Hotel4Real!

The Delta Dartmouth is one of the latest entries to the Halifax/Dartmouth market, but it’s by no means a new hotel. In fact, it dates back to the good ol’ Ramada in the 90s. How it went from a bedbug -infested, dingy, rundown and sketchy sh*thole to the Delta that it is today I have no idea, but all I know is it’s by far my favourite hotel in the Halifax area, after more than a dozen stays (and counting).

The location of the hotel is simply not the best unless your destination sits on the north side of Dartmouth, which is mostly industrial. It’s a few minutes away from Dartmouth Crossing so I guess the weekend shopping crowd may enjoy the location too, but you may want to go back to the planning board if you wish to stay here and stuff in downtown Halifax. Parking is free though, so that’s a plus, but I avoid parking anywhere close the front entrance because the parking spots has to be the NARROWEST I’ve ever seen. I don’t even trust myself with my own doors, let alone other drivers (sorry).

Throughout my stays, I’ve tried pretty much every room type on offer here, from the standard rooms to presidential suites. The consistency in quality has been unreal – even though the rooms were a few years old, they still looked very much new, and the upkeep was top notch – I do not remember encountering a maintenance issue here, ever.

Housekeeping has been consistently great, I love their additional touches and attention to detail, and whenever I interact with them they’ve always been warm and positive.

To me, bathrooms are never deal-breakers when I choose a hotel. That being said, here you’ll find all kinds of bathroom layouts – with or without tub, different kinds of shower rooms, jacuzzi or not, etc.. The presidential suites would win my vote here as they were the best equipped and the most roomy.

The restaurant Pitch & Pivot, being the only real option in walking distance, has been very reliable especially for breakfast. Service can be slower during busy rushes but I’ve not had any truly bad experience here. The only complaint (well, not really) I have is the pricing of some items – for example, the “Sunnyside Breakfast Bowl” below for $16. It tasted great, but wasn’t exactly the most satisfying or filling breakfast I’ve had.

The hotel also has one of the best hotel gyms in Halifax, and the pool is a well-known kids staycation spot thanks to the waterslide.

Now, if the good stuff ends there, I wouldn’t be calling it my favourite in town – in my opinion, the Muir has a newer hard product, I love the Westin‘s signature bed more than the Delta ones, and the Residence Inn is only a couple blocks away from work. What makes the Delta Dartmouth worth the detour to me has always been the world-class front office team, especially Amer and his PM team. Everyone went the extra mile to make me feel quite literally “at home” after long travel days. Amer himself remembered everything since our first interaction, from my name to my small room preferences that I mentioned casually in our chit-chats, and went above and beyond to make things happen when I least expected them. It was clear to me that the team collaborated very well, that everyone was feeling empowered and motivated to take care of not just me but every single guest in the building, whether the hotel is filled with sports teams, families or high-maintenance business travelers, and that the team was genuinely proud of the work they do. This level of service unfortunately has become rarer to come by nowadays even for me as a global traveler, so it was absolutely awesome and refreshing to see the front office team here deliver the best possible experience consistently. 

My project in Halifax has come to an end for the time being, but I’ll be sure to stop by whenever I’m in town again, because I know the Delta would never let me down.

RealScore

Service: 9.5

Design and Room Size: 8.0

In-room Amenities: 8

Bathroom Size and Layout: 8

View from (my) Room: 6

Hotel Location: 6

Available Guest Facilities: 8

Food Quality: 8

Food and Beverage Service: 8

Executive Lounge Quality: N/A

Final RealScore: 8.01

Final RealRating: AA

Hotel is built/opened: 1991

Total number of rooms: 174

Length of stay: 18 nights

Membership level at check-in: Titanium

Room types experienced: Standard Room / One-bedroom Suite / Premium One-bedroom Suite / Presidential Suite