Clarion Pointe Quebec City Airport
March 2022
I stayed at the Clarion Pointe Quebec from Choice Hotels for one night just before catching an early flight at the airport. This establishment was previously a property of the Howard Johnson chain, and some traces of this past are still visible. I learned, after my stay, with a response from the management to a mixed comment that I provided to their evaluation email, that I was given a non-renovated room. Their site states that all the rooms were renovated before Fall 2021, and yet during that stay in March 2022, the hotel still had some of their rooms not renovated.
The property
This hotel is in a somewhat commercial sector of Quebec City and many stores and restaurant are accessible from a couple of minute drive. The hotel is also a couple of minutes away, by car, from the Jean-Lessage airport. However, this property is very far from the touristic attractions of the old town. If you goal is to visit the old Quebec City, this hotel is certainly not the best choice in terms of proximity and many other hotels, from all categories, are located closer to this tourist attraction.
This hotel has a very small hall with a couch and a seat as a common area. No other space is available. The corridors leading to the rooms are wide.
The room
My room is located on the ground floor, and I have a direct access to the parking by a patio door. The floor is a vinyl covering which seems to have been recently installed. Everything is clean. The room is well equipped and there is a micro-wave oven, a small fridge, an iron and its full-size ironing board, and a Keurig coffee machine. The ironing board and the iron are very dirty, and I would dare using them. A desk is available with a chair on wheels, worn and uncomfortable. There is no power outlet easily accessible on that desk. There is an outlet high in the middle of the wall above the desk. Probably a relic of a past room furnishing. The television has USB and HSMI plug accessible in the back. The TV service is basic and includes American channels, without more. The room furniture is very worn.
Soundproofing is very bad; we can easily hear sounds and conversations coming from the corridor.
An open closet is available in the bathroom entrance.
Nightstands are placed on each side of the bed, but no power plugs or USB charging station are available in none of them.
The room heating system is quiet.
The bed quality is very average and has provided me with an ok night of sleep.
The bathroom
The bathroom is divided in two rooms: one with a sink and a counter, without a door, and a second one with a toilet and a bath (shower in the bath) which has a door. The two rooms are tiny, and everything is old and used. The counter space around the sink is small. The ceiling is very dirty. Black rubber tape, which is almost falling, is glued in some places of the ceiling, probably to prevent the tiles from lifting. The bath is damaged by cigarette burns.
Services
The staff at the reception is friendly.
I believe that a breakfast if provided with the room cost, but I didn’t take it because I had to leave the hotel, to catch a plane, before the service hour. Many vending machines are available and have a good variety of products, in particular wine and beer. Free coffee is served all day at the reception.
Exterior parking is free. During my stay, in winter, it was not properly cleaned and covered with chunks of ice and show. It was complicated to circulate by car and on foot.
Design
According to the staff, this establishment was under renovation during my stay. So, I am curious to see the result when it will be completed. For now, I don’t see any cohesion in the decor and the design of the room. Orange wall, old worn-out furniture, nothing is of good taste. The duo of Barcelona chairs from Ludwig Mies van der Rohe are very interesting pieces of furniture and it is surprising to find them in this place. However, they don’t match at all in this decor of disparate used furniture. I have noted a will to bring forward an aeronautics theme to the hotel, mainly with a large picture, in the hall, of a DC-3, and with the room number doors inspired by airport boarding passes. I must recognize this small effort in creativity.
My two cents
I didn’t stay in a renovated room, which, according to staff, are available in this hotel. So, I cannot judge of the quality of these new rooms. “Clarion Pointe” seems to be a different brand than “Clarion”. According to the Choice Hotels website, “Clarion Pointe” “provide affordable elevated essentials”. While the “Clarion” brand wants to provide additional services and spaces in its properties. However, based on the property, I have difficulties understanding the choice to give this brand from the Choice Hotels portfolio to this establishment. I have stayed in many properties from different brand of Choice Hotels, and, in my opinion, this establishment fits better as an Econo Lodge than a Clarion. I didn’t saw the “elevated essentials” there. At the time of my stay, this hotel offered rooms at a lower price than the Econo Lodge located less than a kilometer away. Based on my experience in this type of room, I don’t recommend this hotel. There are, in this area, and as close to the airport, many other establishments offering a much better room quality. I am looking forward to another visit in this hotel to discover if the new rooms are of better quality.
The devil is in the details:
- Parking badly maintained in winter.
- Dirty iron and ironing board.
- Damaged bath.
Pros
- Close to the airport.
Cons
- Bad room soundproofing.
- Tiny bathroom.