La Grande Residence at The Sutton Place Hotel

Rooms and decor

Open the door to a suite and it feels more like walking into a home than a hotel — a short hallway leads into a wide living room with a deep upholstered sofa, table lamps throwing warm light, thick carpet wall to wall, and a four-seat dining table next to a full kitchen. And this is no toy kitchen: there is an oven, a microwave, a big fridge with a freezer compartment, a dishwasher, a coffee maker and enough kit to cook the family dinner with ease. The main bedroom has a king bed, a fluffy down duvet and a small walk-in closet; the second bedroom suits the kids or travel companions. A step further is the private balcony, opening onto the cool Vancouver air and the Downtown skyline — on a high floor on a clear day, you can pick out the North Shore mountains against the water of Burrard Inlet. The overall feel is warm and distinctive; anyone who has stayed in a smart apartment in London's West End or New York's Upper East Side will know this tone straight away.

Food and amenities

The Sutton Place Hotel has been open since 1986, originally as Le Meridien, before becoming Sutton Place in the 2000s and turning into one of the hotels Hollywood actors pick when they film in Vancouver — the city is Hollywood North, where plenty of well-known series shoot. The La Grande Residence wing was built for long-stay guests, so the rooms are all apartment-sized suites. The neat part is that even staying on this side, you can walk through the lobby into the main hotel and use everything: the indoor pool open 7:00-22:00 daily, the jacuzzi, the steam room, the 24-hour fitness centre and Vida Spa, known for Indian-style Ayurvedic massage that is hard to find in Vancouver. Downstairs sits Boulevard Kitchen & Oyster Bar, the main restaurant that reviews rate as the best hotel breakfast in the area — its Eggs Benedict with BC smoked salmon is the dish people say they order twice — alongside Gerard Lounge, a moody bar with the feel of an English sitting room where Hollywood actors have sipped drinks often enough to become a small city legend.

Location and getting there

If a regular guest told you about it, they would say the location of La Grande Residence is a home that sits in the middle of everything you want to walk to. The building stands on the corner of Burrard and Robson, and Robson Street is Vancouver's main shopping strip, lined with clothing shops, cafes, ramen spots, ice cream and tapas. Walk east out of the hotel for about 5 minutes and you reach Vancouver Art Gallery, the central gallery with Robson Square out front for sitting around and ice skating in winter. Another 8 minutes on foot gets you to Burrard SkyTrain station for the Expo and Millennium lines across the city. Across Burrard, Bentall Centre has a food court and an Urban Fare supermarket to grab things to cook back in your kitchen. Stanley Park, the waterfront park that is the city's highlight, is a 15-20 minute walk away or a few stops on bus 19. From YVR airport, take the Canada Line SkyTrain straight to Burrard, then walk 8 minutes — very easy even hauling the family luggage.

Things to know before booking

To be straight with you and help you decide — the most common gripe is the age of the building. It dates back to 1986, and some corridors and lifts still feel like the 90s; furniture in rooms not yet on the latest renovation can edge toward looking old, with a few reviews mentioning faded curtains or worn carpet. If you can, ask at booking for a room on a recently renovated floor. The other thing to know is that breakfast is not included in most standard packages — if you want Boulevard Kitchen you pay extra, or make the most of the full kitchen and cook your own. Rooms facing Burrard Street, a busy road, pick up some late-night traffic noise, so light sleepers should ask for a room facing the inside or on a high floor. Valet parking runs about C$45-55 a night, which is fairly steep, so if you are driving it is worth comparing nearby public lots first. Lastly, Wi-Fi is free but some reviews say the speed in deep interior rooms is not that stable — if you have an important online meeting, use the LAN cable provided in the suites.

Our take

After reading through more than a thousand real reviews, La Grande Residence at The Sutton Place Hotel is the answer for big families and long-stay guests in Vancouver without a second thought. The sharpest selling point is the 800 sq ft suite with a full kitchen and balcony, starting at around $226 a night — genuinely good value next to similarly sized suites in this area — with full use of the Sutton Place pool, spa, fitness centre and restaurants, free cribs, and a central Robson spot that is easy to walk from. The trade-off is accepting that the building is 40 years old, with warm classic decor rather than sharp modern lines, and breakfast left out of the package. If the trip in your head is bringing the family to Vancouver for 5-7 nights, wanting the kids to have room to run, easy meals in the suite, and Robson shopping right outside — this nails it. Overall we give it 9.0/10, best for families of 4-6, couples staying a week, and business travelers who want a home in the city over a cramped hotel room.