OT - Help me pick a downtown TO hotel

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Hey everyone,

We will be heading to Toronto in early January to celebrate our son's birthday. We're taking in a Raptors game on the 10th at the ACC, then a Leafs game on the 12th (also at the ACC).

We're looking for a good downtown Toronto hotel for our 3-night stay. Wondering if any of you have recommendations you'd be willing to share.

Ideally, it would be within walking distance of the ACC (but I'm directionally challenged....are there any hotels that close by? ).

MUST have a pool and hot tub.

We want something really comfy but that won't break the bank.

3 that have made our short list are the Grand (on Jarvis), the Residence Inn (on Wellington), and the Hilton Garden Inn (on Peter). The Novotel was also on the short list but has no availability for our dates . If you had to choose between these 3, which would it be?

Thanks for your input!

 

[greenclan67]

We stayed at the Sheraton Toronto Centre in Downtown Toronto. I don't know as far as walking distance, it was close to the Rogers Centre. If you stay on the 34th floor "club level"or higher your breakfast is included and it is awesome. I actually booked it through Hotwire at $66/night. They have an amazing indoor/outdoor pool with hot tub. The pool outdoors is joined with a sliding wall that comes down, but they keep it heated all winter long, so you can actually be swimming outside in January! I went on Hotwire, then to betterbidding.com to make sure what hotel i was getting, Sheraton comes up very often. The further ahead you book, the better the price you will get!
Good luck.

 

[crashbb]

I would walk to both the Garden Inn and the Residence Inn. The Grand is definitely not with "walking distance".

The Fairmont Royal York is probably the closest hotel (very pricey though, and I have no idea if they have a pool or hot tub). The Garden Inn is very new (so it should be in good shape) and I've heard good things about the Residence Inn, but I've never stayed in either.

I'd be tempted to go with the Residence Inn, simply because the rooms come with kitchens and, given that you are there for three days, it might be nice to be able to make snacks etc. Usually the Residence Inns have free breakfasts (well breakfasts included in the price) as well.

 

[ccudmore]

Highly recommend the Delta Chelsea for family trips. They have an indoor pool with water slide, children's play area, teen hang-out room and if they're available, special family suites that are larger and have lots of extras for the kids. It's a block to the College subway station which is just a few stops to the ACC (my kids think the subway ride is an adventure on its own).

 

[Northstar]

I don't know about the other hotels you've mentioned, but my family stayed at the Residence Inn on Wellington last summer and we were very happy.

The breakfast buffet was good, plentiful and well staffed. The rooms were clean and comfortable, and we made extensive use of our kitchenette. There are a couple of small grocery stores (downtown grocery stores... the kind that are in the basements of larger office/other use buildings and usually have a great deli and takeout section) nearby. Also, though we didn't make use of this service here, Residence Inns normally will shop for you and deliver groceries to your room.

There's a small pool and hottub next to the fitness room. The pool's not really much compared with a real family-style pool with slides and all, but it was great for a short dip after dinner.

 

[Rubbertops]

The Fairmont Royal York is probably the closest hotel (very pricey though, and I have no idea if they have a pool or hot tub).

Yes they do have a pool and hot tub. Very nice!
Look for CAA discounts, or they sometimes appear on Travelzoo.
I would suggest Public Parking (valet parking at the hotel is very expensive)

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Thanks for the input so far everyone. I am terrible at making decisions!!

All I know is....I will never complain about Great Wolf Lodge's rates ever again. We paid $284 per night in the summer, which included our room, waterpark passes, parking (free), all our meals (for 4 of us...DS's best friend also came along), mini golf and arcade tokens. That rate is cheap, cheap, cheap in comparison with downtown Toronto!!!

Here's hoping for some great Travelzoo discounts!

 

[snickerboo]

I don't presonally know the 3 hotels you've named. Sheraton Center had an Ontario residents special (are you in Ontario?) last year. You can walk the underground path directly from the Sheraton to, at least, Union Station (not sure if it goes all the way to ACC, we don't live there anymore), but from Union, ACC is close. Toronto also has very good public transportation (street cars, subway and buses) to get to the ACC. And the Sheraton Center is directly accross from Nathan Phillips Square, and just down the street from The Eaton Center.

Just a note: we stayed at the Holiday Inn Downtown for a wedding a few years ago and weren't impressed, and it has only an outdoor rooftop pool. Skip that one.

