The Listel Hotel - A Lovely Eco-Friendly Boutique Art Hotel

Looking for the perfect place to stay in Vancouver? Then look no further than The Listel Hotel.

The Listel Hotel is by far one of the most unique and special boutique hotels we have ever stayed at. From the beautiful art throughout the hotel to the world-class hospitality, sustainability focus, delicious dining options, and the perfect location – The Listel Hotel has it all for every guest.

Full disclaimer – We were hosted by The Listel Hotel for our trip to Vancouver. As always, our opinions are non-biased and our own. We want to thank The Listel Hotel for their generosity. We want to thank everyone for following and supporting us on all of “Our Sweet Adventures.”

Table of Contents

The Beautiful Art

Vancouver, Canada is known for having an amazing art scene in the city. From commercial galleries, art markets, museums, First Nations art, and more, there is so much art to be seen in Vancouver. One of the components that make The Listel Hotel special and extraordinary is the art throughout the entire property. Guests of The Listel Hotel will find beautiful art pieces outside the hotel, in the lobby, conference rooms, on every floor, and most importantly, in each hotel room. Moreover, you can learn more about the art pieces inside The Listel Hotel’s art binder.

What drew us to stay at The Listel Hotel is its unique art concept and focus. The Listel Hotel has six levels and each one represents a type of art. Overall, there are more than 300 art pieces from regional and international artists. The first level is the lobby and features an array of different art pieces of sculptures, paintings, and more. The second to sixth levels with hotel rooms showcases modern art, museum art, and gallery art. Depending on which type of art floor you stay on will reflect the art inside your hotel room.

Another unique art piece that is a part of The Listel Hotel is the one featured outside the property. In fact, the art piece is a part of Vancouver’s First Friday Art Walk. Needless to say, you do not need to go to any museum to find beautiful art in Vancouver – just book your stay at The Listel Hotel.

Warm and Friendly Hospitality

One of the best parts of staying at The Listel Hotel is the staff. I know Canada is one of the friendliest countries in the world, but the team at The Listel Hotel has the best and friendliest people in Vancouver. Every person we encountered at the front desk greeted us with warm smiles. They would also provide us with the proper knowledge to have the best trip in Vancouver.

The team helped us in so many ways every day. They would help us find some of the best restaurants in Vancouver and suggest the best ways to safely find our way around the city using public transportation. More importantly, by the time we checked out, the front desk members had become our friends.

Wonderful and Luxurious Accommodations

As explained before, every hotel level features a type of art. Every room is different because it is filled with unique pieces you cannot find anywhere else. Almost all of the room categories have the same square footage with the exception of the Art Series and BC Suites. Nevertheless, each room is luxurious and beautifully decorated with art pieces to bring you comfort and help make you feel at home.

The Different Room Categories at The Listel Hotel

The Listel Hotel has partnered with the University of British Columbia’s prestigious Museum of Anthropology (MOA) for the Museum Floor. On this exquisite floor, you can find hotel rooms filled with art pieces that pay tribute to British Columbia. The rooms are soft and refreshing with cedar furniture to represent British Columbia’s magical forests. And the art pieces in every room has a collection of original and limited edition First Nations art.

A window display of a First Nations art of a bird. This is inside the Listel Hotel on the Museum Level.

As you may have guessed, the Modern Art Floor features modern art pieces. This floor also has a warm and simplistic ambiance for guests to enjoy. The Gallery Floor is one of the more unique floors to stay on because it is designed to give guests its own individual gallery. The art pieces feature original and limited edition works by Canadian and International artists. Moreover, the rooms on the Gallery Floor have a cozy atmosphere with cherry red colors and wood with a luxurious touch of gold.

The Art Series and BC Suites are one of the most luxurious hotel suites in Vancouver. Both types of suites are stylish and sleek in design with original and limited edition art pieces. Additionally, the suites are very spacious and a great place to relax and unwind after a long day of exploring the city.

Staying in a Gallery Room

We had the most wonderful 4 nights in Vancouver because we stayed at The Listel Hotel on the Gallery Floor. Our hotel room on the Gallery Floor was everything we could have wanted and more. A spacious room with a comfortable bed, a lounge chair to relax and view the city, a quaint bathroom, and beautiful pieces of art.

A Gallery Level room at The Listel Hotel. A comfy bed in the middle with a gorgeous lounge chair by the window and a grand media hub with a TV. The Listel Hotel is the perfect place to stay in Vancouver.

