What a great kick off to Oktoberfest today’s show was! For those of you who have been enticed to visit this fantastic area, there are plenty of things to see and do in the Kitchener-Waterloo region all year long.

Bingemans is an entertainment, camping and banquet centre that offers a Big Splash Waterpark, nine holes of golf, tubing on the Grand River, paintball, beach volleyball, bowling and an indoor family playground called Funworx. Screampark is their Halloween horror experience on the go right now and for the next few weekends culminating the last week of October to coincide with Halloween. If you can’t make it here this month, they are actually turning Halloween and horror in to a year-round business! 13 Hours in Hell  scheduled for June 5 and 6 and June 12 and 13 is a non-stop interactive horror adventure that pits teams of campers against each other in a series of challenges as they try to dodge the undead! Ok…fake undead.

For outdoor enthusiasts the Grand River runs 280 kilometres all the way through the Waterloo Region from its source in Wareham, Ontario to Lake Erie. 2014 marks the 20th anniversary of the Grand’s designation as a Canadian Heritage River. There are walking and cycling trails all along the river, but it is perhaps best known for fly fishing and canoeing. The Elora Gorge is one of the most beautiful and spectacular natural areas along the Grand River, and is a popular spot for tubing and zip lining. Cycling is also popular, whether you follow a designated trail or simply explore the country roads in Mennonite country on your own. You’ll see plenty of fruit and vegetable stands and horse drawn buggies on your route.

There are several national historic sites and parks in the area including the childhood home of former prime minister William Lyon McKenzie King, the Woodside National Historic Site, which is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year.

And while the towns of Shaw and Stratford are known for their theatre, Kitchener and Waterloo is also becoming known for its theatre scene. Local entrepreneur and artist Alex Mustakis has opened several theatres in the southwest of the province including The Schoolhouse, St. Jacobs Country Playhouse, the Dunfield Theatre Cambridge and two Huron County playhouses.

One last and little known fact;  you can fly into the area through the Waterloo International Airport including direct, daily non-stop flights from Calgary on Westjet and twice daily from Chicago on American Airlines.