Me and my husband have been working from home the entire 8 months of the pandemic with little to no social interactions as we are still taking social distancing and staying within our bubbles pretty seriously and we were really feeling burnt out from working non-stop (while virtual schooling our child) and felt a great need for a getaway.
The pandemic cancelled all our travel plans this year obviously but we did take a 3 day trip to Niagara Falls during summer and stayed at a hotel and honestly that was not a smart choice even though we took extreme precautions (read about How To Travel Safetly During a Pandemic), just because we got exposed to a huge amount of people at the hotel lobby and at all the tourist spots which could’ve been easily avoided if we chose to go somewhere remote and rented an airbnb or a cottage just to ourselves.
And that’s why when we finally booked our annual vacation last week, we decided to rent a cottage in Leamington, which is only 45 mins drive from our home. We chose this location because we still wanted to be away from the GTA area where the covid case counts are still pretty high and in our Windsor-Essex region the cases have been comparatively very low and we just wanted to be extra careful and avoid unnecessary exposure.
Where Is Leamington?
Located along the north shore of Lake Erie in Southwestern Ontario, Leamington is a municipality in Essex County, Ontario which includes Point Pelee National Park, the southernmost point of mainland Canada. It is also one of the best cottage rental spots in Ontario where the cottages offer the most outstanding waterfront views. We went there during fall so we didn’t expect much and just wanted to relax and experience the cottage living right by the Lake. And we were absolutely awstruck by the lake view that we woke up to everyday during our stay and was also pleasantly surprised with everything that this little town had to offer even during cooler months.
Read more about Leamington here.
Where Did We Stay?
Even though there are tons of different lodging options like hotels, bed and breakfasts, etc. we strictly wanted the cottage experience so we stayed at a waterfront cottage. Now let me tell you something crazy, I have tried booking a cottage by Lake Erie many times in the past but I could never find any vacancy so I was overjoyed to find a cottage that too affordable and with amazing view. If you want to book a cottage anywhere in Ontario, you always got to book it in advance, the earlier the better. People book cottages for summer months sometimes up to a year in advance. I think I got lucky this time because of Covid as many people are still skeptical about vacation homes during this time plus because it was fall and not summer. I used AirBnB to book my cottage which is my go to site when I’m looking for apartment or vacation homes. For searching hotels/motels, Hotels.ca is definitely my favourite and I had used them for booking all my stays during my epic Europe Trip (Read about my budget tips for travelling to Europe here) and I love that they give me a free night stay once I book 10 nights with them, this post is not sponsored by them but they should totally sponsor my stays because I’m always raving about them, jk.
We stayed at a 2 bedroom/1 bath cottage called Waterfront Beauty owned by a young couple Mike and Jenica on Point Pelee Drive who was was highly responsive to all my questions and maintained all covid safety protocols and had contactless check in. We paid $960 for 5 nights but the cost varies depending on the days and the season you book it . The place was tastefully decorated with a beach vibe, had a great collection of DVDs and a radio with surround system for entertainment. There was no cable and the internet service was weak which probably was a good thing as the whole idea for this trip was to disconnect and recharge but if internet is a must for you, you might want to check this with the owner first before booking. The kitchen had a big island which was perfect to eat and hang out as a group and the living room had a sectional which made lounging extra comfortable. It had all the essentials like, dishes, pots, pans, cutleries, trash bags, dish soap, cooking utensils, cleaning supplies including a dyson vacuum which I think was really handy. They also provided a coffee machine as well as a jar of ground coffee, filter and sugar and sweeteners. They also provided basic cooking essentials like, oil, salt and pepper. Everything was very clean and the bedding and towels smelled fresh. There were extra towels but no extra bedding which would be handy in case there’s a spill or accident if you have a kid. It did not have a washer/dryer either but it was not a deal breaker for me but again could be useful in case of accidents. The bathroom had hand soap, extra toilet papers and a hair dryer but no shampoo or lotion. I loved that the cottage had a nice backyard with 2 comfy Adirondack chairs and a deck where I loved having my morning and afternoon coffee and it also had a BBQ machine for us to use. It had a wood burning stove which made our nights extra cozy with drinks in our hands and music in the surround sound. It was just the perfect cottage country experience that I was looking for.
