I only had about a 14 hour layover in Vancouver, though decided to spend it in the city. Vancouver is probably my favorite city in North America, and really does feel like a mini Hong Kong (which is one of my favorite places in the world).
I decided to book the Fairmont Waterfront for my one night stay in Vancouver. It’s the cheaper of the two Fairmonts in Vancouver, and the rate for the one night was ~$185USD. Since I booked through American Express Fine Hotels + Resorts®, it included the following benefits:
- Noon check-in upon arrival, when available
- Room upgrade upon arrival, when available
- Daily breakfast for two people
- 4pm late checkout
- US$100 food and beverage credit to be used during your stay
So that seemed like a good enough deal, between the complimentary breakfast, $100 food & beverage credit, and late check-out (which would be useful given that my flight out of Vancouver was only departing in the evening).
My Cathay Pacific flight from New York was delayed, so by the time I made it to the hotel it was 3AM. By the way, there’s nothing more interesting than driving through downtown Vancouver at 2:45AM on a Saturday night/Sunday morning. It was like human Frogger, based on the number of drunk people running across the street.
The Fairmont is located right on the water (as you’d expect based on the name), and almost looks a bit like an office building on the outside.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver exterior
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver exterior
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver signage
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver entrance
The lobby feels “grand” though not especially modern, and almost reminded me a bit of the InterContinental Grand Stanford Hong Kong (not in terms of the design specifically, but the overall feel).
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver lobby
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver lobby
Check-in was located inside the lobby to the right.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver lobby
The associate checking me in was friendly and had me checked in quickly, which was appreciated given what time it was. She provided me with a piece of paper detailing the benefits of booking through Fine Hotels + Resorts®, explained the hours the restaurant is open, location of the gym, etc. She also informed me that I had been upgraded to a corner king room.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver American Express Fine Hotels + Resorts®
I took the elevator up to the 18th floor, where my room was located.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver hallway
The hotel is kind of shaped like a triangle, and my room, 1816, was located at the far end of one of the “sides.”
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver room entrance
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver room entrance
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver floorplan
The room featured a massive “L” shaped entryway.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver entryway
Once you “turned” left there was a closet on the left and the bathroom to the right.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver entryway
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver entryway
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver Corner King Room closet
The room itself was a nice size and fairly modern. It featured a king size bed, and then by the window a chair with ottoman and a desk.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver Corner King Room
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver Corner King Room
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver Corner King Room
The TV was located on the opposite end of the room from the desk and could swivel, so could easily be viewed from both bed and the desk.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver Corner King Room
The desk was accompanied by a fairly comfortable rolling chair, and I was also happy to see that the desk had a couple of easily accessible plugs and other electronics outlets.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver Corner King Room desk
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver Corner King Room desk outlets
The bathroom was quite nice, and featured a sink, toilet, and shower/tub combo (I was kind of hoping there would be a tub, but there was no such luck).
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver Corner King Room bathroom
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver Corner King Room shower
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver Corner King Room toilet
The toiletries were Le Labo Rose 31 branded — nice, especially when you look at the retail cost of their toiletries.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver Corner King Room toiletries
Since this was a corner room, it boasted views of both the surrounding city and the harbor.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver Corner King Room view
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver Corner King Room view
On the whole I found the room to be reasonably nice. I do think it was in the same league as a nice Westin or Hyatt and not really a league above, but then again given the price point that’s kind of what I’d expect (the Fairmont Pacific Rim has higher rates and also seems to be a bit nicer).
One of the nice things about Fairmont is that just for joining their President’s Club program you receive complimentary internet. However, I found the internet to be really slow, though for $11.20CAD I could upgrade to “premium business internet,” so I did that. The internet still wasn’t especially fast, but at least it was usable.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver internet upgrade charge
In terms of the hotel’s other facilities, there’s a fairly nice (and basic) fitness center. I didn’t have the chance to use it, unfortunately.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver gym
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver gym
Outside of the gym was the pool, which is open daily from 5:30AM till midnight. I’m sure it would be nice in summer, though aside from that Vancouver isn’t an ideal city for an outdoor pool.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver pool
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver pool
The pool did boast nice views of the harbor and surrounding buildings.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver pool
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver view from the pool
There was also a deck with some greenery on the same level as the pool — not sure what purpose that served, exactly.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver deck near the pool
Then right next to the gym was a hot tub.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver whirlpool
Even though I only got to the hotel at 3AM I ended up waking up at 7AM, since I had gotten a good amount of sleep on my Cathay Pacific flight. So I had breakfast at ARC Restaurant, which is connected to the lobby.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver ARC Restaurant
At the entrance I was asked for my room number, at which point a “ticket” was printed out and I was brought to my table. Interestingly I was addressed by name throughout breakfast, both by the hostess and the server.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver ARC Restaurant
The server explained to me that American Express Fine Hotels + Resorts® breakfast included the continental buffet, though for a cost of $9.50 I could upgrade to the hot buffet. This wouldn’t just include what was available at the buffet, but also scrambled eggs or an omelet.
I had a $100 food & beverage credit so could have used that towards the buffet upgrade, though I wasn’t especially hungry and just stuck to the continental buffet.
For reference, the breakfast menu read as follows:
To drink I had an orange juice and non-fat cappuccino.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver ARC Restaurant cappuccino and juice
The continental breakfast buffet was quite good. There was juice, cereal, fruit, cheese, meat, lox, bagels, toast, pastries, etc.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver ARC Restaurant breakfast buffet
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver ARC Restaurant breakfast buffet
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver ARC Restaurant breakfast buffet
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver ARC Restaurant breakfast buffet
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver ARC Restaurant breakfast buffet
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver ARC Restaurant breakfast buffet
The hot buffet consisted of eight hot dishes, and I have to say they all looked very good. So if hungry I’d recommend the full buffet.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver ARC Restaurant breakfast buffet
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver ARC Restaurant breakfast buffet
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver ARC Restaurant breakfast
I had to leave the hotel at around 3PM to catch my flight back to Seattle, so decided to have lunch at ARC Restaurant as well, since I had a $100 food & beverage credit to spend.
The lunch menu read as follows:
I ordered the dungeness crab roll, which was delicious.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver ARC Restaurant lunch
I ended up “wasting” the rest of my food & beverage credit, but I figured stuffing myself with even more food wouldn’t really be “maximizing” either. It does make me wonder what we should really be valuing food and beverage credits at.
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver bottom line
I had a nice (but far too short) stay at the Fairmont Waterfront. The location is great, the hotel is nice, all the employees I interacted with were friendly, and for the price point it’s tough to beat. That’s especially true when booking through American Express Fine Hotels + Resorts®, given the extra perks you get.
That being said, Fairmont as a brand still puzzles me somewhat, since I don’t quite get what they’re positioning themselves as. Are they supposed to be comparable to a Hyatt Regency or Westin, or are they a grade above? If a grade above, are we talking Shangri-La, or which brand are they trying to compete with? Like most chains, they do seem to have some okay properties and some awesome properties, though I just don’t quite where they’re positioning themselves in the market.
As I’m in the process of moving into hotels full time I’d like to check out some more of their properties in the near future and get a better feel for the brand. I’ll be returning to Vancouver soon, and will try the Fairmont Pacific Rim for comparison’s sake.
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