The super-stylish boutique hotels that have been popping up around Montreal in the last few years are among the city's toniest places to stay.
BY HUGO PARADIS
The year 2002 brought more new hotels to Montreal than any year since 1990. Offering 800-plus guestrooms, seven new properties opened for business, including several boutique hotels.
Boutique hotels, so-named because of their high-concept style, personalized service and relatively small size, are chic, comfortable, intimate, hip and distinctively designed. They respond to the high expectations of a special breed of road warriors craving the kind of comfort and services available in large-scale luxury hotels, but in warmer, more intimate surroundings.
The concept was introduced in Quebec by Christiane Germain, owner of the Germain des Prés and the Dominion 1912 in Quebec City as well as Le Germain hotels in Montreal and Toronto, and the trend shows no signs of slowing in Montreal. A look at the city's newest boutique hotels:
Hôtel Godin
Housed in an Art Nouveau building dating from 1914, the Godin, fashioned by Montreal architect Dan Hanganu and the New York-Toronto interior-design team of Yabu-Pushelberg, opened in the autumn of 2004 after three years of construction and an outlay of $30 million.
Billed as the "hotel of the year 2010," the establishment is boldly striking in architecture and décor. Its 136 rooms and suites are at once sleek and luminous; each features a TV with integrated computer, plus wireless Internet access.
Located at the corner of Saint-Laurent and Sherbrooke streets, Hôtel Godin has a bar with outdoor terrace, four conference rooms and a gym, all meant to attract business travellers. The property is owned by the firm Terra Incognita, which is in turn owned by renowned Montreal philanthropist Daniel Langlois.
W Montréal
The other newcomer to the Montreal boutique-hotel scene also opened its doors in the fall of 2004. The Starwood chain's W Montréal lies in the heart of the city's "Quartier International" district. A paean to modern design, the hotel has infused the classic Banque du Canada building with a whole new life.
The instant you walk in, the tone is set: there's a four-metre-high waterfall flowing down sculpted, illuminated glass, comfortable armchairs, an immense anthracite mirror flanked by a flamboyantly red check-in counter, and a grand staircase leading to a bar.
The rooms are equally amazing, with oversized furniture, huge windows overlooking Square Victoria, a large transparent shower stall, and vivid colours dominated by electric blue. The use of atypical materials like chrome, stone and fur also brings a unique twist to the décor of the 152 rooms, which include 22 "Urban" suites, six "Wow" suites and three "Extreme-Wow" suites.
An Italian fusion restaurant (the Otto), two bars (the Wunderbar and the Plateau), a spa (Away), a fitness centre (the Detox) and a business centre (Wired) round out the services at this establishment, destined to become one of Montreal's top hotels.
Hôtel Nelligan
Marielle C. Saint-Pierre, niece of the Quebec poet Émile Nelligan, attended the grand opening of the gorgeous Hôtel Nelligan, named in honour of her famous uncle. Housed in a pair of connecting buildings erected between 1830 and 1840, the Nelligan offers 35 rooms and 28 suites with fireplaces and Jacuzzis. Some rooms have a view of the St. Lawrence River and some overlook the hotel's soaring central atrium.
A vision of exposed brick walls and warm, amber-coloured woodwork, the impressive central court boasts a spectacular fountain and is topped with a skylight. Off to one side, the chic Verses restaurant excels at contemporary French cuisine, serving up regional products prepared with great flair and savoir-faire.
Hôtel Le Saint-Sulpice
Le Saint-Sulpice bills itself not just as a boutique hotel, but as an urban resort hotel ― a kind of condo-hotel, if you will. Located behind the Notre-Dame Basilica and opening onto the glorious Sulpician Seminary Gardens, the property has 108 spacious loft-style rooms and suites ranging in size from 59 to 160 square metres, with kitchenettes, work areas and enormous bathrooms.
Some suites have a fireplace, an exposed brick wall or a terrace offering panoramic vistas of Old Montreal. Roomier and better designed than a standard hotel room, they also feature living rooms and French doors between the sleeping areas in the two-bedroom suites.
At once timeless and casually chic, the lobby décor at the Saint-Sulpice is also a nod to history, for it was on this site in 1654 that the first home of Pierre Le Moyne and Jacques Le Ber, the two most famous fur traders in Ville-Marie (as Montreal was then known), was built. Now the building draws businesspeople ― in effect the contemporary counterparts to Le Moyne and Le Ber.
The "S Le Restaurant" on the ground floor of Le Saint-Sulpice is renowned for its creative menu.
Hôtel St-Paul
Housed in a 100-year-old building, Hôtel St-Paul offers 15 apartments with terraces, 120 rooms (including 24 suites) and countless enormous windows that flood the premises with natural light. Opened in 2001, the remarkable property has won a host of design awards and made it onto Condé Nast Traveler magazine's "Hot List" several times.
