Halifax Tower Hotel & Conference Centre, an Ascend Collection Hotel

Halifax Tower Hotel & Conference Centre, a 103-room Ascend Hotel Collection new build, opened on June 28, 2022 in the Bayers Lake commercial park, about 15 minutes from downtown Halifax. It sits next to a Comfort Hotel under the same owner.

The place

The address is 15 Lakelands Boulevard in Bayers Lake, a retail and conference district about 15 minutes' drive from downtown Halifax and the waterfront. That is a suburban setting: it suits meetings, events and road travellers more than guests who want to walk to the harbour.

The concept

The owner, Stephanie Giannoulis, also owns the 73-room Comfort Hotel next door, which opened in 2011 as part of a development that began with her father's restaurant, Canadiana. The same Comfort team runs the new tower, which joined Choice Hotels Canada's Ascend Hotel Collection, a soft brand for independent and boutique properties. Choice Hotels Canada named Giannoulis its Developer of the Year in the year of the opening, and the hotel later won an APEX award and Best New Entry for the Ascend Collection.

The 103 rooms and suites have 50-inch smart televisions with Chromecast and city or lake views. Whirlpool suites of more than 500 square feet add a king bed and a kitchenette, and select deluxe rooms have fireplaces and two-person whirlpool tubs.

The conference centre has four meeting spaces and an imperial ballroom for up to 320 people, according to the opening announcement, while a later article counts five rooms and 220 people, so the current figures may have changed.

Dining & wellness

Le Rouge, a 180-seat restaurant and grill, serves lunch and dinner. Other facilities are an indoor heated pool, a hot tub, a fitness centre, a games lounge and electric-vehicle charging stations. One listing mentions a breakfast served on the 16th floor with views over Bayers Lake, which the sources consulted do not confirm.