Gladstone House is a true Toronto landmark, proudly holding the title of the city’s longest continuously operating hotel. Originally built in 1889 by architect George Martell Miller, this Richardsonian Romanesque beauty features stunning red brick, arched windows, and historic gargoyles. Once a bustling hub for railway travelers, it has evolved into a vibrant cultural focal point in the heart of West Queen West.
The building is famous for its unique blend of history and artistry. One of its standout features is a rare, hand-operated Victorian elevator, now encased in psychedelic dichroic glass that creates a stunning rainbow effect. Following an extensive revitalization, the hotel honors its past through restored exposed brick and hardwood floors, while layering in contemporary design and locally curated art that changes throughout the year.
Beyond its walls, the hotel is perfectly positioned for urban explorers. You are within walking distance of the trendy boutiques and cafes of Queen Street West, and just a short transit ride away from downtown giants like the CN Tower and the Art Gallery of Ontario.
It is a place where community and creativity collide. Whether you are grabbing a drink in the Melody Bar or wandering through the public art-filled hallways, you can feel the building’s deep connection to Toronto’s creative scene. It remains a thoughtfully preserved piece of the city’s identity, offering a stay that feels deeply grounded in local culture.
Expert reviews
“The 37-room Gladstone is as much art destination as sleeping quarters: the first two floors are filled with exhibitions, and each room was designed by an artist. The Sunday bluegrass brunch is packed with children.”
Featured in New York Times’ 36 Hours in Toronto, Canada.
“The 37 artist-designed rooms at this trendsetting hotel could have leaped straight from a Taschen design book. Pick a room theme from the informative website, then when you arrive, take the hand-cranked birdcage elevator to your arty boudoir on the 3rd or 4th floor.”
“If Andy Warhol and Lady Gaga dreamed up a hotel together, this would be it! The Gladstone has 37 artist-designed rooms–all of them quirky and fun–above the hotel’s busy art galleries and community event spaces.”
Featured as Fodor’s Choice in Toronto.
“The Gladstone, which is the longest continually operating hotel in Toronto (opened in 1889), is known today as Toronto’s art hotel. Christina Zeidler took over with her family in 2005, and now along with brick walls, wood floors, and high ceilings, it features galleries and 37 unique rooms designed by Canadian artists.”
Featured as Frommer’s Exceptional Choice in Toronto.
“Toronto’s oldest hotel today combines a boutique art hotel with a gallery, and it continues to be one of the biggest supporters of the Toronto art community in myriad ways. The biggest draw is the fact that each of the 37 rooms is designed by a different local artist.”
What guests liked
- Great food
- Boutique style
- Friendly staff
- Excellent Wifi
- Great location
- Comfortable beds
Location
Recent guest reviews
1 February 2026
Nice hotel with a great vibe
Clean and quiet hotel with friendly staff.
Exceptionally small room for the price. The heating system was quite loud during the night and being a very cold night it was on a lot.
28 January 2026
Very enjoyable stay
We had a nice size room, with plenty of sunlight, a nice view, a moder updated look and feel.
The staff was exceptionally polite and helpful without being professionally, emotionally distant , as it is so common nowadays. It was a personal nice experience.
The beds we had were very, very comfortable and probably the best beds we have ever experienced in the hotel.
What was a little bit problematic was that there was no parking right by the hotel. We had a heavy snowstorm the night before and were forced to walk through the slush, on reduced walkways, back to the hotel, from our Park House, dowm the road. . For people with heavy luggage, and perhaps physical restrictions, this walk would have been impossible.
Our shower room had the tendency to overflow , since the drain did not properly work, in the floor. But that is just nitpicking.
We booked our room with booking.com, and the term other taxes was a bit of a throw off.
To me, that's just means the original price you see, it's just a click bait.
26 January 2026
Gladstone nails all the details to make it truly memorable.
Very cool vibe all around. Staff does excellent job curating a great experience for the guests. Hotel is conveniently located near eclectic shops and dining options. The location is also great to avoid the traffic nightmare that exists in the city center. The restaurant has some fantastic food. Cassette is a nice chill vibe for a night cap. When a place nails all the details you know it is something special.