Clearly, no expense was spared on the design of the hotel, whose historic façade yields to a sleek 21st-century interior. The hotel floors alternate between two themes, earth and sky. The earth rooms seem solid and tactile in their colours, materials and furnishings, while the sky rooms focus on light and air. Throughout, natural elements and fine materials blend seamlessly.
The hotel restaurant, Cube, is one of the best in the city, while the hotel bar, Cru, is a favourite after-work watering hole among trendy Montrealers.
Hôtel Gault
Talk about a masterpiece of purity! Looking at the magnificent Beaux Arts-style exterior of the Hôtel Gault, you'd never guess that the 30 loft-style guestrooms and public spaces inside are ultra contemporary and minimalist.
The interior design by the Montreal firm YH2 is striking. Steel, wood, stucco and concrete are here reduced to their simplest expressions, while also conveying unspeakable chic. And with furniture carefully selected for its minimalist appeal, the whole place simply oozes class.
Widely acclaimed in the media (Wallpaper, the British and American editions of Condé Nast Traveler, The New York Times, Elle Décor, etc.), the Gault boasts enormous guestrooms with private terraces and ingenious moveable elements like sliding panels and dressing screens that can be shifted around to change the look of the room.
There is no restaurant on the ground floor, merely a big bar accessible to guests only. After all, one goal of boutique hotels is to provide customers with a sense of intimacy and exclusivity.
Hôtel Le St-James
Le St-James is a unique establishment that really falls into a category all its own ― it could more accurately be described as a "museum hotel" rather than a "boutique hotel." By far the most exclusive of Montreal's luxe lodgings, the St-James was conceived by a wealthy globetrotting couple who spent more than three years culling artworks from around the world that now adorn the property.
Compared to the style at the St-Paul, the Gault and the Godin, the St-James is ostentatious ― but this is luxurious, refined, utterly tasteful ostentation. From Italian marble to exquisite woodwork to washrooms worthy of the ritziest Turkish bath, each of the 28 guestrooms and 38 suites has a different design, but all are equally stunning. The penthouse apartment with terrace, which runs a tidy $5,000 a night, is the jewel in the crown that is the Hôtel Le St-James.
The epitome of elegance, Le St-James is the only hotel in Canada to have joined the listings of the Leading Small Hotels of the World, an international network of very exclusive properties.
source: Canadian Tourism Commision
This reproduction is not represented as an official version of the materials reproduced, nor has it been made in affiliation with or with the endorsement of the Canadian Tourism Commission.
Click here for more accommodations in Canada
Click here for more information on Quebec
BY HUGO PARADIS
The year 2002 brought more new hotels to Montreal than any year since 1990. Offering 800-plus guestrooms, seven new properties opened for business, including several boutique hotels.
Boutique hotels, so-named because of their high-concept style, personalized service and relatively small size, are chic, comfortable, intimate, hip and distinctively designed. They respond to the high expectations of a special breed of road warriors craving the kind of comfort and services available in large-scale luxury hotels, but in warmer, more intimate surroundings.
The concept was introduced in Quebec by Christiane Germain, owner of the Germain des Prés and the Dominion 1912 in Quebec City as well as Le Germain hotels in Montreal and Toronto, and the trend shows no signs of slowing in Montreal. A look at the city's newest boutique hotels:
Hôtel Godin
Housed in an Art Nouveau building dating from 1914, the Godin, fashioned by Montreal architect Dan Hanganu and the New York-Toronto interior-design team of Yabu-Pushelberg, opened in the autumn of 2004 after three years of construction and an outlay of $30 million.
Billed as the "hotel of the year 2010," the establishment is boldly striking in architecture and décor. Its 136 rooms and suites are at once sleek and luminous; each features a TV with integrated computer, plus wireless Internet access.
Located at the corner of Saint-Laurent and Sherbrooke streets, Hôtel Godin has a bar with outdoor terrace, four conference rooms and a gym, all meant to attract business travellers. The property is owned by the firm Terra Incognita, which is in turn owned by renowned Montreal philanthropist Daniel Langlois.
W Montréal
The other newcomer to the Montreal boutique-hotel scene also opened its doors in the fall of 2004. The Starwood chain's W Montréal lies in the heart of the city's "Quartier International" district. A paean to modern design, the hotel has infused the classic Banque du Canada building with a whole new life.
The instant you walk in, the tone is set: there's a four-metre-high waterfall flowing down sculpted, illuminated glass, comfortable armchairs, an immense anthracite mirror flanked by a flamboyantly red check-in counter, and a grand staircase leading to a bar.
The rooms are equally amazing, with oversized furniture, huge windows overlooking Square Victoria, a large transparent shower stall, and vivid colours dominated by electric blue. The use of atypical materials like chrome, stone and fur also brings a unique twist to the décor of the 152 rooms, which include 22 "Urban" suites, six "Wow" suites and three "Extreme-Wow" suites.
