Best Western Plus The Arden Park Hotel

My friend and I stayed here to get away for a winter mini vacation. The king suite room is fabulous with lots of space, a great bathroom, and loved the big comfy couch. The pool was quiet and clean and warm. Ordered food to pick up from the restaurant and it was good value. We enjoyed everything.

On Site Restaurant: A group of 27 of us had a reservation today, Wednesday, in the restaurant for lunch. We were warmly welcomed, and seated at 2 long tables completely laid out, including jugs of ice water. Our server, Deb, for table 2, was friendly, efficient and accommodating. There were quite a few different food choices selected from the 14 of us at table 2. Everything from drinks, food, and bills was correct. Deb displayed her passion for outstanding customer service, and was proud of the quality of food she serves.

We had an issue with hotel planners(don’t use them just call direct to the hotel) and Emma the front desk manager was fantastic and persevered to resolve a problem and obtain a refund for a cancellation of one night on our 3 night booking. Excellent communication and follow up and I couldn’t be more impressed. Very nice hotel with helpful staff and perfect location if you are visiting Stratford. Gary Donald

Just STAY HERE! Clean room, comfy bed, nice bathroom! Friendly, helpful staff! Wish the room had a microwave though. In house restaurant is full menu, tasty, with good service. Gym & pool that I didn't use, so can't comment. Very nice hotel, so just go & stay- and relax... all is well!

My family and I booked two rooms on Nov 22. When we returned from our event around midnight my daughter noticed a bug on her bed, turns out it was a silverfish which is not dangerous but still not something you expect to see when renting a room. They sent someone up immediately and he agreed it was a silverfish offered to check if there was a new room available. My daughter was not exactly happy about the bug but since there was only one, elected to stay where she was because it was late and having a room away from us was not something she or I wanted. The person who came up to the room said he would leave a note on our file and we could request compensation. The next morning when I inquired about some sort of compensation I was met with indifference and having the note read back to me. If you are not going to provide compensation when something like this happens, don’t suggest it to guests. I was set up to fail by the attendant the night before and that frustrated me. The complaint here is that you should train your staff properly and don’t have them set customers up for disappointment. While I’m here it’s worth mentioning that the buffet the next day was fine but I could have done without the sleeve of my servers shirt touching my food when she reached across me to give my son his drink while holding the rim of the glass. If for any reason you think I’m complaining for the sake of complaining please check my other reviews, I would say 99% of them are positive.

Nice place nestled close to the Theatre.. Very helpful staff. They have a restaurant which has breakfast and dinner and best part not just buffet but À la carte as well, in case breakfast is not included in your booking. Free coffee, tea and hot water. Its a bit pricey as a best western plus goes, but considering the location, well maintained rooms, proximity to the theaters amd downtown and of course friendly staff it was worth it.

I feel that l had a good experience here. The pool has a lot of chlorine so be sure to shower ur children after. The gym not really great lots of equipment broken and unusable. We went to bar area in evening the bartender was friendly and area really clean an comfortable.

Stayed at the Arden Park Hotel. Absolutely loved our stay. Front desk was absolutely amazing to deal with, beds were comfortable. Clean rooms. Had breakfast at the restaurant, food was nice and hot. Tasted amazing. Would 100 percent come and stay at this hotel again

The worst stay in any hotel ever. The bathroom smelled of mold and the sitting room was stuffed with mismatched furniture.

Check in was ok - nobody acknowledged us while we waited while the two ladies behind the desk took multiple reservations from the calls they were on. Even a friendly nod would have been appreciated. When the lady did check us in she caught and us that there were quite a few high school and little school hockey teams so it was probably going to get loud at times. The first evening was great, it wasn't very loud as the kids had not checked in yet. The next day was another story. in the afternoon, what appeared to be middle school kids, and probably their younger siblings essentially overtook the hallways with yelling and screaming while running around. Several rooms opened up the doors and told the kids to quiet down and finally some fathers came out to kind of help ensure that the kids were quiet. The hotel does have a 10 PM curfew but the fathers said the kids had a 9 PM curfew. That sounded perfect.! Later that evening, all hell broke loose as the teenagers got wild in the hallways. They ran around slamming into walls and doors. They yelled and swore (f-bombs). Long story short, many rooms ended up calling the front desk to complain in police were eventually called out as it was 1130 at night. One room in particular was very bad, across the hall from us, and the police entered that bedroom at some point The next morning, I went to the front desk and asked if they knew if the coach of these teenagers was still around. Of course, they said they had no idea. I hope the coach finds out how horribly these teenagers acted and removed them from the games this weekend. But the way these entitled teens were acting , I highly doubt it. The hotel also said that each room had to have an adult chaperone, but there was no way an adult was in some of these bedrooms. The yelling and roughhousing in the rooms just would not have occurred if a parent was in there, so I really am doubting what the hotel said about each room needing a chaperone. Would I come back here again? Possibly but I would definitely make sure that there was not going to be any sports teams staying there.