2 January 2026
Enjoyed our stay very much.
Location was great for us. The friendliness of the staff and so enjoyed to see how beautifully you have renovated the old hotel.
No complaints
28 December 2025
Highly recommend this hotel!
Atmosphere (elegant building with antique manual elevator, lol), staff, amenities and food were great. Quaint little library and billiard rooms and a lovely liitle cafe on-site. Room was a nice combination of old and new, and perfectly functional. Also an incubator for developing artists: Their works are on display and add to the ambiance.
Parking is somewhat complicated and check-in / check-out is the same partially because of that. Having said that, now that I know the protocols it would be much better (we arrived in a snow storm so that made it all the more trying).
28 December 2025
Experience of a old and new city life of Toronto
Very conveniently located to go places and find what you need to eat and drink
Aircon was very noisy,but it’s a heritage listed building and it’s a very cold winter there.
28 December 2025
Stunning 1890s architecture, super cute rooms, comfy, and the breakfast was great
Amazing spot for a stay-cation! Super comfy and cute rooms set in an artsy and historic building. The bar and bistro downstairs are incredible for a friday night and saturday morning. Great drinks, great food, great people
The king loft facing queen street was a bit loud from street traffic and passers-by. The staff did inform us of this when we checking in, so its wasnt a surprise, but some light sleepers might have an issue with the noise level.
17 December 2025
Great, comfy stay. Amazing room and staff 10/10
Everything, it was neat, warm, cozy, beautiful lighting. One of the best hotels I ever stayed at and I travel a lot.
- nothing to comment
15 December 2025
Overall the stay was pleasant and quaint and the atmosphere was warm and inviting!
The property is a quaint older unique hotel in Toronto with the feel of an heritage theme with some added modernization
To get into the hotel is difficult if you are driving as there is no where to drop off passengers and unload luggage. The parking lot for the hotel is confusing as it’s across the street and difficult to park then find your way to the hotel with luggage as it’s confusing. But again, it’s expected at a hotel that’s had infrastructure built since its original days
3 December 2025
Gladstone is our home away from home in Toronto! We love it!
We love the charm, decor, location. This is our 4th stay, and plan to return in January!
The construction outside. And of no fault of the hotel. Disappointed in the dirty windows, however understandable considering the cold, damp weather.
18 November 2025
Wonderful funky restored hotel on the transit line.
I chose it because it was close to Union Station but it was a unique, restored, funky space. The old elevator was amazing!
The hangers in the room might be too high for shorter people.
28 October 2025
Extremely charming and comfortable stay with very professional staff!
Exceptional staff, attentive service and beautiful classic building with carriage elevator. Comfortable room made the stay very welcoming. Ali at the Bistro was extremely professional, charming and courteous, always with impeccable service! Thank you Ali and to the entire team at Gladstone House.
22 October 2025
Quirky and convenient
Enjoyable stay at this artistic spot. A great location (street car stop right outside) that’s a short ride to downtown, or walking distance from a great neighbourhood.
Quirky hotel with the old elevator inside.
Great restaurants and bars in walking distance.
If you want something close but outside of downtown, consider Gladstone House!
Can be a little noisey from outside at times, but I didn’t find this unbearable or intrusive at all
21 October 2025
We loved the art and the hotel all around. We would come back again, it's a great location.
Staff was great, really excellent. Food was above average, pretty good breakfast, would like bangers.
The "old" style was great and so was the art work. Bed was great. I liked the themed areas on each floor, pool, chess, etc. That was a fun touch.
This is a tough one, but the noise from the street could get to be a bit much, especially around 11pm-2 a.m. Just loud car or motorcycle. But b/c you're right on the road I don't see away around that on the rooms facing the road.
29 September 2025
A last minute booking, but didn’t disappoint
Such a great boutique hotel, comfy rooms, friendly staff and fantastic location
16 September 2025
Funky renovated building and a great location in the west end
Staff were excellent and the room was really spacious for what we were expecting. The room was funky and everything in the hotel was very artsy and cool. Lovely old building and the renovations were really impressive. Heaps of cool little spots to have coffee or just hang out. The bar was really cool too. Also loved that there was a streetcar stop right outside!
