Joel B.
Yelp
This is not a hotel. By any standard. This is a classic motel, whether the property wants it to be seen that way or not. And, it is a DUMP. My wife and I, plus visiting family, were booked to stay here last week. In the lead-up to the stay, I had one decent interaction with a property employee (Julie) when I booked. And, it was all downhill from there. We booked both their three-bedroom apartment (only one onsite) and an additional suite. As check-in arrived, we received numerous emails and texts to complete the process online. This escalated to a text from Julie asking when we were going to check-in. I called Julie the day of our arrival; from the get-go she was terse, but I'm used to dealing with difficult personalities. She asked when I was checking in; I told her we'd check in when we arrived (in person). She proceeded to tell me "this would slow things down" (how?). I then told her we were having a picnic in Banff. Since we had just come off a long hike, it was around 1:30 pm, which is 2.5 hours before normal check-in. I asked if we could check in a bit early so everyone could shower and rest up for a dinner we had planned. No. I politely pushed. Firm no. Then Julie was rude to me and I shut down. I gave one-word responses and concluded the call (though she tried to be a bit nicer when she saw I shut down to one-word responses). We drove to Canmore, arriving at the property around 3 pm. To be certain, this is a MOTEL, NOT A HOTEL. We were on property for about ten minutes. The tiny front desk reception room was locked. At 3:00 pm. There was nobody staffing the desk. We looked around a bit and realized there were no amenities except a covered hot tub. A gentleman then came out and spoke with my wife. We asked to see the apartment because we were already unsure as to whether or not we'd be staying (judging by the exterior of the property). Firm no. Apparently, the cleaners were cleaning the apartment, but there were no cleaners in sight. My wife asked if the property was a motel. The gentleman explained that it "used to be a motel" but now it was a "hotel" (how?). She asked what amenities were available at the property. He asked, "as in what do you get in your room?" I assumed that he meant the mini shampoos or otherwise. To be certain, THERE ARE NO AMENITIES ON SITE OTHER THAN THE HOT TUB AND THAT LOOKED LIKE A GROSS SPOT AND DIDN'T EVEN SEEM OPEN. At this point, with not being able to see the unit, my wife and I made the decision to not stay at this property. We had previously stayed with another local hotel, so I was very lucky to walk into this property, share this story, and be accommodated with four rooms for two nights on very short notice. Once we settled into the new hotel, we spent some time in downtown Canmore and around our new hotel. I shared our story a few times and, as it turns out, the locals all know the Lamphouse as a "BAIT AND SWITCH." If you don't know what that is, it's when a property portrays itself as one thing online, but you get another when you arrive. Actually, we had two locals tell us they wouldn't even stay there. Positive reviews or not, this was my experience. I exchanged texts with Kim Miller (Guest Services Manager). She, of course, stated that the property did no wrong and that all was perfect in this instance. They also blamed a staff shortage for not being able to show us the apartment (okay, sure). They kept our money, which isn't surprising (they have a 72-hour refund policy when everyone else is 24 hours). And, they said in a message that they would respond "accordingly" to any online reviews. So, take their response with whatever grain of salt you think appropriate. If you stay with Lamphouse, you're going to be 50/50 in what you get - good or bad. And, with what it costs, I would never take that risk again. Our vacations to the mountains are supposed to be stress-free and exactly what we book. You'll always find a "bad egg" in every resort town. And, for Canmore, the Lamphouse "Hotel" is it.
