DoubleTree by Hilton Ottawa Downtown

The breakfast buffet was fresh, tasty, and good value, with a nice range of well-prepared food. I especially enjoyed the croissant 🥐. It would have felt warmer with some background music, though. Still, a solid breakfast at a great price.

The location is great, but for the price and star rating, the hotel falls short. For the money, the Weston or the Marriott downtown would be better choices. The breakfast cost $28 and was mediocre at best, with steamed sausages and cold powdered eggs. A good breakfast chain would have been much better for half the price. The rooms were mostly clean, but the heat barely worked no matter how high we turned it, so the room stayed cold. The carpets were dirty with winter salt. Winter makes that somewhat understandable, but the hotel could do a better job cleaning them between guests. There was no magnifying bathroom mirror, a small but real issue for anyone wearing contact lenses. And despite being listed as an amenity, there’s no hot tub. I assume it broke and they chose to cover it with a deck instead of repairing it. If you spend all day outside in freezing weather during Winterlude, a warm soak would be welcome. A better managed, classier hotel would have replaced it rather than covering it over.

My king room with a sofa was clean and comfortable, with a good layout. I just wish the suites had microwaves, since I like bringing food back and heating it up in the evening. I’m not sure I’d choose this place for a longer visit. The lobby looked unfinished because of renovations, though the hotel itself was fine. Service was okay, but nobody offered a water bottle or the usual DoubleTree warm cookie. Breakfast wasn’t included. For $300 for one night, it should have been, especially with another $28 added. I’ve stayed in a full suite at the nearby Homewood Suites for $250 a night, with a full, decadent breakfast.

The location made getting around easy, and the room was thoughtfully laid out. I was here for work. Check-in and checkout were quick, and there were no bugs. The bed was incredibly comfortable, with two pillow firmness options, and the sheets looked clean. There were several lighting choices, a mini fridge, and a gym on the fifth floor with weights, bikes, and a treadmill. The heating system made no noise, though I couldn’t tell if it was running; I wasn’t cold. The shower stayed nice and hot morning and night, and the soft-close toilet lid was a welcome touch. Sleep was the main problem. I could hear very slight traffic from my courtyard-facing room, but it wasn’t bothersome. The doors slammed loudly whenever people came and went, and even earplugs didn’t help much. I’m not sure I’d stay again after sleeping poorly, though the central location is hard to beat. It’s near restaurants, shopping centres, grocery stores, the canal, conference venues, and more. The lobby renovation looked quite bad. The gym equipment was a bit dated but worked. There’s no airport shuttle. I’d booked a junior suite because the pictures looked amazing, but changed to a King Supreme after staff said the suites were either beside the elevators, such as 514, 515, 614, and 615, or above the dumpster and loading dock, such as 426 and 526. Neither sounded good for a light sleeper. Another reviewer said garbage was collected three times in the morning starting at 5 am, and someone else said they could hear the elevator ding and move from their room. I paid $31 with tax for the restaurant’s basic buffet breakfast: bread, cereal, eggs, sausage, bacon, and some fruit. That’s expensive. They alternate French toast days with pancake and waffle days, and unfortunately I was there on neither of the latter days. The juice glasses were tiny, child-sized ones. The waitress brought my bill while I was still eating, which felt rude. I hadn’t been there long, and it wasn’t busy: only three tables, including mine, with two wait staff. The next day I walked 11 minutes to Loblaws and bought two days of breakfast items for less than $10 total. The shower gel and lotion come in refillable bottles, but they’re very basic and not moisturizing, so bring your own if that matters to you.