Review: Four Seasons Toronto

2 months ago 20

Earlier this year, I enjoyed my first-ever enactment with Four Seasons, and what amended spot to get acquainted with the marque than astatine its archetypal determination successful Toronto?

Four Seasons has 1 of the loftiest reputations among the world’s large edifice chains, and I had heard galore astonishing accounts astir the marque implicit the years, including its unparalleled level of service.

As a result, I surely had precise precocious expectations arsenic I arrived astatine the Four Seasons Toronto to observe what the hype was each about.

Four Seasons Toronto – Booking

Given the Four Seasons Toronto’s determination successful 1 of the city’s astir desirable neighbourhoods and its lavish estimation arsenic a whole, prices present decidedly don’t travel cheap. Expect to wage $700–1,200 (CAD) for a regular room, depending connected the clip of year.

For afloat disclosure, I was capable to publication this enactment astatine a favourable manufacture rate.

Note that dissimilar galore of the fashionable chains, specified arsenic Marriott Bonvoy and World of Hyatt, Four Seasons doesn’t connection a loyalty programme successful the accepted consciousness with points and elite status. Instead, Four Seasons lone offers a much exclusive, invitation-only impermanent designation presumption to prime fewer clientele who walk important amounts with the brand. 

Fortunately, there’s inactive a mode to get other worth retired of a Four Seasons stay. By booking your enactment done the Four Seasons Preferred Partner program, you tin bask exclusive further benefits and perks astatine nary other cost, including complimentary meal for two, a $100 (USD) spot credit, and more.

Moreover, Four Seasons Preferred Partner differs from different comparable programs, similar Virtuoso oregon Amex Fine Hotels & Resorts, arsenic its ain bookings instrumentality precedence successful presumption of upgrades, aboriginal check-in, and precocious check-out requests.

What’s more, you’re capable to harvester each promotional rates with Preferred Partner benefits, including connected prepaid and promotional rates successful summation to flexible oregon afloat refundable rates.

Four Seasons Toronto – Location

The Four Seasons Toronto is situated astatine the intersection of Bay Street and Yorkville Avenue, smack dab successful the mediate of Toronto’s ritziest neighbourhood of Yorkville.

Between luxury boutiques and fine-dining venues, the country is besides somewhat of a depository hub, with the Royal Ontario Museum, Gardiner Museum, and the Bata Shoe Museum each wrong 15 minutes of the edifice by foot.

The edifice offers casual entree to astir of Toronto’s astir charismatic sights and neighbourhoods, though you’ll apt person to instrumentality transit to get to immoderate of the landmarks connected the different broadside of Downtown Toronto. 

Just westbound of the edifice is The Annex, a historical neighbourhood with trendy restaurants and shops. Kensington Market and the Entertainment District are a tenable region from the hotel, and tin beryllium reached successful astir 15 minutes by car oregon 30 minutes by transit.

Furthermore, Bay Street TTC Station is simply a one-minute locomotion away, portion Bloor–Yonge TTC Station is an eight-minute locomotion away. Many of Toronto’s cardinal attractions, specified arsenic the Eaton Centre, Scotiabank Arena, Rogers Centre, oregon the CN Tower, are an casual 20-minute thrust connected the TTC from there.

If you’re travelling from Toronto Pearson International Airport, it typically takes astir 40–50 minutes to scope the Four Seasons by vehicle, depending connected traffic. Alternatively, you tin instrumentality the UP Express bid to Union Station, past transportation to the TTC and caput northbound to Bloor–Yonge Station.

From Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport, it’s astir a 30-minute thrust by car, oregon you tin hop connected the airport’s escaped shuttle autobus to Union Station and marque your mode to the edifice by TTC.

Four Seasons Toronto – Check-in

As I approached the 55-storey high-rise gathering crafted from solid and steel, I noted its sleek and modern façade that nicely complemented the trendy Yorkville locale.

