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| - The Nuvo Hotel & Suites is not your typical hotel experience. And I mean that in every positive way possible.
The hotel is located right in downtown Calgary, within walking distance from all the amenities we needed (truth be told, that included the shopping market and a liquor store, but I'm sure your mileage will vary). It earns its designation as a Boutique Hotel from its unique design. The hotel was originally an apartment (condo?) building and converted to nightly suites. What does this mean? It means that each suite is laid out as NOT-hotel-eque as you can get; specifically: they have a full (and pots, pans, dishes & cutlery stocked-) kitchen, in-suite laundry washer/dryer, dishwasher and beautiful open design.
I could go on and on about how amazing the room looked (and how wonderful the in-floor heating felt), but I just cannot get over the in-suite kitchen. I had no idea how much of a difference that makes when staying somewhere; a huge chunk of the cost of travelling is having to eat out for every single meal. At the Nuvo, you have a Safeway right across the street and the freedom to cook whatever you want to eat right in your own room.
The bed's were amazing, each room has its own little balcony (not much of a view...but nice enough to sit on and enjoy the sounds of downtown & fresh air) and we have spent a considerable amount of time hunting for whatever pillows they use there - they're that comfortable.
All of this, and their prices are still affordable. They cost more than a typical Super 8, but it's worth it for the décor alone. We managed to get a good deal, and combined with taking advantage of the kitchen, what you save in eating out could easily put them at the same price as any generic hotel chain.
The only trouble we had was checking in after hours - we were given the wrong door code. We managed to get a hold of someone who gave us the right code; and we were good to go from there. So if you are checking in after-hours, double check you have both the outer door code AND your room door code.
That hiccup aside, the Nuvo is still the only hotel I'll stay at in Calgary.
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