Clean hotel, staff very nice, but the view could be a little better. They should not be charging $150 for a view like this that's for sure. Worst part is parking lot is empty, not sure why they would but us in here. More than slightly annoyed!!

We spent the weekend at the Best Western Plus in Stratford while attending a friend's wedding nearby. All in all, I'd recommend the hotel because it's clean (excluding the dust along the bed's headboard -- yikes), quiet (there was another wedding happening at the hotel the nights we stayed and I didn't hear a thing), and the super friendly staff. Everyone I encountered was personable and professional, and the front desk staff were top notch. My biggest issue was with the food from the in-house bar and lounge. It wasn't a huge issue, but when you order a jumbo shrimp cocktail, you expect jumbo shrimp. What I got was 6 cooked-to-death regular shrimp and watery salsa for $13.99. The wings were solid and the omelette I had for breakfast was tasty and filling, but if we stayed again, based on price and quality of food, we would probably be dining out. Overall, a positive experience!

The room on the 5th Floor smelled like very stale smoke. We visited other guests staying on a different floor and their rooms did not have the funky smell. Very disappointing.

Nice property with a decent room and F&B. The front desk staff is absolutely obnoxious, unhelpful and uncaring. Unfortunately, I had to deal with the same "snippy" agent upon check-in and check-out. Such a poor representation of Customer Service that she should be fired. Obnoxious. Rude. Canceled the next scheduled trip and moved down the street to Mercer Hall. Good luck!

How delightfully wonderful this little gem is! Located on Ontario Street within a short walk of the Festival Theater lies the Best Western Plus at Arden Park. The outside is a plain reddish exterior that seems a bit ordinary but inside is far from ordinary. The hotel offers a modest sized indoor swimming pool and a hot tub, a restaurant, and a quite fantastic rooms. I stayed in a queen suite that was spacious and comfortable. The bed was not too hard, not too soft with plenty of pillows piled high. A large dresser easily fit a week's worth of clothes as did the amount of hangers in the closet. The closet had more pillows and a full sized ironing board and iron. It worked marvelously. Though no safe which I would have preferred though I had no suspicion of the staff. A small hotel safe offers peace of mind. Adjoining to the room was a sitting room that was a good size with a very large window, two couches, a television, fireplace, refrigerator, and microwave. A very powerful air conditioner was on the upper wall near the ceiling and seemed unresponsive to the wall controls. It was a fantastic sitting room with those comfortable couches. The window offered a first rate view of a spectacular thunderstorm one night. The best, to me, was the unexpected jetted tub in the bathroom. I am huge fan of deep jetted tubs and I wasn't planning on one being in this room much less this hotel. It was fantastic! Great water pressure, great water temperature, and powerful jets! The rest of the bathroom also was great with a standalone shower with a waterfall shower head, a good sized sink, plenty of towels, and lots of lighting. The service was amazing. The staff was just very friendly and helpful. The first day we checked in the front desk lady helped out with explaining various aspects of the Stratford Festival and seemed genuinely excited that we were here for that. Since then I have encountered only loveliness. The restaurant is ok and a bit of a hit and miss with service. One night it was spot on with an attentive waitress and then there was a morning where it was hard to find a waitress in the whole dining room. The dinner food was a bit better than the breakfast food in my humble opinion as the tilapia was cooked fantastically with an almond crust but the eggs in the morning were inordinately oily as though the frying pan had a judicious amount of oil applied to it. What was wrong, though, was trivial for what was right and much was right. This was a fantastic hotel and made a perfect home away from home.

