Best Toronto Luxury Hotels

Toronto's luxury hotels host plenty of business travelers, but don't wait for a business trip to Toronto to explore Toronto's rich and cosmopolitan arts, culture and dining scenes. From the world class Toronto Symphony to the flamboyant and architecturally controversial Royal Ontario Museum in Yorkville to quirky and trendy Queen West Street with its eclectic mix of artsy boutiques and cafes, Toronto has style to spare. Foodies will be thrilled by the abundance of authentic ethnic options, from superb Thai at Khao San Road to Georgian khachapuri at Argavi and delicious Ethiopian at Pero. Just try to avoid a winter visit, given the city's somewhat last minute approach to salting sidewalks. That said, if a winter business trip takes you to Toronto, you'll be glad for cozy luxuries such as lobby fireplaces, heated bathroom floors and oversized soaking tubs for a hot bath at these Toronto luxury hotels. We're also eagerly anticipating the new Four Seasons Toronto, which will be opening in early October 2012 just two blocks from the current Four Seasons location, and hope to be able to add it to our top picks.

Trump International Hotel & Tower Toronto

While the Trump's location in the financial district makes it especially popular with business travellers, its brand new and modern, spacious rooms (starting at 550 square feet), some with beautiful views, coupled with top-notch service, make it a great choice when traveling for pleasure as well. We love the saltwater lap pool (so much nicer than chlorinated pools), complimentary WiFi, in-room Nespresso machine, incredibly comfortable bed, and Evian and chocolates at turndown. And while we generally don't order room service, the Trump Toronto's is exceptional, both in taste and efficiency, though you do pay handsomely for it. Our recommendation: book a corner suite and request a high floor, for the best views.

The Hazelton Hotel

A favorite with actors and celebrities since it opened, The Hazelton Hotel is a boutique hotel done in sleek greys, browns and rich purples by the same Canadian designer, Yabu Pushelberg, behind the W hotels in New York. The hotel's location in Yorkville is just a 5 minute walk to the visually striking Royal Ontario Museum, with its impressive collections, and of course Bloor Street shopping offers plenty of retail therapy if your tastes run to designer fashion or sports cars: think Chanel, Hermes, Bulgari, Ferrari, Maserati, etc. The Hazelton is intimate, with just 77 rooms and suites, and personalized service to match. Even entry-level Superior Rooms are spacious, at 500 square feet, with pillowtop beds swathed in fine Italian linens that you may be loathe to climb out of in the morning. We love the luxurious bathrooms with heated marble floors, large soaking tubs and separate showers, and L'Occitane bath amenities. We're not so thrilled about the resort fee of about $10, although at least it covers Internet access and bottled water and sodas in the minibar. We also like the indoor saltwater lap pool, a rarity in a boutique hotel of this size that's also in such a great location. The location's trade-off? Rooms on lower floors can be a bit noisy on the weekends, and there aren't views to speak of–many rooms are rather dark.

Ritz-Carlton Toronto

If you want views, a room or suite on a high floor at the Ritz-Carlton Toronto is for you. Enjoy sweeping views of either the Toronto skyline and CN Tower or the lake, plush beds with 400 thread count Frette linens, a 42 inch HDTV, and marble bathrooms with heated floors and HDTV in the vanity mirror. For a splurge, book a Club level room or suite, which comes with Bose surround sound, complimentary WiFi, and five food and drink presentations in the Club Lounge. If we had to quibble, the indoor pool is rather small, and we'd like to see Nespresso machines in the rooms instead of conventional coffee machines.

Getting to Vancouver

There are a number of nonstop flights to Toronto Pearson (YYZ) from major U.S. cities, for example:

NYC (JFK): Air Canada, American

NYC (LGA): Air Canada, American, United, WestJet

NYC (EWR): Air Canada, United

LA (LAX): Air Canada, American, United, WestJet

Miami (MIA): Air Canada, American, Delta, WestJet

Chicago (ORD): Air Canada, American, United, WestJet

San Francisco (SFO): Air Canada, United

From NYC it's only a ~90 minute flight, usually for under $300 roundtrip. From SFO or LAX, however, it's about 5 hours there and 5 hours 40 minutes on the return, and even coach roundtrip flights can be in the $600-$800 range, so you may want to use points for the trip. If you're replacing a $700 ticket, you'd be getting 2.8 cents per mile using 25,000 United miles for a Saver award. Not as good value as transcontinental international business or first class awards of course, but decent value in terms of North America award redemptions.

The fastest way to earn United miles if you're not a frequent flyer is by leveraging category bonuses with the Ink Bold, Ink Plus, Sapphire Preferred, or Chase Freedom, since Ultimate Rewards points transfer 1:1 to United.

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