because we are located right in downtown Charlottetown our location provides a great start to your walking journey. Taking a left out of our driveway, walk up Grafton St, and into town! In a few minutes, you’ll hit Queen St…welcome to the centre of town! On this intersection you’ll see the Box office entrance to the Confederation centre of the arts on one corner….a Cows Ice cream on the other! I typically tell folks to turn right here, and walk towards the water. Now we are walking down Queen St, soon we’ll turn left on Richmond St, this area is actually called “Victoria Row.” This area is blocked off to traffic, so that restaurant owners can seat guests outside. There is also a little gazebo here where musicians will set up and play music! This area is a very popular spot for the P.E.I locals here, and it’s quite an active place to hang out at night time.

Continuing on Richmond St…you’ll see the Province House on your left hand side. Turn right on Great George St…which will take you straight down into Peake’s wharf, which is a collection of shops and general stores (you can find PEI dirt shirts here!!) There is a nice trail that outlines the wharf. You can walk along this trail towards the east side. Eventually you’ll come across a great restaurant “Lobster on the Wharf,” (stay tuned for another segment for my review of this place!) Close to this restaurant though, is “Founder’s Hall,” which is a museum that focuses on the fathers of confederation. This building also doubles as the Visitor’s centre…which I recommend using to checkout any schedules for any musical events happening around town.

From Founder’s hall, you have many choices. I tend to try to convince guests to take a walking tour. Visit that link for schedule and prices. These tours are loads of fun (especially if you brought the kids.) The tour guides act and dress as fathers/ladies of confederation. They are bilingual, and VERY knowledgeable. They’ll take you all around the city and reveal some interesting tidbits!

If you’re tired of walking, I recommend The Harbour Hippo, which also has a kiosk near Founder’s Hall. It is a 55 minute bus tour around Charlottown, combined with a fun excursion out on the sea. The bus is a hybrid Bus/boat! The tour guides are friendly as well. The tour really climaxes when the bus drives into the water…loads of fun!

If it is early in the day, I recommend walking back up Great George St, and back to the Province House….walk around it from the left side, and you should see a small Amphitheater on the left side that belongs to the Confederation Centre of the Arts. From Monday-Saturday, at noon, the Young Company puts on a performance outside…and it’s free!! This year they are performing: Abegweit: The Soul of the Island.

When you’re finished for the day, find Grafton St and turn left. You’ll find our Charlottetown Inn, in no time!