Novotel, North York Toronto - The French Know Best!....Or Do They?
Written: Sep 30 '02 (Updated Oct 01 '02)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: clean, friendly, buffet (for the most part), price, package
Cons: small beds, television, view from room, small mall
The Bottom Line: A good hotel with exceptional prices!
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| jetbluefan1's Full Review: Novotel Toronto North York |
Novotel, is a hotel chain, that was started in France. Now, it has expanded to various countries such as Canada. All the hotels have the same decor, and the same amount of quality. All the rooms have the same furniture, and are the same size (unless you have a suite).
I stayed at the Novotel Hotel, located in Toronto, Canada. Actually, the hotel was located in North York, which is a town just a bit north of Toronto. It is actually a 30 minute drive to Wonderland, and a 20 minute drive to downtown Toronto. Also, a 20 minute drive to Harbourfront Centre, and the CN Tower. It is a ways down Yonge Street, which is a traffic-congested street filled with cars, stores, and pedestrians. As a matter of fact, Yonge is the longest street in the world!
Price -
We actually found a very good price, at $290 Canadian. This included the stay for one night, four tickets to Wonderland (which is a dirty amusement park in Toronto), and a free breakfast buffet. $290 Canadian, is about $193 American. A pretty good deal!
Parking -
The parking garage is underground, and is free to park in (if you are staying at the hotel). It was very large, and easy to find the exits, and entrances to the hotel. It was not crowded at all, and was very clean. There were circular stumps every three parking spaces, to support the hotel. Other underground parking garages, usually have larger stumps every two parking spaces, such as Days Inn Toronto. The garage is also very well lighted, and clean. There are many spots open, so there is no need to search for more than a minute.
Check-In -
Once we entered, we found ourselves in a small lobby, that was clean, and had several blue leather chairs. There was also an entrance to the Nicole Cafe, which was the cafe where we ate the following day. There is also a bar at the other side, which I do not go to. Therefore, I can not tell you about it. However, it did look very nice from the outside, and it is close to the entrance of the mall.
We saw a small counter with two Novotel agents, talking on the phone. One of the agents, started yelling at her boyfriend. Then she hung up, with her face all red. I was afraid to go to her to check-in, but she said "I can help you here". What was I supposed to do? Wait for the other agent? So I went to her section of the counter, and she was very friendly, and smiled. She was also very fast in giving us our keys, and in telling us information about the hotel and Toronto. Next to her was a board of attractions to visit in Toronto, and she explained each attraction in complete detail. She was dressed in a "Novotel Outfit", which includes a black suite, with a small scarf as the JetBlue women employees wear.
Elevators -
The elevator going from the parking garage, to the lobby was quite dirty. There was dust, and a part of the elevator, had a chipped piece. This shows low quality. However, the elevators going to the rooms, were a lot cleaner. Both of the elevators moved quite fast, and you never had to wait more than a minute.
Room -
The room was somewhat nice. They were very clean, and a bit more spacious than other hotel rooms (such at Days Inn). There were two full beds, which actually had somewhat hard mattresses. In the space between them, there was a small night table, with a bible, and the phone directory, located in the drawer below. Next to the bed closest to the window, was a round glass table, and a comfortable chair with two armrests. There was also a medium sized television with about 20 channels. Some of the channels were French. There weren't any American channels such as FOX, and ABC. Instead, there were many Canadian channels, that basically had nothing on. However a Brittney Spears concert was on one of the channels (about the worst thing on!). Next to the television, was a wooden desk with a chair in it. Next to the desk was a wooden dresser, with several drawers.
The bathroom was an average one. It was clean with one sink, and one toilet. There was also a tub, that had a shower piece. The curtain was white. There was not shampoo, but a bar of soap. By the sink, there were several bars of soap, and towels.
What To Do -
The hotel provides you with a large amount of activities to do. Instead of watching television, you can go to the exercise room located on the third floor. This exercise room was one of the smallest, with about five machines. Also on the third floor, was a small pool, with two locker rooms. Don't forget about the sauna! There was also a vending machine, but only for beverages.
If you feel like going shopping, at the bottom of the hotel is a small mall. In this mall, you will find shoe stores, clothing stores, a bank (HSBC), a salon, and a lotto place. I do not recall any restaurants. This is actually a very small mall, and is nothing compared to you everyday mall. However, you are bound to find something you like, at a decent price! There is only one clothing store, so don't expect a JCPenny, or Macy*s.
Nicole's Cafe -
We had free passes to the breakfast buffet. In the buffet, there was yogurt, bacon, scrambled eggs, hashbrowns, toast, waffles, and pancakes. You could not order from a menu, since there isn't one for breakfast. There was also a complimentary selection of drinks, such as coffee, and tea. The tables that you eat at are large, and the lighting is done by contemporary lights. You don't have to leave a tip, but if you desire, you can for the bus boys. The food was average. The waffles were little burnt, but they did come with syrup and butter. The pancakes were a little bit hard, and undercooked. The yougurt came in different flavors such as vanilla, strawberry, and raspberry.
Overall -
Novotel is not a bad place to stay. The rooms are good enough for me, and the breakfast buffet is nice. The price was very good, and the friendliness goes a long way. Parking was very organized. Therefore, I would recommend that you go to Novotel, but only if you get the same price I did!
My Toronto Review - http://www.epinions.com/content_76793089668
Recommended:
Yes
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