Montreal Smart Splurges

This 1,039-room hotel is located downtown, directly above the trains of Central Station; its most famous guests, John Lennon and Yoko Ono, staged their illustrious weeklong bed-in peace protest here in 1969. Gold room guests enjoy an exclusive bar, complimentary canapés, and an on-call secretary, but traditional guests are also treated to perks like high-speed Internet access (at an additional cost) and breathtaking city views. Dine at the Beaver Club, one of the hotel’s two restaurants and one of the highest-rated in the country. Afternoon tea, complete with finger sandwiches and pastries, is served daily in the Tea Lounge from 2:30 to 6pm.

Situated Downtown, close to Montreal’s Museum of Fine Arts, Loews Hotel Vogue offers its guests, which range from the everyday traveler to business execs to celebrity personalities, an overall good value. Boasting “the largest, most luxurious bathrooms in town,” bathrooms are indeed a show-stealer in the units here, with marble vanities, over-sized jetted tubs, glass-enclosed showers, and flat-screen TVs, to boot. Plus, a select number of its 142 guestrooms (including 16 suites) contain romantic canopy beds, perfect for canoodling. Services such as 24-hour in-room dining (including a gourmet menu for any furry friends) and the staff’s “if you need it, we’ll get it” attitude are laudable, as is the complimentary guest access to the nearby Club Sportiff MAA, a luxury fitness center and spa. Hit up the hotel’s stylish L’Opera Bar for front-row views of the fashionable Golden Square Mile esplanade.

With avant-garde fashion designer Marie Saint Pierre’s fingerprint on Le Germain’s spring 2009 renovations, you can bet the décor screams stylish design. In addition to a female staff outfitted in her frocks, the hotel’s 101 spacious rooms (including a pair of bi-level apartment suites) are dressed in the designer’s feather-filled bedding and updated with locally-crafted furnishings and sophisticated technological tricks, like 42-inch flat-screens, energy-saving lights, and Bang & Olufsen cordless phones. Rates include a breakfast of fresh eggs, juices, and croissants at the onsite Laurie Raphael restaurant (a magnet for authentic Quebecois cuisine) – plus free espresso in the adjacent lobby coffee bar. The pet-friendly property provides dog beds in your pooch’s size, and even pet-sitting services (for an additional charge). With an excellent downtown location next to McGill University, ask for a front-facing room with views of Avenue du President Kennedy.

Montreal’s crown-jewel property occupies an 1870 building in the heart of the old quarter. Lavish chandeliers, velvet curtains, and fine antiques define its 61 rooms, while details like complimentary shoe-shine, chauffeured Rolls-Royce, a magnificent library, and traditional afternoon tea service set the tone in service. Rock-star wannabes can up the ante by following in the Rolling Stones’ and Madonna's footsteps and booking the two-bedroom Terrace Apartment for $5,000 per night. Dinner at the hotel restaurant, the XO, is an exquisite affair, or you can show up for cocktail hour and expect a plate of canapés with your drink order.

A minimalist décor of clean lines and muted tones provides the backdrop for chef Normand...more

A sense of secrecy and exclusivity prevails at Le Club Chasse et Pêche (the hunting and fishing...more