Westlake Boutique Hotel — Hotel in Toronto

I wish I could give a higher rating but there were certain things that happened and noticed during our stay that I want to make others aware of.

First off, the room we stayed in was super trendy and cute and so was the entire Westlake aesthetic. We stayed in the Neverly Hills suite and it looked just like the pictures (however, slightly smaller but that's common when booking Airbnb or hotel rooms, so nothing against that).

Aside from the room and entire look and feel of the property, there were other things I found to be problematic and I believe can be improved upon:

Check-in: There was a mix-up with my confirmation email and I did not receive the proper information until 45 minutes or so after expected arrival. I was told this was a system glitch so I couldn't really say much about that. However, I tried to reach the hotel manager multiple times prior to making our way down to the property and he did not respond to my calls. This brings me to my next point... Service: Unfortunately, there is no one at the actual property that you can communicate with and the person you are to communicate with (Andy) is not as responsive as we expected. Other reviews have stated otherwise but out of the numerous amount of times we contacted Andy, he communicated through phone somewhat the best. He didn't always answer. Texts were not much better. He responded I believe twice. And as far as emails go, I had to communicate through the Westlake's Instagram page to try and get someone to communicate to him that I was waiting on his replies. Not a great experience in terms of overall service. Location: I wouldn't have rated the location of this property as low as I am if it wasn't for the fact that it's attached to a male strip club. I have in fact been to that entertainment facility years back and it's not a safe environment to be around, especially if you're travelling and staying with children. We luckily didn't run into any issues but upon leaving, I noticed a lot of broken glass around the front of the property. It seemed like it was from broken beer glasses. There could have been an altercation but we weren't woken by anything. However, seeing that made me happy to be leaving the area. Cleanliness: Beds were clean and very comfy. Bathroom was clean. But I do wish I would have taken pictures because the sponge left behind for us was disgusting and full of caked-on food. The fleece blanket in the living room had hard residue on it. Definitely hadn't been washed. I also noticed a dark brownish red stain on one of the pillows and it could have been one of two things: chocolate or blood. Looked more like a period stain in my opinion... Definitely in need of better cleaning staff. Technical Issues: Okay, this was a major and annoying problem. Our remote for the TV did not work properly. It was very odd. Only certain buttons were working. We contacted Andy and he did accommodate us by allowing us to get another remote from an unoccupied room but even after switching to a different remote, we still had the same issue, so that was a total of two remotes not working properly. We literally had to hope that whatever movie we landed on we would like. The volume was a nightmare as well. Other Notes: One of the reasons I booked this particular room was because it had a full kitchen. However, the stove is for warming purposes only. When I contacted Andy to ask if we could cook on the stove, he never responded. I was annoyed that we had to order dinner twice as our intent was to cook a simple meal one of the evenings we were there. Another issue was that there was only one roll of toilet paper supplied. I read in other reviews that there is plenty of toilet paper in the building but I shouldn't have to contact the manager about toilet paper when it's customary to include more than one roll for visitors... I usually see three when I've stayed at other properties. There was an abundance of towels so that was great and the shower was lovely.

Most of these things can be improved on and I hope they are for...

We stayed at the Westlake in the 'Netflix and Chill' suite for only one night. Overall, we enjoyed our stay, but there's room for improvement for sure.

The cons, • Our suite faced the road (Lakeshore) so there was audible traffic noise such as street cars. There isn't much soundproofing from the inside either, you can hear everything in the hallways although compared to other reviews we were fortunate that there was no parties or 'club sounds' the night we stayed. I'd suggest bringing ear plugs if you're a light sleeper

• There is a street light right outside the windows by the beds, there are only shutters, no blackout curtains so light does shine through, so bring an eyemask if you're jet lagged and need sleep during the day. Speaking of the windows, I double checked that they were locked before sleeping and they were all left unlocked, the top pane even slid down by itself and was very challenging to get closed again.

• We weren't able to get hot water in the bathroom sink, fortunately the kitchenette tap worked so we just used that.

• Only one stool in kitchen but room can accommodate 4? No full length mirror in room. Would also be nice to have a luggage rack so you don't have to put suitcase on bed or floors.

• We paid a $50 cleaning fee in the reservation, but it felt like the room could have been cleaner. There was something spilled on the bathroom floor, the toilet brush cover had mold (or something black...) covering the lid, the bedframes/Headboard had hair and dust between each post and there was stains on the carpet. Minimal towels provided. There was two cannisters of 'coffee' and 'sugar' on the counter in kitchen but it looked like it might have been items left behind by other guests; a mismatch of brands, very few random sugar packets and some tea bags unwrapped. No tissue/Kleenex provided. All of these things could be easily forgiven, but knowing we paid 1/3 the reservation on cleaning makes it a tougher pill to swallow.

Pros,

• Didn't use them, however clothing Steamer and hair dryer provided. I always prefer a Steamer over iron, so this is appreciated

• Lobby smelled wonderful and was very clean. Security was present when I arrived back around 11:30pm, very friendly.

• Many street parking options nearby

• Room very aestheticly pleasing, a good size, bed and pillows comfortable, variety of lighting options

• There was an information book highlighting boardgames for loan as well as VR headset rentals.

• Kitchen well equipped with newer appliances, and dishware

• Check in was easy

Summary: would likely give this place another try next time I'm in the city, given it's nightly rate and location. It seems from other reviews that management is open to making enhancements from feedback so only...

EDIT with my response to owner:*

At 11pm it was near impossible to find alternate accommodations. I had a conference to be at for 9am.

You did not at any time offer to clean the suite. I did NOT refuse a refund. A late check out did not serve me any purpose as I had other commitments. I will now add the pictures of the mold, it was truly horrific and you are undermining the seriousness of the issue. I’m sure the health board would not allow you to rent out space in this condition. You should be reimbursing the entire first nights stay.

PROS AND CONS

We booked our stay in the BAD AND BOUGIE SUITE. Upon arrival, we realized this is NOT A HOTEL. It’s similar to an Airbnb but there are no dishes, cutlery, pots and pans, or other amenities you would normally find.

I opened the door to our room and immediately experienced a strong smell of mold. I opened the bathroom door to see much of the ceiling covered in BLACK MOLD. It was so intense I was really struggling to breathe.

There is no staff on site. You are sent an email the day of arrival telling you to text for any problems. There was a prompt response to my text, which was professional in nature. However, they told me no other room was available for us to switch to until the next day. It was late and finding another place to stay at this time was not viable.

There was also NO HEAT in our room. It was freezing all night. There is a MALE STRIP CLUB downstairs which is very noisy. Don’t expect to get a restful sleep. The living room seating was DIRTY and aged. The only outside window was facing an outdoor shared patio area.

No discount was offered for the night we spent struggling to breathe in mold and freezing temperatures. After I caused a fuss, they offered 10% off ($45). Minuscule considering the health effects.

The next day they moved us to the NETFLIX AND CHILL SUITE.

The bathroom was freshly cleaned and smelled good. There was no smell of mold, however some was visible on the bathroom ceiling. The suite was less than half the size of our original suite, and had no seating area. Although The room was much brighter and had windows. When looking under the end table, there was a large chunk of food and a thick coating of hair/dust. The dresser had a chunk of something on the outside of the drawer.

Both rooms clearly have NO CLEANING person looking after it correctly, however the Netflix room was much better then the bad and bougie.

I absolutely would NOT recommend.

Not of the quality I expect in accommodations. Only gave two stars because of the quick response time and fact they eventually moved us rooms.

My lungs are still bothering me two days later. I’m shocked anyone would rent out a space in...