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320 4th Ave SWCalgary, AB T2P 2S6
(403) 266-1611
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Visit http://bit.ly/aXNNzs and unwind with special offers at The Westin Calgary.
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5 reviews for The Westin Calgary
All Reviews
I need to be upfront with this review. I am a Starwood Preferred Guest and generally choose to stay in Westin and Sheraton Hotels in North America.
I also need to declare my interest and knowledge of the hotel industry. I have worked for a five star hotel group, and have developed five star quality hotels in Africa and Europe. I am therefore very tough on hotels when I experience bad service. Hotel Service is a direct reflection on the quality and attitude of the Manager. lousy manager, lousy staff, and a lousy experience.
The Westin Calgary is a fabulous hotel. Well managed, well run, with great staff. It's probably one of the best located downtown hotels, with easy walking access to restaurants, businesses and cultural facilities. Walking around downtown is the most important consideration when I choose a hotel.
They have wonderfully large contemporary rooms, and have very comfortable beds, pillows and mattresses. I judge hotels by the quality of the mattress and the pillow! Also the HVAC system is crucial to my comfort. No screaming and vibrating fan coil units in the ceilings. And no sound transfer as a result of guests slamming their doors when they return from The French Maid at two o'clock in the morning. They describe their beds as "heavenly" and I agree, the experience I have with Westin, is usually heavenly!
An added bonus is having the best Keg in Calgary attached to the hotel (will review separately) and those who want to feel special and superior, can drop downstairs for an over-roasted and overpriced coffee at Starbucks. A great hotel and highly recommended by a seasoned travellor.
Wow - after a really awful week I canceled all of my future stays here and will now split my time between the Sheraton Suites and the Cavalier.
My inbound flight misconnected in Seattle, and I missed the last flight of the day to Calgary... Of course this was past the cancellation window, no worries - rules are rules, I'll pay for an empty room in Calgary and stay with friends in Seattle, at least I'll have a place to drop off my bags and have a quick shower before showing up 4 hours late to my client... Little did I know...
I showed up at 11am and attempted to checkin -
"Im sorry Mr. Allen, we don't have any rooms ready"
... Really? You charged me for one last night, maybe I can get a key for that one? ... She mumbles about the cancelation policy...
"Look, I don't need an upgrade or anything, I just want to drop off my bags and shave" ..
"Again sir, I'm sorry but we don't have any rooms available, I could give you a key for the gym and you could shave in the locker room?
I stayed at this hotel weekly for most of 2009, we're talking at least 90 nights, and I'm shaving by the pool. Awesome.
The icing on the cake came later in the week though - it was raining and I asked a bellhop for an umbrella - "no problem"... an hour or two later I needed to run up and grab something from my room; I was stopped at the door:
"Need to take your umbrella sir"
"Oh that's fine, I'm just running up to get something in my room and I'll be back out in 3 minutes"
"Sorry but you need to leave the umbrella here"
"What if another guest comes and takes it?"
"Well then you're out of luck, umbrellas are first come first serve"
This guy seemed to be confused by the whole 'doormen' concept - at nightclubs doormen are free to be pricks and abuse guests... at hotels doormen are paid to suck up to guests and carry their luggage.
Compare that exchange to 3 weeks ago at the St Regis Washington DC - I came in for the night and attempted to give the umbrella back to the doorman, he said with a smile "please feel free to hang onto it sir, it might rain tomorrow"
I want to like the Westin Calgary, hence not deleting the positive aspects of my previous review, but some of the frontline employees at this property need to find employment outside of the hospitality industry.
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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7/12/2009 First to Review
The Westin Calgary is an A-OK hotel in my book.
The staff are engaging and attentive - I've never… Read more »
We stayed one night during Stampede week and were pleasantly surprised that the staff was very friendly and efficient even though there was a lot of partying cowboys and girls. Nice comfortable bed. The Keg restaurant was really good too. I highly recommend the Westin.
I stayed in a room in the Business Tower for two nights over a weekend. The breakfast buffet (which you pay for) is at Essence and its terrific! Ahhh I loved the buffet so much. The staff were very kind and did everything they could to make my stay pleasant. I found the downtown area to be pretty dead in the daytime on the weekends.
The parking isn't included in the rate, but interestingly enough you get free long-distance calls anywhere in North America if you stay in the Business Tower. From what I understand, the rooms in the older tower are pretty outdated.
I will have to say that of all of the Westin's I have stayed at this one is pretty middle of the pack. There isn't a whole lot that is super flashy about the place and it actually reminds me more of a Sheraton than a Westin.
There are a couple of redeeming qualities. First of all it is in a great location. Not too far from much of anything and close to some nice outdoor cafes. As stated before the breakfast is great as well. Finally, while much may not be open late the staff at Keg is open until early morning and are more than happy to put up with you and your group.
If you are looking for a nice place to stay this is a good one. While it may not be a W it certainly has all of the trademarks that makes Westin a great place to stay. And they have a Starbucks!
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Specialties
Situated in the heart of one of Canada's most exciting cities, The Westin Calgary is located downtown where the major business centre meets the city's extraordinary outdoor activities and first-class dining and arts. We are conveniently connected to the business, dining, and shopping districts of the city by 16.5 kilometres of climate-controlled pedestrian walkways.
Our 525 smoke-free guest rooms and suites guarantee a comfortable and relaxing stay. Each room is well-appointed with signature Westin Heavenly amenities, so you will always feel renewed when business or pleasure brings you to Calgary. Our Westin experience has recently been rejuvenated with a completely renovated lobby, and 126 new Westin Business Rooms feature a more contemporary style.
History
Established in 1964
The Westin Calgary completed a four-year, $35 million renovation in 2009.