An Italian fusion restaurant (the Otto), two bars (the Wunderbar and the Plateau), a spa (Away), a fitness centre (the Detox) and a business centre (Wired) round out the services at this establishment, destined to become one of Montreal's top hotels.
Hôtel Nelligan
Marielle C. Saint-Pierre, niece of the Quebec poet Émile Nelligan, attended the grand opening of the gorgeous Hôtel Nelligan, named in honour of her famous uncle. Housed in a pair of connecting buildings erected between 1830 and 1840, the Nelligan offers 35 rooms and 28 suites with fireplaces and Jacuzzis. Some rooms have a view of the St. Lawrence River and some overlook the hotel's soaring central atrium.
A vision of exposed brick walls and warm, amber-coloured woodwork, the impressive central court boasts a spectacular fountain and is topped with a skylight. Off to one side, the chic Verses restaurant excels at contemporary French cuisine, serving up regional products prepared with great flair and savoir-faire.
Hôtel Le Saint-Sulpice
Le Saint-Sulpice bills itself not just as a boutique hotel, but as an urban resort hotel ― a kind of condo-hotel, if you will. Located behind the Notre-Dame Basilica and opening onto the glorious Sulpician Seminary Gardens, the property has 108 spacious loft-style rooms and suites ranging in size from 59 to 160 square metres, with kitchenettes, work areas and enormous bathrooms.
Some suites have a fireplace, an exposed brick wall or a terrace offering panoramic vistas of Old Montreal. Roomier and better designed than a standard hotel room, they also feature living rooms and French doors between the sleeping areas in the two-bedroom suites.
At once timeless and casually chic, the lobby décor at the Saint-Sulpice is also a nod to history, for it was on this site in 1654 that the first home of Pierre Le Moyne and Jacques Le Ber, the two most famous fur traders in Ville-Marie (as Montreal was then known), was built. Now the building draws businesspeople ― in effect the contemporary counterparts to Le Moyne and Le Ber.
The "S Le Restaurant" on the ground floor of Le Saint-Sulpice is renowned for its creative menu.
Hôtel St-Paul
Housed in a 100-year-old building, Hôtel St-Paul offers 15 apartments with terraces, 120 rooms (including 24 suites) and countless enormous windows that flood the premises with natural light. Opened in 2001, the remarkable property has won a host of design awards and made it onto Condé Nast Traveler magazine's "Hot List" several times.
Clearly, no expense was spared on the design of the hotel, whose historic façade yields to a sleek 21st-century interior. The hotel floors alternate between two themes, earth and sky. The earth rooms seem solid and tactile in their colours, materials and furnishings, while the sky rooms focus on light and air. Throughout, natural elements and fine materials blend seamlessly.
The hotel restaurant, Cube, is one of the best in the city, while the hotel bar, Cru, is a favourite after-work watering hole among trendy Montrealers.
Hôtel Gault
Talk about a masterpiece of purity! Looking at the magnificent Beaux Arts-style exterior of the Hôtel Gault, you'd never guess that the 30 loft-style guestrooms and public spaces inside are ultra contemporary and minimalist.
The interior design by the Montreal firm YH2 is striking. Steel, wood, stucco and concrete are here reduced to their simplest expressions, while also conveying unspeakable chic. And with furniture carefully selected for its minimalist appeal, the whole place simply oozes class.
Widely acclaimed in the media (Wallpaper, the British and American editions of Condé Nast Traveler, The New York Times, Elle Décor, etc.), the Gault boasts enormous guestrooms with private terraces and ingenious moveable elements like sliding panels and dressing screens that can be shifted around to change the look of the room.
There is no restaurant on the ground floor, merely a big bar accessible to guests only. After all, one goal of boutique hotels is to provide customers with a sense of intimacy and exclusivity.
Hôtel Le St-James
Le St-James is a unique establishment that really falls into a category all its own ― it could more accurately be described as a "museum hotel" rather than a "boutique hotel." By far the most exclusive of Montreal's luxe lodgings, the St-James was conceived by a wealthy globetrotting couple who spent more than three years culling artworks from around the world that now adorn the property.
Compared to the style at the St-Paul, the Gault and the Godin, the St-James is ostentatious ― but this is luxurious, refined, utterly tasteful ostentation. From Italian marble to exquisite woodwork to washrooms worthy of the ritziest Turkish bath, each of the 28 guestrooms and 38 suites has a different design, but all are equally stunning. The penthouse apartment with terrace, which runs a tidy $5,000 a night, is the jewel in the crown that is the Hôtel Le St-James.
The epitome of elegance, Le St-James is the only hotel in Canada to have joined the listings of the Leading Small Hotels of the World, an international network of very exclusive properties.
source: Canadian Tourism Commision
This reproduction is not represented as an official version of the materials reproduced, nor has it been made in affiliation with or with the endorsement of the Canadian Tourism Commission.
Click here for more accommodations in Canada
Click here for more information on Quebec
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