Hello from Vancouver, as I’m currently on the outbound portion of my review trip to South Korea and Japan! I had an overnight in Vancouver, and decided to check out an airport hotel that has long been on my radar — the Fairmont Vancouver Airport.
The 386-room hotel is connected directly to the terminal, I don’t often review Fairmont properties, and Fairmont also belongs to the Accor Live Limitless (ALL) loyalty program, so I thought those reasons were enough to give this property a try.
I’m so happy I stayed here, because this easily ranks in my top five airport hotels I’ve ever stayed at (and probably top three). While I’ll have a full review soon, I wanted to share some initial thoughts on the property in this post, especially from an aviation geek angle.
In this post:
The Fairmont boasts amazing plane spotting!
The Fairmont Vancouver Airport is located on top of the airport terminal, with rooms taking up floors five through 14. There’s of course a huge convenience factor to staying directly at the airport, but there’s another benefit as well, and that’s the views!
I decided to book a Fairmont Gold room, which is Fairmont’s name for rooms with club lounge access. I did that because I wanted to review the Fairmont club experience, and also because club rooms are on the top floor, and have the best views. I booked through the Accor STEP program, and got a space available upgrade to a runway view room.
I can’t even begin to say how amazing the views are, as you have panoramic views looking out over the ramp, as well as the runway. You almost feel like you’re in the air traffic control tower. The mountain views in the distance don’t hurt either.
It’s also cute how Fairmont embraces the whole plane spotting thing, as there’s a telescope in the room (perhaps an overkill?), plus a plane spotting guide (definitely not an overkill, for those who can’t easily identify planes).
The only other hotel I’ve stayed at with this cool of an experience is the Grand Hyatt SFO, which is another amazing airport hotel.
The Fairmont is a generally high quality hotel
As any frequent traveler can attest to, many hotel owners and brands seem to have forgotten that they’re in the hospitality industry, based on how we’ve seen the industry evolve after the pandemic. So many hotels charge more, offer less, and nickel-and-dime at every turn. Admittedly this isn’t the case everywhere in the world, but at least in the United States (and I imagine to some extent Canada), it has become the norm.
The airport hotel business is even more challenging, since it’s kind of like the airport food concession business. Is there an incentive to provide a quality product, when most people aren’t actually going to be regulars? Most people stay at an airport hotel because they have to, and not because they want to.
That being said, the Fairmont is clearly the premium option at Vancouver Airport (and it’s priced accordingly), and the hotel very much puts the effort in, which I appreciate. The hotel is 25 years old, so you can definitely sense that based on the bones, but the hotel has been beautifully maintained.
The hotel has a nice lobby area, a spacious bar and restaurant with airport views (though this is on the fourth floor, so the views aren’t as good as from the 14th floor), a gym and pool, and more. Staff were uniformly friendly, turndown service was provided, etc.
I had a $100 credit to spend for booking through the Accor STEP program, so I had a delicious halibut dish at the hotel’s restaurant, where there was even live music.
Breakfast was equally tasty, with a smoked salmon omelet that was incredibly flavorful.
For a moment I forgot I was at an airport hotel, in the best way possible (I didn’t actually want to forget I was at an airport hotel, because I love the plane spotting!).
Bottom line
The Fairmont Vancouver Airport is one of my favorite airport hotels I’ve stayed at. My favorite thing about the hotel is the views, and they’re especially good from runway view rooms on higher floors. But even beyond that, this is a hotel that understands hospitality, from the staff, to the amenities, to the quality of dining options. I’m happy I stayed here, and if you can do so without breaking the bank, I’d recommend doing so.
I’m curious to hear from OMAAT readers — what’s your favorite airport hotel you’ve stayed at?
Is there another city with 4 Fairmonts?
Vancouver has the Fairmont Airport, Fairmont Pacific Rim, Fairmont Waterfront and the jewel in the crown, Fairmont Hotel Vancouver.
So, Ben, here's a review trip suggestion:
Head to Vancouver for several days, review all the Fairmonts and tack on a trip on Harbour Air to Victoria with a stay at the Fairmont Empress Hotel there. (And when in Victoria, do take in lunch at the Legislature restaurant.)
Perhaps I missed it, but what is the cost per night for one of these rooms
When I'm paying out of my own pocket, this is always the number one factor in how I book a room
I stayed there a couple of times lately and I really was impressed as well.
The art on the main floor of the hotel is unbelievable. It's worth staying there just to view the paintings!
Stayed there a few times pre-pandemic. Nice, but paying for the Gold Floor was overpriced...paying for beverages in the gold lounge!? Not again!
We stayed there prior to a cruise to AK back when you needed to be tested to ensure COVID free. I agree with everything Ben has said. Its a great hotel and the views were super. Had breakfast at the restaurant and plane watched while waiting on the results of our COVID test which had to be taken within 48 hours of the cruise. Happy to report they return negative and we got to go. Hate to leave the Fairmont - the rooms, views, food and staff were amazing.
