emeraldcityveganeats
Reasonably priced hotel with very modern, cosmopolitan decor, inside and out. Hotel is unique in many ways. Located only minutes from downtown Nanaimo, Maffeo Sutton Park, and shopping.||Check-in is done via email (we've never seen that before). Upon arrival, there's no one manning the front desk (there really isn't a front desk) but instead, there's a sign in the window of the door that you'd instinctively expect to lead to the Front Desk area lol. This sign directs you to check your email if you're already booked with them while also providing a number for Customer Service.||Instead of the typical keycard guests are normally provided with to swipe their doors for entry, there's a keypad on the door to your room. After your email based check-in, you should recieve additional information, including the code you'll need to enter on the keypad to then unlock your door and gain access to your room.||Upon entering the room, on the desk is a binder with all sorts of instructions and helpful hints for your stay. There is information in the manual about how to connect to the wifi but it didn't work for us at first. We called their customer service and it turns out the information is outdated, the SSID (network name) listed in the book was no longer valid, as well as the password, so they had to give us the SSID and password. The password is #$%R!#%@# (sorry about that, I think there was static on the line as I was typing the password - oops! lol)||The bathroom is decked out with two different kinds of shower heads, a large overhead shower head and a handheld for greater dexterity. I only used the overhead shower and the pressure was great. It might not be intutive how to work the shower so please allow me to help you out lol. On the large square black tile, you place your hand under the handle (that has the large S) then lift the bottom of the handle towards you, which starts the water. Just above where that handle is, there's a knob and turning the knob will direct the water either to the handheld or the overhead shower head. In many hotel bathrooms, you can slide either shower door (front or back) which is very helpful to slide the door closest to the shower head to access and start the shower (thus minimize getting wet or blasted with cold or hot water before you're ready). However, I was only able to open the shower door directly next to the shower. So, be sure to tilt the shower head away from you first (and verify which shower head the water will be coming out of), otherwise you're going to be right in the line of fire as you start the shower....brrrrr.||Our Room (102) included a kitchenette area with a microwave, fridge and separate freezer area and, an induction stovetop (nice touch, very sleek)!. While the area is very cool, my wife was unable to reach the dishes in the cupboard, and she's not particularly short at 5'5". Maybe a slight design flaw there, not the only one though, read on.||The bed was comfortable. There's plenty of outlets next to the bed towards the far side of the room but none on the near side of the bed! From that side you'd need to unplug the coffee machine and/or microwave, utilize a long power strip and one of the small tables available in the room.||There's a shared fenced outside area, all four lower units have direct access and the four upper units have window access.||Storage space is a bit weird as well. There's no closet, but a rack against the wall to hang your clothes or fold and place on the top rack. Also, the room does not have a dresser. The only drawer available is in the end table on the far side of the bed. ||Counter space in the bathroom is tight. you''ll need to maybe be creative in your putting your items out lol. Also, there's no shelf space inside the shower for your own shampoo, conditioner, soap etc||Overall, our stay was a very positive experience, while we didn't use the kitchenette it was awesome having one. We wouldn't hesitate to rebook here again in the future!