Four Seasons Toronto – Exterior
Four Seasons Toronto – Exterior

The main entranceway of the edifice is situated straight connected Yorkville Avenue, and commands attraction with a striking porte-cochère. A solid canopy adorned successful leafy embellishments jets retired implicit the driveway among an idyllic plot and a calming h2o feature.

Four Seasons Toronto – Exterior

There’s besides a abstracted entranceway to the edifice connected Bay Street, starring towards the hotel’s signature restaurant, Café Boulud. 

Four Seasons Toronto – Entrance

Stepping inside, I recovered myself instantly immersed successful the luxury of the Four Seasons brand.

The lobby is separated into its ain chiseled spaces via elegant metallic signifier partitions, allowing guests to determination done the lobby with a greater consciousness of privacy.

Four Seasons Toronto – Lobby lounge
Four Seasons Toronto – Lobby lounge
Four Seasons Toronto – Lobby lounge

The abstraction progresses from the reception to the lobby, a lounge area, and past yet arriving astatine the hotel’s bar.

Four Seasons Toronto – Lobby lounge
Four Seasons Toronto – Lobby lounge
Four Seasons Toronto – Lobby lounge

At the clip of my enactment during the wintertime period, a pop-up après-ski country was acceptable up successful the lobby area, inspired by the hotel’s sister spot successful Whistler.

Four Seasons Toronto – Pop-up après skis area

The beforehand table subordinate assisted maine with check-in, and informed maine that I had been proactively offered an “upgraded” Yorkville Premier King Room.

However, I’d enactment that each the impermanent rooms astatine this spot are akin successful their size and arrangements, and the assorted country categories simply correspond to higher floors.

I was assigned Room 2015 connected the 20th floor, and attentively escorted to the elevator lobby.

Four Seasons Toronto – Elevators
Four Seasons Toronto – Room 2015

Four Seasons Toronto – Yorkville Premier King Room

Upon entering the Yorkville Premier King Room, I was greeted by a foyer that led to a spacious and beautifully appointed room.

Four Seasons Toronto – Yorkville Premier King Room foyer

The country features a alternatively understated elegance, with brushed light-wood walls that supply a calming backdrop for the plush furnishings.

Four Seasons Toronto – Yorkville Premier King Room bedroom
Four Seasons Toronto – Yorkville Premier King Room bedroom

A king furniture sits connected the left-hand wall, complemented by an accentuated headboard and a cozy seat astatine its foot.

Four Seasons Toronto – Yorkville Premier King Room bed

Positioned connected the other partition was a flat-screen TV and a lengthy console, which housed the Nespresso java maker. Adjacent to it, a well-stocked minibar featured premium bottles of liquor.

Four Seasons Toronto – Yorkville Premier King Room minibar
Four Seasons Toronto – Yorkville Premier King Room java maker

A modern oak table and sitting country were located astatine the acold extremity of the room, implicit with a plush curved sofa tucked into the corner. As a thoughtful touch, a invited enactment and caller effect had been proactively placed connected the array upon my arrival.

Four Seasons Toronto – Yorkville Premier King Room desk
Four Seasons Toronto – Yorkville Premier King Room seating area
Four Seasons Toronto – Yorkville Premier King Room invited gifts

The country offered sweeping views of Toronto done its floor-to-ceiling windows. Guests staying successful a Yorkville Premier King Room are treated to expansive northeast- oregon northwest-facing views of the metropolis from the vantage constituent of a precocious floor.

Positioned adjacent the room’s entrance, a tiny closet is disposable to store belongings.

Four Seasons Toronto – Yorkville Premier King Room closet

The afloat granite bath was striking, with a azygous vanity playing location to expansive mirrors with illuminating LED lights. The bath besides features a freestanding bathtub, and the toilet and ablution are concealed down frosted solid doors.

Four Seasons Toronto – Yorkville Premier King Room bathroom
Four Seasons Toronto – Yorkville Premier King Room shower
Four Seasons Toronto – Yorkville Premier King Room toilet

In keeping with the Four Seasons’s estimation for top-notch amenities, turndown work is provided successful the evening – a luxurious interaction that’s ever appreciated. Plus, in-room tablets connection entree to on-demand housekeeping and the concierge service.

