Brookside Inn Boutique Hotel — Hotel in Abbotsford

My husband had mentioned this hotel to me awhile back when we were living in Abbotsford and so when I needed a place to stay near Tradex for a show, I knew I had to check it out. It didn't disappoint.

My flight was late coming in and the host was lovely enough to call and check up on me when I didn't make the time I had said I'd be there. Throughout the entire trip, you could tell the hosts cared about their guests. They posted their cell phone numbers so I was able to easily text when it turned out I could attend breakfast the following day. I also heard him helping another guest with car rental recommendations and found time to discuss the local bird life with another couple.

I stayed in the Thomas Crown Affair room (btw, I really appreciate movie-themed rooms - I love themes and I love movies). You definitely got the vibe and I thought it was a cute touch having the two movies available on DVD. My only comment was that the art in this room was quite large and a bit... spooky. I wasn't sure how I was going to sleep with all these heads and hands popping out of these sculptures. I think there'd be a bit more elegance to the room without them. BUT - the important thing was that the room was clean. The bed was comfy and even on the ground floor, I had a great view of the lovely retaining wall garden. You can hear noises from the hallway, the dining room above and a bit from the room next door, but after 9pm, it all quiets down so it's not really an issue. Though you may want to be a morning person in this room because you can hear people shuffling in the dining room upstairs typically around 7:30am, but it's not obnoxious.

The real highlight of my entire stay was the breakfast. I mean... I don't like eggs (bizarre, I know) but they served an omelet one day, and poached eggs the other two... and I loved them all. The omelet was the star for me. Beautiful big chunks of sausage with tons of fennel seed... roasted tomatoes and red pepper... spinach, cheese, soooo much fresh basil... and the egg... the egg was so light, fluffy... creamy. I was texting my husband with notes on every detail because I need to attempt recreating this dish. I also can't forget the toast and fruit salad that accompanied each breakfast - yum! Make sure to try the jam.

This will absolutely be my hotel of choice when I'm in town for...

Having stayed at several boutique hotels in the past, we know what to expect from a property that sells itself on the experience. Although the Brookside ticks the boxes on providing a quiet neighbourhood,modern conveniences and friendly host, it lacks in many other areas. The most frustrating is the absence of any housekeeping staff to the point of speculating that the suites have not been cleaned in a very long time. Excessive dust under furniture and on baseboards( anyone with allergies take note), hair pins on bathroom floor, dust on tub ledges, blinds dusty, white doors dirty did not make us comfortable. It was quite evident that none of the floors had been cleaned. We would expect that housekeeping would empty garbage, exchange towels and possibly make the bed. There was no indication at check in that these services would not exist. The 3 snacks in the room are a nice touch for a boutique hotel but only if they haven’t expired 6 months ago. |Breakfast was lacklustre- much the same as you’d find at an economy hotel. |This property has a lot of potential but it appears the owners have lost interest. I’m not sure why the current standing of #1 for the area...

Well, this was a big disappointment to us. We were looking forward to a getaway and for the money, this didn't measure up. The hotel is for sale and it felt to us that the owners were tired and the details showed a lack of care. We were "upgraded" to a room that was not so much to our liking and would have preferred the room we booked. The mattress was past it's best-before date and we moved to the sofa bed in the middle of the night. We wanted to shower, but chose not to because it was moldy and didn't seem clean. The description of the room indicated that there was a coffee service in the room, but it turned out to be instant coffee (7:00am drive to find a coffee shop). There was a large spider web behind the garbage can in the room indicating the lack of attention to basic cleanliness. The continental breakfast was ok, but very basic. Chris was pleasant but was not open to our request for a partial refund when we voiced our unhappiness with the accommodations unless we stayed another night. Why would we want to spend more money on something that we were unhappy with? No thank you. All in all, we can't recommend Brookside as a...