Vernon's BEST Kept Secret: Luxury Getaway at Quality Inn & Suites!
Vernon's BEST Kept Secret: Quality Inn & Suites - A Review That's (Mostly) Honest, and Probably Too Long.
Okay, so I just got back from a stay at the Quality Inn & Suites in Vernon, and honestly? “Best Kept Secret” is a bold claim. Let’s unpack this, shall we? My expectations were… well, let's just say I've seen Quality Inns. But hey, a getaway is a getaway, right? And, truth be told, I was hoping for a hidden gem. Here's the long and slightly unhinged truth.
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Accessibility: A Mixed Bag, Honestly.
Okay, listen, I'm not in a wheelchair, but I did take my elderly Aunt Mildred, who uses a walker. The website claimed accessibility, but let me tell you, navigating the parking lot with her felt like an Olympic sport. (Free Car Park, by the way, which is a plus, and there is a charging station!) The main entrance was manageable, with ramps, but the hallways within the hotel… well, they felt a tad… compact. We did manage, and the elevator worked fine, but be prepared for some tight squeezes. I saw Facilities for disabled guests listed and I'm cautiously optimistic they have wheelchair accessible rooms. My Aunt Mildred would have had her own opinions on that if it was relevant.
Internet: Free Wi-Fi, Hallelujah!
Alright, let's be real. I need internet. Work never sleeps. The Free Wi-Fi in all rooms! was a lifesaver. The Internet was… well, it worked. Internet access – wireless was decent in the room, though sometimes it lagged in the common areas. I didn't try the Internet [LAN], because, who even uses those anymore? The Wi-Fi for special events probably would have been handy if I'd, you know, been to a special event, but alas, I was just trying to catch up on emails.
(Emotional Reaction: Relief. Then, mild annoyance at the occasional lag.)
Cleanliness and Safety: The Pandemic Edition.
Okay, I’m a germaphobe (don't judge). I was relieved to see the Anti-viral cleaning products mentioned. They had Daily disinfection in common areas, which did appear to be happening. I saw staff diligently wiping down surfaces. My room was definitely Rooms sanitized between stays, and I opted not to use the Room sanitization opt-out available. Hand sanitizer was readily available everywhere. They had Staff trained in safety protocol, or at least, they feigned it well. The Cashless payment service was a smooth convenience. The Hot water linen and laundry washing felt comforting. There was even a Doctor/nurse on call, which, honestly, felt a bit overkill, but hey, safety first! There was a First aid kit. The Sterilizing equipment was probably mostly for the plates. Professional-grade sanitizing services were probably utilized. The Hygiene certification wasn't present (which probably is a miss). The Individually-wrapped food options – more on those later). Safe dining setup was the baseline. Shared stationery removed, good. Safe dining setup, mostly. It's still a gamble, you know?
(Emotional Reaction: Okay, I mostly felt safe. But I’m still wiping things down with my own Clorox wipes, just in case.)
Dining, Drinking, and Snacking: Breakfast – My Biggest Adventure.
Alright, brace yourselves. The included Breakfast [buffet] was… an experience. Let's just say it was a buffet, and it existed. The Breakfast in room, by the way, wasn't an option. I think the Breakfast takeaway service, was a possibility. Asian breakfast wasn't present. The Western breakfast was present. The Restaurants, were present. The Buffet in restaurant was the big event (kind of). There was a Coffee/tea in restaurant, which was great. Bottle of water was present, which was nice. The Breakfast service was done with a smile (even if the omelette was a little… rubbery). There was a Coffee shop present. There was a Poolside bar - open from 3 PM onwards so that's great.
Let's talk about the buffet. I went in with an open mind. I wanted to see the best side of the Quality Inn. There were a few hot items and some pastries. I was able to get Coffee/tea in restaurant. Then there was that omelette… it was… okay. There were also some pre-packaged muffins. I had planned to have the whole buffet but there was something about the quality of the pastries that made me lose my appetite. The lack of many options was disappointing.
(Emotional Reaction: Mixed. The coffee in the room was good, but I'm still dreaming of a proper breakfast. And I paid for everything, so I'm allowed to complain!)
Pool & Relaxation: The Good Stuff.
Okay, finally, the good. The Swimming pool [outdoor] was actually pretty great! The Pool with view was a treat. It's not the fanciest pool, but hey, I loved splashing in the water. The Sauna and Steamroom are both listed, but I didn't see either of them, so I didn't try them. The Spa/sauna was apparently not present. The Spa was apparently not present either. The Fitness center was there, I didn't use it. The Gym/fitness was present. The Foot bath and massage were not present.