The bathroom was kinda weird and had a seethrough window into it - which made us laugh but was a bit off putting so we would go to the bathroom without the light on a lot (especially in the night, otherwise it would basically illuminate the entire room). The shower drain was a little blocked and we asked them to address this but they couldn't fix it.
4 September 2025
Charming old hotel in a vibrant neighborhood.
This beautiful old hotel is located in a very active section of town, West Queen. There were shops, bars, and restaurants all around and plenty of foot traffic. The street car stopped directly in front of the hotel, making it easy to travel the mile and a half to town center.
The hotel came with many little extras. A nice balcony on the second floor overlooking Queen Street where we took our morning coffee. There was a very fine pool table available and a coffee espresso maker.
The staff was extremely helpful and very friendly.
We parked our car across the street in a secure parking structure and left it there for three days.
There was nothing to complain about at this property.
2 September 2025
Nice dog friendly hotel
The room was nice and clean. The staff were very friendly and helpful. There's a really cool old elevator that the staff operates for you. The hotel is dog friendly so that's great. And the location is great, lots of cafes, restaurants and bars in walking distance or able to catch the trolley out front easily to get around the city.
2 September 2025
Cool- loved the old school elevator
Unique and funky
Nothing
1 September 2025
Amazing hotel, with amazing decor & art. Also very well located.
Very nice hotel, with some very nice decor and artwork. Set in a perfect location, with easy access to the city. Very nice staff & an fantastic elevator you’ll rarely experience again.
Parking was ok, when you find it. I’d suggest you research the parking before you arrive, including watching the video the hotel supplies. Then it will be simple enough. Rooms were a little small but very modern.
28 August 2025
Very nice and relaxing
Very clean
Good location
Nothing
23 August 2025
Great friendly staff
Love the old elevator
23 August 2025
Makes you feel at home
Friendly helpful staff - JENN, IVY, Frieda, and the elevator operators
21 August 2025
Wonderful and quirky place to stay…
The house is wonderful and we loved our rooms. The lounge areas on each floor was also wonderful for us a group. The elevator is super cute and they really made an effort to keep its old world charm.
The only thing I didn’t like about the room was the AC that was very loud and just habe one fan speed - which was full blast. But were able to turn it off!
The location is convenient. And the tram in front of the door makes it easy to move around. We were a bit surprised that the area feels a bit run down but then again lots of restaurants and nice cafes 10-15min walking distance.
20 August 2025
We had a great stay! Loved that it was central and walkable, and dog friendly ❤️
Staff was sooo friendly and welcoming. Not always the case in Toronto.
Hotel facilities
Food & Drink
- - Restaurant
- - Bar
- - Special diet menus (on request)
- - Wine/champagne (additional charge)
- - Coffee house on site
Business facilities
- - Meeting/banquet facilities (additional charge)
- - Fax/photocopying
Reception services
- - 24-hour front desk
- - Express check-in/check-out
- - Luggage storage
- - Private check-in/check-out
- - Lockers
- - Invoice provided
Activities
- - Fitness centre
- - Billiards
- - Karaoke
- - Evening entertainment
- - Fitness
- - Temporary art galleries
- - Happy hour (additional charge)
- - Live music/performance
General
- - Non-smoking rooms
- - Facilities for disabled guests
- - Lift
- - Heating
- - Allergy-free room
- - Non-smoking throughout
- - Air conditioning
- - Shared lounge/TV area
- - Pet basket
- - Pet bowls
Cleaning services
- - Daily housekeeping
Parking
- - Parking garage
Miscellaneous
- - Key access
- - Key card access
- - Security alarm
- - Smoke alarms
- - CCTV in common areas
- - CCTV outside property
- - Fire extinguishers
- - Breakfast takeaway containers
- - Access to health care professionals
- - Face masks for guests available

More photos

18 February 2026
Wonderful stay at the Gladstone