Prior to flying to Israel we had one night in Toronto. This is where my mom and I met up, since the EL AL fare was much cheaper originating in Toronto than originating in New York. Over the past couple of years I’ve reviewed a few hotels in Toronto, including the Hyatt Regency and the…
Continue reading: Review: The Adelaide Hotel Toronto (Former Trump Hotel, Future St. Regis)
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
Nice... thanks to Starwood, I can put it on the list of contenders when I visit Toronto because I wasn't crazy about the Park Hyatt either.
Whenever you say "it was much cheaper to fly out of Toronto" etc, do you factor in the cost of:
- Positioning flights for you and your mom
- Hotels
- Cabs/ubers to get to those positioning flights
- Restaurant food costs vs otherwise eating at home without the need to position
- Personal value of the time spent in positioning.
Was it cheaper after all that?
Does Trump still own the hotel? And if so will he no longer own it when it becomes a St. Regis? I just could never bring myself to stay somewhere owned by Trump
@N N
Lucky said in the introduction post that EWR-TLV was ~$4,500 while YTZ-EWR-TLV ~$1,840. That's a huge price difference. For us travel geeks positioning is fairly easy and cheap.
For Lucky, his work is to review hotels and airlines so adding reviews for each is actually useful and a business expense. Personally, I would prefer to not overnight when positioning like this, but if it was the only option I would certainly do it for the overall cost savings.
@Sott , I don't know the situation in this hotel, but Trump rarely own things with his name on it. Sometimes he develop it, sometimes he manage it, but much more often he just lend his name for branding, even for free. So you might see a lot of his name and have the felling that he holds tremendous wealth. In reality , he is rich but not that rich.
@Ben, I was going to ask the same question! lol The sofa looks like it *might* be a small pullout bed.
@chancer, it's a perfectly valid question. As I've gotten older, I've been more and more reluctant to share a room, much less a bed, with family and/or friends. I recently traveled with my mom, and made it a point to book suites. Given the choice between 2 proper beds in the same room and an inferior sofa bed in a living room, I'd choose the latter. But that's just me.
@Scott—Trump didn’t own the Trump Toronto and he doesn’t own the Adelaide (soon to become the St Regis Toronto). So we’re all home free to stay here and enjoy it without concern that we’re in any way supporting Trump.
As with most hotels bearing his name, Trump doesn’t own the hotels. Those hotels pay him a licensing fee for use of his name and management fees for managing those hotels. Trump no longer has any association with this hotel, as the hotel owner wisely bought out the licensing and management contract to allow them to stop using the Trump name and management.
The same is true for the Trump SoHo Hotel, whose owners just bought out the Tru,p contract which thereby frees them from the Trump name and association. Wouldn’t it be grand to have that become the St Regis Soho hotel and have a second StR in NYC?
I’m an SPG plat and I live in Toronto. I love hotels and I also like to do staycations with my family every few weeks.
We alternate between the Ritz, Four Seasons, and Shangrila. I wouldn’t be caught dead staying at the Trump.
Now that Trump has been dumped from the project, we’re gonna stay here once a month. So glad Toronto has finally got a decent SPG hotel!
Oh for heavens sake, she's his mother. Its a king bed, its one night. Sounds reasonable to me.
I'll actually be in Toronto in a couple weeks and spent a lot of time trying to pick a hotel - the hotel market there really doesn't look too exciting! I wanted something special, so was considering the Fairmont and the Adelaide before settling on the Omni King Edward, where I can't wait to stay! (seriously, not enough travel bloggers write about Omni hotels). One of the things that put me off the Adelaide is that it used to be a Trump hotel - his name is still in some of the publicity photos for the meeting rooms! I know it's no longer a Trump property, but even anything associated with him disgusts me and was one of the reasons I decided to stay elsewhere. Trump is bad for business.
@Anastasia:
1. The King Edward is underwhelming. There's a reason it's a permanent fixture on Hotwire and Priceline. It's a heritage building, and there's only so much renovating you can do with that. Expect a good size bedrooms with high ceilings but tiiiiny bathrooms. The public spaces are nice though, and they do a good afternoon tea and Sunday brunch.
2. The Fairmont Royal York is one of the most disappointing properties in the chain. Again, it's a grand old railway hotel in a heritage building where only so much can be done given the underlying structure. The rooms tend to be quite small. Definitely 4 stars, not 5.
3. Don't punish the current owners and employees of the Adelaide for Trump's mistakes. They're trying to do their best under the circumstances, and the hotel is legitimately nice (and also usually a good price compared to the other 5-star places in town).
