Pros: Location is great. Bed was pretty comfortable. Room size (#102) was decent. (called a mini-suite with a sofa bed and a double bed and a wall between). Cons: Staff is pleasant and polite but not terribly competent. If you have no special requests you might not notice. Examples: I asked for extra towels as there were three of us. The clerk turned to the maid (in my presence) and asked her to get them. The maid said "They're checking out today." The clerk said they want to shower. The maid says ok. I go back to the room. As the other two are sleeping I crack the door so I can get the towels quietly. 45 minutes go by. Suddenly three maids burst in ready to clean, including the original maid. I look at her and said, I am waiting for the towels. She says "Oh yes, sorry." Three more minutes go by and the towels arrive. Morning coffee in the lobby. Coffee, cream, etc. is set out. I have to ask the clerk for cups. Clerk says cheerfully "Oh yes I forgot to put those out." As someone else noted, when I called hotel direct to book, no mention of the parking situation. I had to ask for the $9/day parking pass. (Thank you Trip Advisor!) (Note: There is a public lot directly across the street and you can get a free day pass from the City Visitor Center.) The carpet on the main stairs/hall is disgusting and dirty. Many flies in the lobby. In our room, the furnishings were cheap looking and old. The only exception was the flat screen TV and the bed. Sofa bed was especially shabby. The small bathroom was adequate. The shower tiles were so cracked (BIG cracks) it looked like an earthquake victim. They had installed a newer shower head, so water flow was adequate, but it sure wasn't pretty. By the way the cold muffins some had remarked on seemed to be gone; there was only coffee. (but it was quite good.) At check-in, I could clearly see in large print a list of things for the clerk to review with in-coming guests. My clerk mentioned one of the 6-8 things on the list. It's the kind of place that with a great staff and some good cosmetic renovations people would flock to. However, that's not what it is now.

I spent a couple hours surfing the web, looking for a place to stay in Stratford for a wedding. I thought Albert St. looked nice, judging by their website. Don't be fooled! The duvets are nice and so is the wall paint colour, as you see in their website photo. What you don't see is that the carpet is the cheapest imaginable. The bathroom is kind of cute, but be warned that ours was very small. There was a shower, no tub, a tiny sink. That is all fine, but when we tried to shower in the morning, the water pressure was so bad (or something) that the water kept going off. I was left standing in the shower for several minutes covered with soap - no water at all. It would come on for a bit and go off again. When there was water, it was pure hot water. If I turned down the hot, the water turned right off again. In addition, the room smelled very strongly of damp and mildew. The window could not be opened. The air conditioning unit was a very loud little thing. On a bright note, we got a parking spot in front of the hotel for free because we arrived so late (maybe 9 pm) on a Saturday and parking is free on Sundays. It was nice to be right downtown. However, I have stayed in downtown Vancouver at a much much nicer place for the same price ($135). I would not stay here again. I complained about the water and the smell when we were checking out and all the desk clerk had to say was, "Uhhh... sorry."

Recently visited Stratford during the early season of the Shakespeare Festival 2008, enjoyed the shows especially the Music Man, but was disappointed with Albert St. Inn, the hotel we stayed for one night. The hotel is at a good location, the beds are generally comfortable; unfortunately there isn’t much else good about it. A few things are not very good: 1. Lack of communication – we booked the hotel through the Stratford Festival site while booking our tickets. I never got a confirmation from the hotel. I was surprised to see a full amount was then charged to my credit card by the hotel months before the date we will actually be staying, I guess at least, it served as a confirmation that I will have a room in the hotel. 2. No parking – I didn’t know this until read traveler reviews from Trip Advisor the day before our trip, so we had to drive around try to find a parking spot that is not too far from the hotel. 3. Look old, smell old – the stairs, hallway and room all need some serious renovation - the carpet is old, the room lacks of fresh air, the window in the room is so old it can’t be opened… 4. Staff lacks basic knowledge about the town – this may not be a fair statement to describe all staff, but at least the person at front desk we talked to could not answer basic questions about the town, and she told us that she is not from around here. Well, I would have to think there are better hotels in Stratford, next time I will do a bit more research before booking…

After years of visiting Stratford and staying on the outskirts of town I decided to try staying downtown and tried the Albert St. Inn. It was exactly what I wanted. The prices were below most other options and it is in the heart of the downtown. Lots of young friendly staff. The rooms are modest in amenities, but very clean, new beds, duvets etc. I have already booked for next year. Note:they only have 9 parking spaces and sell them on booking. Worth the 9 bucks a day.

I contacted the Albert Street Inn in Stratford because I had heard that the restaurant attached had won the best service and food in Stratford as voted by guests. I know Stratford is a big theatre town so I figured the accomodations would be fit the classic beourgoise style. I wanted to propose to my girlfriend and have it very romantic. I contacted the front desk services and informed them of my evenings plans and booked the Tom Patterson suite. It was very elegant, amazing bed, a living room area, and modest wash facilities. There was not internet but I wasnt on business. I had made dinner reservations it was fabulous as I had heard and reasonably priced. The front desk person had entertained my vision for the evening and easily met my every need. She went to my suite and lit candles for me before we arrived and the cleanliness was imeccable. I was able to wow my fiancee now and wanted to write a review of the Albert Street Inn and all of its greatness from the staff down. Thanks so much! I recommend it to anyone...including Christopher Plumber!