Best Western Parkway Hotel Toronto North

The stay was awful. Our room was in a gloomy basement with no windows, and it smelled strongly of vomit that hadn’t been cleaned properly. The one thing that helped was being moved to the Sheraton next door. At the pool, the woman who checked me in gave my two kids, ages five and six, towels and told us to enjoy ourselves. She didn’t mention that a fitness class was starting in ten minutes. Then another woman rudely told us we had to get out because of the class. Why not tell me before we went in? The pool felt more like one at a community center.

The room was spotless and thoughtfully set up, with a really cozy bed and nice amenities. The lighting and layout made it feel warm and comfortable, and I was impressed as soon as I arrived. Vicky at the front desk was welcoming and attentive from the start. She got check-in done efficiently, patiently answered all my questions, and seemed genuinely keen to make things easy for me. It was one of my best hotel stays, with great service and comfort throughout.

*BE CAREFUL WHEN PAYING* My son and I drove down Friday for his two Saturday games. We arrived right at the 3:00 p.m. check-in time, around 3:05, and began the process at the Best Western desk. I inserted my card when asked. The machine said “Approved,” and the clerk then told me we’d been upgraded to the Sheraton next door. She said to check in there and mentioned the deposit would be $150 instead of $100. At the Sheraton, the desk clerk asked me to pay again. She said the first payment hadn’t gone through, but I checked my online banking and saw the Best Western charge on my credit card. I paid again with my debit card, using money I’d set aside for an outing with my son to a sports cards shop. I called the bank, which confirmed the payment had been approved and told me to contact the hotel. That meant cancelling our plans while I tried to sort things out. My son had to wait around, and we lost nearly two hours. A front desk clerk told me this had happened to him too, and that some of their machines were known to have this issue. I went back down and spoke with the manager. I calmly explained what happened and how our plans had been affected. He stayed very stoic and mostly repeated that he was sorry for the inconvenience but couldn’t do anything. He said the money should return to my credit card in 24-48 hours because the issue was known, and that I could contact him if it didn’t. When I pointed out that this was his chance to make things right, he still showed little concern. My son was stuck waiting, disappointed that we couldn’t go to the shop we’d saved to visit together. It didn’t feel like Best Western or Sheraton cared. We eventually found food and played basketball and pool, so we managed to enjoy part of the day. Every so often my son brought up what we’d missed, and I couldn’t blame him. Now it’s Tuesday, 96 hours later, and the money still hasn’t returned. I called and spoke with another manager, who said he didn’t know about it and that the other manager would be back in the afternoon and call me. We have five other trips booked and are considering cancelling all of them and never staying here again, unless the manager calls today, shows some remorse, and gets the money returned to my credit card. I don’t usually tell companies how to treat customers, but this seems like a chance for Best Western and/or The Sheraton to make things right. Stay tuned... *UPDATE* Day 2, still no call, but I saw the owner replied. The response seems sincere. Hopefully it is.

The staff were so accommodating while my partner was in a wheelchair. We needed to extend our stay at the last minute, and that went just as smoothly as everything else. I really enjoyed being here and would return when we're back in the area.