4. If you want a nice place, try the Ritz. It's my go-to hotel in Toronto now. You can collect points if that's your thing, and the location is convenient for transit, the convention centre, and the theatre district. The décor is more refined/less gaudy than the Adelaide, and you get a view of the waterfront from some rooms.
@Arcanum -
Thanks for the feedback. I do realize it's an old building, but I actually love hotels in "historical" bulidings (if they're legitimately historical and well kept up, like the IC Le Grand in Paris). I read quite a few reviews of the hotel, and it seems to have overwhelmingly excellent ones on tripadvisor compared to the other hotels in the city. That's the other reason I avoided the Fairmont - it looks nice on the pictures, but the reviews were very disappointing. I don't particularly mind a small bathroom, and look forward to checking out their bar and other public spaces.
I totally understand not punishing an entirely different company and its employees for Trump's mistakes, and that's not my intention, but somehow I just...can't bring myself to stay there. The idea just kind of leaves a sour idea in my mouth. That's a personal choice, and I certainly don't begrudge other people staying there - it sounds like Lucky had a good time, and I'm happy for him! It's just that for me personally, I don't think it's an experience I'd enjoy.
Thanks for the Ritz recommendation. I'm sure it's lovely, but I do tend to prefer hotels with a little more "character" or "history" (that's why I love the Autograph collection, Intercontinental hotels, etc..) My impression of Ritzes - correct me if I'm wrong! - is that they're upscale, but also very cookie cutter.
Are there any good Trump hotels left? I'd love to stay in one, especially if there are good deals to counteract the hysteria of anti-Trump bigots. I checked Trump Hotel in Las Vegas, but the rates were not that low.
@ Anastasia - it looks like the King Eddie has undergone a bit of renovations, per Trip Advisor traveler photos. When I worked for Starwood I used to work with that hotel when it was a Le Meridien, and we were always being told "renovations are coming" but they ultimately left the system. Hopefully you have a good stay!
@grrizzly, if you want to put your money in Trump's pockets before the new tax bill does, be my guest. He'll have it one way or another. Gotta pay for all that golfing somehow.
@Erik - thanks! The photos do indeed make it look pretty new, and I looked at a *lot* of them before booking, as this is one of those special romantic getaways.
For next time, you can walk almost the whole way from UP express to Trump tower underground in the path.
@grrizzly, Trump Chicago is pretty awesome. Fantastic views to the lake. Went in April this year. Michelin starred restaurant in building as well.
>I just could never bring myself to stay somewhere owned by Trump
I we had said things like this about Obama, we would never hear the end of blue-haired fatsos yelling 'muh raysism' at us. Liberals are such hypocrites.
This building has quite a nasty financial history that made news here in Toronto over the years. And no, Trump never had any money in the place.
If you want a taste of just what a dumpster fire of an operation it was - and so out of keeping with what "works" in Toronto, read this review of the on-site restaurant when it opened. Possibly my fave review of anything ever...
The whole "Saint" theme in the St. Regis branding suggests a certain intolerance of non-Catholics - surely there are some among us who are uncomfortable with that. Furthermore, is the St Regis brand an homage to St. John Francis Regis? Though known now for his supposed hospitality to travelers, I understand he was quite the crusader against "vice," particularly among women and girls (i.e. "s!*t-shaming") - but one can hardly think a man of such zealotry would be accepting of LGBTQ causes, for example, and he would likely be one of those people who protests outside of Planned Parenthood offices. Frankly, I don't see how an enlightened individual could possibly stay at a St. Regis property - I suppose we must all enjoy this hotel before it once again turns to a dark side.
I'm planning to stay at the Trump DC hotel soon because it's in the old post office and from all accounts I've read it's a wonderful restoration and very luxurious. Plus you can get 4th night free and other deals sometimes. Has anyone at OMAAT ever stayed there?
I would not be able to stay in anything that had his (Trump’s) grubby hands anywhere near it.
Filthy place. MRGA!
I prefer the Shangri-La over Adelaide, but both are great (and so much better than old Park Hyatt, cheaper than Four Seasons, and with better access to airport).
The S-La has an amazing lobby bar (live music from 4pm-12am ... or so, every day) plus a much better gym and overall experience.
Both Adelaide and Sh-La are loud... as they are right downtown with sirens at all hours.
The Adelaide was nice... and empty... and easy to redeem on points... even during the Toronto Film Festival in September (because when companies were making bookings it was still a Trump).
Great addition to the Toronto Hotel scene.