Algonquin Hotel

Pros: got a full refund|Cons: bed bugs, the smell, sheets had holes in them and stains, paint pealing, only 2 outlets in the whole room, holes everywhere (floor ceiling walls, every pipe entering the room is coming from a hole twice it's size) first red flad was the mattress wrapped in plastic, second was the white power behind the bed (insecticide? Plaster? Apparently the room was just cleaned) would avoid

I stayed here for a night with a buddy in between two backcountry treqs (Mississagi > Superior) and it was just as expected.||The hotel was built in 1888 and is in the process still of trying to obtain a heritage permit. It’s rare to find a building this old in Ontario so that alone was worth the stay for me.||The rooms are a flight or two up (too old for a disability elevator). They have a flat screen tv with satellite that had the Raps game, mini fridge, coffee maker and microwave. Beds were comfortable enough. The bathroom was renovated and large. Overall was a very clean room. Biggest plus was that they didn’t bother us to checkout (left at 1pm). The place had some long term residents, but they were friendly and harmless. The town only has 3,000 and is fairly seasonal so they need to make money somehow!

We were on a 28 day road trip and knew we would eventually be spending a night or two in Sault Ste. Marie but we weren't sure when. It turns out it was going to be on a Sat/Sun during Thanksgiving Day weekend in Canada. Oops! We did a search via Tripadvisor Saturday morning only to find that there were very few rooms available that night although things were opening up for the Sunday. Even worse, because of the tight market, the cost of the rooms available were ridiculously high. Two upper end motels were asking north of $200.00 for standard rooms that would normally run you $120.00 and the only other option was the Algonquin for $95.00 for a standard $70.00 room. Would you rather get ripped off a lot or just a little? After perusing the traveler comments for the Algonquin we decided to take a chance on it for just Saturday and find a better place for Sunday later. We decided to use the $100.00 saved for a nice meal instead.||||The hotel reservation form noted that some rooms were bath only, some shower only and requested that you indicate a preference... we chose shower and completed the reservation while on the road. A few minutes later, we unexpectedly received a call from the hotel to advise that there were no rooms available with a shower. Our room would have a tub although there would be a shower facility available right across from our room that was common to a couple of other rooms on the 3rd floor. Was that okay for us? No problem for one night. She also indicated that a band of the heavy metal variety would be playing from 10:00 P.M. to 2:00 A.M. but since we were on the 3rd floor and on the other side of the hotel from the bandstand, we shouldn't be impacted with the noise. Considering the alternatives, we agreed to keep the reservation. However, we thought it excellent customer service to take the time to contact us in advance with these concerns.||||Of course we were somewhat apprehensive about what we had gotten ourselves into when arrived late that afternoon. The lobby looked just fine. If this was a roach infested dive you wouldn't know it from initial impressions. There is no elevator but the eager desk clerk took our bags and ran up two flights with them while we struggled to keep up. He was most accommodating, pleasant and informative in our conversations and dealings with him.||||The room itself was fairly small with a bed that was barely queen size, if indeed it was. But you could see the bedding was clean as was the rest of the room. The bathroom featured the old style big tub with claw feet... quaint actually... and it too was spotless. It would seem that this would be among the last rooms rented under most circumstances (probably due to its physical location) since the TV, cable box, fridge and coffee maker (the only amenities offered) were all unplugged. We tried the TV just for fun and it was of excellent quality, surprisingly, but there obviously were tricks to using it with the cable provider and we didn't pursue it with staff. ||||We went out for dinner and drinks (with the cash saved) and returned before the entertainment commenced. We were in bed before 10.00 and asleep quickly. The bed was again surprisingly comfortable. The next thing we knew it was 8:30 in the morning. We slept like babies and heard nothing all night. ||||Final impressions: Judging from previous reviews, it would seem that management is making investments to upgrade the hotel i.e. the T.V., hardwood floors rather than carpets (a feature we are coming to appreciate more and more, etc.). It would never be our desired accommodation but it proved to be just fine for our short stay. It would be a good option for those on a tight budget. It was clean... no bugs, no odors... just basic, no frills accommodation. There is no breakfast available. Near the front desk is a separate room with vending machines and a microwave. Our dealings with staff were excellent and their emphasis on customer service was appreciated. Will these folks be there next month... that's the question.

Really neat old building, and very good location. Room was nice and modern, had good TV and the shower was nice. Price was very reasonable. Only downside was the owner yelling at us and threatening to call the police at 10PM because the people across the hall were smoking and we got falsely accused. Kind of exciting though. Would probably go again.