Surpassed expectations (which admittedly were low). Service - expected terrible rudeness to the nth degree based on prior reviews. Got appropriate front desk service on check in and check out (we did a Thursday/Saturday on those, the Saturday was very busy but they handled it fine). Had made the reservation online, everything went smoothly, used same card for checkout, no hassle. Room - perfect. Two queen beds, well appointed. Clean, plush, perfect temp, great bathroom. Had all the amenities you'd need. We were the most comfortable we've been on our Stratford jaunts in 4 years. No weird smell or dankness or anything. We stayed in 422, just a random view, but so comfortable. Location - a short drive into town. We'd drive from the hotel to park near the Let them eat cake restaurant (the lot that's on Albert), and enjoy all the theaters and restaurants from there. Not ever a problem or limitation. Price - $180 including hst (that's federal tax) per night makes that a big step up from many b&bs - but oh my god, I would do it again in a heartbeat. I got so tired of the b&b circuit in Stratford - after a while it was just exhausting being that perky early in the morning with several strangers who were at least 30-40 years our senior (we are both 30 this year), and I never ever want to see pink and gold cat figurines or heavy dusty curtains or lace doilies again. Enough, I say! Other things that may interest you: -there is a pool and hot tub that looked fine. We did not use them. -there is a large well frequented dining room, and apparently their weekend brunches are something famous. With so many amazing in town options, we felt foolish considering eating in the hotel (another good reason not to stay in a b&b - enjoy your coffee at balzacs or slave to the grind or let them eat cake instead - please go the latter, I'm fantasizing about their scones right now) -am unclear if there is room service -parking is on site, uncovered. -took some bathroom and room pics -those usually help me-hope they help you! Place is c-l-e-a-n. Recommended!

This place was a disappointment. It has recently been renovated and the atmosphere was quite nice (4 stars). The food presentation was also right up there (4 stars). The food itself showed that appearances can be deceiving (2 stars at best). Finally, the service didn't even rate 1 star. After our group was seated it was at least 15 minutes before the waitress came to take our beverage orders. We of course asked her to take the food orders at the same time since by this time we figured that she was not the swiftest server. It took her another 15 minutes to bring the drinks -- now we had been sitting for 30 min with nothing to drink. The food didn't arrive until after the hour mark. I ordered the Duck Confit and while it looked quite nice, as a whole the meal was well below expectations. The duck itself was quite good, but the compote accompaniment was too sweet and the chunky (it almost needed to be cut into smaller sizes with a knife). The veggies were underdone and in such massively large pieces that they were awkward to eat. The wild rice was completely flavourless. All pretense to a quality restaurant went out the window when they plopped a bowl full of plastic tubs of butter on the table. Stratford is a town full of excellent restaurants. This is not one of them.

Our stay was fine until all the travel hockey kids and their families arrived! These kids were unattended to all weekend... running throughout the hotel and the we were kept up until 1:30 am while they ran up and down the hallways, yelling and slamming doors! We called the front desk... come to find out they called the police! Why? They are minors that should be with an adult! Hold the parents responsible ! When I said something to the front desk this morning, the young lady was less than responsive! I get the feeling they would rather be full, than respectful to all their guests!

This hotel is really awesome! The rooms are beautiful and so comfortable and clean. The hotel management makes sure that everything is up to your high standards. They take a great deal of care to ensure customer satisfaction. I am a loyal customer any time I am in Stratford ON! AND the restaurant is incredible!

Just wanted to add that after arriving home I discovered that my prescription sunglasses were taking an extended vacation in Stratford. I immediately called the hotel, and they said that the sunglasses were sitting in the office and they would send them out ASAP. While I had to pay for their return, it was less than $5, and I really appreciated the service!

A decent hotel, but of course very expensive because of the theatre. In the past few years I have noticed it has kind of gone downhill. We stay here every time we come (annually) so to us it is very evident that it is no longer perfect. HOWEVER, the last time we were at the hotel we were put in the other wing and our room was AH-MAZING. The decor was completely different than the main hotel rooms we were used to getting. Decent location, friendly staff but again, pricey and somewhat lacking in the decor upkeep department.

Typical brunch offering for $18.50. Omelettes to order. Schnitzel and bacon for meat eaters. No hot fish for pescatarians just canned tuna. Shrimp imitation crab and salads. Waffle station. Cake and fruit stations. White bread toast only. Value for money and good service . Coffee included. Ample free parking.

Short walk to Festival Theater, but a bit of hike to downtown. Modern, clean. A bit anonymous. The room was good. Mini-fridge was nice to have. A good choice in Stratford. (We usually prefer Mercer but due to aged mother we needed elevator.). Minor peeve--only one coffee packet each day for the coffee maker. Often has weddings and such. Did not try the restaurant, but the room was clean and the beds were comfortable. A good choice.

