I used to be “Courtney, party of one.” As a traveler, this may be the gold standard. Rooms are quiet when you want them to be, and people assume you’ll be a low-maintenance guest.
Now that I am “Courtney, party of four,” things are more than a little different. Although I am wholeheartedly grateful for the additions to my family, I know that this changes how the world perceives me. Checking in to a downtown hotel with two young ones underfoot isn’t cool.
At 1 Hotel Toronto, I joked with an employee that I would be checking out the rooftop party with my littles later. His eyes grew wide, eyeing my two boys as he politely informed me, “Ma’am. You need to be 19 to be at that party.”
Cool no more, but still I was massively impressed that I was treated with such compassion and respect at 1 Hotel, even during a busy moment on a weekend. There was a sense of pride behind front desk staff who let me know that the floors are made from old barn materials and that on-site composting is fed to the thousands of plants that spark green throughout the entire hotel.
The touches of wood and draping canopies of green recall a ritzy cottage, perhaps one owned by a Hollywood celebrity desperately trying to get away. Muskoka in Toronto: 1 Hotel is eco-conscious living for the high-end traveler.
Before you even get on the elevator, you can grab some farm produce from a daily market stand in the lobby, bursting with vibrant fresh fruit. Hotel keys come in the form of wooden circles, and rooms are airy and bright. The toiletries inform you of the inventive ways they can be upcycled (a shower cap can be a shoe bowl or sock storage), encouraging the average traveler to stop being so wasteful and to flex creative muscles. If you overpack, you can leave a piece of clothing and they will ensure it gets to someone in need. No details have been missed.
There are in-room filtration systems to break you of your bottled water habit and yoga mats in the rooms to encourage a little post-margarita movement. Cocktails are made from cold-pressed juices, so they’re basically health elixirs.
The rooftop pool (don’t worry, it truly was a joke – I did not bring my small children to a house party, no matter how much they may have loved it) is small but mighty, cutting through the city’s skyline with confidence. The pool is outdoors and warm, but only warm enough to enjoy on a nice sunny day.
Attendants roll beach towels with aplomb, passing beach balls to the kids and fruit-sweetened water to the adults. It’s the perfect place to start a day with a cup of coffee, watching the city below look as unstressed as it possibly can.
If you do decide to stay here, you must eat at 1 Kitchen. So often, hotel restaurants are a mere afterthought, and the food can veer towards safe rather than interesting. 1 Kitchen is not your average hotel restaurant. It has a ton of choices for every dietary need. I decided to really test it by bringing along a keto companion, a vegetarian and a very, very picky eater that considers anything beyond the scope of plain pasta not worth his time.
Fresh, local and sustainably produced cuisine takes the form of heirloom tomatoes that come on edible “dirt” for an appetizer, or impossible sliders on purple ube buns. The deconstructed s’mores beg to be tried; it’s the kind of dish that brings the entire table to silence and is a perfect sharable end to the meal.
Cool, coupled, no-dependents travelers – this one is for you. And for those of you brave enough to saunter into a hotel, starting a vacation with “No, you can’t stand on the table in the lobby,” hats off to you. 1 Hotel will be more than accommodating.