(Emotional Reaction: The pool was the highlight! I could have spent the entire vacation in it. Pure bliss!)
Things to Do: Beyond the Hotel Walls.
Vernon, itself, is charming. There's lots to do, but the hotel itself had limited options on those.
Services and Conveniences: The Basics, and a Few Extras.
The basics were covered. Daily housekeeping was efficient. Air conditioning in public area, yes. Elevator, yes. The Concierge wasn’t exactly a powerhouse of information. The front desk staff were friendly, though, and they did their best to help. There was Luggage storage, which I didn’t require. There was Cash withdrawal. Gift/souvenir shop and Air conditioning in public area was fine. The Contactless check-in/out was appreciated.
(Emotional Reaction: The convenience was appreciated, but the hotel lacked that "extra" touch.)
The Room: A Deep Dive into the Details.
Here’s where the Quality Inn really did its best. Available in all rooms:
- Additional toilet: no.
- Air conditioning: yes, and it worked!
- Alarm clock: yes.
- Bathrobes: I wish!
- Bathroom phone: nope.
- Bathtub: yes, and a decent one, too.
- Blackout curtains: bless them!
- Carpeting: yes.
- Closet: yes.
- Coffee/tea maker: yes, and it was stocked!
- Complimentary tea: yes.
- Daily housekeeping: yes.
- Desk: yes.
- Extra long bed: yes.
- Free bottled water: yes.
- Hair dryer: yes.
- High floor: mine was, which was nice.
- In-room safe box: yes.
- Interconnecting room(s) available: perhaps
- Internet access – LAN: lol
- Internet access – wireless: yes.
- Ironing facilities: yes.
- Laptop workspace: yes.
- Linens: clean.
- Mini bar: no.
- Mirror: yes.
- Non-smoking: yes.
- On-demand movies: no.
- Private bathroom: yes.
- Reading light: yes.
- Refrigerator: yes.
- Safety/security feature: yes.
- Satellite/cable channels: yes.
- Scale: yes.
- Seating area: yes.
- Separate shower/bathtub: yes.
- Shower: yes.
- Slippers: no.
- Smoke detector: yes.
- Socket near the bed: yes.
- Sofa: yes.
- Soundproofing: not perfect, but not awful.
- Telephone: yes.
- Toiletries: yes (the essentials).
- Towels: clean and fluffy.
- Umbrella: no.
- Visual alarm: I didn't see one.
- **Wake
Alright, buckle up, buttercups. This ain't your grandma's perfectly-formatted travel itinerary. This is the raw, unfiltered, slightly-chaotic journey through the Quality Inn & Suites Vernon, BC, a place that, let's be honest, probably smells faintly of chlorine and existential dread. Let's dive in!
Day 1: Arrival and Immediate Regrets (Just Kidding… Mostly)
1:00 PM: Landed in Kelowna. Oh, the Okanagan! Sun, wine, and… a rental car that sounds like it's about to cough up a lung. The drive to Vernon was pretty, actually. Stunning. The lake shimmering, the mountains looming. For about five minutes, I felt like I was in a postcard! Then the "are we there yet?" chorus began from the back seat.
2:00 PM: Checked into the Quality Inn. Okay, confession time: my expectations weren’t exactly sky-high. Honestly, I was expecting a vaguely mildew-y smell, maybe a peeling wallpaper situation. But hey, the lobby seemed clean enough. The lady at the front desk… bless her heart, she had that glazed-over look of someone who's seen it all. And maybe a smidge of my soul by now.
2:30 PM: The Room. Okay, I’m not going to lie. It's the kind of room that makes you immediately check the corners for spiders. And I am genuinely a bit of a worrier. I feel myself starting to think about all the dirt and germs, and I start to wonder how often the sheets are changed and how many people have stayed here, before. I mean, it's clean (at the very least) but it's also just SO…generic. I swear I've seen this exact room setup in a thousand other slightly-underwhelming hotels across North America. The bedspread is those weird, slightly… stiff, textured things. The TV is small and probably has like, 3 channels that actually work. I’m starting to feel the familiar pang of "is this all life is?" But, hey, at least it's a place to put my stuff. A big, weird, slightly depressing place to put my stuff.
