Prince Edward County has been high on my ‘places to go list’ ever since I started seeing it advertised more and more on HGTV. Now this summer, my Mom and I took action.

A little over a month ago (still a bit last minute mind you) we booked a couple of nights at the English Rose Spa & Holistic Healing Centre (a bed and breakfast) in Picton.

We arrived in Picton on August 12^th and our first in person look at this B&B was the start to an excellent trip. This Victorian-styled B&B was decorated and furnished beautifully and made me feel as if I had been transported into an old English movie. However, the hospitality of our host, JD (my apologies if you are reading this and I’ve spelled your name incorrectly), was even better. He was so kind and accommodating (he brought us freshly baked chocolate chip cookies) and was an excellent person to speak to for recommendations.

Overall, the B&B was beautiful, clean, had everything you could possibly think of, provided wonderful breakfasts in the morning, and all the other guests were lovely. 

Our first day there, since we arrived later in the afternoon, was spent walking along the main drag of Picton. We did a bit of shopping (I bought a few things from a local bookstore) and really were just exploring what this street in Picton had to offer.

Every store we stopped at was super unique and lovely to see, however, a few of my favourite places we browsed and shopped in were:

• JH Porte
• Lily’s Café
• Books & Company
• Picton Gazette (this may just be the journalism nerd in me, but it was interesting to see)

Following the advice of JD, we decided to go to The Miller House for dinner – a restaurant that specializes in sharing platters, small plates, and tapas. We got there earlier rather than later (another good piece of advice from JD) and were not disappointed. We each ordered a glass of rosé and shared the Viva Italia platter and Asparagus Pesto tartine.

Everything was so delicious. At the end, we also decided to share a slice of cheesecake (unfortunately it was not photographed but just take my word when I say it was incredible). After this, we were both pretty wiped from our day of driving and exploring so we went back to the B&B to watch a movie and fall asleep.

The following day we woke up to the delicious smell of the breakfast the English Rose staff had prepared – bacon, quiche, pancakes, muffins, fruit, croissants, yogurt, tea, coffee, etc., you name it, they had it. I’m not a huge breakfast person but I couldn’t pass up on this meal! It was great!

After breakfast, we went to JH Porte where I bought the hat you see in the photo below.

But following this is when the real adventures for the day started. The only plans we had set in stone were to visit Prince Edward County Lavender in the morning, and then we had a wine tour at Waupoos Estates Winery booked for 2:30 p.m. Other than that, we decided to see where the day took us.

The lavender farm was incredibly beautiful. I’ve always seen photos of lavender farms on Pinterest and thought they looked like something out of a movie or dream. Seeing one in person was no disappointment, even with the lavender not being in full bloom. We ended up not staying too long at the farm but long enough for me to buy some lavender bath salts, chocolate, and soap. 

As mentioned, we had no solid plans after this, but JD did tell us that Wellington Beach might be worth checking out if we wanted to go to a beach (a lot of the others, such as Sandbanks, you actually had to buy a pass ahead of time and since it’s already mid-August, they were all bought out for the most part). So, we arrived at the beach and much to our surprise it was fairly empty, we didn’t have to pay, and it was breezy. We laid out a blanket and read and snacked for the next couple hours.

Next up was our wine tour.

Waupoos Estates Winery was the first winery that opened in Prince Edward County (and it only officially opened in 2001). And, as noted on the winery website, Waupoos Estates is located on a 100-acre waterfront property. It did not disappoint. The location was stunning, our tour guide was super informative, and the tasting was delicious. I’m not the biggest wine connoisseur, but I loved the experience, have a better appreciation for wine, and now want to explore more wineries closer to home! Following our tasting, we stayed on the property for a little while and read by the waterfront, enjoyed a dish of fries from the food truck on the property.

For dinner this evening we actually had a reservation at The Inn – which is almost directly across the road from The Miller House. Two very different restaurants but both were incredible – I can’t pick a favourite! At The Inn, while there is no photo evidence, I enjoyed a plate of mussels and my Mom and I shared a strawberry salad. We also each treated ourselves to a glass of wine – because after our tasting we were experts on what to order!

After dinner, we strolled through the main part of town for a bit before heading back to the B&B to finish the movie we started the night before, and to get a good night’s rest before our trek back to the GTHA the next morning.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed our short stay in Prince Edward County. It was the perfect getaway. The only disappointment was that we didn’t end up getting to try Slickers Ice Cream. But, now we have a reason to go back!

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