Four Seasons Toronto – Yorkville Premier King Room tablet

The Four Seasons is good known for its comfy beds, but possibly owed to my hectic slumber patterns astir this time, I didn’t rather consciousness it connected this occasion.

The furniture felt a spot excessively steadfast for my liking, adjacent though I’m idiosyncratic who usually prefers to slumber connected harder surfaces.

However, I’ve since learned that Four Seasons hotels are capable to customize the firmness of the furniture for each guest, which is simply a diagnostic I’d similar to effort retired connected aboriginal stays with the brand. 

Four Seasons Toronto – Premier Room

I had a accidental to scope retired a fewer of the different country types astatine the Four Seasons Toronto, the archetypal being the base-level Premier Room.

Four Seasons Toronto – Premier Room bedroom

The plan and layout of the country was successful keeping with the Yorkville Premier Room that I had stayed in. This peculiar country seemed to beryllium much conducive to moving than lounging, arsenic it had 2 armchairs successful lieu of a sofa, but a overmuch larger desk.

Four Seasons Toronto – Premier Room desk
Four Seasons Toronto – Premier Room armchairs
Four Seasons Toronto – Premier Room java maker

The bath was besides virtually identical to the 1 successful my room, with a bathtub, beauteous dual vanity, and the ablution and toilet concealed astatine the back.

Four Seasons Toronto – Premier Room bathroom

Four Seasons Toronto – Deluxe One-Bedroom Suite

Next up, I toured the Deluxe One-Bedroom Suite, which is the base-level suite astatine the Four Seasons Toronto. The layout is rather standard, with a abstracted chamber and surviving area, perfect for those seeking a spot of other abstraction and privacy.

Four Seasons Toronto – Deluxe One-Bedroom Suite bedroom

The country is precise spacious, with a plush king bed, adjacent armchair, full-sized sofa, and a lengthy table positioned astatine the window.

Four Seasons Toronto – Deluxe One-Bedroom Suite seating area
Four Seasons Toronto – Deluxe One-Bedroom Suite seating area

Four Seasons Toronto – Corner One-Bedroom Suite

The Corner One-Bedroom Suite is akin successful layout to the Deluxe One-Bedroom Suite, occupying the country of the gathering with earthy airy coming successful from 2 sides. 

The surviving country is implicit with a ample plush L-shaped sofa and a table connected the other wall, portion the chamber had a elemental layout, playing big to conscionable a king bed.

Four Seasons Toronto – Corner One-Bedroom Suite surviving room
Four Seasons Toronto – Corner One-Bedroom Suite flat-screen TV & desk
Four Seasons Toronto – Corner One-Bedroom Suite bed

The bath features a lengthy bathtub that runs on an interior wall, arsenic good arsenic a gangly LED-backlit reflector adjacent to a azygous vanity.

Four Seasons Toronto – Corner One-Bedroom Suite bathroom

Four Seasons Toronto – Presidential Suite

The Presidential Suite astatine Four Seasons Toronto is the hotel’s second-highest suite benignant (after the highest Royal Suite), and it’s of an immaculate size. The surviving country unsocial is expansive, with 4 chiseled seating areas.

Four Seasons Toronto – Presidential Suite surviving room

There are 2 seating areas, 1 featuring 2 full-length sofas, and the 2nd featuring 1 ample L-shaped sofa and an armchair.

Four Seasons Toronto – Presidential Suite seating area
Four Seasons Toronto – Presidential Suite seating area

In the cardinal country has barroom seating for four, and past adjacent is simply a eating array that tin accommodate up to 8 people.

Four Seasons Toronto – Presidential Suite eating area

At the suite’s entrance, there’s a afloat equipped room with a fridge, stove, dishwasher, and sink.

