Ripplecove Lakefront Hotel and Spa

Ripplecove is a hotel we had heard about from friends- rave reviews! We have stayed at Manoir Hovey and LOVED it and had heard Ripplecove was to be enjoyed for anyone who loves the Hovey. We are a middle aged couple, lots of global luxury travel experience under our belt and even more business travel under our belt where stays at budget priced properties are appropriate. (Hilton, Marriott, and the like). Based on these 2 ends of the spectrum, I feel our measure for what to expect at a luxury property vs what to expect at a Courtyard Marriott are in check. We checked in to Ripplecove for our early March stay. Early weekdays. Upon arrival, warm reception. Friendly employee. But perhaps stopped short being proactive. See comments on luggage. It was apparent the hotel was near empty. No cars in the lot, no one around. We saw one other couple at dinner the first night. One other couple at breakfast the next morning. Not a negative- just an observation. Low season. Not a lot going on. We are quiet people so we actually appreciate this! We were directed up the stairs to room 25. It was surprising that no help was offered with luggage initially and it wasn’t until I asked “how do we get the luggage upstairs?” and the girl answered “you just have to take it up the stairs”. Only then, when I pushed forward asking “is there anyone who can help with that?” she went on to find someone. Find me a luxury hotel who doesn’t immediately ask to take care of your luggage without you asking! The man who assisted with luggage was amazing and we tipped him generously for his help. We had 3 heavy suitcases. I shouldn’t have had to inquire on the how or who could assist with the bags. First evening at the Cove restaurant was a positive experience. The food quality was excellent and we really enjoyed! Service was attentive. Thank you! Second morning- enjoyed breakfast and WOW- what a treat! Really really enjoyed! Julie was an amazing server- her English is perfect even though she says it’s not! Lovely atmosphere and service was 10/10. Thank you! That concludes the food experience for us during our stay. We dined off property for the rest. Largest concerns- Maintenance of room. Not housekeeping, actual maintenance. We found the room to be extremely clean. Linens etc were in good condition. Housekeeping staff were most helpful, even though we didn’t require cleaning, fresh towels were accommodated promptly which was most appreciated. The maintenance issues I’m referring to are things such as peeling wallpaper all over the room, peeling paint on ceiling and baseboards, light fixtures missing their glass shades in the bathroom, exhaust fan in the bathroom VERY noisy, scratches all over the floor from the lounge chairs (please just buy some felt pads for the feet already!), and lots of scruffs and stains on the wallpaper. The white sheet curtains are ripped and stained at the bottom also. While one of these items in isolation wouldn’t have been offensive, the collection of them paint a picture. If not to address these kinds of maintenance issues during low season, what have we been doing? As an extension of that thought, if rooms are being addressed one by one during the low season, why put guests in a room that needs work when the hotel is basically empty? Again, call to action on room 25. The Spa! More specifically, the Eminence product driven spa! As someone who loves a spa experience and has done so all over the world, I was eager to check out the spa. After arriving to our room and getting settled, we returned back to the front desk to inquire about where the spa was, as I wanted to take a look. It was a different front desk employee at this point. She kept having trouble answering my question. When she tried to answer, she kept talking about hot tubs outside. It didn’t matter how many times I asked where the spa was- for facials and such- she kept avoiding answering. I finally had to say- is there actually a spa facility here? No was the actual answer. I’m not sure how you refer to yourself as a spa hotel without a spa onsite. This was disappointing as I had almost 2 full days open and intended to enjoy this amenity. Even if it meant enjoying tea at a spa lounge and reading a book- as most spas have. Big disappointment here. Again to contrast the Hovey- there’s a spa experience to be had over there but not the Ripplecove. Manage expectations accordingly. Because the hotel was so very empty, it didn’t present a huge issue for us BUT- fair warning for guests travelling in high season. There is zero sound proofing. Someone walking down the hallway outside your room sounds like they are in your room. I can’t even imagine what this becomes when there’s a lot of foot traffic plus voices. We were so very lucky there weren’t any voices during our stay. Just footsteps and doors. And finally, somewhat connected to my comments regarding maintenance and readiness of rooms…. (If a room isn’t guest ready, perhaps offer a different or better room….). On day 2, hotel still being basically empty, I was waiting in the lobby for my husband to get the car. It was raining. A woman dressed in a sweatsuit approached the front desk for check in. I overheard the entire conversation where this client expressed they had never stayed here before. Booked a prepaid rate. Etc. The client was surprised with a room upgrade from the kind of room WE were in, to something better. She responded with “oh my gosh, thank you!” So it was clear this wasn’t asked for, simply granted. It left a sour taste for us because if something similar had been granted to us at check in, we probably would have become Ripplecove fans for life. In summary, the stay was fine. The property is lovely. The lake is a beautiful spot. The food and beverage truly felt luxury! But Ripplecove stops short of a 4 diamond or luxury experience overall. Go through your rooms with a fine tooth comb. Address all of the wear and tear before high season comes and you get ripped to shreds in reviews by people paying $800 a night for mediocre accommodations. Hampton Inn, Holiday Inn Express, and Courtyard by Marriott are presenting better- sorry to say. We are glad to have checked this place off of our list but we don’t intend to return. Too many other places that have small details nailed.

This is a beautiful winter spot for the holidays. The resort was decorated for Christmas and it was lovely. We stayed in a 3 bedroom villa. They are modern, clean and have lots of space. They have a hot tub on the back deck overlooking the lake. There was a small area in the lake for skating. We were able to take a horse drawn carriage ride around the area which was really nice. The pub style restaurant was excellent. We had dietary issues and they were very accommodating. We had brunch in the main dining area and it was very good. We were going to have Christmas dinner in the main dining room but they could not accommodate our dietary restrictions. We went to the Nordic Station in Magog and it was great.

We visited for lunch. It was wonderfully relaxing, sitting by the lakeside. The service and food were excellent. Try the chocolates, which are made at the hotel. Stunning!

Had a wonderful vacation at Ripplecove with my family of four (husband + boys aged 10 and 13 years). We were initially only supposed to stay 2 nights, but we loved it so much we extended our stay to 4 nights. We stayed in the newer condo terrace building, and the room was perfect. A separate bedroom area for the kids, a kitchen which we used to make some simple breakfasts and lunches, and a private patio with a beautiful view of the lake. Room was quiet (not sure we heard anything from any other rooms even once), and very clean. We took advantage of many of the hotel amenities, including the hot tub, docks for fishing, and paddle boats. We also had someone take us out on the pontoon boat one evening. Everything was in great condition. Had dinner and breakfast once each at the restaurant on site which was tasty, albeit on the pricy side. The restaurant ambiance, both inside and outside on the lakeside patio were lovely. If I had to identify a negative - and this was very minor - we were never able to cool the room as much as we are used to at night for sleeping. It was cool enough overnight that we were able to open the patio door to let cool air in, which was sufficient. We will definitely be back!

Mother's Day Brunch on the enclosed patio was amazing. Service is first class. Food was amazing. Great desserts. Stunning atmosphere. It is a lovely setting.