This past October, my partner Steve and I went on a road trip through British Columbia to enjoy the culture and sights in a number of major centres.  This wasn’t just a holiday – we had been invited by the tourism agencies of each destination to come and experience for ourselves what their neck of the woods has to offer to travelers.  Over the course of a week we drove a circuit from Calgary through Glacier National Park, Kelowna, Victoria, Vancouver, Kamloops, and back to Calgary.  This month’s article on Kelowna is the first in a five part series describing our adventures through each destination, and what to keep an eye out for, if and when you have the opportunity to visit any one of them.

We arrived in Kelowna from the north on a Saturday evening, a good hour or two after sunset.  It was hard to judge the size of Okanagan Lake, and the smaller lakes beside it on the way into town, because our eyes met pitch black when we looked out across them.

We were expected at 8pm for dinner at RauDZ Regional Table, but our stopovers in Glacier National Park had delayed us more than we expected, and it was already nearly 8:30pm.  The two of us were starving - I had been downing candies to keep my blood sugars from dropping.  As we were about 20 minutes away from the restaurant, they phoned us to check if they should continue to hold our table.  For a restaurant that doesn’t take reservations, this exception felt like a big deal.  With profuse apologies, we arrived shortly after without even checking into our hotel.  We sat down to our table in the back corner of the cozy venue where we had an all-encompassing view of the open kitchen, the dining area, and the bar.

RauDZ (pronounced "Rods"), we found out, is a much sought after dining experience in Kelowna – so much that the management apparently made the decision not to take reservations in order to give everyone a fair chance.  And that seems reasonable – why keep a table empty for someone who might show up (as we aptly demonstrated) when you have people who are already there, lined up at the front door.

Indeed, the restaurant was jam-packed with a lineup outside lasting past 10pm.  We ate possibly one of the tastiest (and best looking) meals of our lives here, and that wasn’t just the hunger talking.

The single glass of champagne we each drank was enough to get us a little tipsy, so before heading to the hotel, we went for a stroll from RauDZ down Bernard Street to where it ended by the waterside with a small park and a running fountain with an impressive abstract sculpture as the centerpiece.  While the docks out in the water were well lit, once again we could only see blackness out over the lake.  On our way back we passed by a neat, old fashioned looking movie theatre with strips of scrolling lights and the names of movies above the doors in tiled letters.  This area felt like the trendy district, similar to Calgary’s 17th Avenue or Edmonton’s Whyte Ave.

We made our way to the Coast Capri Hotel, a five minute drive away, to check in for the night in one of their Superior Room suites. We were on the fourth floor overlooking the large outdoor swimming pool and hot tub in the courtyard.  The room itself was very nice – newly built with a classy, clean cut décor.  Totally beat from our travels, and satisfied from our full bellies, we went straight to bed.

After a peaceful night’s sleep, we went down to the lobby of the hotel the next morning for a satisfying continental breakfast.  We explored the hotel a bit, checking out the pool area and the fitness centre.  Interestingly the east wing of the hotel has smaller rooms on the main floor with patio doors out onto the pool area, and we could see this being a popular spot during summer.  We also found out that we were within the first 10 guests to stay in our suite since the north wing was rebuilt after a fire.

With a mild climate all year round, a total of 29 local wine makers find "Kelowna-fornia" to be ideal for growing their crops.  In fact, Kelowna’s 5 wine trails are a major attraction for tourists. (http://www.tourismkelowna.com/do/wine/guide)  We drove out to west Kelowna to check out two highly recommended wineries: Mission Hill Family Estate, and Quail’s Gate Winery.  Both were very scenic - especially with the leaves in autumn colours - and sold a large selection of their own wines.

As noon approached, we had to decide where we wanted to eat.  We had been given recommendations for a few restaurants, and so we ended up choosing Smack DAB on the main floor of the Manteo Resort.  Not only did the food live up to their slogan ("Crazy Good Food"), but it was a gorgeous view out over Lake Okanagan through their large patio doors.  Unfortunately the less hospitable autumn winds were blowing so we stayed comfortably sheltered inside.

I began to sense a theme as we went to our next destinations, Urban Distillery and Okanagan Spirits, for some liquor tasting.  Okanagan Spirits brought us back to Bernard Street, so we stopped by Moo Licks a few doors down for some ice cream and went to check out the lakeshore park again.  Needless to say, the view was much better by day, and we caught a beautiful albeit quick sunset.

To finish off our day, we made the long drive out to Bonfire Restaurant at The Cove Lakeside Resort.  By the time we arrived there, the last of the daylight had faded; so although along the resort was along the shore of Okanagan Lake, we didn’t get to enjoy the view.  Instead we settled down in a cozy corner booth at the restaurant and had a great chat with the restaurant manager as he served us some delicious locally grown food paired with a selection of local wines.

There was much that we didn’t have the opportunity to see during our short stay in Kelowna, such as the farmers markets and agri-tourism sites (http://www.tourismkelowna.com/do/farm-to-table).

From what we could gather when speaking to locals, there are no gay bars in Kelowna per se.  However there is an annual Kelowna Pride Parade and Street Festival that happens mid-August. (http://www.okanaganpride.com)

If you’re an aficionado of food and drink, then there is plenty in Kelowna to keep your senses entertained – never mind the beautiful scenery and year round gentle climate!  Chef Rod Butters describes Kelowna as the "ultimate chefs’ playground" - if it’s that much fun to cook with fresh locally grown ingredients, then you know it’s even better to be there to taste them!