Our preferred place to stay while in Stratford for the Shakespeare festival. Well-maintained, friendly staff, excellent food service, exercise room and within walking distance of the four Stratford theatres. We've learned to book early....during summer theatre months the hotel often is sold out...and for good reason.

I'm going to write this review based solely on the restaurant. The hotel itself is usually decent - overpriced, but of course it is Stratford. The location is a bit far from town (you would -not- want to walk in heels), and parking can be fun if there are a lot of people there... but the rooms are clean, and I love the way they have lights over the beds. It makes reading in bed so much easier than most hotels where the lights are off to the side. You do have to watch it with wi-fi, though, since I don't believe all of the rooms have this option. Now, we did have an issue this last visit with something breaking upstairs and water starting to leak into our room right before we were getting ready to leave. You also may have to watch the elevators which were out of order part of the time we were there. But none of this was a major issue for us, and in our many past visits, we have never had any problems so... As to the restaurant.... I guess the best way to describe it is "hotel food." It's good, it's filling, and some of the meals sound quite interesting, but unlike the Parlour hotel and restaurant, I would not suggest making a trip here solely to dine. There are a lot of places in Stratford with better meals for the same price. The ambiance is also "hotel," and though the environs are very nice, it can't shake that feel. However, for that, it does have a casual and laid back feel that can be a bit hard to find at some of the other places in the town. Service is fine. Not as polished as other eateries in the town, but again, more casual and without any pretension. For our visit, all the members of my party tried the prix fixe dinner menu, at $21.99 a person. For my meal, I tried a beef vegetable soup (decent but nothing exceptional) with a pork chop covered with a light mushroom sauce. For this, I got two very large and meaty chops, which though fairly flavorful, were a bit dry. The mushroom sauce was nice on them, though. This came with a hearty helping of mashed potatoes and a side of tasty vegetables. Good but not exceptional. The same was true of dessert. I tried their take on pavlova, which decent but unable to hold a candle to the Parlour. My mom had the "Asian" rice pudding (I have no idea what makes it Asian, but the berries were nice), and dad had a piece of pie which he liked. They do have a pretty good selection of pie, by the way, so if you want a slice of homemade comfort, it might be a good place to go. Overall... Good but not exceptional really sums it up, If you are staying at the Arden and just really don't want to go out, or if you or people with you are intimidated by some of the more gourmet food, the Arden restaurant might be a decent option. You definitely won't leave hungry, and unlike some of the places in Stratford, you do get a lot of food for your money. I'm afraid that I cannot recommend trying it over other restaurants in the area, though.

My experience with this hotel started kind of sour, but I am happy to report my end impressions were very favourable. I booked this hotel online and my first touch of anxiety came when I didn't get a confirmation e-mail. At all. I knew that they would be charging me the full amount for my reservation up front (not a fan, but they were clear about this on the website), but not getting an e-mail receipt or confirmation made me wonder what kind of time-warp I'd be stepping into when I arrived. Would my room have shag carpets and 1970's floral wallpaper? I called the next day, just to confirm the final totals that would be going onto my credit card (again, no e-mail, and no receipt page either after submitting my request). The gentleman on the phone was quite snooty. Apparently an e-mail HAD gone out and he made me feel like I was wasting his time with my inquiry. Eep. I personally don't care if I had 10 e-mails in my inbox, if I call and ask a question, I expect it to be answered kindly and politely, especially where I am paying a lot of money up front for a service. Luckily, the staff at Arden Park made good second impressions, proving themselves to be capable of great service and able to provide a great place to stay. The parking lot was an ample size and we managed to find something close to the main entrance despite showing up awhile after check-in time. The woman who took care of us at the front desk was incredibly friendly, and even offered to see if there were umbrellas available for us to use that evening as it was quite rainy out. The room itself was large - way larger than I expected - with a huge king-sized bed, a sitting area, a desk, a table, and a monster of a bathroom. I think I expected something like the matchbook sized rooms of NYC, so I was pleasantly surprised. Also, the pictures on their website aren't doing the place any favours, which is to say it was WAY lovelier than had expected - not a bit of shag carpet in site! It was also very clean, so I had no worries about laying my head down at the end of the night. Only complaint? The fiancé reported that the television remote was "slimy." Knowing that the remote is often the dirtiest thing in a hotel room, we simply refrained from touching it for the rest of our stay. Check-out was smooth and painless. Also - free wifi! It was easy to connect to with no confusing log-ins or unnecessary steps. Just switch to the Arden Park network and off you go! If I were to overnight in Stratford again, I would definitely consider the Arden Park. The price was reasonable, for a tourist town (it was the lowest price I could find at the time of booking). It was a lovely 15-minute walk to the main stretch of downtown Stratford, and there were plenty of amenities nearby. My only wish would be for them to bring their online booking system a bit more up-to-date for ease of use and understanding!