The artwork in our room was by Tetsuro Sawada, a Japanese artist from Hokkaido. His style is known as semi geometric abstraction and focuses on landscapes and skyscapes. The colors he uses are vibrant – and to us, represented a beautiful sunset. The pieces of art balanced perfectly with the room making it feel warm and peaceful.

A corner view of the hotel room on the Gallery Level of The Listel Hotel. There is a king sized bed, am arm chair, and beautiful art on the wall.

In addition to the artwork, our favorite part of staying on the Gallery Floor was the complimentary morning coffee and tea. I am not talking about your standard little coffee and tea inside the room – I am talking about a full service of fresh French-pressed coffee and artisanal tea brought to our room. Guests who stay on the Gallery Floor and above (the suites) receive complimentary coffee and tea service chosen at anytime between 4 – 9 am.

A couple enjoying complimentary coffee and tea service at The Listel Hotel. They are lounging together in a long chair looking out into the city.

In-Room Amenities

Though the coffee and tea morning service was our favorite amenity in the room, it was not the only one. The Gallery Floor rooms all have:

A working desk with a media hub connectivity
Luxurious bathrobes
In-room digital safe
Unlimited long distance calls within Canada and the USA
High-speed Wi-Fi access
Pay-per-view television
Radio alarm clock, hairdryer, iron, and board
Coffee maker
A mini-refrigerator
Room service for breakfast
Morning newspaper (available upon request)

Sustainability Focus

The art at The Listel Hotel is one-half of why this hotel is the best place to stay in Vancouver. The other half is the sustainability green program. We are firm believers that we all need to help make the world a better place. So when we learned that The Listel Hotel is one of the world’s leaders in making a difference in the hospitality industry, we knew exactly where we wanted to stay.

It is clear The Listel Hotel is passionate about the environment and taking the initiative to make a difference. We have stayed in several eco-friendly hotels around the world, but The Listel Hotel has surpassed them all. The Listel Hotel is a Zero Waste Facility, a TripAdvisor Green Leader, ranked 5/5 stars for the Green Leaf Program, and a part of Climate Smart. WOW!

Different Ways The Listel Hotel is Eco-Friendly

In every hotel room at The Listel Hotel, there are recycled, organic, and non-recyclable bins. The non-recyclable bin collects trash that gets converted into electricity. So there is zero waste and no “regular” trash here! Of course, like most hotels, The Listel Hotel also encourages its guests to reuse their bed linens and bathroom towels. However, if a guest wants to have their bed linens and bathroom towels replaced, the staff will certainly help.

Furthermore, to help reduce plastic – the shampoo, conditioner, and bath soap are all in dispensers rather than small plastic bottles. More importantly (and our favorite sustainability initiative) is the removal of plastic water bottles in the hotel room. As an alternative, The Listel Hotel provides guests with two water glass bottles. On every hotel floor, there is a filtered still and sparkling water tap. So guests can bring their glass bottles and refill them with the water of their choice and help eliminate the use of water bottles. Is that not the best thing ever?!?!

Two glass water bottles from The Listel Hotel. One is full of water while the other is empty. This is a part of their sustainability initiative.

But wait, there is more! Another fantastic sustainability initiative from The Listel Hotel is the toilet and tissue paper made from recycled materials. This is another great component we have not seen being used in other hotels. Lastly, The Listel Hotel has bees!!! The bees are on the rooftop of the hotel to help the environment and supply the restaurant, Forage, with honey. Just another great idea to help make the world a better place!

Dining Options at The Listel Hotel

The Listel Hotel has two spectacular restaurants on-site and wonderful room service for breakfast. Just like the hotel, both restaurants focus on sustainability and use ingredients from local producers and farmers. The restaurants are also proud members of the Ocean Wise seafood program – a conservation program that provides consumers with an easy way to enjoy sustainable seafood to help our ocean’s environment.

Timber

Timber is a casual pub-style restaurant focused on Canadian favorite comfort foods. From juicy bison burgers to pickled eggs, the cheesiest cheese curds, mouth-watering poutine, and never-ending local craft beers – you are guaranteed to find some warm comfort from anything you order.

Moreover, Timber is the perfect place to grab a delicious bite for lunch or dinner. Whether you want a casual date night or sit at the bar to cheer on your favorite team – Timber is where you want to be. The restaurant has plenty of seating with wooden tables and chairs to reflect the name of the restaurant. It also has a cozy, yet elegant cabin-esque feel inside with a lot of great energy flowing throughout the room.

One of the best times to visit Timber for a bite to eat with family and friends is during happy hour. From 3 – 6 pm, Timber offers half-price snacks (appetizers), glasses of red and white wine for $7, and Timber x Main Street Brewing Pilsner for $5 (prices in CAD). Or bring your friends to Timber for a fun, all-you-can-eat s’mores experience in their courtyard for one hour!

