Dear Hotel Indigo Ottawa: an open letter

OPEN LETTER TO THE HOTEL INDIGO OTTAWA:

Dear Hotel Indigo,

Recently, I stayed at the Hotel Indigo for my first time while doing a blog post on how to have a solo-vacation. To be honest, I’d never been further into your hotel than the Phi Bistro on the first level for a tweet-up, but I wanted to visit as I always appreciate businesses with good blogger relations; so I really had no idea what to expect when I arrived. Now that I’ve experienced your gorgeous establishment, I would like to request that I not have to leave.

Hear me out.

I think that Hotel Indigo should consider housing me permanently in the hotel as a sort of ‘resident blogger’. Any of the rooms would do nicely—I got to see a variety of them because my initial room had noisy neighbours and your incredible staff were kind enough to move me so that I would be comfortably situated. And before I go on about the rooms, let me just say that your staff were fantastic; my check-in was the smoothest, fastest check-in I think I’ve ever had a hotel, and they helped relocate me with great patience and speed. Being polite, quick, and efficient are key qualities when dealing with a blogger-in-residence, particularly on a writer’s block day.

Your blogger in residence, perched on the front desk undoubtedly
testing the patience and politeness of your fabulous staff.

Executive suite: living room. Heaven.

Anyway, yes: I’ve now seen your standard guest room, your executive level rooms, and one of your suites, and I can say that all these rooms are gorgeous. The décor, colours, and hardwood floors make the rooms feel so much nicer than the average hotel room. Every detail, from the subtle ocean theme that continues throughout the entire hotel, to the porcelain sinks and immaculate bathrooms, work to create the feeling of a posh apartment versus a cramped, wallpapered, itchy typical hotel room. So as your new resident blogger, I think I’d be quite happily situated…particularly in the incredible suite I was given, with a living room larger than my real living room, and a giant flatscreen TV in the bedroom where I could happily lay back and live-tweet any number of reality TV shows.

King sized bed!

I think we could make my presence into a sightseeing attraction. I love that some of your rooms face into the middle of the hotel and look down onto the main lobby called the atrium, with the fantastic glass skylight above allowing natural light to filter down to every level. It reminded me of the guest quarters on a cruise ship that features a promenade. So you see, your staff could welcome new guests to the hotel and point up to my windows, whispering reverently that the great and eccentric writer Jordan Danger lives up there. I would be willing to schedule specific times of day where I would throw open the curtains and wander back and forth muttering to myself, hair askew and bathrobe flapping, like a perfect blend of Walt Whitman and the Phantom of the Opera.

Haunting the guests from my window overlooking the atrium.
You can't see the bits of cheezies stuck to my face.

Naturally, I could also haunt other prime facilities in the Hotel Indigo. It would be a simple matter to find a favourite lounge chair beside the tranquil swimming pool; I could give toasts at weddings and events held in your lovely conference rooms. Guests could request something well-written and articulate, or something wild and nonsensical. I can do both.

With your hotel located so perfectly within walking distance of Bank Street, Elgin Street, Sparks Street, and the Byward Market, there would be no end to the array of activities and restaurants I could frequent, keeping me entertained forever. The Phantom of the Indigo would of course become infamous, with shopkeeps and restaurateurs pointing me out on the street to their clientele. Guests from all over would book with the Hotel Indigo just on the off-chance that they’d be present on one of those rare writer moments where I’m starved for company and drag someone into my suite so I can show them my collection of little plastic unicorns.

Inward-facing rooms look down into the atrium--a very cool effect.

In all seriousness though, Hotel Indigo far exceeded my expectations and renewed my faith in the idea that a hotel stay can truly be a getaway from stress and worry. The beautiful, comfortable rooms; the polite and highly efficient staff; the sea of inviting pillows on my kingsize bed; the immaculate cleanliness of the rooms; the utter lack of hideous watercolour framed prints anywhere on the property; all these things meant that I had a true getaway in an environment that was relaxing, luxurious, and incredibly comfortable.

So if you ever do kinda warm to my idea about bunking down in the Hotel Indigo, you just let me know. I’ll be there with bells on, and unicorn collection in tow.

Thanks again for the fabulous experience,

Love,

Jordan