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| | Last Updated: June 25,2008 09:28:21 am |
  ast year, a friend and I had plans to break away to New York for the weekend. It seemed that at every turn, this trip simply wasn't meant to be. I could barely awake from a drunken stupor to get to the train in Kingston. After an ex-con taxi driver brought me to the station, I had to pull a running entrance onto the train- it was literally pulling out of the station when I arrived. In a mixture of ice pellets, rain, ice, and frogs, I finally made it to the Dorval train station, where my friend and I (who had come to Dorval from Montreal), waited endlessly for a shuttle to take us to the Montreal airport. When we finally arrived, our plane had been delayed. Then delayed. Then delayed again. Eventually the pilots decided there was no way in hell they were flying through that shit storm. So we did what any young folks with nowhere to be would do…we put our names on the standby list, and then went to find a corner to settle into for the night. We ate stale peanuts from the magazine stand, we hung out in the multi-faith prayer space, we played on the indoor jungle gym, (much to the chagrin of a couple 4 year olds), then we camped out on the dirty floor of the airport, right in front of the staff lounge where we received many confused looks from airport security on their break. Luckily, we had brought sleeping bags. After not getting any proper rest for fear that our stuff would get stolen, then actually falling asleep from exhaustion, then waking up to discover that our sleeping bags hadn't kept us from lying directly on the wooden floor, with our heads on a hairy carpeted section, we were pissed. And the flight we were hoping to get on? It was full. So we headed into the city and I spent a depressed weekend in Montréal.
Now, why did I tell you that long winded story about a trip that wasn’t? Well, if I had taken that trip today, I would have been able to spend the night in a just opened, oh so stylish room at the aloft hotel at the Montréal airport, where a Dance Dance Revolution tournament or karaoke night would have lifted my spirits.
Moments from baggage claim, aloft, the newest division of the W Hotel chain, has emerged a chic and urban place to stay when you get stranded. But don't just expect a basic room and lobby. This hotel has the amenities and stylishness of a W Hotel at a more accessible price point. With their own lingo (did I mention it's trendy?), the 24 hour gym is referred to as re:charge; an indoor swimming pool, splash; and a very fashionable lobby to meet similarly stranded travelers, re:mix.
With the tagline, "Sassy, Savy, Space," the brand wants you to know that they are more accessible (rooms start at $189), technology aware, and have a different approach to space then the other guy. (Their rooms are indeed loft like, with no dividing walls, just dividing furniture.) Even more cutting edge, the hotel was shaped by Second Life, the parallel universe, where Starwood, who owns the W chain, pushed the aloft brand to see what their guests would and wouldn't like.
With the power of Starwood and the W Hotel brand, this hip Montreal hotel is sure to find a following not only in the stranded, but the fashionable traveler alike. Expect more outlets from aloft in the coming months.
Location
500 McMillan Boulevard, Montreal, QC |
Phone514-633-0900 |
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MBO Montreal :: Hotels
