Since my first Fairfield Inn stay in 2014, I’ve been hooked with Marriott. Now, I am on a person quest to stay at every Marriott Bonvoy brand at least once. Welcome to my #EveryMarriottBrandChallenge, #4.
Table of Contents
| Date | Room type | Status | Rating |
| June 11, 2023 (1 night) | Standard Room with 1 King Bed and Sofa Bed | Marriott Bonvoy Silver Elite | 5/5 |
In one sentence
The Courtyard is a modern hotel near Saskatoon Airport that has a welcoming vibe, friendly staff and Courtyard’s signature room design; its location and free parking makes it great for those travelling with a car.
Premise
In June 2023, thanks to Flair Airlines’ low fares, I took a 4-night trip to Saskatoon. For the first two nights, I stayed at the stately Delta Hotels Bessborough in the heart of the city. For my third and supposedly last night (which became the second last night due to a missed flight the second day), I booked the Courtyard by Marriott Saskatoon Airport for about $150 CAD, thinking that I would work remotely in my room the next day before catching a late afternoon flight back to Toronto.
Notably, I paid for the room using my Canadian Amex Marriott credit card, receiving 5x Marriott Bonvoy points on the cost, in addition to the regular points I would receive through my stay.
Arrival/first impressions
Saskatoon is not a large city, and the airport and the Courtyard are both an easy 15-minute drive from downtown. Before arriving at the hotel, I took the chance to visit the Saskatchewan Aviation Museum. Located beside the airport, it is a small but neat museum that would please military and civil aviation enthusiasts alike, and I would recommend checking it out to climb aboard its storied Douglas C-47/DC-3.
The Courtyard is the closest hotel to Saskatoon’s small airport (YXE), situated on a piece of land alongside a Best Western Plus and a Hampton Inn, both just slightly further away from the Courtyard. The Courtyard has a rather large parking space in front of it given its size – in comparison, Courtyard Winnipeg Airport, where I stayed at in October 2023, has a tiny parking area! The Courtyard Saskatoon Airport’s building is modern, with the central part of the facade painted red and an interesting set of “ribs” between the central part and the slightly receded wings. I think the red portion is definitely a great touch and allows the hotel to appear lively and welcoming on first sight.
Upon entering, I saw a modern, spacious lobby with a variety of seating options and some decorations and colours, extending the welcoming vibe of the hotel’s exterior architecture. Of course, there is a courtyard/patio at the back. The hotel’s bistro, which serves food and drinks, is incorporated into the lobby space.
The check-in desk is at the right hand side of the entrance. I was greeted by a friendly and courteous staff member who checked me in speedily. As an aviation enthusiast, I had asked for a room with a runway view through the Marriott app before arriving, which was promptly granted.
Room
I received a room on the 6th (top) floor of the hotel with Courtyard’s characteristic bed-facing-the-window design, a feature that in my opinion makes the brand stand out among its competitors. The window looks out to Saskatoon Airport’s tower and runway in the distance.
The room is modern, borderline minimalist, and adequately sized, with a great layout. The workspace is lined up on the right side of the room, with a desk extension that curves down towards a lower tabletop ideal for placing luggage. A corridor between the bed and the workspace allows you to roll your luggage all the way towards the window if you wish, without feeling too tight. Close to the window you can find a comfy couch (sofa bed) and an amenity space with a mini-fridge and microwave smartly placed in a drawer with a strikingly modern design. Features such as the semi-rounded couch and the curve-edged desk are standard in newer Courtyard rooms in North America, helping to promote a sense of consistency without being too cookie-cutter and still retaining a flair of design and personality to the room.
Another aspect of the room that I really appreciated is the amount of lighting throughout the room. The desk has a tabletop lamp as well as lights above the desk; similarly, the bed has bedside lamps as well as small lights above the bed. It allows the room to not feel too dark at night, which is often not the case in North American hotels I’ve stayed at. The bathroom has nothing to write home about – modern, minimalist and clean.
The only aspects that bothered me about the room were its lack of a kettle and milk and cream for coffee. The absence of a kettle made it hard to boil water, as the coffee machine could only boil very little water at once. If you do want to make coffee, you will find no milk or cream for the coffee in the room and you would need to grab those in the lobby. That aside, this Courtyard’s room is ideally designed for sleep, relaxation, and work, all neatly fit into one compact space.
Amenities
Amenities at the hotel include an indoor pool and a fitness centre. However, I did not make use of any of those during my stay.
The Courtyard’s Bistro is incorporated into the lobby space on the ground floor. Notably, due to the hotel’s airport location, there are no restaurants within walking distance. However, Saskatoon is a highly driveable city and there are many restaurants along a strip of Circle Dr (Saskatoon’s main ring road), only about 5 minutes from the hotel.
Verdict
I had a great stay at the Courtyard by Marriott Saskatoon Airport. