Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise

The Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise exceeded every expectation. This is genuinely one of our best trips yet. The sunrise canoe experience is an absolute must. Only seven hotel guests get to be on the lake at sunrise, and it's one of the most uplifting and serene experiences you can have. The Basin Spa alone is worth the trip. It's one of the most spectacular spa settings I've ever experienced, with mountain views that make the whole atmosphere feel unforgettable. The Aufguss ritual was the highlight of our stay: expertly led, truly rejuvenating, and something everyone should experience at least once. The spa staff, Rosi, Erik, Abby, Raol, and Barbara, were warm and welcoming, took the time to walk us through the facility, made sure we were comfortable, and kept everything exceptionally clean. We felt completely taken care of. Louisa was our favorite restaurant on property. Steven, Cy, and Rachel handled the dinner and breakfast rush with ease, and we never once felt rushed or forgotten. And the room, the view alone took our breath away. The whole property is elegant and beautifully maintained, but it's the little touches that stood out: Honor made check-in a breeze, Avery at the concierge helped us plan our activities, and Tess kept our room spotless every day. From the moment we arrived to the moment we left, the service was outstanding. We'll absolutely be back.

On arrival our initial thoughts were that the location and surrounding scenery was stunning and the evening check in process was quick & efficient and the room was sizeable, clean and comfortable. However, things went pretty much downhill from there with our first breakfast at the Louisa descended into a shambles with us having to wait over 30 mins for an order of toast and two soft poached eggs only to receive two slices of bread and two hard poached eggs. The breakfast environment resembled an old school canteen and the buffet food was often messy and running low. The hotel in general felt to big in physical size for the management and staff to handle and operate, with many areas feeling tired, worn out and in some cases abandoned. For the size of this huge hotel the gym was pretty pathetic and would be considered over crowded with only ten people in it and was lacking refreshments and equipment cleaning materials resulting in the equipment being stained and greasy. The pool was also really small and in need of an overhaul as it looked tired and dated. There was another pool in the spa area which we thought we would use instead but was shocked to be told that it was an extra cost of several hundred dollars per person, so we skipped that on principle. Another part of our stay which was a disappointment was the laundry service. Again for a hotel of this size they do not offer same day laundry service which can be inconvenient if you're only staying at this property for a short period of time. Upon highlighting this with the management our laundry was collected at Ipm and returned at 8pm the following day. The management accepted our concern and offered to cover the laundry charge for the inconvenience, however, we were disappointed but not surprised to see the charge turn up on our final bill upon checkout. Other points to note are that the restaurants are drab, lacking in choice and the food is mediocre. We had to wait for 30 minutes outside the Alpine Social bar in the public corridor before we eventually got a seat. The annoying thing is we didn’t want to eat and could see a dozen seats available at the bar. I asked everyone else in the queue and they confirmed they were all waiting for tables to eat at. With that we walked in and made our way to the bar only to be intercepted by a member of staff and told to go back out to the corridor and wait until someone comes to us. We waited another 10/15 minutes and was then lead to the seats at the bar we were walking towards earlier. Several times whilst sat at the bar we would sit with empty glasses due to no one actually serving behind the bar, the staff appeared to be sharing bar duties with table service resulting in many bar sitters going thirsty. A BATTLE GROUND I think the worst experience of all was the battle ground between the day tripping public who were visiting Lake Louise and the hotel and its staff. Lake Louise justifiably gets hundreds of day visitors admiring the scenic beauty and engaging with the walking trails. The hotel appears to have a serious dislike for this public and positions countless numbers of obstacles in the way to stop them coming in including dozens of signs saying “No Public Entry”, chain and padlocks on lake front gates and even roadwork hi-vis cones and tape. The hotel has staff positioned throughout the hotel intercepting people and questioning what they’re doing, we were intercepted 6 times during our 4 day stay. The funny thing is, the hotel offer the public access to a very expensive coffee shop through a small side door but rope off the toilets and removed all the seats in an attempt to take their money and then fast track them out the door. It felt embarrassing and difficult when the public were waiting outside hotel doors with little children desperate for the toilet but could not get in due to not having keycards. As soon as you would walk out the hotel door members of the public would grab the door before you got out in order to keep the door open so they could get in. Now I appreciate that the hotel doesn’t want to be flooded with none paying members of the public but why not kill two birds with one stone. They have an enormous area between the hotel and the lake promenade, simply build a gated log cabin style coffee shop, seating area and chargeable toilet facility. The hotel gains a new revenue stream, the public get a good usable facility and hotel doesn’t spend huge resources battling to keep the public out of the hotel. Summing up and considering we have spent several weeks travelling around Canada and having stayed at various many other Fairmont hotels along our route, Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise hotel was a real disappointment. Based on the advertising we had read we had great expectations for the hotel, however, it has easily been the worse Fairmont we have stayed at so far on our trip and we would not recommend this hotel to anyone or ever stay there again. You're better off staying in Banff at the Fairmont Banff Springs and jumping on a coach for a day trip to Lake Louise which is about 45 min drive away.

