One of my resolutions this year is to travel locally with the family. The holidays were stressful – decorating the house, shopping and wrapping presents, planning dinner parties and then rescheduling them due to ice storms, snow storms and a polar vortex.

My husband and I agreed we needed quick staycation getaway with the kids to decompress from all the holiday chaos.

The Fairmont Royal York in Toronto was our home away from home while we played tourist in our home city.

Located directly across from Union Station (Via Rail, TTC and GO Train all have stops here) and walking distance to several tourist attractions – CN Tower, Ripley’s Aquarium, Rogers Centre and the Hockey Hall of Fame, it is one of the city’s oldest and most loved hotels.

Furnished in traditional décor, the lobby is similar to the Fairmont Olympic Hotel in Seattle I visited a few years ago.

Huge floral arrangements, a grand staircase and intricate designs carved into wood panels on the ceiling greeted us after the valet took our car into the garage.

The Fairmont Royal York’s Deluxe Rooms

Our third floor 500 square foot Deluxe Room was larger than most rooms we’ve stayed in during our travels and the kids were quick to notice.Two double beds, a pull out sofa bed in the sitting area and a small dining table got the thumbs up from a five and two year old.

The Fairmont Royal York is in the process of a huge renovation (inside and out) and with 200 out of the 1300+ rooms complete, we were unable to reserve an updated room due to the hotel being sold out the weekend we visited.

The room was looking a bit dated with some parts of the wallpaper fading, worn out edges on the dining room chairs and a squeaky washroom door. The aesthetics weren’t our priority as we were there to relax.

The down blankets on the beds were so comfy, it was difficult to get out of bed in the morning.

We had requested bed rails for the kids and finding one of the two we requested required playing telephone tag with the front desk for three hours.

It was a small blip during our stay but nothing that caused us a great amount of stress. We improvised and used some of the dining table chairs to barricade the other side of the bed.

Breakfast at EPIC at the Fairmont Royal York

We decided to stay close to our room and had breakfast at EPIC.

Many diners chose to have the breakfast buffet but we opted to order à la carte.

The kids ordered Bob the Builder’s Pancake Tower and Kermit’s Healthy Breakfast from the children’s menu while my husband and I noshed on Crab Benedict and a Lobster, Asparagus and Brie Omelette (not pictured – we loved it so much we forgot to take a photo of it!).

Why Stay at The Fairmont Royal York

The Fairmont Royal York is a fabulous place to stay for a weekend of family fun in downtown Toronto.

There’s a swimming pool, hot tub and small children’s wading pool on property. The weekend we visited it was very quiet and the kids loved having the children’s pool to themselves.

The Fairmont Royal Yorkis connected to the PATH – a huge network of pedestrian tunnels connecting shops, restaurants, office towers, tourist attractions and food courts. TTC (Toronto’s public transit system) bus stops and subway train stations are only a few steps away as well making this hotel ideal for families who want to avoid driving downtown or renting a car.

With several restaurants on property and the PATH system, there’s many dining options for Royal York’s guests to choose from.

We left the Fairmont Royal York relaxed and ready to return to the craziness we left behind. And our Christmas tree finally got put back into storage last week!

Know Before You Go

The Fairmont Royal York is going under massive renovation. Streets are closed down and the front entrance is blocked off for pedestrians only. This actually worked in our favour and made it easy to walk to and from attractions.

In room WiFi is complimentary for Fairmont Presidents Club guests (their loyalty program is free to join here).

Parking around the hotel is hard to find due to road closures and renovation. Public parking lots are near by and the only option for parking at the hotel is valet which is $48 per night.

Children aged 5 and under eat free from the children’s menu while kids aged 6-12 eat for half price when ordering from the regular menu at EPIC.

More About Fairmont Royal York

Address: 100 Front Street W, Toronto, Ontario M5JIE3
Price Range: $$$$
Hotel Class: 4 stars
Reviews: Over 78% of reviewers rated this hotel Very Good or Excellent
Availability: Click here for rates and availability

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