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Have the Time of Your Life at Clevelands House
“Now I've had the time of my life…”
That famous anthem from “Dirty Dancing” went on heavy rotation in my head as my husband, six-year-old daughter and I began driving through the Clevelands House grounds. There was a definite laid-back-resort-from-the-60s vibe running through this place in the Muskokas and I half expected to see Baby Houseman practicing steps lakeside. Instead, people were playing tennis, lazing by the pools or meandering about with no real purpose.
We stopped the car in front of the North Lodge, an impressive white building and quickly began unloading our suitcases. We were scheduled to board the Pirate Cruise shortly, a family event organized by the resort that set sail every Thursday afternoon.
The room was basic but very clean. It had a large closet, a very large bathroom and the décor was definitely a rustic cottage look from a few decades ago. It totally fit in with Cleves, the nickname staff and longtime visitors use for the 130-year-old resort.
After checking in, we scurried down to the dock just outside the lodge and boarded the Wenonah II, a replica of the steamboat that actually had carried Clevelands House founders, Charles and Fanny Minett, into the region in 1869.
The Wenonah became a rollicking ship of fun for two hours as it cruised Lake Rosseau. Children from the Cleve’s Kids Club program were on board with their counselors and all decked out in pirate gear they had created at the resort’s kid clubhouse. Captain Corbin, a pirate magician, kept everyone entertained with jokes and magic tricks, but the best was yet to come. Shortly after our launch, the first of three assaults occurred from neighbouring cottagers, I mean pirates, who launched water balloons and marshmallows at the Wenonah’s crew and costumed passengers.
Check out a video on the Pirate Cruise:
Back on land, it was time for dinner so we headed over to Minnet Lodge where the Lakeside Dining Terrace is located. At Clevelands House, guests can choose to have three meals included in their stay. Upon our arrival we were informed that Christina would be our server for our entire stay and we would be seated at the same table the whole time. This was a new concept and it seemed interesting. Would I enjoy this or really abhor it by the end of our holiday? Well, I guessed that would depend on our server.
Christina, tall and slender, appeared with a smile within seconds of us sitting down. We quickly found out that she had spent the last 13 summers as a Clevelands House guest with her family and that this was the first year she was working at the resort.
“I knew everything about Cleves so it was just a good fit. I called up the owner and got the job,” she explained enthusiastically while pouring water into our glasses. She gave us the lowdown on the menu, explaining that the choices changed everyday and was quick to let us know which desserts she felt we would like best.
Madison and Christina are all smiles at the Lakeside Dining Terrace
Image: Phil Raby © 2009 Trips with Kids
Although the food was standard fare, it was plentiful. Breakfast was a highlight with the offer of mouth-watering muffins, breads and pastries that are baked on the premises and the coffee was strong. At the end of our stay, we were definitely sold on this dining concept, especially Madison, our daughter, who loved all the attention from Christina. It was like we were one big family sitting down for meals everyday.
That’s a feeling many visitors experience and it’s one the ex-owners of the resort cultivate to the max. Yes, you read that right. The ex-owners, Bob and Fran Cornell, are still managing the place after selling it two years ago to a large company that runs a couple of other resorts in the area. That’s good news, according to Bob Shaw, Director of Sales and Clevelands House historian.
“You won’t see changes in the way we operate for at least three years, but changes are coming,” he said with sadness in his voice. He’s worked at the resort for sixteen years, but that pales to the length of time Bob and Fran have been at Cleves.
Bob Cornell was only 14 when he was hired to work as a bellhop in the late 1940s and Fran got a job as a dining room waitress in 1955. They married and continued to work at the resort, awaiting an opportunity to buy it and make it their own.
In 1969 they finally bought Clevelands House from its then owner, Bob Wright who had worked hard to turn the place into a hip, swinging place for singles on holiday. The Cornells had different plans for Cleves. They wanted to make it a place for families, banking on the fact that they would return year after year if they had a good time. The idea took off and, according to Shaw, people who spent their summers at the resort in the 70s are now returning with their own kids and sometimes with their parents in tow.
“The kids love being here and if the kids are happy, the parents are happy.” Shaw surmised.
One evening we went down to the water’s edge for a bonfire and sticky s’mores. As staff handed out the marshmallows, chocolate and wafers, two counselors coaxed everyone into singing as the fire burns bright. After a few songs the families retreated into small groups watching the fire grow. There were no cell phones or MP3 players to be seen or heard. Just the crackling of embers, the lapping of water and the sound of s’mores being crunched.
Yes, spending a holiday at Cleves is having the time of your life.
Above image: Phil Raby © 2009 Trips with Kids
For more information:
Clevelands House Resort
(This story was posted August 2009)
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