A highlight stay during our honeymoon adventure. From start to finish, we had the most welcoming and wonderful experience at the Fairmont Lake Louise. A special thank you to Heero in Reception for the warm welcome and congratulations on our honeymoon. The welcome treat in our room was delicious- thank you. We booked a lakeview room (401), and while a second window or art work would enhance the room, the view itself was simply breathtaking. We could have woken up to that view everyday for the entire three week honeymoon. The room itself was spacious, with a large and comfy king size bed. The bathroom was well equipped and clean. We ate at the Lake View Lounge for a lunchtime meal and a fixed evening meal - both experiences were tasty, and the service was attentive and cheerful (Thank you Joe!). Our highlight meal was ar Louiza, where the Steak was simply outstanding! Breakfast ar Louiza on both mornings was delicious. Basin Spa, while pricey, is a must do experience. Many reviews note that the view is what sells this hotel, while I agree, the Staff are incredible and work tirelessly to support such a well run hotel - I can’t fault them (waitress Cy is another clear example of their hardworking and professionalism). Thank you for an incredible two night highlight stay that we will not forget.

We arrived from our luxury train journey on the Rocky Mountaineer and were greeted by a staff member who told us to where the check in was once my son explained what rooms we had booked we were taken to a check in on the exclusive 7th floor unfortunately this could have been handled better normally you arrive and are greeted with a glass of champagne or water that wasn’t the case. The rooms were nice but the views were incredible haven’t experienced anything like this before and probably never will breathtaking indeed . We had breakfast in the club lounge in the mornings and the Mexican chef is fantastic and will make you practically anything a really fantastic employee unfortunately he should be training the other staff in the club lounge because there totally untrained in hospitality lacking any understanding of what’s required. I have been in many club lounge’s and every other Lounge has a manager running the establishment setting standards unfortunately for the money they are charging its not good enough having to ask for tables to be set for breakfast and even at there evening pre dinner tapas it’s totally unacceptable and putting a charge on alcohol after what people are paying is very greedy indeed this is the first time in a club lounge where there is a charge on alcohol. And for the reasons mentioned Mexican chef 10 out of 10 Club check in staff 5 out of 10 no drinks on arrival unbelievable Club waiter/waitress staff 4 out of 10. Untrained and totally in the wrong part of the hotel. We had food in the lounge on the first evening and the Scottish manager was very polite and courteous and couldn’t be more helpful maybe she should be in the club lounge managing staff there We also had a great experience in the sports bar for food and drinks and found the staff again fantastic and the food was excellent . So overall we loved our stay but the club lounge needs big improvements regarding some of there staff 7 out of 10. Should have been 10. With what it cost

LAKE LOUISE FAIRMONT Having landed in Calgary we asked the Fairmont to organise our transfer from The Delta Hotel Calgary Airport to the Fairmont. Large SUV and driver arrived at 11.00 as planned and arrived at Lake Louise by 1.15pm. We checked into room 849 which is in the central block of the hotel with a spectacular view of Lake Louise. The room itself is quite small and feels a little cramped, the bathroom again quite small with a walk in shower. Overall it felt tight but was clean and tidy. There are variety of different restaurants in the hotel with some that you need to pre-book. Breakfast is served in the Louiza. These are some of the hikes you can do to explore the local area. Lake Louise lakeshore Trail - 4.6km, Easy Fairview lookout - 2.4km, Moderate Lake Agnes Tea House - 7.4km, Moderate Little Beehive - 9km, Moderate We did the Lake Agnes trail which seemed to be the most popular. There are some beautiful views as you climb up to the lake and a beautiful waterfall just before you get to the tea house. But just be warned during the busy periods there can be long queues for the tea house. There are two queues, one for those that want to sit in and another for takeout. As you would except the service is impeccable and all the staff we interacted with were helpful and courteous. Now with the restrictions on getting to Lake Louise staying at the Fairmont gives you unrestricted access to the beautiful surroundings easily. We had dinner and breakfast at Louiza. They do recommend reservations for dinner which we did but it was fairly empty when we went at 7.00pm. We had booked to travel on the Rocky Mountaineer the next day and you can check in at the hotel the day before. The check in desk is opposite the Chateau Mountain Sports shop on the ground floor. Make sure you include any hand luggage when you check in as you won’t be able to bring this to your seat on the train as there is no room. Once you get your baggage tags you leave the bags in your room on the departure day and the Rocky Mountaineer team collect them from your room and effortlessly transport them to your destination hotel room. I would recommend you advance book high tea at the hotel. Its only served uptown 3pm and is oversubscribed so book early. Tea is served at the Fairview restaurant with spectacular views overlooking the lake. The sandwiches and cake were nothing special but you’re really paying for the view and experience rather than the food. Check out was quick and easy and our coach picked us up at 7.30am to take us to Lake Louise station to board the Rocky Mountaineer train. This is a luxurious hotel in a unique setting and if want easy access to Lake Louise, easy boarding for the Rocky Mountaineer and great service and comfort then this is a perfect choice.