Good nature: check into the 5 best hotels in Vancouver

Fairmont Pacific Rim

With a lobby that has become one of the city’s see-and-be-seen meeting spots, the Fairmont Pacific Rim hits all the essential notes for the perfect lifestyle-orientated business hotel – not least its downtown location right on the harbour adjacent to the Vancouver Convention Centre. Ask for one of the Owner’s Suites with views of the North Shore Mountains and Stanley Park to get you in the mood for a morning jog along the seawall. No running gear? No problem: the Fairmont’s partnership with Reebok means members of the President’s Club loyalty programme don’t need to travel with activewear.

1038 Canada Place; Tel: 1.604 695 5300; www.fairmont.com

Rosewood Hotel Georgia

In a Georgian Revival building dating from 1927, the Rosewood Hotel Georgia, one of the city’s oldest properties, is a beauty with plenty of original period details, handsome wood paneling, clean lines and an extensive Canadian art collection. A glass-bottomed indoor saltwater lap pool that presides over the meeting rooms on the floor below, might entice business travellers into a post-work swim, but the hotel’s location – right across the street from the Art Gallery and one block away from the high-end shops on Robson Street – will tempt you first.

801 W Georgia Street; Tel: 1.604 682 5566; www.rosewoodhotels.com

Shangri-La Vancouver

With the brand’s typical five-star Asian offerings, the Shangri-La Hotel Vancouver provides the luxuries that a person could get used to – not to mention the pied à terre-sized accommodations (no room is smaller than 52 sq m) that includes the dreamiest of bathrooms. A one-hotel-fits-all-travellers property, its central location between the slopes and the sea will lure any business travellers to stay on and explore the city’s outdoor offerings – just make sure you come back for the West Coast Detox treatment at the CHI spa.

1128 W Georgia Street; Tel: 1.604 689 1120; www.shangri-la.com

The Burrard

A throwback to 1950s Palm Springs, this property used to be the Burrard Motor Inn before it got transformed into a contemporary hotel. But while the feel is unabashed retro-chic cool, the property is firmly in the 21st century with all the essential technology trappings from iPod docking stations to Nespresso coffee machines. More of a pied à terre than a pleasure palace, it’s handy then, that the property is located so centrally with Vancouver’s many restaurants and bars just a hop, skip and a jump away.

1100 Burrard Street; Tel: 1.604 681 2331; www.theburrard.com

Loden Hotel

The Loden Hotel could not have picked a better address than tony Coal Harbour for its 77 rooms and suites. The understated, muted interiors, set over five floors in one of the neighbourhood’s glass skyscrapers, provided a natural background to enjoy the topographically-blessed landscape. For the ultimate in mountain-ogling, plump for the Halo Suite, which comes complete with wrap-around terrace.And while the tony neighbourhood is awash with sleek waterside eateries, we suggest staying in for some classic French dishes, from steak tartare to moules frites, at Tableau, the streetside bistro that is a favourite of guests and locals alike.

1177 Melville Street; Tel: 1.877 225 6336; theloden.com