Four Seasons Toronto – Presidential Suite kitchen

To the close is the main bedroom, implicit with a plush king bed, curved sofa, armchair, and a stunning ensuite bathroom.

Four Seasons Toronto – Presidential Suite bedroom

The bath was immaculate, with a circular bathtub successful the centre, a beauteous treble vanity with vas sinks that matched the bathtub.

Four Seasons Toronto – Presidential Suite bathroom

The suite besides features a half-bathroom and an expansive wardrobe.

Overall, the Yorkville Premier King Room I stayed successful was elegant and well-equipped, striking a equilibrium betwixt comfortableness and understated luxury without ever feeling excessively showy oregon over-the-top.

In general, the Premier Rooms astatine the Four Seasons Toronto would apt beryllium champion suited for couples oregon solo travellers who don’t necessitate excessively overmuch space, arsenic good arsenic those seeking the astir budget-friendly enactment portion inactive experiencing the luxury of staying astatine the Four Seasons Toronto.

The suites volition spend much abstraction and privateness for those travelling successful larger groups, oregon those looking a tad much luxury and aren’t fussy astir price.

Four Seasons Toronto – Dining

Café Boulud, the hotel’s edifice connected the ground-level, is operated successful concern with Chef Daniel Boulud.

Four Seasons Toronto – Café Boulud entrance

I had meal with our Toronto-based squad members astatine Café Boulud. I’ve been present a fewer times successful the past, but it’d been a fewer years since my past visit, truthful I was keen to spot however the paper had evolved.

Four Seasons Toronto – Café Boulud

The edifice offers a seasonally changing paper focused connected French tradition. We sampled a wide assortment of dishes, and we recovered the beef tartare appetizer to beryllium a highlight, portion the duck and plum for 2 main courses was thing abbreviated of delectable.

Breakfast successful the greeting is besides hosted astatine Café Boulud. If meal is included successful your stay, you’ll get a $90 (CAD) recognition towards meal per room. The meal paper tin beryllium recovered connected the Café Boulud website.

A person joined maine for meal successful the morning, and we shared the eggs Benedict, a meal croissant, and berry parfait.

Four Seasons Toronto – Eggs Benedict astatine Café Boulud
Four Seasons Toronto – Breakfast croissant astatine Café Boulud
Four Seasons Toronto – Berry parfait astatine Café Boulud

All the dishes astatine Café Boulud were good executed and flavourful, conscionable arsenic I had experienced successful the past. The nutrient was fantabulous successful presumption of prime and quantity.

If you’re looking for an evening atmosphere, D|Bar connected the crushed level of the edifice could beryllium worthy a visit. I had a accidental to scope it out, and it appeared to beryllium a large evening mounting determination betwixt casual and formal.

Four Seasons Toronto – D|Bar bar
Four Seasons Toronto – D|Bar seating

Four Seasons Toronto – Other Facilities

The hotel’s spa and indoor excavation are located connected the ninth level of the hotel, and the fittingness centre is located connected the eighth floor.

Four Seasons Toronto – Spa & excavation entrance

The ample indoor swimming excavation and adjacent whirlpool are standout features astatine the Four Seasons Toronto. The excavation platform is equipped with ample comfy loungers for guests to unbend connected and is heated each twelvemonth round.

I couldn’t defy taking a dip successful the day and spending immoderate clip swimming a fewer laps.

Four Seasons Toronto – Indoor pool
Four Seasons Toronto – Indoor pool
Four Seasons Toronto – Whirlpool

The excavation country is connected to the on-site spa, wherever you tin publication a scope of personalized treatments. Here, you’ll besides find an outdoor terrace and lounge country that leads to the generously sized changing rooms and ablution facilities.

Four Seasons Toronto – Spa lounge
Four Seasons Toronto – Spa terrace
Four Seasons Toronto – Med Spa

I besides went down to the fittingness centre successful the morning, which was good equipped with rows of treadmills, ellipticals, and bikes, arsenic good arsenic value machines, escaped weights, and a yoga studio. Essentially, determination was thing for each benignant of workout.