How can you miss posting out that they actually have decent beds and pillow Most in terminal Hotels don't ( Sofitel Gatwick sort of )
Beautiful city, nice hotel...and the views!
Rydges Sydney @ International Terminal is my favorite, especially the rooftop bar and patio with awesome views. It's not in the terminal, but about 150 feet across from it, so I think that counts.
GH SFO is nice but no runway views. GH DFW is nice except 99% of the aircraft in view are AA; I like variety. I've never been to the hotel, but I imagine the TWA Hotel @ JFK must be fantastic?!
PS
Does that gate layout look really inefficient? Been through the transborder section a million times, but hadn't noticed the layout from the angle of the pic. On that side it's just narrow-bodies and RJ. The swing gates on the other side might get a wide-body, but I've never seen one on that side....just an observation/question...
Pretty sure that's a photo of the US departure wing. The international and Canadian wings have a slightly different layout.
Yup! That was my point. No biggee! Take care!
You didn’t mention the hotel’s fish valet!
https://www.fairmont-vancouver-airport.com/blog/meet-the-fish-valet-at-fairmont-vancouver-airport/
It’s a nice hotel, but it’s overpriced and overkill for an airport hotel. I would only stay at an in-terminal hotel if I had an early morning flight. I wish there was a lower cost option at YVR for when you just need a shower and bed. Accor also has a subpar loyalty program.
We found this hotel useful for a different scenario. We flew into YVR on a positioning flight the day before an award flight to SYD the next evening, so we had the arrival night and the entire next day free. Rather than schlepping our bags all the way downtown and then back the next day, we checked into the hotel for the night, went downtown for dinner then back for the night on the convenient...
We found this hotel useful for a different scenario. We flew into YVR on a positioning flight the day before an award flight to SYD the next evening, so we had the arrival night and the entire next day free. Rather than schlepping our bags all the way downtown and then back the next day, we checked into the hotel for the night, went downtown for dinner then back for the night on the convenient train. The next morning, we checked out, left our bags at the hotel, spent the day in the city, then came back to the hotel in the evening to pick up our bags and check in for the flight. It was easy and stress-free.
Ben, my favorite is this hotel at CTS (Sapporo Chitose): Portom International Hokkaido. A great stop over hotel, I really enjoyed staying there in the winter and waking up to them plowing snow at the airport. Great communal bath as well. Highly recommend that on your trip up there in winter!
HGI Cancun. You can’t beat a circle pool with a view of the Takis branded ATC tower.
All jokes aside GH SFO is gorgeous, but GH DFW slightly wins on the convenience factor and had better views IMO.
Really well managed and designed hotel.
Recently stayed at this hotel and would concur with the review. Notably the rooms are extremely comfortable, quiet, and of a decent size. The combination of recessed doorways to rooms, bathroom position and good carpeting make the room very quiet at all hour. The gym was top notch with plenty of equipment and space for multiple people to use the floor. Child enjoyed the pool before resuming our...
Really well managed and designed hotel.
Recently stayed at this hotel and would concur with the review. Notably the rooms are extremely comfortable, quiet, and of a decent size. The combination of recessed doorways to rooms, bathroom position and good carpeting make the room very quiet at all hour. The gym was top notch with plenty of equipment and space for multiple people to use the floor. Child enjoyed the pool before resuming our trip. Breakfast was good, and service was as good or better than any other higher end experience. Of course, location can't be beat.
"...there’s a telescope in the room (perhaps an overkill?)..."
YOU TAKE THAT BACK! THAT IS NOT OVERKILL! THESE ARE AIRPLANES WE ARE TALKING ABOUT!
Thanks for the Fairmont review. You should do more Fairmonts and other Accors. This lifetime Bonvoy and Hilton elite now thinks Fairmonts are his favorite chain. I will go out of my way to stay at a Fairmont instead of any Marriott or Hilton, especially their resort properties.
You really should review more Accor hotels. Granted, no one wants to read about an ibis, but their top end (Raffles) likely one-ups a Park Hyatt, and their upscale brands are nice. Their points are a bit pointless since they're directly cash-based, but their loyalty program has improved (top tier even gets lounge access at Fairmont Gold). And in APAC, Accor Plus is really quite the deal.
I'm sure VT-CIE would want ibis reviews over Raffles.
All you need is ibis or Motel 6 then "visualise yourself staying Aman or Four Seasons or Park Hyatt or something of that kind! ;)"
I've stayed at plenty of airport hotels. The Pan-Pacific KLIA (now Sama Sama Hotel), Novotel BKK, Regal Hong Kong, Mariott Hong Kong Airport, Hyatt Regency Incheon, Crowne Plaza Changi, Hotel Nikko Narita and Kansai. I think the Crowne Plaza and Regal have the best view facing airside.
So happy to hear this - I'm staying there in a couple weeks. Looking forward to your full review!