Nice hotel: large rooms with fridge, indoor pool and hot tub. About a mile from town center.

Comfortable, clean and large rooms made our stay warm and cozy. The gas fireplace, kitchenette, and jacuzzi bath were delightful.

Review for hotel only. I did not eat at the onsite restaurant. I went to the Stratford festival and I had to find a hotel for our group. I really didn't expect much from the Best Western chain hotel but it was the only one I could get that could accommodate a group and was within our budget. ( all the hotels and BB are expensive in season in Stratford). I was so pleasantly surprised. The hotel exceeded my expectations. The room was very large with 2 very comfortable queen beds. The bathroom was large and with a very large tub. Hot water was steamy and abundant. Fluffy thick towels and nice shampoo and lotion. Free keurlig coffee in the room ! And free internet and copy machine downstairs. The only thing that was amiss was that the carpetin the room needed to be replaced and in fact was loose enough in spots to be a trip hazard. Everyone was so pleasant especially the front desk. I had to cancel a room because we had double booked and they let me cancel the room the day of arrival without charging me ( unheard of in my hotel experience!). The guy at the front desk also doubled as valet - everyone seemed to work together to try and make your stay as pleasant as possible. I hope the owner knows what an outstanding staff he has assembled!) The pool was clean and warm. The whirlpool didnt have much power and only one jet was working. Easy parking and though most drove, the center of Statford and the theaters were only about a 20 minute walk away on a sidewalk. I would stay again in a heartbeat if I was in Stratford.

The staff were delightful especially Melanie. The cleanliness and overall appearance was 5 star plus... Truely the best hotel for the price in Stratford.

Just got back from Stratford. It was our first visit, and we lucked into this hotel. It exceeded our expectations. We needed two double beds because we were traveling as a family, and this was our mini summer vacation, so we were willing to spend a wee bit more. We got a suite that was fantastic. It had a living room with a fireplace, free fridge and microwave, lovely French doors leading to the bedroom, a TV in each room, etc. But the service really put this place over the top. I've been at hotels in Chicago, for example, where I asked the staff (practically ALL of the staff, from front desk to concierge to kitchen and on and on) for two wine glasses or a corkscrew, and it took literally hours -- and many follow-up phone calls -- to get them. But here? I walked to the wonderful, smiling woman at the front desk, and she said "Of course," walked right over to the restaurant, grabbed two wine glasses for me, and sent me off in 30 seconds. And she was happy to do it. And she was happy to help us exchange American money for Canadian money. In short, she was happy to help us, and it was so, so refreshing. Location: for some diehard Stratford visitors, this may feel too far out of the downtown scene. But we loved the location. We walked, easily, to the park and the Festival Theater. (I left the hotel room at 1:36 p.m. for a 2:00 p.m. performance of King Lear, and I was in my seat by 1:50.) It was an easy drive into town, and we never struggled to find parking in town. And we could also drive a mile or so east and hit the Tim Hortons or the LCBO for a bottle of wine.

We stayed overnight on Oct 15/16 and were so comfortable here as it felt just like being at home.The Staff are super helpful through the whole Hotel and Decor is stylish,clean and and a pleasure to be in. We had the super suite and would not hesitate to get it again.We had supper at night in the restaurant and food was awesome.On Sunday we had their INCREDIBLE Brunch and there was absolutely every imaginable kind of food.It was hot and tables separated a good distance apart and you sure did not need to eat for rest of the day. We were so happy to get the Waitress that we had at our last visit as she is so much fun and remembered us too from a year ago! Her name is DEB and she will make you feel like you are taking to your sister,just awesome!!! We would definitely return for another visit to the hotel and especially to see Deb again.Our Sister's lunch which we get together once a year was a complete success thanks to all. Mary & Wayne ,Barb & Ray ,Kathy & Bruce.Wendy & Brian Thank you Deb it was so much fun having you for our waitress once again! See you next year