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| - Traveling with kids for a very long weekend trip to Montreal, some pros and cons:
- the little suites were perfect, insofar as we crammed our party into one room, we were able to all sleep pretty comfortably using the sofa bed in the living room as the extra. The double beds were just a bit too small for adults but oddly enough the sofa bed in the main room was full queen size, albeit with a thin mattress. There are balconies, although with an odd step up, and no furniture on them or furniture in the suite which can be schlepped out to the balcony. The kitchenettes are adequate and include a mini-dishwasher.
- excellent self-serve although fairly standard-style breakfast bar wiith hovering service (we felt obliged to tip but you ought not), some items you can sneak to go without any disapproval (the fruit and yogurts were a godsend).
- friendly and attentive staff.
- the pool is small and almost too artful (with sharper edges for style that are not kid-friendly) but has a stunning view of the city from the top level penthouse. (Although the people who went back to their rooms in their suits, dripping on the elevators, were not appreciated, I can't blame them as the changing space near the pool area is quite limited and not advertised as such). The small fitness room has five or six pieces of equipment but also has a stunning view, fwiw.
- parking available on-site with unlimited in and out (although see also: cons).
- location, location, location! This is a fairly quiet little residential side area of Westmount, but only a block and a half from the Atwater metro stop, so it's very easy to get around from here. There's also a gajillion dining options within a few blocks' walk, including several small grocery stores.
Cons:
- unusable TV system, that requires one go back to a main menu for every change of the channel (no surfing) and which does not have an adequate program guide and only a few channels for kids. If you need to get the kids out of your hair for sanity when sharing a small suite and need to rely on an electronic baby sitter, it just doesn't work. They can easily upgrade this and they should.
- housekeeping was a bit indifferent. It wasn't dirty, but they didn't replace towels one day when we put them in the "please replace" pile, got two bottles of lotion and no shampoo another day, and they didn't get the rugs vacuumed. We also didn't have enough bed covers and had to request them (although the front desk was right on the case).
- parking garage, as noted in other reviews, is very old school and difficult to get in and out of. We just left the vehicle there, though.
- price, in season, was a little on the high side (with taxes and parking and everything, close to C$300 a night), but to be sure we inadvertently found ourselves in the middle of multiple events, including the Women's World Cup, so it's to be expected. It was reasonable given the breakfast and convenience, as we saved some $ on food and transportation.
- because it's an old converted high rise, it was missing amenities like room service, a restaurant, a large lounge area (the breakfast area was built instead) and a true concierge. There is a mini-store for late night munchies right next to the desk, in the modern fashion, and you can charge the items to your room.
- the elevators are a disaster; two small elevators which seem to double as service elevators made for very slow and uncomfortable going up and down. This was particularly awkward with kids.
Bottom line: a decent option for traveling with kids, if you can afford it, and if the business traveler can stand the kids hanging around, a good business suite option for a longer stay.
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