Gite Le Roupillon

Roland Bergerat and his wife runs this rather inexpensive but nice bed and breakfast conveniently located in Quebec City. It is located near a hospital in a well-maintained and reasonably quiet lower middle class neighbourhood. There is no air-conditioning but the rooms are well-ventilated and equipped with ceiling fans. Private off-street free parking is provided next to the house. Breakfast is a generous display of muffin, croissant, bread and jams, fruit salad, cereal, coffee, tea, orange juice and milk.

From there, you can drive to Vieux-Québec in about 15 minutes, and the bus will take only slightly longer. The only issue I had with this place was that it was situated at an intersection with a 4-way stop (not the most busy but there was traffic), which meant that there was noticable car noise for most part of the evening before midnight and in the mornings (on weekdays). http://www3.sympatico.ca/leroupillon/

Quality Inn - Calgary North (Airport)

Decided to take a risk since I was staying here only one night.

Pros:
(1) Cheap.
(2) Near airport.
Cons:
(1) Bathroom has no ventilation fan, not even a passive vent.
(2) Cleanliness tolerable but not what I would expect of an establishment bearing the Quality nameplate.
(3) Only one layer of windows (and not even well sealed). This is not quite acceptable in Canada as it does get drafty.

Alberta Place Suite Hotel - Edmonton

Looks like the upgrading trend continues. Got upgraded from the studio I booked to a 1 bedroom suite. We stayed here 4 nights. The suite is large and functional, reasonably clean, and a really good deal for downtown Edmonton as it comes with free indoor parking. The view (we were on the 16th floor) was good. The daily maid service was excellent but I am not sure if that is due to the tip I left or not. Even though the price was reasonable, there are lots of places outside of downtown to stay in Edmonton so unless you have a reason to stay there, one might be better off further out. But this time, the fact that the Society of Arts in Healthcare conference was nearby tipped the balance.

I had to check in before getting access to the parkade via the alley in the back. Some care had to be taken to avoid scrapes going round the corners. It amused me a little that Hertz was in fact using this parkade. Somehow Hertz seems to have all these locations where they are just asking for damage to happen to their cars (like the Crowne Plaza Hotel car park in Ottawa for example).

The only complaint I have is that the small and purely functional hotel lobby smelled a bit like a greasy kitchen no doubt because the adjacent cafe served bacon and eggs (i.e. greasy breakfast) and chinese food (i.e. greasy lunch) from a kitchen that was not well ventilated enough. www.albertaplace.com www.societyartshealthcare.org

Banff Boundary Lodge - Harvie Heights

We stayed here 3 nights. Looks like the offer I got from Expedia.ca was worth it after all. It turns out I got upgraded from a 1 bedroom to a 2 bedroom suite, which made for a really comfortable stay (we did not have to use the sofa bed anymore). The rack rates for this place are high in my opinion, and I would never pay that much with the online booking systems offering so much less.

This is a good place for a family, especially if you are the independent sort (i.e. make yourself at home but don't expect to be served). The rooms are clean and the kitchen well-equipped (includes dishwasher). You get lots of space, free coffee and tea, and the beds are comfortable. The bathroom has an effective (though rather loud) ventilation fan. There is a convenient coin operated laundry room for the use of all guests. If you are interested, there are also a shared outdoor hot-tub and barbeque that you can use. The location is extremely convenient, just outside of the Banff National Park gates, and 5 minutes drive from shops and restaurants in Canmore. Not as convenient as staying in Canmore itself where you can walk to the shops, but close enough.

However, you have to be happy with some quirks and limitations. For example, check-in time is 4 pm. The front desk is open only from 3 pm to 10 pm. So checking in before 3 pm or after 10 pm is basically impossible (don't try it, I saw some people arriving at 10.30 pm and not being able to reach anyone). Most of the units require traversing about 6 to 10 steps, so this is not the place for you if you are unwilling to carry your luggage up that number of steps. The door/door closer/door frame to our unit was tight/heavy/well-sealed so it requires a decent shove to get open. The place is just off the highway so if you are looking for complete peace and quiet, this is not possible. Nevertheless, I found it reasonable quiet, but I do come from a city. Since the units share common walls (or are upstairs/downstairs of each other), you also run the risk of having noisy neighbours although we had none during our stay there. There is no daily maid service (unless you stay 1 week or more in which case a maid will come mid-way through your stay), although you can request one for $30. Towels will be replaced if you put them in the specified basket and leave them by your front door before 11 am. If you need supplies such as soap/shampoo, just walk over to the front desk during opening hours and you will be given more than you need (but you do have to walk over). There is no air-conditioning in the rooms, which is fine for this time of the year, but perhaps not in mid-summer. www.banffboundarylodge.com