Issue:
July
2010

By Melanie Votaw
Photos courtesy of Fairmont Hotels & Resorts
 

The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver
900 West Georgia Street
Vancouver, British Columbia
Canada V6C2W6
http://www.fairmont.com/HotelVancouver/

When you step into The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver, you can pretend that you’ve taken a ride in a time machine. Fairmont is famous for restoring historical properties, and its centrally located hotel in Vancouver doesn’t disappoint in that regard. Don’t get this hotel confused with Fairmont’s other two hotels in Vancouver, however, which are located on the waterfront and at the airport.

The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver is right in the middle of everything, which makes it a bit noisy for some, but the convenience of the location can’t be beat. Just a block away is Robson Street, one of the liveliest shopping and dining areas in the city. The hotel is also right next door to the Vancouver Art Gallery and just eight blocks from the historic Gastown district.

You can leave all of that behind, however, when you walk inside the lobby, featuring chateau-style architecture. The design is opulent without resorting to “over-the-top.” I love marble floors and crystal chandeliers, but some hotels really do take it to the point of overkill. The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver, on the other hand, is very tasteful. This is true of the lobby, the restaurants, and the rooms.

The hotel first opened in 1939, and King George VI and Queen Elizabeth stayed there shortly thereafter. Building was begun in 1928 by the Canadian National Railway, but the Great Depression got in the way, causing a five-year hiatus from construction. When the Canadian Pacific Railway joined in, the building was finally completed 11 years after it was started. To give you an idea of the inflation of costs over the years, the original construction cost a total of $12 million, while the restoration performed in the 1990s cost $70 million.

It’s a large property with 556 rooms, which feature gold-framed mirrors and reproduction antique furniture. I had a 500-square foot deluxe room, which wasn’t exceptionally large but still bigger than many non-suite rooms I’ve seen. The best word I can use to describe the décor is elegant, and I found the room to be exceptionally comfortable. There was a tub with shower, and it included all of the usual amenities, such as a robe, blow dryer, iron and ironing board, coffee maker, bottles of water, a clock radio, wide flatscreen TV, minibar, and daily newspaper delivery. Wireless internet access is available, but you do have to pay extra for it.

There are several different sizes of rooms and suites, and there is the famed Fairmont Gold floor with its own lounge and breakfast. The average cost is about $300CAD per night.

The hotel also has a health club, business center, ballroom, meeting rooms, spa, and luxury shops on premises, including Louis Vuitton and Gucci. The Absolute Spa specializes in the latest craze of calorie-free chocolate for the skin rather than the tummy. The Hot Chocolate & Whipped Cream treatment consists of a chocolate body scrub and dark chocolate body wrap, followed by a chocolate whipped cream massage. They even offer raspberry chocolate manicures and pedicures.

The health club is complimentary for guests and has a 50-foot pool, a whirlpool, children’s wading pool, saunas, and lots of exercise machines from cross-trainers to stairclimbers, bikes, and treadmills.

While I don’t currently need handicapped amenities myself, I really appreciate a hotel that takes the wheelchair-bound into account. The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver has 12 accessible rooms, toilet seat extensions, bed pans, crutches, heating pads, and ice packs. (Well, I could sometimes use the heating pads and ice packs, especially after a trip to the health club.) For the hearing-impaired, the hotel has TDD on-site, a fire alarm lamp, and close-captioning on the televisions.

Griffins, the hotel’s restaurant, is a classic bistro with buffet dinners. The 900 West Lounge features live jazz and creative martini recipes. At 2:00, there’s a traditional afternoon tea at Tea at the Castle in the 900 West Lounge. Fairmont has its own brand of blended teas, and there are scones, pastries, finger sandwiches, and Devonshire cream. They even cater to kids with a Bubblegum Tea, chocolate chip cookies, and peanut butter & jelly finger sandwiches.

I spent two nights at the hotel, and while I didn’t get the chance to experience all it has to offer, it was a delightfully uneventful stay. By this, I mean that my room was well taken care of every day, and every member of the staff showed me the utmost courtesy from my time at check-in to the transfer of my bags from my room for departure. I want a hotel to serve me well and simply take care of my needs. I want a comfortable bed, a beautiful room, great service, and the amenities that will help me to make the most of my time. I want a hotel that blends comfort with luxury (because they don’t always go hand in hand.) That is exactly what I got at The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver.

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