My absolute favorite hockey tournament of all takes place in St. Stephen, New Brunswick, Canada. It certainly helps that we returned this year as the reigning champions from this tournament last year – but that’s more important to the kids. The Rob Gullison Memorial Hockey tournament takes place right before Christmas and the entire towns of St. Stephen and St. Andrews (where we stayed at the Algonquin) are alive with Christmas and hygge vibes. (If you want to know more about hygge, pronounced hoo-gah, head on over to this blog post). When we arrived at the Algonquin, we were greeted with Christmas magic all around. (The photos below are from 2023 and 2024). If you’re a fan of Hallmark Christmas movies (even if you’re not)- you will LOVE the Algonquin. Upon entering, I immediately felt like I was in a Hallmark movie – warm lights everywhere, and every nook and cranny meticulously decorated.
I can honestly say, that I wasn’t feeling overly Christmasy until arriving here. I know I’m not alone when I say that the craziness of life sometimes gets in the way of stopping and truly enjoying the season. One thing I love about tournaments is that I’m in the moment with my kids. We are allowed to put life on hold for a weekend and enjoy our friends (who are really our family because we are together so much). There’s no laundry or dishes or cleaning and errands – just hockey and fun.
Arriving in St. Stephen, about 20 minutes from the hotel, for game one was a warm welcome (except it was freezing outside!) The banks of the St. Croix River had been transformed into a winter wonderland. The best view of this display was at night. Since my son insists on being at the rink a full hour before the game, what else could I do but walk around and photograph the beauty just outside the rink. After our first game, many of us chose to go to Five Kings Restaurant & Picaroons Brewhouse which operates in a renovated train station. The food and beer were delicious!
Back in the town of St. Andrews, I found myself marveling in the beauty of the quaint downtown area. The main street is adorned with shops, bakeries, and restaurants. The kids and I took our time enjoying what downtown St. Andrews had to offer. One of the cutest bakeries I’ve ever seen was HoneyBeans. Upon entering, the smell of cappuccinos, lattes, and fresh baked goodies filled the air. The lattes were artfully created and delicious! Did I get a picture, no…I was too busy drinking it and forgot (smh!) After breakfast, we wandered into the shops that lined the street, and took our time shopping. We found art shops, a candy shop, and souvenir shops. We even stumbled upon a little town square that was about to be the host to Christmas activities later that day. How cute is that lobster trap Christmas tree!?
If there is one word to sum up the coolest part about downtown St. Andrews it is gingerbread houses! (I know that’s two words, but you get what I mean.) I learned that there was a gingerbread house competition between the shops and restaurants. While shopping, one of the shop employees explained that shoppers were the voters. She gave me a paper with all of the businesses that had gingerbread houses displayed in their windows. Below are a few that I snapped pictures of. I’m going to be honest, I have no patience to build a simple gingerbread house – the roof slips off, the icing comes out in blobs – these impress me!
As we wrapped up our shopping and headed back to the hotel, I spotted something out of the corner of my eye – a library bar! What is a library bar you ask? I had no idea, but I needed to find out! I may have been a bit obsessed and may have forced people to go with me who were enjoying some peace and quiet back in their hotel room. (Sorry Britney😅) As it turns out, it is an Inn where people can book a room to stay overnight, or a cozy spot to have a beverage after a long day of exploring and shopping. As we walked in we discovered two different rooms that we could choose to sit in. We chose a room with no other guests and took our places on sofas and comfy chairs. We had our own fireplace and Christmas tree to enjoy while we quietly talked about life. (Our kids were back at the hotel – don’t worry, they were being supervised by other parents/grandparents). The bar area had a beautiful display of books and spirits. Did we read? No. No, we did not.
This weekend away was just what my soul needed. I left St. Andrews full of Christmas spirit and happiness. It felt like we had been in another world for just a few short days. Away from the hustle and bustle of life, I reconnected with amazing friends, and also with my kids. We enjoyed hockey, food, beverages, and each other. I was inspired to come home and finish putting up our Christmas decorations. Fun fact: I’m still enjoying them!