Hot off the heels of Canada Day I thought it was the perfect time to share a bit of my whirlwind Canadian adventure with Ford! A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to visit Ottawa, Kingston + Toronto for a fun filled 3 day trip with my bestie! Let me tell you guys this trip was a jam packed few days as we didn't get a ton of time in each destination but we made the most of each stop and had a blast exploring more of this beautiful country we're so lucky to call home!

If anything this trip was just a small taste of what some of these incredible destinations have to offer and really, now I just want to go back and get more time to explore and play tourist in my own country!

Our trip started in Ottawa where Tiffiney (my bestie, travel companion and fill in "Instagram Husband" for the trip! haha) and I were greeted by Denis, our fabulous Ford friend who gave us the tour of the Ford EcoSport we'd be touring around in for the next few days.

I won't lie you guys, I kind of hate driving in bigger cities or more specifically, PARKING in big cities which I'm sure many of you understand can be a bit nightmarish. What I really loved about the Ford EcoSport right out of the gate is that it's a compact vehicle so you get the comfort and benefits of an SUV but also some of the benefits of a smaller vehicle (AKA parking and zipping around is much easier!)

So, before I get into a bit of what we got up to I thought I'd share WHY Ford sent us across the country for 3 days.... With the EcoSport now available in North America Ford is celebrating by taking the EcoSport across the country! 13 of us lucky bloggers each get to drive a portion of the cross Canada tour and rather than having us drive it in our home towns, Ford thought it would be better to have us explore a new city and drive a new part of the country and I think that idea is fabulous!!

A map across the side of our vehicle shows the destinations each of us would get to make and as you can see, my marker gets the Ottawa --> Kingston --> Toronto portion of the trip! So there you go... just a bit of background before we get into everything we packed into less than 3 days!

We landed to a gorgeous afternoon in Ottawa and we didn't want to waste any time getting to sight seeing as this was mine and Tiffiney's first time in Ottawa and we only had a few hours to explore before driving to Kingston. We naturally had to visit parliament, walk around the gardens and do a bit of shopping and eating at the Byward Market. Also the war memorial is definitely a sight worth seeing - both Tiffiney and I were so impressed with how beautiful and powerful it was in person - I highly recommend walking around if you get the chance to visit Ottawa. Both of us said Ottawa reminded us a bit of Paris and it seems like Ottawa is an incredible city so it's officially on my list of cities I want to go back to visit!

After running around for a few hours seeing as much as we could in Ottawa we headed back to the EcoSport to make the two hour drive from Ottawa to Kingston to stay at the peaceful Rosemount Inn. We arrived late at night so it was already dark when we got to the Inn but even at that time we could tell this place was gorgeous so the next morning in the light of day we were not disappointed by the beautiful gardens around the inn. The Rosemount Inn has so much charm and the whole place is just beautiful! We had a delicious breakfast (they even accommodated my strict Lucere diet which was VERY appreciated!) then we were off to explore Kingston!

The weather forecast wasn't the greatest for our day of exploring so we made the most of it by getting out early to explore the waterfront area. Fortunately for the pair of us directionally challenged individuals the Ford EcoSport has a great nav system so with all of our driving and exploring it was VERY helpful in getting us everywhere we needed to be! The EcoSport also has wifi (YAAAASSS) so we were able to pull over and check out where to stop and what to see!

After checking out the waterfront we managed to just escape a bit of rain so we thought we'd head towards our next destination (Toronto) but find somewhere to stop along the way. A quick roadside google suggested Belleville, where we stopped for lunch at the cutest french cafe, did a bit of shopping at their independent boutiques and was the perfect rest stop before heading to Toronto.

Our final destination was Toronto and thanks to a TORRENTIAL storm our drive was certainly an exciting one! haha At a few points the rain was coming down so hard that you could barely see in front of you which is nervewracking enough on its own, nevermind when you're in Toronto in rush hour and trying to get somewhere you've never been before! lol I will say that I was actually so pleased to have the EcoSport throughout this stressful drive. The navigation kept us on track while the automatic wipers adjusted to the torrential downpour as needed. The compact size of our vehicle made it easy to maneuver around the busy downtown core during rush hour and we were incredibly relieved when we made it safe and sound to The Anndore House.

Now I could write a post all on its own about The Anndore House - the decor and whole vibe of the space was amazing but I'll save that for another day. We checked into the hotel and decided to dry off and wait out the worst of the rain before heading out again. Fortunately for us the weather decided to cooperate in the evening so we headed to Sugar Beach! I have been wanting to visit these famous pink umbrellas and this was one of my favourite stops on our trip!

We then headed back to the hotel in time for a late dinner and after a LOOONG day, we hit the hay for one last morning of exploring. The next day I had two more instagrammable stops I wanted to make - Cafe Cancan for a light lunch and then Her Majesty's Pleasure for pedicures before heading home. Overall we had an absolutely incredible and jam packed couple of days thanks to Ford! It was so great to get out and explore new areas of Canada. And a great sound system, in car wifi and much needed navigation system were major bonuses to our road trip. The Ford EcoSport was comfortable, great to drive (esp for driving in big cities - so nice to be a smaller vehicle!) and for this girl who hates parking, even easy to park thanks to the rear view camera, sensors and compact size!

I want to say a HUGE thank you to Ford Canada for sending Tiffiney and I on this trip! It's so cool to be a part of an awesome experience like this!

Where would you road trip this summer? Let me know in the comments below! xo

I was very fortunate to have this trip compensated by Ford Canada. As always, all thoughts and opinions are 100% my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that support this blog, without them I wouldn't be able to do what I love!

A Very Canadian Adventure With Ford