Oh what a tumultuous stay this one was, thought not awful, I slept well. I had been going to the WTI since I was in my teens, now in my mid thirties, thought it would be great to rekindle with an old home and get my own room. Went to the Sault because I had a lot of running around to do and the daily commute from home, up and down the mile hill, twice a day, would just drain me.
The hotel itself has not had any major overhauls since I first went there. When you're a kid, it's amazing, a really hot, classy hotel. As an adult, seems to be lacking. Had room problems since I got there, mostly water related; scald risk, if you need noodles cooked, no need for a microwave, so be careful. I did alert front desk, this could have all be resolved by now. Other big issue was water quality, seems like it's very chlorinated, to a point where I did not want to go in the jetted tub due to the strong smell of chlorine. Being a perfectionist, what would allude everyone else will not go unnoticed nor unspoken of with me.
Didn't even have time to go down the gym or Club Cabana as I was mostly in-room bound for most my stay as I was catching up on overdue IT chores. I gotta say, for peace and quiet, I was well served, like most Best Western Hotels, the sound proofing was very adequate, if I don't hear neighbors at all or only faintly, it's good sound proofing.
Staff though, bang on, this was darn near Fairmont level, all that was missing was turn down service. I remember one of their workers went all over the place looking for my glasses as I was going crazy over how to divide myself, this was a Fairmont Moment at Best Western; congrats!! This same staffer saved a sale, I was going to leave out of discontent for the room quality but she went above and beyond to find me a room that would suit my needs.
Too bad I didn't get to converse with housekeeping a lot but it's pretty much the same across all Best Westerns, though in situations like I was dealing with, my time was timed down to the last minute. I usually interact with housekeepers a lot but time had me tied down to.
Toiletries are pretty good, this one is the peppermint smelling one. I am a tad divided on their effectiveness, I seem to need a lot more brushing than usual but I do not mind the spider repellent property; Shea Butter soap is great too. Like in most Best Western Hotels, your portions are limited but staff will give you more as needed. Having long hair, I use more than others, never had issues getting more.... usually isn't the case, I end up being a walking advertisement for their hair care product. Some hotels, I go back just because of their awesome toiletries.
For food, there is Casey's and The Pub, which I went to the former twice and the latter, none. I'm a peace and quiet seeker and therefore, the Pub was out of the question, way too loud for me. Casey's was ok, I will do a separate review on them later but this is about the Water Tower Inn!! Oh and forgot to mention that there is probably the best McDonald's in all of Northern Ontario right in across the street? The hotel has Starbucks available but I don't really like Starbucks and will go great distances to avoid them... yup, much prefer go get Micky D's in the rain than have Tarbuck's delivered to my room.
The rooms themselves need a lot of work, lots of things I didn't like that needs work, to where I was like: is this a hotel or a motel? Waterworks needs work, bad. One of my "jetted tubs" was replacing hot water with cold one, literally, engineering could not figure it out why that was. Most those jetted tubs are essentially a fishbowl bubbler, there is no actual jet action. The only ones who do are the old model but it is available. Make sure you specify your preference.
Other thing is, the water is chlorinated though it is drinkable if thirsty; lifestraw is advised. The jetted tubs definitely are, they start smelling strong of chlorine after 15-20 minutes, it become unbareable and headaches start to show themselves.
Coolest feature is the fireplace, it's an actual fireplace where you light an actual log. I also like the fact I can open windows, due to my disability, fresh, cool air on demand is a big selling point for me. The heating system is decent, though I used the wood stove most the time for heat, was not that cold out.
Security is rather low too here too, as are most small town Best Western Hotels but you can have eyes on target (your car) from your room or I parked mine close to the main entrance so staff could easily monitor the parking lot. As are most Best Western hotels, no room safes.
Would I recommend It: Depends to who, if you require top notch accommodations, then this is not for you. If you want a nice, locally historical hotel, with some of the best, Best Western staff in Ontario and can live with a few imperfections, then absolutely. If you're are looking for top of the line everything, then this is not for you. However, I would be more bound to recommend it than not.
Generally, I would rate this 3 stars due to room issues and making me change room a few times, though some staff went above and beyond for me and making sure I get a good night's sleep in a room that was up to my (very high) standards, so I gave the Fairmont level star, since I never seen this type of service out of a Best Western hotel.... I never done this but I was amazed; it warrants it.
Will I go back? Well, next time, no, I have greater expectations when it comes to hotels as I love to bask in luxury and this one had its day. Though for the price and quality you will have a hard time finding better.
I am overall pleased with my stay but I would recommend to spend a great deal on modernizing the hotel, some of the rooms are absolute bacteria havens and the hot water can easily, seriously maim someone who is unsuspecting. When you see steam coming off of the hot water tap, I think it's grounds for greater attention.
Though compared to some other Best Westerns I been to, this one is probably the best one I been to this year.
Pros:
-On site dining
-Club Cabana
-Quiet
-Comfortable bed
-Toiletries
-Sharp staff
Cons:
-Needs a lot of TLC
-Waterworks
-Low selection of snacks less