Thank you for your honest review. My apologies are due here as it has been 2 years since your review & we did originally did operated as Hycroft Bed & Breakfast (2000-2008). With the success of our Hycroft property from 2000-2007, we expanded by opening the Granville House B&B in 2008 (see TripAdvisor reviews). Granville House B&B has been Vancouver's only Canada-Select 5 Star B&B from 2008-current. During 2008, we found more & more of our Hycroft B&B Guests not showing up for breakfast, so we decided to rebrand as Hycroft Suites.

Although I am certain that our web site would not have made any reference to Hycroft operating as a bed and breakfast during your 2009 booking (with the exception of stating: "Hycroft Suites: formerly Hycroft Bed and Breakfast" on the homepage), there would no doubt be many online reviews, free directories and other such information we can not control that would have made this distinction unclear.

My apologies too, that you "did not have a single contact with anybody during our stay." We find that guests that prefer to have more services, amenities and contact with the host (& our staff of 5) will prefer our 5 Star Granville House B&B. Guests that prefer a kitchen suite with private living rooms will prefer our Hycroft Suites. Unfortunately for you, we find that Hycroft guests prefer little host contact, while the same is never true for our B&B.

You also mentioned our time-sensitive door codes. This feature is what separates both our properties apart from other offerings in the Vancouver area. Our policy states "Time Sensitive Door Codes will be emailed after payment, with subject line Suite Entry" as well as "Arrival Time will be noted & we will endeavor to greet you, although no formal check-in is required". This gives our guests the freedom to arrive on their schedule, without having to meet the host at a pre determined time. If you did not have this email (or the letter we mailed to France), I am sure Pam or I would have been available by cell phone, text or email to provide to you (yes, the Hycroft.com Suites WiFi network is open & available outside the suites ;-).

My apologies also that you found your 700sf One-Bedroom (Madrid or Monaco?) Suite dark. Guests do like the private concrete deck and grassy area that is dedicated to each garden-level (not basement) suite, as outdoor space can be hard to find in Vancouver. As part of our pre 2010 Winter Olympic upgrades, all suites received new furniture such as beds, sofa beds, bedding & towels. We also replaced all the china plates & bowls, drinking & wine glasses, coffee & tea mugs and Oneida flatware to be consistent with our 5 Star B&B amenities. We have also upgraded the lighting and added lamps were needed. During the summer of 2011, all suites received a 40" Samsung LCD HDTV with HD cable box and free programming, which I find as bright as the sun sometimes.

Although it is a price upgrade, we do offer 1,300sf 2 level townhouse style suites that are very bright, with 2 King-bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, full gourmet kitchens, laundry, city & mountain views. This would be the suite above your One-Bedroom Suite.

We continue to offer a $40 Welcome Basket (yes, same price ;-) that includes 2 litres of 2% milk, 2 litres of juice, 1 litre yogurt, 1 loaf of 12 grain bread, 1 loaf of Max's Deli Banana Bread, 1 box of Quaker Harvest Crunch granola, 3 types of fresh seasonal fruit and a Toblerone chocolate bar. These items are unpacked in the suite fridge & counter, ready upon arrival. More often than not, these items exceed $40 at the cashier, and about an hour of our time. We offer this as a guest service, not as a revenue stream, which may help explain my tardy reply here. Single parents & large families represent the typical guest that would tick this option during booking. These are items we would enjoy, but I recognize this option may not appeal to everyone equally.

As an alternative to the $40 Welcome Basket, Meinhardt Fine Foods is a 3 block walk to the west of Hycroft, while the Sunshine Market and Max's Deli (voted Vancouver's best deli) are a 2 block walk east of Hycroft and close at 11pm. GoogleMaps says Granville Island (or the Granville Street Bridge, which connects to the downtown core ;-) is a 20 minute walk from Hycroft. We encourage all our Hycroft guests to check these places out!

I thank you for your 4/5 for Location, and positive comment that "the environment was nice, close to Granville St, and not so far from downtown, accessible by bus or even walking". We (obviously) love this neighbourhood, maybe for its proximity to the South Granville Rise, the #10 Granville Bus (leaving every 5 minutes to/from downtown during rush hour, 10 minutes there after), Granville Island, the Sea Wall & Kits Beach. Although I can change may things about this property, I can not change its location ;-) We do hope to win you back for your next visit to Vancouver. Randy