3:00 PM-4:00 PM: A quick dip in the pool, before it closes (the sign said, in a very passive-aggressive way). This is going to be the time everyone else shows up. Oh, the joys of travelling with kids. Well, good riddance. Wait. I need to get my kids' swimsuits. Well, it's pool time. This is the one good thing of the hotel, but the main thing that brings me down is the amount of chlorine in here. And there is no way this is cleaned enough.
4:00 PM - 6:00 PM: Wandering around Vernon. Found a decent burger joint – called "The BX Pub". Standard pub fare, nothing to write home about, but hey, the fries were crispy. The kids didn't fight too much. Success! After the dinner everyone just went to bed, and I went to sleep, too.
Day 2: Chasing Waterfalls and Questioning Everything
8:00 AM: Woke up. Meh. Free breakfast at the Quality Inn. Don't get too excited. It's the usual suspects: sad-looking pastries, lukewarm coffee, and that weird, plasticky omelet thing that looks like it was born from a science experiment. Ate it anyway. Because free.
9:00 AM Head to the falls, there are some falls around. They all look the same. My kids are annoyed by my photography. I'm annoyed at the kids. I'm starting to think I should have just stayed home. Why do I do this to myself?
11:00 AM Okay, deep breath, you got this. A quick stop at the beach, the lakes are a little chilly. Found a little bit of sand, some rocks, and some very grumpy seagulls. The kids, surprisingly, weren’t terrible, and played in the sand for a good 30 minutes. It was nice, a little slice of peace. I soaked it in.
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM: Lunch at a "family-friendly" restaurant. Which means, basically, “screaming children encouraged”. It was loud, messy, and I spilled my water twice. But hey, the pizza was surprisingly good. I wouldn't say I remember the name.
1:30 PM - 3:30 PM: Afternoon nap. The kids were out like lights. Bless them. I managed to sneak in an hour of blissful, uninterrupted sleep. Bliss. This is what I live for.
3:30 PM - 5:00 PM: Back in the pool. Because, hey, gotta get our money's worth, right? It was the same smell, same everything. But, you know what? I think I was starting to get numb to it. Actually, I enjoyed the pool, and I would even say the kids enjoyed the pool, too!
6:00 PM: TV, movie. The hotel TV works, but, man, the selection is bleak. Settled on a Hallmark movie. Don’t judge!
Day 3: The Big Day - Wine Tasting and (Maybe) Emotional Sobriety
9:00 AM: Another Sad Breakfast. Really should have brought my own cereal.
10:00 AM: Wine Tasting. Alright, alright. This is what I came for. The Okanagan Valley is known for its wineries! Drove to a few. The first winery: beautiful, elegant, felt like stepping into a magazine. The second winery: a little more rustic, a little more… me. The wine was fantastic, the views were breathtaking, and I actually felt like I was on vacation and not just a tired, slightly-cynical human-wrangling machine. I bought way too much wine. My husband is going to be horrified, but… shrugs.
1:00 PM: Lunch at a winery bistro. Fancy food, beautiful presentation. A little too fancy for my budget, but the wine… did the trick. Feeling a lot of feelings right now. The feeling of feeling good. Maybe, just maybe, this trip is worth it after all.
4:00 PM: Packing up, slowly. The rooms felt even worse than they did the first day. The beds looked uninviting, but, alas, I had to make it. The kids are bickering. My head hurts. The car is a mess. I have a weird stain on my shirt. But I'm smiling? I look back at the room and take one last lingering… look. Then, I push all my luggage into the car and close the door.
5:00 PM: Leaving. Driving the scenery. The lake is gorgeous in the late afternoon sun. Maybe this trip wasn't so bad after all. Maybe.
Final Thoughts: The Quality Inn & Suites Vernon? Not luxurious. Not perfect. But… it was a base. A place to sleep (mostly). A place to start and end the day (in a tired, slightly-cranky way). The Okanagan, though? That’s what I’ll remember. The wine, the views, the feeling of… maybe, just maybe, getting away for a little while. And, yeah, you know what? I think I’ll miss the hotel a little bit too.
So, yeah. That's my trip. It was messy. It was imperfect. It was… human. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need a nap. And maybe a very large glass of wine.
Escape to Chicago's Hidden Gem: SpringHill Suites Bolingbrook!
Vernon's BEST Kept Secret: Quality Inn & Suites... Seriously? FAQs (Because Let's Be Honest, I Had Some Questions)
Okay, "Luxury Getaway"? Really? At a Quality Inn? Is this some kind of elaborate joke?
