Relax, Recharge, Renew

Relax, Recharge, Renew is Destination Toronto’s signature social responsibility initiative, providing a much-deserved break to local parents or primary caregivers of children with complex special needs. Working in partnership with the tourism community (hotels, restaurants, attractions, etc.), Destination Toronto facilitates a gifted weekend package for these caregivers to experience Toronto.

The weekend package includes a limousine pick up, a two-night hotel stay, tickets to museums or other attractions, and meals at local restaurants. Participating families are identified by one of several high-quality, provincially-funded respite care centres.

The Impact

For many participants, it’s the first time in years that they’ve taken a pause from 24/7 childcare and many describe the weekend as transformative to their mental health.

Thanks to our community's support, 36 families are scheduled to experience a weekend getaway in 2023, adding to the more than 600 families who have received respite since the program began in 2008.

“Incredibly grateful to all your sponsors for supporting this perfectly named ‘Relax, Recharge, Renew’ weekend. Raising a child with challenges cannot be done alone and this weekend creates the possibility that families will take time for themselves and surrender to the idea that their child will be ok without them, and might even thrive without them for a short time." - Toni

“I feel completely grateful to have gotten this opportunity. It is wonderful that organizations like yours and all the ones we encountered this weekend can give a single parent such as myself a little getaway from the regular hustle and bustle of raising a child with special needs. It's had a huge impact on my outlook. As much as I missed my little girl, I feel ready this week to tackle any obstacles we may endure.” – Kelly-Anne

“Thank you so much for putting together a wonderful itinerary! If our children could understand, they would say "thanks for doing something so nice for our mom and dad." It takes a village to raise a child, even more so a child who has special needs. Thank you for being a part of our bigger village. Thanks for filling our tank for the next stretch of the journey!” – Michelle

Recognition

In its years of operation, Relax, Recharge, Renew has been recognized by a variety of prestigious local and international organizations for exceptional corporate social responsibility. Awards and recognition include:

Power of A Silver Award – ASAE (U.S.-based association)
Commitment to the Community Award – IMEX (presented in Frankfurt, Germany)
CSR Award for Community Affairs – PR News (presented in Washington, D.C.)
Tourism Innovator of the Year – Tourism Industry Association of Ontario
Destination Champion – Destination Marketing Association International

If you wish to make a contribution to the program either in kind (providing hotel rooms, tickets, restaurant meals) or a monetary donation, we would love to hear from you. Please contact program manager Annie Ewing at aewing (at) destinationtoronto.com or 647 271 4417.

THANK YOU!

We could not do this without the many generous contributions from our partners. Thank you to the donor partners below:

Ace Hotel
Aga Khan Museum
Aloette
Aloft Vaughan Mills
Amsterdam Brewhouse
Art Gallery of Ontario
Bata Shoe Museum
Bennington Limo
Casa Loma
Centreville Amusement Park
Chelsea Hotel
City Sightseeing
City of Toronto Historical Museums
CN Tower
Courtyard by Marriott Downtown
Delta Toronto
Distillery Restaurants Corp.
Dufflet Bakery
E11even
Fairmont Royal York Hotel
The Fortunate Fox
Gardiner Museum
Go Tours Canada
Hilton Toronto
Hilton Toronto Airport Hotel
Holiday Inn Downtown Toronto Centre
Holiday Inn Express Downtown Toronto
Hotel X Toronto
Hyatt Regency Hotel
InterContinental Toronto Centre
Ki Modern Japanese & Bar
Kimpton Saint George
Koerner Hall/the Royal Conservatory of Music
Liberty Entertainment Group
Little Canada
Luxury Coach
Meridian Hall
MCI Group
MRG Hospitality
OEB Breakfast Co.
Old Spaghetti Factory
Oliver and Bonacini
The Omni King Edward Hotel
One King West
Ontario Science Centre
PAI
Paramount Middle Eastern Kitchen
Park Hyatt Toronto
Queen Mother Cafe
Quinn’s Steakhouse
Real Sports
Reptilia Zoo Vaughan
Royal Ontario Museum
Service Inspired Restaurants Corp.
Sheraton Centre Toronto Hotel
Sheraton Toronto Airport Hotel
The Shore Club
Soulpepper Theatre
Steam Whistle Brewery
TK Events
Toronto Airport Marriott Hotel
Toronto Bus Company Ltd.
Toronto Island Stand Up Paddleboard
Toronto Marriott City Centre
Toronto Marriott Markham
Toronto Zoo
The Westin Harbour Castle
Yorkdale Shopping Centre
Yorkville Royal Sonesta Hotel
Young People’s Theatre