The Road Warrior

A 30-day quest to discover our favourite features of 22 business hotels across the country – and transform a professional writer into a high-powered executive. Or at least a reasonable facsimile of one.

Communication Strategies

I love a hotel that anticipates my needs before I do, like the sound of Miles Davis’ solo “All Blues” greeting me at the Sheraton Suites Calgary Eau Claire, where my Jacuzzi suite has a built-in surround sound system hooked up to digital radio. My suite at Toronto’s Windsor Arms Hotel has convenient controls for the five-disc CD player in the bathroom and beside the bed, and the W Montréal has its own compilations of international lounge music. At the Fairmont Vancouver Airport, I return late one night to discover that the lights rise automatically – no fumbling in the dark. Oh, and I spend a lot of time on the phone at the Westin Calgary. Its Service Express button can be used not only for the usual room service and valet calls but also for requesting things like those nifty little collar stays that keep shirts sharp but are always getting lost in the wash.

High-powered Lobbying

Meeting colleagues or business partners at your hotel? Nothing reflects more on your image than the lobby. I retire to the library in the modern tiered entrance to Ottawa’s Arc The.Hotel to fix myself a complimentary coffee and check e-mail via the wireless connection. Across town, the compact marble entrance to the Westin Ottawa is intentionally small for a 487-room hotel to ensure an efficient check-in. Lobbies like Hôtel 71’s in Quebec City and Hôtel Le Germain’s in Toronto feel like a well-designed living room in someone’s mansion. The latter includes a guest computer and an espresso maker; later in the day they wheel out a bar cart and offer cocktails. Hallelujah! 

Concierge at Your Service

I worked with some innovative concierge services before I even left home. Zebrano Lifestyle Solutions provided me with a miniplanner of insider information on my destinations – from a suggestion to visit the seafood shack Flex Mussels in PEI to information on zip trekking in Whistler, B.C. The Westin hotels in Calgary and Ottawa have a bespoke concierge service, Majestic Events & Concierge Inc., which can orga­nize everything from personal shopping to group picnics.

Experience Wish is a “wish-fulfillment” service that works in collaboration with Preferred Boutique Hotels (PBH). Company founder Kristen Schmitt quizzed me about my ideal day off, and when I checked into the Metropolitan Hotel Vancouver, an itinerary was waiting. Also part of PBH services is Luggage Free. Two days before my flight, I arranged to have my luggage picked up by FedEx. They overnighted my bags, and all I had to do when I arrived in Winnipeg was unpack.

Visiting Dignitaries

Some hotels add to their luster with the presence of prominent visitors and celebrating locals. The Sutton Place Hotel, Toronto is a natural celebrity habitat, and not just during the film festival. During my stay, the Radisson Plaza Hotel Saskatchewan is looking its best, having just played host to Prince Edward. As I sip a cocktail in Le Café at Loews Le Concorde in Quebec City, debutantes flit past on their way to the ballroom. Returning to my room at the Halifax Marriott Harbourfront, I discover another party in full swing, but the room is so soundproof I don’t even break out my Sony noise-cancelling headphones. Hotel Arts in Calgary always feels festive with its chic lobby surrounding the courtyard pool. But I order a bottle of wine to my suite and connect my Lenovo laptop to the 42-inch plasma screen to watch Chaplin’s Modern Times, soundtrack courtesy of my Sony MP3 Walkman in its speaker cradle. 

Quick Commuting

Some hotels offer proximity to facilities of special interest to the business traveller. The Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver connects di­rect­ly to the upscale Pacific Centre mall. Likewise, the Hyatt Regency Montreal is attached to the Complexe Desjardins mall, one block from the convention centre. The Westin Ottawa is linked via a covered walkway to the Ottawa Congress Centre, and I discovered an underground passage that connects the Hilton Saint John to that city’s convention centre. An indoor skyway connects the Halifax Marriott Harbourfront to the Casino Nova Scotia, and the Fairmont Vancouver Airport is, naturally, attached to YVR. For an aero-nerd like myself, it’s a big thrill to have a room on the 14th floor overlooking the terminal and tarmac, so my Sony digital camera gets a pretty good workout.  

Weekend Warrior

I don’t quite manage the daily training regimen I imagined on the road. If not for a late night and comfortable bed at Hotel Arts in Calgary, I would certainly have joined the morning yoga class. Honest, the next time I stay at the Delta St. John’s Hotel, the Metropolitan Hotel Vancouver or the Westin Ottawa, I’ll bring my squash gear, as all have full-size courts. But I finally find my motivation at the Westin Calgary’s Reebok Gym, where I nod to a woman twice my age running full tilt on the treadmill; after a punishing workout with my Panasonic headset drilling inspiration into my brain, I collapse... and she’s still running. At the Sheraton Suites Calgary Eau Claire, I have the pool and waterslide all to myself. I manage a few laps at the InterContinental Montréal pool before my Treo rings (Bell Mobility service really does work everywhere) and I have to take an important, um, business call. (Hi, mom.) I complete my gentleman’s workout at the Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver with generous whirlpool and sauna time.

Bar Stool Diplomacy

I’m the kind of traveller who likes to spend quality time in the hotel bar... networking, you know. When Wunderbar in the W Montréal gets too crowded, I cross the hall over to the quieter little Bartini. I can’t resist the old-school charm and soaring rotunda of the Palm Lounge in Winnipeg’s Fort Garry Hotel, where local jazz trios often hold court. The dark and sexy ambience of Club 22 in Toronto’s Windsor Arms Hotel is popular with celebrities and the just plain beautiful. I like the copper-topped bar and the calligraphy paintings in the Terrace Bar at the Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver, where, savouring the Dungeness crab miniburgers, I have a fascinating conversation about scrum etiquette with a seasoned political reporter.