145. CANADA’S GRAND RAILWAY HOTELS

Being the massive country it is, Canada has an extensive rail infrastructure stretching right across the country. For nearly 200 years, rail has played an integral part in the development of Canada as a nation.

When the railways were being built, many new settlements sprung up across the country. In remote areas, the rail companies had to build huge accommodations and services to cater to their workers. As workers wrote home telling of the pristine beauty of places like the Canadian Rockies, family members wanted to come see for themselves. This gave the railways bosses the idea of building hotels on their networks. It was a new idea at the time to think of mountains as beautiful places to be enjoyed, rather than just as obstacles to settlement. The railway companies engaged in a battle to build each hotel on a far grander scale than the competitor’s previous effort. Many of the hotels were built in the "château style" which, as a result, became known as a distinctly Canadian form of architecture. What we’re left with today is a stunning collection of five-star hotels across Canada, most of which are icons of Canadian history and architecture.

Pictured here (clockwise) are a few of Canada's railway hotels: the Fairmont Banff Springs which opened in 1888, the Fairmont Le Château Frontenac in Quebec City (both of which we visited a few years ago), Toronto’s Fairmont Royal York which opened in 1929 and the Fairmont Château Laurier in Ottawa, (both of which we visited this year.)

#Fairmont Hotels & Resorts