Four Seasons Toronto – Fitness centre entrance
Four Seasons Toronto – Fitness centre
Four Seasons Toronto – Fitness centre

To my delight, the dumbbells present went up to 65lbs – I’ve been grooming harder precocious and had been to excessively galore hotels whose weights extremity astatine 50lbs, truthful this was large to see.

Furthermore, the fittingness centre besides had a java and beverage presumption successful the morning, which was a precise thoughtful touch.

Four Seasons Toronto – Fitness centre
Four Seasons Toronto – Fitness centre
Four Seasons Toronto – Fitness centre beverage station

As a further testament to the luxuriousness of the Four Seasons, a location BMW is disposable to guests connected a archetypal come, first-served basis. Guests tin usage the BMW for complimentary drop-offs wrong 5 kilometres of the hotel, arsenic good arsenic for airdrome pick-ups and drop-offs astatine an further charge.

I took the location car to the adjacent Eataly for a luncheon appointment. The work was rather pleasant indeed, and I appreciated the chats with the operator on the way.

Four Seasons Toronto – BMW
Four Seasons Toronto – BMW

Lastly, the edifice besides features a charming on-site acquisition shop, with an array of souvenirs and gifts for those visiting from extracurricular the city.

Four Seasons Toronto – Gift shop

Four Seasons Toronto – Service

The Four Seasons marque is known for delivering work that goes supra and beyond, truthful however was my archetypal acquisition astatine a Four Seasons edifice from a work standpoint?

Overall, everything astir my enactment went smoothly, and each of my requests – specified arsenic our Café Boulud eating preservation oregon a 1pm precocious check-out petition – were met efficiently, gracefully, and with a grin connected the look of the unit subordinate I was interacting with.

I didn’t person excessively overmuch successful the mode of peculiar requests, nor was determination thing that went incorrect that might’ve called for an enactment of work recovery, truthful I’ll person to enactment with the marque a fewer much times earlier I tin decently measure this criterion. 

One happening that I truly loved was the responsiveness of the Four Seasons app, which is connected to a quality cause astatine the beforehand table of each Four Seasons spot (and is disposable to anyone with a Four Seasons relationship adjacent erstwhile you aren’t staying).

I utilized the app to inquire for a dental kit to beryllium delivered to my room, and adjacent though I was distant from the country astatine the time, I returned to find it elegantly arranged beside my toiletries.

It wasn’t perfect, though – 1 of my inquiries astir the meal allowance wasn’t responded to for a fewer hours. Outside of this, however, I’d accidental my archetypal brushwood with Four Seasons was a precise affirmative one, and I’m looking guardant to putting them to the trial a small much connected aboriginal stays. 

Conclusion

The Four Seasons Toronto lived up to its esteemed estimation arsenic 1 of the apical luxury brands successful the city. I’d spot it supra the St. Regis and Ritz-Carlton, and connected par with the Park Hyatt down the roadworthy and the Shangri-La connected University Avenue, successful presumption of the wide experience.

The Yorkville Premier King Room afforded maine a spacious and well-appointed abode for the night, implicit with luxurious touches similar turndown service.

Café Boulud was a item with its delectable and broad French-inspired menu. Meanwhile, the excavation and fittingness facilities were top-notch arsenic well.

The Four Seasons app’s petition diagnostic was a pleasant surprise, and came successful precise useful during my stay. Furthermore, the hotel’s unit were incredibly accommodating passim my stay.

All successful all, the Four Seasons Toronto is an outstanding prime for anyone looking for a luxurious enactment successful the bosom of Toronto. While not inexpensive by immoderate means, this was a large enactment to footwear disconnected my travel with Four Seasons, and I look guardant to seeing however the brand’s different locations astir the satellite compare. 

The station Review: Four Seasons Toronto appeared archetypal connected Prince of Travel by Ricky Zhang.

Read Entire Article