This pandemic has put a definite cramp in our travel plans. With the safety of our family, friends and ourselves top of mind, we wanted to find a safe way to have a bit of a treat in the city, and take some gorgeous photos in a setting that was lush and luxurious. Bisha Hotel was top of the list! So we (Gail, Leslie and our amazing friend and photographer Roseline) decided to take Bisha Hotel by storm!
Hotel – Look & Feel
If we’re going to stay somewhere in Toronto other than our home, we want it to be stunning! Bisha Hotel provided just that. With its grand opening in November 2017, this beautiful hotel captivated us by adding its own unique style to the Toronto hotel landscape.
When you first walk through the front doors, you are immediately enveloped in a dusky sensuous feeling of upscale indulgence. They have taken great lengths to set the mood from the start, ensuring that you know you are some place special from the time you step through the doors. With its high ceilings, dark walls and floors, the lobby alone makes it such that you can’t help feeling that you’ve entered another world, and that mood permeates every corner of the hotel. They clearly understand how to set the scene for an indulgent experience!
Room
Y’allllllllll! We stayed in the Alexander Suite on the 7th floor which was designed by the one and only Lenny Kravitz and let me tell you, this floor screams glam rock! The suite is 870 square feet of gorgeousness! From the decadent living room to the sumptuous bedroom and life giving outdoor patio, we were agog with just how spectacular this room was.
But, down to the basics. Everything was spotless, the king size bed was ridiculously comfortable, and the room boasted a kitchenette, full bathroom and powder room and a HUGE patio that you can access from both the living room and bedroom areas. One thing to note about the bathroom, if you love long soaks in a deep tub when on vacay, this room may not be for you. The full bathroom has a beautiful walk in shower, but no bathtub.
The room also smelled fresh and allowed for great light with its large windows in the living room and bedroom. The only small issue we had was that the fridge door was frozen closed, and our room key did notwork at first, but the hotel staff fixed those issues in a jiffy!
Hotel Staff
When we were greeted at the front desk by Alejandra, the Assistant Front Office Manager we were treated to one of the warmest and friendliest greetings we’ve ever gotten staying at a hotel. Approachable, welcoming and helpful, the staff put us at ease with their big smiles and desires to make our stay truly memorable. Just for the record, we paid for our stay, so they had no idea we would be doing a review and thus no incentive to treat us extra special. But folks, that is just what they did. Ankit and Sammy get their share of brownie points too for helping us with all our many, many, many bags. Alejandra also provided us with her mobile number so that we could send text messages for any extras we needed in the room (e.g. towels, blankets etc.) rather than having to call down to the front desk. For Leslie who is legally blind, that is really an extra bonus since her mobile phone is already set up to enlarge and or read her messages.Staff definitely get a 10/10!
Accessibility
As Leslie is visually impaired, we always find it important to assess the accessibility of places we go to whether it be the doctor’s office or, in this case, a hotel. Bisha did not disappoint. While for someone who is low vision the lobby is a bit dark , but with wide open spaces there is no real threat of tripping over any obstacles. We also LOVE that right on the hotel website they outline the accessibility features they offer. We were particularly happy to see that they spell out that they will provide verbal instructions for those who are visually impaired. They also outline the width of doorways and transportation for those in wheelchairs which we thought was great as well. We also love that the elevator is not too dark so you can actually see the floor numbers.
It is very important to us that hotels etc. are accessible and recognize that their guests may have different needs. Leslie would love to take a trip one day completely by herself, so she is always closely looking to see what works and what doesn’t work when she is travelling.
Food
DELICIOUS! While we were unable to eat in the restaurant, we were able to order in-room dining. We ordered breakfast, and every single thing we had was yummy. We had:
Breakfast Burrito
Pancakes
Scrambled eggs
Orange juice (to go with our Veuve Cliquot champagne 🙂
Croissants
Peppermint tea
Everything that was supposed to be hot arrived hot, which is so crucial, and the chef understands what seasonings are (yes, we are West Indian, we like a lot of flavor! lol).
Our Hotel Wish List
As we are in the midst of a pandemic and cannot take advantage of all the hotels amenities, it would have been really great if we were offered some little extras. In this case, complimentary drink(s) or bottle of wine, complimentary snacks in the room like a fruit plate and/or cheese tray, or even gift certificate of a certain amount (perhaps $20)to be used towards in-room dining. Just a little something as a token of appreciation would have been nice. These are some of the little extras we’ve received at other hotels we’ve patronized and have really appreciated that type of gesture.
All in all, we are already looking for another date we can stay at BishaHotel. It was an amazing experience and definitely one worth repeating.
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And that’s the long and short of it!
Gail & Leslie xoxo
Photo credit: Roseline Bonheur
Great article, as always.
Author
Thank you Ro!