[caption id="attachment_96" align="aligncenter" caption="Sunset on Lake Rosseau from the wharf at Clevelands House Resort"][/caption] I love the new Pirate Ship Cruise for kids at Clevelands House Resort. It's a dinner cruise for the kids on Thursday nights from 5-7 pm aboard the notorious Muskoka pirate ship Wenonah II. Clevelands House is probably the last remaining of all the grand hotels that were built in Muskoka at a time when rail and water were the only way to get there. Today this resort is very family-oriented. They've got 55 qualified counsellors to care for and entertain infants to teens. Check out the Cleve’s Kids Club! Parents can take advantage of their babysitting and something they call "hallsitting" – kind of like the hall monitors we had back in school. The pirate ship is a perfect fit for a resort which was built to look like a boat 140 years ago when, who knows, maybe there was the odd pirate stalking the Muskoka Lakes. Bob Cornell, whose family is only the third to manage the resort in 140 years spoke to me recently. Great guy to talk to. He started his resort career at Clevelands House as a bellhop in 1949. His son-in-law is Ted Carruthers, the current General Manager of the resort. The Minett family, the original owners of Clevelands House, homesteaded here in 1869, and it wasn't long after that that they were in the resort business. As well as building Clevelands House, the Minetts were also in the boat building business. Minett boats, and later, Minett-Shields Boats, set the standards for the great wooden boat building history of the Muskoka area. Bob Cornell remembers well the 1917 "Mineta" that used to take resort guests on excursions around the lake. More Clevelands House history can be found here. If you're thinking of a holiday in Ontario this summer, check out Resorts of Ontario for family/summer packages. Packaging activities together with accommodations can save money! This is an example of a "Family adventure" package – Ultimate HORSEplay Adventure at Horseshoe Resort. This package includes two night's accommodation, daily breakfast, two-hour Rhino Safari (ATVs), Tree Top Trekking Adventure, two 18-hole rounds of golf, two Kids Korral Adventure Day Camp and one dinner at the Crazy Horse! Rate based on two adults and two children (ages 11 and under). Price is $800.00 plus tax and resort amenity fee.