Disappointing Experience at Monte Carlo Hotel, Barrie I recently stayed at the Monte Carlo Hotel in Barrie, and unfortunately, my experience was far from satisfactory. I had booked the $200 Sunrise Suite, which was supposed to be a premium experience with a jetted tub. However, the stay was marred by several issues: Lack of Privacy: The suite did not have curtains, which severely compromised our privacy and comfort. We are parents that only stay in hotels sparingly and not having a curtain to block out the sun is just ridiculous. Cleanliness Issues: Used band aids were found on the side table, which is unacceptable and raises concerns about the cleanliness and sanitation standards of the hotel. Inadequate Room Amenities: When we requested assistance, we were provided with binder clips and a bed sheet to address the issues ourselves, which was not a suitable or acceptable solution. I have attached pictures of my attempt to fix the issue. They should be embarrassed by the look both inside our room and the look to the outside with a large circle window stuffed with everything I could to block the sun. We were told there were no other rooms with round curtains which when I went outside saw this was a lie. Given these problems, I am disappointed with the quality of service and the state of the room. This is very disappointing as the Monte Carlo is where we stayed with our families for out wedding in 2016. We have continued to come for the jetted tub king suite experience. We are now at home disappointed this might be the end of that. Could you please let me know the next steps for addressing these concerns? I would appreciate information on how you plan to rectify these issues and what compensation, if any, might be available. Thank you for your attention to this matter. Best regards, Mark Kucharski
Most of the reviews online are poor, we had no choice but to use this hotel as part of a hockey tournament. Our room was not as dirty or smelly as others had indicated but it was outdated and in need of new carpet, no bathroom fans, no sprinklers, no modern conveniences ie. USB charging ports etc. The beds are all doubles, not queens so they are small. It wasn't terrible however. The WIFI was good when it worked, went down for a couple hours, I contacted to hotel regarding this, they pawned me off to a 1-800 number, they told me it was infact the hotels hardware that needed fixing, had to let the hotel know this, as if its my job. I run a business so connectivity is key. The pool was the coldest pool of any hotel I've stayed at, its clear they don't pay to heat it, perhaps 70-75 degrees at best, for that reason its not well used, at least for long. The health department shut down the hot tub (per the sign on it when we visited), the out door pool would be amazing but its closed and in need of a ton of repair, sauna not working. The owners need to do some serious updating to this property if they want to sustain business in the coming years, we would never return on our own. My son was a late ad on to the hockey team and we were not able to book under the ”team” rate, we had to pay $40 more. They would not give us the same price as the rest of the team. On the final day (Sunday) I asked for a late check out as we wouldn't be back to the hotel until 12pm after the game and they refused to give me a later checkout and told me that they couldn't guarantee housekeeping wouldn't be in there. I told them I paid more than everyone else on the team, would be the least they could do for me, to no avail. We gave up and packed up early and left to avoid any further contact with them. I would have given them 3 stars had their employee been nicer regarding the request for a late check out. The hotel was full for the weekend, 100's of rooms to clean Sunday, I highly doubt they have 100's coming in Sunday to replace us all, I don't appreciate the ignorance of the employee I interacted with. In short, its clear this property is 30 years past its prime and little has been done to maintain its relevance to 2022 standards. My suggestion would be to avoid at all costs, park benches may be a better alternative than staying here.
The staff are friendly, the jacuzzi and pool are nice and clean. The rooms are mostly clean although they are definitely older and in need of some TLC. Sound from the hallways can easily be heard inside the room. The breakfast is ok, but it does lack selection and flavour. There is a Tim Hortons nearby if necessary. The water from the faucet did come out brown at first every morning we stayed there.
I was in Barrie for 4 nights and stayed at this hotel having previously stayed at other Hampton Inn and Suites. Nice lobby but our room was well worn. Badly in need of a reno. It was very humid so we had to run the air conditioner at night. Basically every time it came on both my wife, my daughter and I would be woken up. It had a very loud blower was mount against the outside wall. It was brutal. We are normally deep sleepers. I’ve only experienced this type of unit in budget motels in one hotel towns. Didn’t expect this for the price charged for the room. When we entered our room I noticed a bobby pin on the carpet in front of the TV. That bobby pin stayed there for our entire visit. So likely our room was never vacuumed for our 5 day stay. They did make the beds every day and tidy the room but we had to call the front desk to get our towels changed. Given the humidity towels wouldn’t really dry when hung. The breakfast they provided was ok. The eggs where decent although my 9 year old was not impressed with the stale cheerios provided by one of those long tube where you turn the wheel at the end. She did enjoy the waffles. From a price point this hotel should rent for $99 dollars per day not the grand it cost me for four nights. It’s a solid two star hotel . It will stay busy simply because there aren’t many hotels in Barrie.
The hotel room itself was fine, it was average in size and seemed clean. The bathroom was tiny and you could barely open the door fully as the door hit the toilet. Lots of restaurants close by. The pool is a joke. During our 2 night stay it was closed both days as they said the chemicals were off. I had called the hotel prior to our stay to ask if the pool was open since I had read many reviews stating it was closed. I was assured by the person that I spoke with that the pool was open and would be for our stay. The first day they had signs on the door and at the front desk saying it was closed. The second we went down to the pool around 8:30 PM and the kids were in for less than 5 minutes when the maintenance guy came and said they had to get out of the pool as he was closing it cause he couldn't see the dots on the floor. We could clearly see the dots he was referring to. The person I spoke with at the front desk the first day was less than helpful and I would go as far as saying she was rude. If you are looking for a hotel with the ability to swim you'll definitely want to pick another hotel as this one never seems to be open.