Trip Advisor awards: are B.C. hotels REALLY that much better than Ontario's?

So, I guess Ontario hotels really suck.

Trip Advisor this week announced its 2013 Travelers' Choice Hotel awards, and British Columbia again kicked some serious booty. Topping the charts for all Canadian hotels was L'Hermitage in Vancouver (see photo below) followed by the Rosewood Hotel Georgia in Vancouver and then Auberge Saint-Antoine in Quebec City.

The next seven in the top 10 were The Loden in Vancouver, the Fairmont Pacific Rim in Vancouver, Sonora Resort on Sonora Island in B.C., The James Hotel in Saskatoon, Long Beach Lodge Resort in Tofino, B.C., First Tracks Lodge in Whistler B.C. and the Wedgewood Hotel and Spa in Vancouver.

That's eight of the top ten spots for British Columbia, and, frankly, I'm at a loss. I've stayed at several of the properties on the list and they're deserving of mention. But eight of ten? Only one in Quebec, and none in Ontario? Nonsense. Utter nonsense.

Conde Nast Travel magazine readers recently named Langdon Hall in Cambridge as the best hotel in the country. It often makes lists of best hotels on the continent. But not a sniff did it get from Trip Advisor.

So what gives? I haven't a clue, to be honest. Maybe the voting is dominated by rich folks from Seattle and North Vancouver. I don't know. But it doesn't make sense to me. And, frankly, all kidding aside about B.C. kicking butt, it makes me wonder about the voting for these awards. And that makes me wonder about Trip Advisor's content in general.

A spokesperson for Trip Advisor wrote to tell me that winners are based on more than 75 million reviews and opinions covering more than 650,000 hotels on TripAdvisor and there's no breakdown by region available.

Anyway, one probably shouldn't expect these things to be scientific. Or really very accurate. And there WERE some properties from Ontario in the top 25. Hotel Le Germain Maple Leaf Square was #13, while the Trump International Hotel and Tower in Toronto grabbed the 17th spot and the Hazelton Hotel in Yorkville was #18.

St. Anne's Spa in Grafton, Ontario, a great spot, was named seventh best small hotel in the country. The WIndsor Arms in Toronto was named eighth best small hotel in Canada, while Woodland Echoes Resort in Magnetawan, Ontario was ninth and the Drake Hotel in Toronto was number 10 in small hotels. Tops in the small hotel category was Echo Valley Ranch and Spa in, wait for it, Jesmond, B.C. The next four also were B.C. properties: Abigail's Hotel in Victoria, Clayoquot Wilderness Resort in Tofino, Eagle Nook Resort and Spa in Barkley Sound and, in the fifth spot, Hastings House on Salt Spring Island. Really? All of the top five in B.C.?

At least things were better for Ontario in the B and B/Inns category. Tops was Chesterman Beach Bed and Breakfast in Tofino, B.C., but then came Greystone Manor in Niagara Falls, Cecile's House in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Historic Davy House in NOTL and, in the number five spot, Serenity Ranch B and B in Hamilton, and good for Hamilton I say! La Toscana di Carlotta in Niagara-on-the-Lake was eighth in the B and B/Inns category.

As for the U.S., Hawaii did awfully well in the general hotels category. Tops was the Four Seasons Hualalai on the Big Island of Hawaii (also named best in the world; see photo at left), followed by the Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea and Bardessono in Yountville in the Napa Valley of California. Once again, both Delaware and North Dakota got shut out of the top 10 in the hotels category. So I guess Ontario folks shouldn't feel too badly.....

JAUNT.CA DEAL OF THE DAY

Jaunt.ca, a division of Torstar, has the following deal for a four-star stay in Venice. The deal goes for $1,912 ($1,379 plus $543 in taxes) and includes air fare on rouge, Air Canada's new airline.

Jaunt Highlights

• BONUS: Extend your stay for no additional charge (based on flight availability)
• BONUS: Includes a Venice Walking tour complete with a scenic Gondola ride and a St. Mark’s Square Highlights Tour with line skipping privileges!
  
• 7-nightstay at the 4-Star La Fenice et des Artistes Hotel (or similar), located in Venice, Italy
• Includes return airfare from multiple gateways within Canada (see below)  to Venice, Italy
• Accommodations in a standard quest room (Maximum occupancy: 2 adults)

• Enjoy flying on rouge, Air Canada's new leisure airline designed for comfortable, stylish and easy travel
• Enjoy 7 nights to explore Venice on your own, with a guided walking tour and Gondola ride included
• Beautiful Venetian-style accommodations are included

Offer Details

• Valid for travel on the following departure dates:
  All Gateways: July 7 and 14, 2013
• Pricing (Rates are per person):
  
  Toronto:
  Double: $1379 plus tax
  Tax: $543
  
  Montreal:
  Double: $1931 plus tax
  Tax included
  
  Ottawa:
  Double: $1379 plus tax
  Tax: $545
  
  Calgary:
  Double: $1659 plus tax
  Tax: $550
  
  Edmonton:
  Double: $1659 plus tax
  Tax: $550
  
  Vancouver:
  Double: $1659 plus tax
  Tax: $546
  
  Halifax:
  Double: $1509 plus tax
  Tax: $552
  
  St. John's:
  Double: $1509 plus tax
  Tax: $545
  
  Winnipeg:
  Double: $1549 plus tax
  Tax: $544
• Valid passport required for travel from Canada
• This offer is 100% non-refundable at time of booking

 

 

 

Comments

[Steve Lockwood]

Cool article. It makes sense to me that a demographic of people can have control over voting and, based off of preference and location, change the results of how something turns out. I've been to B.C. and I enjoyed it but I've never been to Ontario. I have a friend looking to book a hotel in Edmonton do you have any reviews about hotels in Edmonton?

[Annie]

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