Backyard
Dining Area 
Door To The Backyard from The Dining Area
Living Room 
Master Bed 
Kitchen 
Other Bedroom 
Where To Search For Vacation Rentals
I got tons of messages on my Instagram when I shared stories about this trip and many of you asked how to find cottages like the one I stayed at so I wanted to share all my go-to the websites where I search for vacation rentals:
What To Do in Leamington?
Because Leamington is so close my house and we go there all the time, I already know about all the tourist attractions and things to do there but when I’m planning to travel to a place I’ve never been to, my best friend is TripAdvisor and it’s Things To Do search option which shows all the top attractions of the city I am interest in.
Here is the top attractions of Leamington:
1. Point Pelee National Park
2. Point Pelee Marsh Boardwalk
3. Point Pelee Observation Tower
4. Pelee Island
Budget Friendly Tips For Cottaging
Well if you know me you know “budget is my middle name and I’m never missing an opportunity where I can cut cost! The cottage fare was more than I would like it to be so I wanted to spend as little possible on food and other things.
- I booked this cottage which is only 45 mins away from our house, this way we didn’t have to spend on renting a car which we usually do on long trips or spend too much on gas.
- I took 2 huge container full of cooked food. One container had chicken biryani (spicy rice with chicken cooked indian style) which easily served 4 of us for 4 days. The other container had Beef Curry and I also took a container full of plain steamed rice and we ate the curry with the rice which was divine. We ate takeout only for one meal out of 5 days.
- I also took TONSSSS of snacks and ready breakfast items. For snacks we took chips, granola bars, crackers, cookies; there was something for all ages, trust me I have a 6 year old and this is a must. For baked goods, I took some croissants, muffins, cakes which lasted 4 days easily.
- I also took some frozen food like, chicken strips, frozen parathas (indian style flat bread), frozen fries and frozen wings for days we didn’t want to eat the cooked food. I also got a box of eggs which was perfect to eat with parathas in the morning.
Pro Tips
- I packed our apple tv in case we get too bored, I mean seriously we are not monks and there’s no shame in using some technology for entertainment, so yeah if you’re going for a longer stay this might come handy but if you are really wanting to disconnect then ignore this tip.
- I am very particular about my coffee so once I made sure the cottage has a coffee machine, I brought my own coffee grounds, coffee mate and truvia. If you care less about your coffee then skip this tip too.
- I almost didn’t pack our slippers because it’s November and I thought we’ll be just sitting out in cold but to our surprise the weather was nice and we all were wearing our slippers outside and inside the house. Trust me wearing outdoor shoes every time you step out can be a pain in the a##.
- If you have specific preferences, for example, I really hoped for a bbq machine and coffee machine so I messaged the owner about that before booking so if you have a pet or if you smoke or if you must have a washer/dryer on the property you should message the owner before making your payment.
- Explore your own backyard. I was so pleasantly surprised to have such a great time without going too far from our house. If Covid has taught us anything this year that is to find beauty in our surrounding; so before booking an expensive flight to a faraway country, explore local options. You will be surprised to find many hidden gems, I’m sure.
- Do not pack light especially when travelling during fall in Ontario because you can’t trust the Canadian weather. So make sure to pack enough warm clothes as well as non-winter clothes and definitely pack your heavy winter jackets and accessories because you cannot trust the Canadian Fall weather.
- Pack Extra bedding in case there is a spill and the property does not have washer/dryer.
Covid Safety Tips
- Communicate with the owner about covid safety protocols first and foremost, make sure they disinfect everything before and after each stay.
- As an extra precaution, take your own bedding, blanket, pillow and towel and definitely take disinfectant spray and wipes.
- Once checking in, disinfect all high traffic surfaces like door knobs, counter tops, sofa arms, etc.
- Book an entire place to your own like airbnb apartment or cottage rather than a hotel to keep your exposure to other people minimum.
- Avoid walking around town and explore the wilderness and in our case we had many options like the point pelee national park, the marsh boardwalk, etc. where we avoided large crowds with close proximity.
Lastly, just want to say that may be travelling right now is still not the best idea but if you are choosing to anyways like we did, please take all the safety precautions and possibly avoid air travelling unless it’s an emergency. Also don’t forget to let me know if you found this post helpful and whether it inspired to explore your local areas.
Have you tried AirBnb? Sign up with my link and you will get up to $95 CAD off your first trip! CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP!
Until next time!
Love,
Nawrin
Thank you for this round up! I am one frugal mamma, so I will be bookmarking this article!
This is an incredible list. There are new to me so I will make sure to check them out. Thank you for sharing.