 

[encinc]

We stayed at the Residence Inn Downtown in August, and we loved it! It is walkable to the ACC, although it is a long walk for young kids. We really like having the separate bedroom, and the kitchen saved us a ton on restaurant meals. The staff were friendly. The pool is adequate. No complaints whatsover. I think it's a much better bang for your buck than most of the other downtown hotels all things considered.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

We stayed at the Residence Inn Downtown in August, and we loved it! It is walkable to the ACC, although it is a long walk for young kids. We really like having the separate bedroom, and the kitchen saved us a ton on restaurant meals. The staff were friendly. The pool is adequate. No complaints whatsover. I think it's a much better bang for your buck than most of the other downtown hotels all things considered.

The full kitchen is a definite plus. Sure swaying us towards the Residence Inn.

What was the breakfast buffet like? Mostly continental offerings (toast, bagels, etc), or were there hot items as well?

My son will be 14, so he's more than capable of a longer walk.....my biggest concern is will we freeze to death before we get there, assuming its a normal January in Toronto?

 

[encinc]

The breakfast buffet was one of the better ones we've had. Good selection of the usuals plus some hot offerings. One day was bacon and eggs, another day was sausage and pancakes. I don't think there were more than 3 hot offerings on any one day, but they rotated them so we weren't eating the same thing every morning.

As for the walk,it will be cold, no doubt. You could do part of the walk indoors, taking the Skywalk between Rogers Centre/CN Tower and Union Station. It takes you a bit out of your way, but might be worth it if it's really cold outside.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

As for the walk,it will be cold, no doubt. You could do part of the walk indoors, taking the Skywalk between Rogers Centre/CN Tower and Union Station. It takes you a bit out of your way, but might be worth it if it's really cold outside.

GREAT idea!!! Thanks for the tip!

You wouldn't happen to remember if the hotel had a waffle-maker as part of their breakfast each day, would you? DS is a waffle lover.

 

[encinc]

You wouldn't happen to remember if the hotel had a waffle-maker as part of their breakfast each day, would you? DS is a waffle lover.

There wasn't a waffle maker, but DS just reminded me that there were waffles on the buffet some mornings. When there weren't waffles, there were either pancakes or French Toast.

 

[Louiepipbgeeco]

We usually stay at Sheraton Centre Toronto. Highly recommend. Nice indoor/outdoor pool and a hottub.
But, my fave. feature--On the underground PATH . Nothing better than walking indoors in cold weather. Close to many attractions. Easy access to subway stations.
Delta Chelsea is also nice for families. Has a waterslide.

 

[DearDaisyinDurham]

We usually stay at Sheraton Centre Toronto. Highly recommend. Nice indoor/outdoor pool and a hottub.
But, my fave. feature--On the underground PATH . Nothing better than walking indoors in cold weather. Close to many attractions. Easy access to subway stations.
Delta Chelsea is also nice for families. Has a waterslide.

We've had 3 great experiences at the Sheraton Centre, two ok experiences at Delta Chelsea, one not good experience at the Residence Inn (and was looking forward to that, so disappointed) but don't know anything about the Grand or Novotel.

ITA w/ Louie's post. The pool is very fun & you have to love the PATH!

Whatever you try, please come back & let us know how it worked out!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Thanks, everyone, for all your input.

Both DH & I read all your comments, we did some research on Tripadvisor and on the hotel websites, and we've made reservations at the Residence Inn. In the end, it was the BIG room (450 square feet) and full kitchen, along with the location, that swayed us. Hopefully we won't be disappointed!

We got an "okay" rate....$209 per night which includes a buffet breakfast for each of us each morning (worth a LOT...you should see my boys EAT ), valet parking each day with in & out priviledges (a $35 value), a $25 Petro Canada gas card for each night of our stay, and accomodations in a room with a king bed, pull-out sofa, and that wonderful full kitchen . Plus hopefully the weather will co-operate and we'll be able to walk back and forth to the ACC, saving us some taxi fare or parking fees (depending on if we choose to cab it over, or take our own car). We can cancel or change our reservation up to the day of arrival, leaving us flexibility if a better deal comes up between now and then.

I will be watching Travelzoo like a hawk , just in case!

Again......thank you all for sharing your comments and experiences!