RichardInSF

I'll be in Ottawa for a few nights and have booked into the Chateau Laurier, where I once stayed (in a suite) some years back. I remember from way back then that the hotel was a classic old luxury hotel which was OK but had seen better days. However, I have heard it was recently renovated.

Is that where I should stay? If so, which type of accomodation is recommended? If not there, where?

Thanks!

Retired FF

The Chateau Laurier has been renovated and it is a very nice hotel, perfectly located for great restaurants, beautiful views of the canal and also shopping if that is of interest to you at the nearby Rideau Center. There is a Westin also right across from the Chateau which is also nice but a newer hotel so does not have the same character of the Chateau.
Feel free to PM me if you have any local questions about Ottawa as it has been my home for the past 30 + years. When are you coming?

RichardInSF

I'm arriving late on Nov 10 and leaving Nov 12 -- working all day Nov 11, so not much time for other stuff. Still, I hate lousy hotel rooms even for short trips!

Retired FF

November 11th is 'remembrance day' and is a Government holiday in Canada, so there should be lots of space availability at hotels which are frequented by Government related travels. So as you long as you have status with Fairmont, you should be able to secure a good room. The same for the Westin. Enjoy your visit to Ottawa.

krug

I stayed in Ottawa in July for three nights and greatly enjoyed my stay at www.arcthehotel.com which is more of a boutique property, but perfect if you get a large room or a suite.

Just another option to consider if you prefer a more funky, modern experience. The staff on the front desk could not do enough to help, and touches like being checked in while being offered a complimentary glass of champagne and luxury chocolates made me leave with a very good impresion of this place.

It's about three minutes walk from the Chateau Laurier.

RichardInSF

I went ahead and booked Chateau Laurier and since I have no status at all with Fairmont (my Fairmont card has a 1999 expiration date, so I really don't stay at this chain very often!), paid for a room on the club floor. Will report back after the trip.

wrangler

RichardinSF,

You can enroll for free in the Fairmont President's Club and you will be given the basic "Club-level" membership, however, this will entitle you to a room upgrade from your current room. This is only valid on the first stay after enrollment so you would be able to take advantage of this benefit for your upcoming stay.

President's Club Links:

http://www.fairmont.com/FA/en/CDA/Ho...253DFA,00.html

shuuy

All Fairmont hotels that I've stayed in are top notch*

(Laurier, Banff Springs, Lake Louise, Palliser, Hotel MacDonald, and the Plaza, in 1982).

Apparently, the only poorly reviewed Fairmont that I've seen in the Plaza, simply because it is quite run down.

RichardInSF

Not exactly sure what is meant by "top notch," but checking in with a club floor booking at 11pm the desk clerk was amazingly unhelpful. She had me sign up for the President's Club (after telling me my 1999 card was invalid) to save CD$5 a night on internet access and certainly did not offer any upgrades.

Then I got to the Club floor to learn that internet access was included in the price on this floor.

The very nice Club floor hostess (a pleasant change from the desk clerk!) told me that renovations would start on this floor in two weeks, so I guess I get the last of the old -- but at least no hammering.

Rooms are decent sized but gloomy, in large part because the light bulbs are mostly "Motel 6"-style 8watt florescents. No in-room safes. Strange wedge-shaped closet, tiny bathrooms (it is an old hotel, after all). Looooong wait for hot water. Nice view of a tenement across the street.

Overall, I'd call the club floor roughly at the "upscale" level, not a luxury hotel. Must mean the regular rooms are not so special, but I won't have time to look on this trip.

YYZtraveler

I find the rooms at the Fairmont very tired, and the beds are horrible.

I would take The Westin anyday. It's a good hotel, in a great area, with awesome beds and showers. After all, I'm after a good nights sleep.

RichardInSF

Things have gone way downhill in my last 24 hours here. Unfortunately, I can't comment in detail since the in-room high-speed internet services reliably crashes more quickly than I can write a complete comment.

So in one phrase: I'll be trying somewhere else next time!

Edited because I am home now and my home ISP stays up...

The "Fairmont Gold/Or" concierge explained that their ISP told them there is a known bug between the Cisco DSLAMs they use and Windows XP. Guess it isn't important enough to fix since hardly anyone must use Windows XP....

I called the hotel operator to find out when the Club breakfast ended and asked them not to guess; they put me on hold, came back, and told me it was at 11am. I went at 10:05am to find them cleaning the breakfast away.

I asked to speak to the manager, so they put me on hold, and connected me to a front desk clerk, who put me on hold again. He was replaced by a "concierge" who told me that my call was important to her. I hung up at that point and eventually someone figured out to call back, so at least I got the 8w florescent bulbs replaced with real bulbs (3 three-way light bulbs, 2 of which only partially worked).

Need I go on? What good is a welcoming gift of a small stoppered bottle of maple syrup that clearly isn't safe to put into a suitcase in case it opens but can't be used for any purpose during your stay?

What kind of lounge evening reception charges a minimum of CD$10 for any alcoholic beverage (no beer or wine was present) and features only two or three sad trays of appetizers?

What kind of upscale hotel bathroom so small that there isn't room to fit a single towel rack?

Does any other hotel above Motel 6 still use aged 13" TVs in their rooms?

This hotel makes the Plaza look welcoming. I hope the Queen gets a better room if she next visits; as for me, I'll try the Westin.

Paul56

The Chateau in Ottawa is a very old hotel... and one stays
there not so much for luxury as the charm of another time.

allbrosca

Wow. Bad experience! I usually try to stay on the gold floor at Fairmonts because they usually keep those rooms updated. Not so at the Chateau Laurier it appears. I have stayed there twice in the last couple of years. First time, my room was like a closet with no view and definitely had not been updated. Second time I used a suite upgrade certificate and received a wholly satisfactory room. No complaints. I have also stayed at the Westin, Sheraton, Crowne Plaza and Marriott recently (my daughter went to school there for the last few years). Westin was the best of the bunch, but the valet had an accident with my car so not real keen on returning even though it was looked after satisfactorily. Not too much luxury in Ottawa it appears. I have heard good things about the Brook Street(??) but it is too far away in Kanata.

lin821

So is the 10-year-old thread you just bumped.

grumbler

It is a simply lousy hotel, unfortunately - even at the Club level. Westin is beat choice if you have to be in Ottawa but it is nothing special.