Quebec City and Montreal luxury options
 

Hey everyone, we are taking our mothers to Montreal and Quebec City next May. I was hoping for feedback regarding everyone's preference for luxury hotels in the two cities--and the reasons since everyone has different priorities. Location is important but not critical. Service and flair are important. We are leaning towards the W in Montreal since I'm SPG Plat and likely to get upgraded, and towards the Auberge Saint-Antoine or Le Germaine-Dominion since the Fairmont Frontenac seems dated. Having good air con is essential for me, too--even though it may not usually be warm at that time, I am super sensitive to this. Thoughts?

I'm also interested in this...we're looking at Montreal next May as well, but we're SPG anything, so not constrained to the W. It seems like the Ritz Carlton is the best game in town, but is there something else I'm missing?

Some ideas for other than the Ritz can be found here:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/luxur...-visitors.html

While I have been to both cities a number of times , think we ' ve only stayed in a hotel once many years ago .
Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth, in Montréal - it was needing refurbishment back then , 6 years or so ago , but conveniently located for us & service was decent / helpful for our cruise party .
In Quebec City , we just had to stay at Fairmont Le Château Frontenac - like 20 years ago when it was still good .
We had fabulous views of the St Lawrence , etc .
Now , the public areas are likely swarming with even more gawkers though .
Perhaps some FTers have been / stayed more recently ?
As other posters will suggest or have indicated , there are real luxury options now ;)

I'm a native (ex-pat) Montrealer and would suggest the only place to stay is the St. James. In QC, I love the Fairmont. There are more upscale boutique options like the St-Antoine (Panache is a great restaurant btw!) but I love the Fairmont for it's history. Great bar too (Le St Laurent). It feels like you're staying in a castle and the location is ideal. I prefer historic properties to modern luxury properties though. Only suggestion is to book a suite on the Gold Floors. It's a huge step up at this property in all respects. I haven't been in several years (since moving to California) but it used to be a nearly annual trip for me. QC is beautiful, especially in winter. Be sure to make a reservation at Le Patriarche. L'Echaude is a great bistro too. Le Lapin Sautee for brunch/lunch. There are tons of great patisseries and boulangeries all within walking distance like Au Palet d'Or, Paillard, Le Pain Gruel, J.A. Moison Epicerie, Choco-Musee Chocolatier, etc. Also, highly recommend taking one of the caleches outside the Fairmont to Loews le Concorde just outside of the old city walls one evening at dusk and taking the elevator all the way up to the rotating bar. Have a few glasses of wine or champagne and admire the view; after a few drinks you'll forget the room's moving and as you gaze out over the old city and views of the Saint Laurence River spinning around, you'll feel like you had ordered twice as many glasses! :) Be sure to call a cab afterwards back to the old city for dinner. Whenever I'd visit, I would just stick within the old ramparts and cobble stone streets the entire time as it truly feels like a fairytale town.

Saint Antoine is part museum part hotel, so to describe it as "modern luxury" is basically false.

Ritz Carlton Montreal has the best hotel rooms... except at the top suite level where the edge goes to St James. Ritz F&B is excellent and frequented by locals. Not too stuffy. Location is very different between the two. The various boutique options discussed in the thread jerry.a.laska linked are also worth a look.

ABG, How is it part museum?

They have a tiny gallery in the lobby displaying old artifacts from what I recall, but it's not part museum. It's near the museum of civilization (?) I think. The lobby gallery is really more show than substance. It's part of the modern design of the building. Anyhow, I've never stayed there and never had any desire to because The Fairmont is the best in town as far as I'm concerned.

The Fairmont Frontenac generally gets better reviews than the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth; the latter property probably wouldn't be my first choice.

If you do decide to stay at either Fairmont property, I'd stronly recommend considering booking a room/suite on the Gold floor: service is excellent and the room/suites generally are in better condition (and have more amenities) than on the regular floors.

Montreal - avoid the Fairmont at all costs. If you are chained to Starwood, then W is pretty much representative of the other properties in that chain, for better or for worse. St. James and Ritz are probably the top choices at the high end. Of the two, I might give the tip to the Ritz, because I do think the food and beverage is superior.

Quebec - I remain skeptical of all the boutique properties there, but at least the Frontenac is unique if occasionally faded.

Can't go wrong with the St. James....

Have you been?

Yes.

Thought the Jr. Suite was beautiful.

The Deluxe Room w/ King was nice, not Jr. Suite nice, but a good room nonetheless.

The Deluxe (queen) was a little dated for my taste. Felt old fashioned. Reminded me of Blantyre (R&C property in Mass.). My wife liked it, though, and so did the other couple in our party.

Which is why I said "can't go wrong" - being that I've had three different rooms and above average experiences in all 3.

The Frontenac is a beautiful building in a stunning location, but don't expect true luxury. My biggest objection is that it can be filled with tour groups, although there's a separate side entrance for groups arriving by bus so that they don't line up in the main lobby.

each room has an historical artifact on display plus there are 6 suites built within and in the style of the original 18th century buildings..... parts of the building even date beyond that (the area where panache is i believe). The so called "show museum" actually has 100 hundreds of items that were found during the renovations that are cycled in and out of display. There is an actual sense of place to this hotel, unlike the Fairmont whose sense of place was killed by the pension fund owners years ago in a race to the tour bus bottom.

Ah but you can.... since every room is basically different and decorated by the owner's ex-wife the style changes from room to room and isn't ever much in line with today trends in hospitality decor. Which is why the Ritz gets the edge at on accommodations with their beautiful rooms and rooftop pool. However, the top 2 suites at St James are stunning with great outdoor space