Toronto is a city that increasingly has good hotel options, and Marriott has just announced their latest property there.
Marriott has announced that they’ve signed an agreement to open a W Hotel in Toronto in 2020. This will be the first W Hotel in the city, and the second in Canada, after the W Montreal.
The hotel will be nine stories and will have 255 rooms. It will be located at 90 Bloor Street East, in Toronto’s Yorkville neighborhood.
This isn’t actually a newly built hotel, but rather the building will be undergoing a $40 million design transformation, including of the guest rooms, restaurants, and amenities.
While it’s not mentioned in the press release, based on Googling the address of the hotel it appears that this used to be the Toronto Marriott Bloor Yorkville Hotel.
Marriott’s Area VP fo Eastern Canada had the following to say:
“We are applying a unique, vibrant sensibility to the upcoming W Toronto, one that has not been seen before in Toronto. The exciting evolution of this property into Toronto’s first W hotel is consistent with the ongoing evolution of this Toronto neighbourhood whose vibrancy, sophistication, and density continues to grow. This is a strategic location for the brand, and we foresee it welcoming international business and leisure travellers, but also becoming a destination for urban thrill-seekers.”
Also, am I the only one who hates how hotel brands describe their properties in press releases?
W Toronto will redefine modern luxury in Toronto, taking inspiration from social, historical and physical insights and embedding elements of each into the rooms and public spaces. Upon entering the hotel, guests will be immersed in a modern biophilia and laboratory style experience, that leads to breath-taking indoor/outdoor spaces, perfect for soaking in spectacular sunsets and sounds.
Isn’t it amazing how every time Marriott opens a hotel in a new market they’re “redefining” whatever segment they’re going after? Remarkable!
Also, I’ll admit that I’m tired as I write this because I’ve been on safari all day and basically sat there watching lions sleep for five hours, but what does this even mean?
Upon entering the hotel, guests will be immersed in a modern biophilia and laboratory style experience
Anyway, this is a nice addition for Marriott. Within the past year we’ve also seen the introduction of the St. Regis Toronto. That used to be the Trump Toronto, and was then rebranded as a Luxury Collection property as it underwent a refurbishment (presumably to make the showers and everything else in the hotel less golden).
Anyone excited about the W Hotel Toronto?
Great to hear! My wife and I stayed at the Delta Marriott in Toronto last October and loved it. What a wonderful city.
Kind of sad that other countries get nice, fresh, new, purpose-built Ws while Toronto just gets a warmed over Marriott.
I had a fabulous 5-night stay at the Delta Toronto over Christmas - all staff were friendly & helpful, and the room was well-laid out with comfortable furniture. Great location too.
Toronto needs better hotels.
The Four Seasons is so dark, very little natural sunlight and a small lobby. Views from the rooms aren’t good either.
The Ritz is tired and the rooms (even the suites) are so narrow.
Park Hyatt was ancient, let’s see how it looks when it re-opens.
St. Regis has a tiny lobby and the rooms are nothing special.
The Shangrila is the best by far. Large, beautiful lobby flooded...
Toronto needs better hotels.
The Four Seasons is so dark, very little natural sunlight and a small lobby. Views from the rooms aren’t good either.
The Ritz is tired and the rooms (even the suites) are so narrow.
Park Hyatt was ancient, let’s see how it looks when it re-opens.
St. Regis has a tiny lobby and the rooms are nothing special.
The Shangrila is the best by far. Large, beautiful lobby flooded with natural light, live music, and a happening scene. Rooms are great too, and solid views. Excellent pool and spa.
To turn it into a W, they’ll remove 80% of the lightbulbs in the hallways; pipe in odd music; put impractical furniture in the guest rooms; and hire some aloof, hip people that know how to make you feel uncool for the front desk. Seems like they could do that for less than $40 million.
The building is in an excellent location, with shopping complex, department store, food market, subway all built-in. In summer, sure, Park Hyatt offers a better view. But for convenience and indoor offerings in winter, this W will be a great location.
I would rather have Marriott invest in the Ritz-Carlton, which is faux luxury and very tired. The St. Regis is weak and the reviews haven't been good. Then there is the Marriott at the Toronto airport, which is a dump. I don't like Marriott focusing on quantity as we have increasingly seen with conversions of numerous properties. Regardless of how much they invest, the Toronto Marriott Bloor Yorkville Hotel is still a very old hotel. It's lipstick on a pig.
I think I would prefer to try the rebuilt Park Hyatt when it opens. it is just around the corner... I really wonder how you see spectacular sunsets from the lobby of a hotel in Yorkville?!
From the interwebs:
"Recently, "biophilia" has been in the news as the title of Icelandic singer Björk's latest project, a multimedia production that (according to the website for the Manchester International Festival) "celebrates how sound works in nature, exploring the infinite expanse of the universe, from planetary systems to atomic structure."
So, er, I guess that explains it.
As a neuroscientist, I would actually want to know what a "biophilia and laboratory style experience" is.
there's also Delta Hotels Toronto, and despite Despite Hotels usually positioned around 4-star, the Toronto is distinctly 5-star. Marriott Group will have very comprehensive coverage in the Toronto luxury space.
Exciting times for Toronto! Hope to be there for the opening :)
Great location, and it honestly makes sense for the area of Toronto. While I never stayed at the Marriott, W fits Yorkville much better than a regular Marriott. Though my preferred properties for Toronto when I was traveling there regularly were the Park Hyatt, IC Toronto Centre(Hard to beat the location right by the CN Tower and 2 blocks from Union Station and at least 10 years ago had steals of rates), or the Courtyard Yonge St right outside the gay village
Golden showers. I die.