Travelsmartplanet

What a useful couch! It’s made of denim, and each end has 4 large storage pockets. We found this at the Hickory Furniture Mart in NC.

The Hickory Furniture Mart in NC is not to be missed if you’re into outlet shopping and furniture. With 4 floors of marts and 80,000 sq ft of showrooms, you can easily spend 3 days roaming through here.

Only in Montreal will you find this flavor of potato chips! Montreal Steak Spice is a famous blend of spices that takes steak to a new level, but can also be sprinkled on chicken, pork, hamburgers and now even potato chips. We found this bag at Le Panier, the fabulous gift shop at 300 Bord du Lac (Lakeshore Rd) in Pointe Claire.

The Frog Pond Cafe in Cheticamp, NS has coffee, pastries, snacks, a gift shop and wonderful Cape Breton hospitality.

Lola is one of the hookers in this hooked rug shop on Cape Breton Island. She has been hooking for 44 years.

Wouldn’t it be amazing to be able to flashback to calm and pleasant airline travel of the 1970’s? Well you can! We just drove from Montreal to tiny Plattsburgh Airport to take Allegiant Air to hot sunny Florida. Easily, we turned off the main road, and drove right up to the airport door. I stepped out with the luggage, and Stan just parked the car across the street.

There was NO line at the Allegiant Air desk and friendly helpful service, I was done in under two minutes. There was NO lineup at security. Since you already drove through the border, there was NO customs and immigration to deal with. In probably about 5 minutes we were going up the elevator to the waiting room.

The room had a retro counter with a man selling candy, snacks, sandwiches and drinks. When I asked him the prices, He said, “What do you want, they’re all in my head?”

There weren’t overhead screens to keep track of the flight. They send any changes to you to your cellphone – and call if necessary, too. The building is going through a renovation so things might be a bit more twenty-first century when you fly.

Those of you already planning your winter sunny getaways will be happy to know that Allegiant Air flying out of Plattsburgh offers low prices with just a short drive away for Montrealers who want a nonstop flight to sunshine. Just be advised that there are extra charges for luggage (even carry-on), choosing seats, and such things as printed boarding passes for you (you can do it at home for free).

Travelers who shop around will find substantial savings when flying with Allegiant, as well as good deals on hotels, rental cars and attractions. Montrealers wishing to spend their hard-earned dollars at their destination, rather than on transportation, can fly to sunny Las Vegas and Florida.

www.allegiantair.com

The Meet and Greet Service are airport experts at Vancouver International Airport. They make the airport experience efficient for both corporate and leisure travelers – whether it’s navigating through the airport formalities, security lines, check-in, handling of baggage, shopping, or restaurant dining – eating in or to go, they offer impeccable attention. This is  the first  official meet and greet service in North America.

Some of their services: check-in including boarding card help, getting through security, departure and connections, assistance including gate to gate escort, chauffeured mobile cart, baggage handling, baggage claim, assistance during flight delays or cancellations, delayed arrival, delayed baggage, claims. You can all access to the Plaza Premium Lounge (applicable fees may apply). Prices start at $95.

http://airportbutler1.reachlocal.net/airport-meet-and-greet

The swooping architecture of the building and jaw-dropping 17 metre-high domed ceiling of Canada Hall are visions you will not easily forget after you have visited the newly named Canadian Museum of History (was Canadian Museum of Civilization), which covers Canadian life from AD 1000 to 2000.

From now until Sept 28, 2014,  you can enjoy the informative exhibit about Snow and the ingenious ways in which  Canadians have adapted to difficult winter conditions, from sleighs to snow removal. You can participate in a fun quiz at the end.

The museum is a playground for all, as the Children’s Museum takes the kids on travels around the world – including a passport to stamp in each country. All kinds of imaginative play from driving a bus, motorcycle, ship or camel to running a shop, putting on a puppet show, living in a pyramid, moving heavy boxes using a winch, or booking a trip can all be tried out.

In the main galleries, visitors see a Viking family arriving in Newfoundland around AD 1000,  discover New France through a farmhouse, inn, hospital, shoemaker’s shop and visit a voyageur camp, a lumber camp, a Métis campsite, British military living quarters and a Maritime shipyard. There’s a stroll past shops  along the main street of a small town in late 19th-century Ontario.

Learn about life in a turn-of-the-century prairie railway station and yard, a Saskatchewan grain elevator, an authentic Ukrainian church, a Chinese hand laundry and a 1920s Alberta oil derrick. You can even sit in Yellowknife’s Wildcat Cafe, the town’s first restaurant and a popular gathering spot for prospectors, bush pilots, miners and trappers.

If you love animals, leave time for the up close and personal movie, Kenya 3-D about a safari through Africa.

Location: 100 Laurier St., Gatineau, Quebec K1A 0M8
Phone: 819-776-7000 or 800-555-5621
www.civilization.ca