Look, I'm not going to lie. When I saw the ad, I snorted. Luxury? Quality Inn? In Vernon? My expectations were lower than a worm's belly button. But, and this is where it gets weird, *it wasn't terrible*. "Luxury" is, ahem, *subjective*. Think "clean and comfortable, with a hint of jacuzzi." Which, after a week of camping with the kids (don't even get me started on the campfire smell still clinging to my hair), felt positively decadent. Okay, maybe not *luxury*-luxury, more like "luxury-adjacent". Let's just say, relative to my expectations, it delivered.
What about the "suites"? Are they actually spacious? Because my family could use all the space we can get.
Ah, the suites! Now, *this* is where it got interesting. We booked a "family suite," and I braced myself for disappointment (again). Frankly, I was expecting a glorified rectangular shoebox with a cramped pull-out couch. Nope! Okay, it wasn't a sprawling villa, but it had a separate living area and a proper bedroom. The kids actually had space to *breathe* and spread out their toys. The extra space was a godsend for keeping the peace. It was almost worth the price of admission just for that. Almost.
Is the pool area decent? My kids are basically amphibious creatures.
The pool... Okay, the pool. It wasn't sparkling turquoise waters of a five-star resort. It was... a chlorine-scented rectangle. But! And here's the key: my kids went *wild*. They loved it. Hours and hours of splashing and screaming, which meant hours and hours of me, gratefully slumped in a poolside chair with a lukewarm coffee (because "luxury"). There was a hot tub too, which I managed to sneak into once while the kids were distracted. It was a fleeting moment of bliss. Just don't expect a tropical paradise. Think "functional fun".
Breakfast. Don't even get me started on hotel breakfasts. Is it the typical sad continental spread?
Alright, let's talk breakfast. Yes, it's continental. But! (There are a lot of "buts" here, aren't there?) It's a *pretty decent* continental. Free bagels, toast, waffles (make your own, which the kids LOVED), cereal, yogurt... and the coffee? Surprisingly drinkable. I did spring for the hot cocoa at one point, and it was surprisingly delectable. Look, it's not a gourmet experience, but it's not a total train wreck either. It’s the fuel that gets you through the morning... and gets you out of your room, which is the real win.
What about the location? Anything interesting nearby?
Vernon, folks. It's... Vernon. Okay, so it's not exactly the Bahamas. But! It's close to some beautiful lakes, lots of hiking trails in the fall, and a handful of decent restaurants. There's even a waterpark nearby. We spent an afternoon there; that was a mistake. Too many children. I would say that the the most interesting thing nearby would be the hotel, as it is close to everything, but has an affordable rate. The only issue from the area would be too many hotels to choose from.. But again, it's Vernon. Just be thankful you're not stuck in a gas station parking lot.
Tell me about a particularly defining moment you had...good or bad, anything.
Okay, this one’s going to get a little messy. There was this one evening, right? The kids were finally asleep. *Finally*. I’d managed to wrangle them through dinner, bath-time wars, and story time. My partner was out grabbing pizza. I thought, "I deserve a moment of peace." I grabbed the little travel wine bottle I’d snuck in (don’t judge) and went to soak in that (aforementioned) jacuzzi. Ahhhhh. Bliss. And then, disaster. I leaned back... and the jets. They. Wouldn't. Turn. On. I fiddled with the controls. Nothing. I pounded the side. Nothing. Panic started to set in. I’d pictured this perfect spa-like moment, and it was being stolen from me by a malfunctioning... jacuzzi, which, upon further inspection, was probably older than I am. I had *one* glass of wine. That was it. That was all I had left. I didn't even want to get dressed. I wanted my jacuzzi moment of peacefulness. I contemplated the merits of calling the front desk. I'm not a Karen. But the sheer injustice... the utter disappointment... Then, the screaming from the second room. The second room: The kids had awoken again. I sighed. I got dressed. I poured the rest of my wine into the cup and chugged it. I went to deal with the children, but mostly, I was happy. I love them, that being said, I was grateful I was there alone with them. The jacuzzi was a symbol of the perfect getaway. I didn't get the perfect getaway, and that's alright.
So, overall... would you recommend this "luxury getaway"?
Look, if you're expecting the Ritz-Carlton, you'll be utterly disappointed. But if you're looking for a relatively affordable, clean, and comfortable place to crash, with a few perks to keep the kids (and maybe you) entertained, then yes. Yes, I would. It's not going to win any awards for extravagance, but it's got its charm. And sometimes, that's all you need. Just don't go expecting too much. And maybe, just maybe, check the jacuzzi before settling in... just in case.
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