A group of us from Toronto, all young people 18 - 22, decided to take a short trip to Montreal to see the sights and celebrate the new year. One of us had heard good things about the Hyatt, and seeing as we were able to book at a reduced rate since the hotel was offering an early-bird winter special, decided to give it a try.

Right from the get-go, the service at this hotel was mediocre at best. We initially ordered two rooms and negotiated what we were told was a free breakfast included each day for 2 people per room (usually a 35 dollar value, per day), since we were booking 2 rooms for 5 nights each. A few days later a few more people entered our party and we needed another room. We called back the same number to find out that while our initial rooms were still booked, we couldn't get the same rate for an additional room because the manager had to approve it. We were given her name and number and told to leave a message and she would get right back to us.

For the next 3 weeks we left several phone messages with no return call from the manager. We were re-directed to several people who said they couldn't help us. Meanwhile, the rate for the room steadily inclined as we reached closer to the new year. Finally, 3 days before our trip we were told the manager we had been trying to reach for nearly a month was on vacation and all the hotel could do was charge us 50 dollars more per day for the additional room, even though they were the ones at fault for not getting back to us sooner. On top of that, they claimed that at no time was a free breakfast offered to us.

When we arrived at the hotel, we were greeted by bell boys who were fairly friendly and helpful with our luggage. If you want to park in the hotel, it costs something like 26 dollars a day. If you are not planning to use your car (and trust me, you can get practically anywhere in the downtown area by underground or Metro), park next door in the Complex Dejardins (the mall directly underneath the Hyatt). It costs $19 for every 24 hours, as long as you don't leave the complex (i.e. no in and out privileges). We did this for 5 days and the car was completely safe, underground in a well lit and secure parking lot for only $75 total.

We got to the hotel at around 4:30pm, our room was ready and check-in went smoothly. The rooms are spacious and were clean and tidy. Yes, the TV was a little old but it worked and it had enough English channels to entertain us in the little amount of time we did spend in our rooms. The heating was easy to adjust and adapt to your own liking. The bathroom was clean, my only complaint being that there was very little counter space (ladies, your make-up bag, wash kit and hair products will not fit very well in the bathroom at all). However, several things went wrong over the course of 5 days, including one complete room change half way through due to a malfunctioning shower.

I'm not the type to do much complaining or be too picky, but here's a list of the things that went wrong in our rooms in 5 days that the hotel did little to nothing to help remedy the situation in any way:

- Shower head that was broken and dangling from it's perch, with water that switched every 30 seconds from absolutely freezing to scalding hot. Took 2 days for maitenence to come in and out before switching us to another room completely because they couldn't do anything (apparently - however another couple was booked in that room a few hours after we left, meaning they knowingly booked someone in a room with a broken shower)
- 2 occasions where the rooms were not cleaned and no one responded when we called down to ask for someone to come up because the room was missed.
- 2 TVs that had blown speakers that would ring if you turned them up past a certain volume
- Electrical outlets that would not work at all
- Fire alarm in the middle of the night from 4 am to 5 am with no compensation (i.e. in terms of offering food, blankets, drinks, etc. to those waiting out in the cold in their PJs half asleep)

In my opinion, when it comes down to it - for the amount of money you pay to stay in the hotel, you get little to no service, and many of the amenities you'd expect to be free (local phone calls are 1.50 each!) or cheap (wireless internet cost 35 dollars a day for access) are not included. I have had better stays at howard johnson's or days inns than here. Mind you, the location is amazing and you are in walking distance of just about all the major attractions.

For advice on eating - try Jiggs Fritere downstairs in the food court. Very cheap but tasty food, especially the poutins and breakfast (served till 11). For dining out, the Baton Rouge was terrible (service and food), try St. Huberts (the French version of Swiss Chalet) for great prices and great food. Didn't find any bagel places in close vacinty to the hotel, but a quick drive down St. Laurent will take you to Shwartzs Deli which has amazing Montreal smoked meat.

For sights, we went to the Biodome/botanical gardens/insectariam (biodome is the best by far and not to be missed in my opinion!), shopping on Rue St. Catherine (the other street the Hotel borders) which is a street lined with shops, mostly clothing, although I didn't see many different from the ones found in Toronto. We also went to the Cathedral Notre Dame, which is within walking distance and GORGEOUS. Anyone with an appreciation of history/religion/architecture should not miss this.

For nightlife, we only really went out one night, on new years, to a party at club soda down the street. But from what I can see, St. Laurent and St. Catherine, 2 streets within walking distance from the hotel, are littered with bars, pubs and clubs. I'm sure you could find a great party to go to every night within stumbling distance from the hotel.

Don't be afraid to take the metro and the bus system! It's incredibly fast and efficient, and all have maps of popular destinations and which stops/buses to take to get there. Also, you can get to almost anywhere by taking the underground paths which are well lit and easy to navigate if you pay attention to the maps and arrows.

Lastly, don't be nervous if you do not speak French very well/at all. Most people speak nearly perfect English, and if not, they know enough to tell you what you need to know. It was actually mind blowing to see how efficiently bi-lingual most Montrealers are. We got some attitude a few times for being obvious English tourists from Ontario, but it was slim to none and for the most part Montrealers are extremely nice and helpful people. Plus, we met many other Torontonians, Ottawers and Americans in the hotel which was a fun experience.

Overall, I'd give the hotel a 3 out of 5. A great location and aesthetically pleasing, however much to expensive for the services offered. There are many other hotels in the area which I would recommend checking out before this one.