Two hotels, same chain; Toronto vs. Gravenhurst

The ongoing saga of our Toronto/Muskoka trip!

Marriott Toronto

I found it interesting. We stayed at the Marriott on Bay St., in Toronto on business (the ODPRN Citizen's Panel). Then traveled up to Muskoka to stay in the one in Gravenhurst on our points. A little bonus trip. The price, posted on the back of the door, $900. Seriously. We got the seniors discount rate!

The Toronto hotel was a little older, and didn't have some of the basics. It was a king-sized bed, nice big TV, too. The view was of St. Andrew's  Church, and some of the skyline.

The parking was $35/day, while in Muskoka it was free.
The bathroom would be better with a fan. Also, a make-up mirror. Being near-sighted it was awkward for both of us, shaving and/or applying makeup. I had to use the full-length mirror in the Toronto room hall.

The city is lovely to visit, although after our quiet wetland it became somewhat intense!
This first photo is the view from our 4th floor hotel room. The 2nd, the church as viewed from the street.

You can rent bicycles! Also, a patio has been created for the restaurant, on a city street...

So many people begging for spare change.

These set of fountains were spectacular. Lots of people around and through it. 

Downstairs, in the hotel, there is a bar and dining area, which lead to the outdoors, and the plaza. The beaded curtain around the one table was a hoot! Specialty coffee and a glass of wine, $22.00!  High living!

Residence Inn Marriott in Gravenhurst

Off we went, through the city, west to Black Creek Drive, north up highway #400. I used to love driving up Avenue Rd., where I would walk to my gramma's house on Cottingham, from Cottingham P.S., but it sure has changed, and traffic was quite something.

The Residence Inn Marriott in Gravenhurst was a nice room, with a spacious kitchenette. It's a whole different target audience. The room was huge, but still I tripped over JB as I was beetling around getting organized for the day. With the cool nights, I would have liked to have opened the sliding glass doors, but I couldn't figure out how to turn off the A/C!

The bathroom was spacious, which I love. The TV was able to swivel, and I could watch some of the news or Olympics while I made myself beautiful. <SNORT>

Problem with the sink: the counter edge was too deep, and being short I had trouble leaning over whilst brushing or washing.

Then there are the towels... Now, travelers know that they always put a card in stating, if you want to reuse your towels and save the earth, hang them back up. We did this in BOTH hotels. Nevertheless, they were always replaced. Truthfully!
The kitchenette was a nice bonus, except I really don't like cooking on vacation.




The boats came and went. We sat out on the balcony, I had some wine, while hubby beetled around looking for a place to eat. The room had a balcony, with a view of the public docks. It would be nice if they painted the boathouses, as they look a bit the worse for wear!


Also, down below were the BBQs that guest could use, plus tables, a fire pit and chairs. The smoke from the BBQ only lasted a short while, thankfully. So different from the big city.


Boston Pizza was around the bay. Off we went for dinner. It is a lovely bay. The problem is that one used to be able to actually see it before they built these condos and the inn. Many of the stores are failing, or closed. The restaurants anchor the bay.


The condos were built first, and then they built the hotel. I would have been ticked off, myself! The hotel was built right in front of a condo, and blocks everyone's view of the bay. We stayed here before, on points. It was October, 2013.

The hotel under construction!
My archival photo.

And the sun set.