My husband and I stayed at the Westin Harbour Castle in Toronto, Ontario for a 2-night staycation from May 18-20, 2019. As someone who works in the city but lives in the suburbs, it was a fantastic way to enjoy the attractions of the city without the worry of commuting home. We took full advantage of this weekend to explore nearby restaurants, activities, and to slow down with some rest and relaxation at the hotel.
The Hustle and Bustle of Toronto
Located on the waterfront of Lake Ontario, the Westin Harbour Castle offers a convenient location to see the sights and attractions in Toronto, Ontario. Whether you’re in town for business, leisure, or looking for a nice weekend getaway – the Westin Harbour Castle can meet the needs of a variety of travelers.
The hotel has partnered with many local attractions and businesses, such as the CN Tower and Second City and is in close proximity to public transit (subway stations and bus stops) to make getting around Toronto that much easier. The Westin Harbour Castle is a great hotel in a convenient location to see the best of Toronto!
Attractions at Your Door
On our long weekend, we set out on foot to see the area and enjoy the lovely spring weather. We love to walk through new cities when we travel, so we did the same here in Toronto. Within a 20 minute radius of the Westin Harbour Castle you can easily get to many attractions including: the Rogers Centre, Harbourfront Centre, Amsterdam Brewhouse, Ripley’s Aquarium of Canada, Union Station, Scotiabank Arena, Hockey Hall of Fame, St Lawrence Market, and just a little bit further is the Distillery Historic District.
We enjoyed seeing the city on foot and experiencing some of these attractions for the first time as tourists. If you’re up for a longer walk you can head to the Fort York National Historic Site or Graffiti Alley. We did both and had a great time checking out these sites with locals and tourists alike! No matter your interests, this city has something for you, and the Westin Harbour Castle is a great home base for your stay.
Westin Harbour Castle: Your Home Away from Home
If you’re visiting over a weekend like we did, the hotel offers the Westin Weekend program. This allows guests to take advantage of extended breakfast hours and late Sunday checkout. In other words, guests can enjoy sleeping in and get a leisurely start to the day without missing breakfast! And if anyone knows my husband – the king of sleeping in – extended breakfast hours are definitely a selling feature.
Speaking of sleeping in, the Westin Heavenly® Beds offered supreme comfort for a good night’s sleep. As picky sleepers, having a comfortable bed is a must when traveling. The Westin Heavenly® Bed has me dreaming of ordering one of these for my home. Here’s a look at the room we stayed in and the amenities provided in room – the in-room Starbucks coffee was a hit for me and I also liked having a safe. This was a king junior suite coveted for the corner room and views of the waterfront.
If I had to think of negative element to our stay, I would say that the rooms with adjoining doors (like ours) were more prone to noise. We were able to hear our rowdy neighbours one evening, but luckily they took their party to a different location. If you’re like me, you bring earplugs anyways, so it wasn’t a problem.
Amenities-a-Plenty
The Westin Harbour Castle offers a variety of amenities including restaurants, lounge areas, a large indoor pool, hot tub, fitness centre, laundry services and large conference spaces to name a few. We thoroughly enjoyed the onsite restaurants and think our favourite meal each day was the delicious breakfast buffet. With a changing buffet offering and custom eggs to order – this was a great start to our days. There is also a comprehensive menu for those who prefer plated meals.
The Chartroom Lounge was also a favourite location of mine. With large windows facing a green space it was nice to sit and enjoy a beverage or meal. The seating was comfortable, the service was fast and the food was great! I certainly loved my gourmet grilled cheese and tomato soup – the portion size was huge and definitely worth the money.
Service at Westin Harbour Castle
From the moment we arrived until we picked up our car from the valet, we experienced great service. Despite arriving a few hours early for check-in, we were able to check in seamlessly and store our luggage with the bellhops. As we were out exploring the city I received a call to let me know that our room was available (a full hour earlier than anticipated) and that we could pick up our keys at our leisure.
The restaurant service was also fantastic each time we dined in the Mizzen Restaurant or Chartroom Lounge. We also had help navigating the hotel from a very helpful employee named Maria. She walked us to the outdoor space personally because it was hard to explain where it was and ensured we didn’t get locked out on the patio! We were very grateful for that care.
Westin Harbour Castle Overall Review
Both my husband and I thoroughly enjoyed our stay at the Westin Harbour Castle and would definitely recommend it for other travelers looking for a convenient and comfortable stay!
Check out my 1-day in Toronto itinerary for some ideas of how you can spend a day in Toronto.
This stay was sponsored by Westin Harbour Castle, in exchange for my honest recap from my stay. This post/review is based on my own experience of the hotel, service, amenities and overall stay. I’ve also included a video tour of our room exactly how we found it upon checking in.
4 comments
This looks like a really great place to the city of Toronto. I’d love to travel to Toronto one day. How is the transit from the airport to the hotel?
This hotel is closer to Billy Bishop (Toronto Island) Airport but you could also take the UP Express from Pearson to downtown Toronto. Hope that helps!
The hotel looks so good! I like how spacious the suite is and that they have decaff Starbucks coffee and also late breakfast and checkout is precious!!
It was very spacious! It was nice having coffee in the room – and not just some generic brand.