A plate of the classic Canadian Supper from Timber - a juicy bison burger, a pickle, and a side of poutine.

Must Order: If there is one thing you HAVE to order to get the full authentic Canadian comfort food experience, it is the Classic Canadian Supper. It includes local beer, cheese curds, poutine, and a Bison burger with their secret sauce. It is to die for!

Forage

Forage is an upscale-sustainable restaurant open for breakfast, brunch, and dinner at The Listel Hotel. It focuses on providing guests with an exquisite dining experience using only the freshest produce from local communities, farmers, and fishers. In addition to excelling in food, Forage also excels in zero waste efforts and the reduction of energy consumption.

We enjoyed Forage for both breakfast and dinner because it was so delicious and rememberable. That says a lot because the food scene in Vancouver is stellar – but that’s how amazing Forage is! Every component is made in-house at Forage. From the ketchup to the fruit jams, pickles, honey butter (with the honey from the rooftop bees), gnocchi, and more.

What we learned at Forage and find very special is their initiative to bring their employees to the local communities, farmers, and fishers once a month. The staff members of Forage are able to see the first-hand experience of where every ingredient is coming from and what it takes to produce it. As the name reflects, they truly “forage” the ingredients for the guests to enjoy.

We highly recommend everyone dine at Forage for all meals, but more importantly for dinner. The dining experience is very unique as the service is designed for sharing many plates family style. As foodies, we love this concept! We encourage people to bring friends and family to Forage to be able to have this incredible dining experience of trying several plates of the freshest ingredients in Vancouver.

An array of delicious entrees to be shared family style at Forage. A plate full of gnocchi, mushrooms, a bowl of chowder, and sliced bread.

Must order: the menu changes seasonally and you cannot go wrong with any entree, but the Foraged and Cultivated Mushrooms is the best thing we ate in Vancouver.

Room Service

Room service at The Listel Hotel is only available for breakfast and comes from the Forage kitchen. Needless to say, the room service breakfast is delicious! The four main entrees to choose from are the classic eggs benedict, continental breakfast, a local fruit parfait, and the BC breakfast (eggs any style, choice of bread, and a side). All of the entrees include juice or a hot beverage and can be delivered as early as 6:45 am to as late as 11 am.

The Perfect Location in Vancouver

The Listel Hotel is without a doubt in a perfect location in Vancouver. It is located in the heart of downtown Vancouver on Robson street where it is safe and convenient to walk with an abundance of dining options. In fact, you can easily enjoy a self-guided walking tour of Vancouver from the Listel Hotel.

It is also just minutes from Vancouver’s waterfront, the Capilano Suspension Bridge shuttle stop, and the public transportation bus. Furthermore, The Listel Hotel is about a 10-15 minute walk to the two nearest metro stations. So you can be anywhere in Vancouver within minutes by staying at The Listel Hotel.

Distance from The Listel Hotel to:

Vancouver International Airport – 30-minute drive
Stanley Park – 6-minute drive
Granville Island – 10-minute drive
Rogers Arena – 8-minute drive
Gastown – 10-minute drive
Yaletown – 7-minute drive

The Listel Hotel Amenities

The Listel Hotel is full of great amenities with everyone’s favorites – free WIFI, a fitness center, a computer kiosk with internet and printer access, same-day dry cleaning and laundry service (for a charge), and valet parking (for a charge). However, our two favorite amenities are the complimentary electric bikes and wine hour.

The complimentary electric bikes are perfect for getting around the city or biking at Stanley Park. The bikes are first-come-first-served for guests with a 3-hour limit. With that said, the bikes are only available from June 1st through September 30th. Outside of those dates, The Listel Hotel will provide guests with coupons to use at a local bike rental.

The wine reception is held daily in the lobby from 5 to 6 pm. Hotel guests get to enjoy glasses of red, white, or rose wine at their leisure. This is the perfect time to mingle with other hotel guests, ask questions to the hotel staff, or to just relax and enjoy the wine. We highly recommend everyone enjoy the complimentary wine reception at least once during their stay at The Listel Hotel.

A man pouring a rose wine in a stemless glass for a complimentary wine reception at The Listel Hotel.

So what do you think? Is The Listel Hotel the perfect place to stay in Vancouver or what?! We definitely think so and highly recommend everyone to stay here. It was a true pleasure to stay at The Listel Hotel and would stay here again in a heartbeat.

If you are ready to book your stay in Vancouver at The Listel Hotel, click here!