A couple from Argentina have been slowly renovating this incredibly beautiful building built in 1888...the owner upgraded us so my daughter would have access to a toilet and bathtub in the room...the pub staff treated her so wonderfully as well and made a fresh bbq burger for her to her specs and she said it was the "best burger ever"...the staff also helped with anything else we needed and were just lovely and genuine people. You won't get 5 stars here, but you will get a funky experience for great value in a great location with history and, like I said, just some real down to earth good people. I felt so safe and comfortable and traveling on my own with a 9 year old, well, that's priceless.

Booked rooms here with another couple . Was a last minute trip to Canada from Wisconsin for the Agawa Canyon train tour.||Pictures online DO NOT represent the actual room. We were on the 3rd floor...no elevator and 51 steps up. Had a hard time opening the door with the key. Room had a basic full bed and cheap old dresser. Tube TV that we had to have the desk lady come up twice to get working. Our sister and brother in law never got their TV to work. ||Was a small basin in each room but we had to share a bath( no shower) and toilet. No air conditioning ; just a table fan. Questionable area and long term residents that I would not feel safe outside at night. ||Cancellation must be 24 hours in advance . We tried to cancel the second night as the train tour was canceled due to engine problems. No consideration for unforeseen circumstances.||Only positive was the room was clean.||Will never go back or recommend this place!

Careful when you book as some rooms don't have a washroom /shower (they are shared). People who work here are nice. Location is close to waterfront. Entire building smells of smoke even though it's a non smoking building... Gross.

Really wish I could give less than one star. It should be noted by anyone reading this that the vast majority of reviews for this hostel (not hotel) are fake, and the proprietors of this place are paying for them to be generated and then posted to give the illusion that they're legitimate. The building is dirty, the person checking us in was drunk to the point where we could smell the liquor coming off of him and the beds were past the point of uncomfortable. The other patrons of the hostel were less than savory as well. When we got home, my boyfriend saw that the credit card we had provided to reserve the room had been charged $100 despite us paying for the room with a different card. He called the hostel to ask about it and we were told that they had found an ashtray in the room and it smelled of smoke, despite none of us being smokers. I made the booking myself and I was asked if we wanted a smoking or nonsmoking room, to which I replied nonsmoking. The woman my boyfriend spoke with informed him that the building is nonsmoking as it is old, and that their cleaner had taken a photo of the ashtray but couldn't provide it as she was 'on vacation'. I have seen on some other reviews (buried under fake ones) that these extra charges are a common practice from this hostel. They WILL scam you if you stay here.

An inexpensive motel to stay on a long road trip. This isn't the Ritz, but the rooms are clean and functional. Some of the rooms are shared bathroom, almost like a hostel. Ours was a regular room however. The decorations are quirky but nice, and there are bookshelves throughout if you need something to do. Also there is a rock bar downstairs though it was not open while we were there. There are businesses down the street though where you can get a bite to eat. They did have a bit of a funny policy of taking a $20 cash deposit and returning it to your credit card upon checkout. Not sure what the use of this is as they already had my card number. Some of the guests did look like non credit card people though..... No troubles on our stay though and the staff are perfectly friendly.

My daughter was driving home to Alberta today, and needed an affordable hotel in Sault Ste. Marie, so stopped at The Algonquin. She paid for her room ($60 a night), and tried to get settled in. The young man at the front desk had a bunch of his friends hanging out in the lobby, and as she walked past, (after looking her up and down) asked her to go for a smoke, she declined. Once in her room, the young man at the front desk slipped a note under her door requesting more money for the room (she had already paid him $60 cash), she said no. She had a bad feeling about the place, as there was a shared bathroom and shower (not individual ones in the rooms), and she didn't feel safe with the group of men who she had to pass when using the washrooms, so she packed up her things, and went back out front, where she told the young man she couldn't stay there, as she felt it was unsafe. He said he couldn't refund her money (she had only been there a matter of minutes), so she asked to speak to the manager. He phoned the manager (a woman) who had already left, and she, too, refused to refund her. My daughter told her this wasn't legal (apparently, it is) and that she'd phone the police to report it. The manager said, "Fine, call the cops." My daughter decided to do that, and while the police (who came to the hotel) were very nice, and reprimanded the young front desk man for passing notes under my daughter's door, they said there was nothing they could do. I'm appalled that this sort of thing happens in Canada...one would think our kids would be in good hands driving across our own country, but apparently the Algonquin Hotel is not such a place. I have no idea why the owners tolerate staff who invite their friends in to harass guests, or why they tolerate managers who tell guests to "call the cops" if they have a problem, rather than to sort it out. The Algonquin Hotel should be ashamed to have such people working there.