Novotel Ottawa

I booked a room at the Novotel Ottawa for two nights to attend and present at a conference at the nearby convention center. The conference housing was either booked up or out of my price range, so the Novotel offered value and convenience. I felt that the reviews were mostly positive although perhaps one or two said it was dated. In any case, arrival was a hugely pleasant surprise! The room was almost like a very well-laid-out mini apartment! There was lots of nicely used space, with built-in wood closets and desk, armchairs, lots of convenient lamps, etc. Considering many of the other conference goers were staying at un-air-conditioned dorms, I felt incredibly lucky and spoiled. The staff I worked with were incredibly friendly and helpful, and although I never saw the cleaning staff come and go, the room was kept immaculate. I did not try the onsite dining or fitness center/pool and can't comment on those specifically. Other pluses were the free wireless internet and convenient below-ground parking. Another thing I noticed was the relative lack of noise, considering my room was near to the elevator, and that it was a weekend. I really didn't hear other guests. As far as location, the Novotel is very centrally located by the convention center, Byward Market, and Parliament buildings. The only comment I have on the location is that although it was only about a 1.5-2 block walk to the convention center, the most direct route was to take a shortcut through a parking garage/underpass, which wasn't particularly scenic, although it didn't feel unsafe. It was a bit of a pain lugging my booth display materials over there, and in general I didn't have an offer to help carry luggage to my room, although some carts were handily sitting around by the garage and in the lobby. Overall, I was thrilled with the value, quality, and location of the Novotel, and will check out this chain again.

Two hotel rooms were reserved for the weekend. When we arrived at the hotel, the rooms were ready. All hotel employees were very pleasant and answered any questions we had. The hotel is very nicely decorated - a very modern look and feel. The hotel is extremely convenient to the Rideau Canal, Byward Market and the Parliament Buildings. I would definitely go back.

Located in the heart of downtown Ottawa, just blocks away from fine dining and shopping. Very clean and modern. Rooms are well furnished and clean! No funky odors. Pros: Free wireless, shoe polisher by the elevator Cons: Small flatscreen tv (approx 30 in), no brand-name lotion/soaps.

Centrally located and an easy walk to Byward Market. Great pool and kids eat free in the hotel for breakfast. Breakfast buffet was great. Saved alot booking through [...].

Nice hotel,re-construction going on right in the lobby and out front!

As of Oct 2010, hotel still undergoing lobby renovation, which makes the entrance practically a hard-hat area. My room was rather dark, only one lamp. And it was fluorescent lighting, rather than the more pleasing traditional incandescent. Walls/doors are thin, other travellers' noise will wake you up. Biggest disappointment is that, for this price, you don't get a complimentary breakfast. Pool is shared with next-door Les Suites Hotel, as is garage space, which is operated by a third party. Garage costs $15 per day. Tip: get an unlimited vehicle re-entry card from hotel clerk. Warning: hotel is right next to major tourist attraction, but also next to homeless mens' charity mission. Thus, lowlifes congregate all around, and have no qualms about asking you for spare change. That's not the hotel's fault, just pointing it out. I thought being this close to Bymarket would be a great advantage, but it's not something to overrate. Ottawa is very walkable. I can't say I had a terrible time, but nonetheless I'd try a different hotel next time.

Our first room was a surprise, my best friend and I were away for a girlfriends getaway and were surprised to find a king sized bed, I love my friend but I really don't want to share a bed with her, a quick call down to the desk fixed the situation and we got the two doubles I requested, although it was on a floor closer to the renos going on, noise wasn't unbearable. The room was clean, except the fridge which I requested for my insulin storage was not terribly clean. There also wasn't enough drawer or closet space for two women staying for four days. The staff was friendly and helpful. My friend and I made a similar trip last year around the same time and we loved that hotel and staff. Next trip we would probably stay in that hotel instead.

I'll start with the positives: the location is great, just a short stroll from the ByWard Market area and Parliament Hill, with many shops and restaurants nearby, yet it's relatively easy to get to off the freeway if you're coming from the airport (or in my case, rail station). Seemed to offer pretty good value compared to other hotels in the area. The place is also remarkably quiet in spite of being in a busy area and undergoing renovation--while I was there there was an extensive remodeling of the lower floors going on. Must have pretty good soundproofing. Now for the negatives: staff seemed kind of unfriendly or at least aloof. They had people outside the door in Novotel shirts but they never seemed to act like a bellhop or doorman or much less responded to a hello. Front desk staff also seemed like you were bothering them when approached for check-in/check-out or a question. But most of all I was bothered by the room design... the layout and some of the features were just kind of nonsensical. Placement of light switches and outlets didn't make any sense (I never did figure out how to turn on the biggest lamp in the room; and the switch for the bathroom lights is outside it far away in the entry hallway), the desk is crammed between the bed and the wall rather than being in the more spacious area near the window, drawers are positioned way far away from the wardrobe, the seating area is offset awkwardly away from the TV, and the bathroom has these odd narrow double-doors that open up towards the bed. The minibar and bottled water in the room was weird too--they actually have sensors, even below the water on the counter, so if you even slightly disturb the stock (even by looking through the selection) you risk triggering an automatic charge... the minibar even has a warning about this so that you don't put in personal items and throw off the sensors... all this even though they still manually check it. Overall it felt like I was in some kind of weird hotel design experiment. I hope their renovations result in a bit better room design.

Excellent stay in spite of the construction project underway.

This was our first trip to Ottawa so picking a hotel close to what we wanted to see was difficult. However we were very pleased with our choice of the Novotel Hotel. The location was great( 15 min. walk to the Parliament buildings and just a few minutes away from the mall and the Byward Market)The staff was friendly and helpful. The hotel restaurant was wonderful!