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Having the InterContinental as our home base for an extended Toronto stay was the perfect introduction to enjoying all the city has to offer. Located right near the harbourfront, Rogers Centre (Blue Jays baseball), CN Tower, Toronto Convention Centre, Ripley’s Aquarium and Steam Whistle’s brewery, the InterContinental is truly a great hotel to take it all in from.

We were here during a particularly hot late summer week leading up to the 40th Annual Toronto International Film Festival.

Guests were here for Fan Expo (being held next door at the Toronto Convention Centre), Blue Jays games and Labour Day weekend fun at the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE, comparable to Vancouver’s PNE).

The InterContinental learned of our extended stay (my husband was here on business) and upgraded us to a recently-renovated Junior Suite with a commanding view of downtown from the 22nd floor.

Amenities

The living area has floor-to-ceiling wrap-around windows, and the entire 400-square-foot suite has all the modern amenities and contemporary accents that come with a luxury hotel of this standard.

Lots of plugs for laptops and electronics were welcome additions to a well-designed space with curtains that closed all the way and a relatively quiet airco system that didn’t keep us up at night. The super-comfy mattress provided well-needed rest after full days of touring (and working).

IHG Hotel Group takes pride in going green, from energy-efficient low-flow shower heads, faucets and toilets to recycling boxes and a partnership program that donates leftover amenities to a local charity.

San Francisco-based Agraria, America’s oldest and largest luxury fragrance company, stocks the InterContinental bathrooms with a range of bath and beauty amenities. Ours contained the Lemon Verbena range, a refreshing scent to cool us off after long walks around town.

The entire staff goes out of their way to make sure everything is taken care of. I enjoyed the little cards on the pillow at turn-down, each detailing a piece of Toronto history.

The 24-hour, air-conditioned fitness centre is outfitted with a good selection of machines while the saltwater pool and hot tub solarium let in a lot of natural light via the glass ceiling. There’s also a great view of the CN Tower right from the pool!

We didn’t make use of Spa InterContinental, an AVEDA Spa, on our stay but it has a welcoming terrace next to the pool and offers a variety of massage treatments.

There’s also 18,000 square feet of meeting space here for various events, conferences and weddings.

Breakfast Buffet

On Sunday morning, we relaxed over breakfast at Azure, the hotel’s restaurant and lounge. Though the hotel doesn’t offer a brunch service, the buffet has a wide range of tasty dishes and one of the best fresh fruit bars we’ve seen in awhile.

An omelette station and all breakfast faves are included alongside fresh pastries, coffee and tea.

Azure is spacious and has great views of the street action within an oasis-style room offering comfortable seating all around.

If We Could Improve One Thing

A small detail: a retractable cord in the shower to hang swimsuits would have been great. We used the racks and two hooks on the wall for towels but needed to move clean towels off the rack in order to make space for wet swimsuits.

Non watermarked photos courtesy of InterContinental Toronto Centre.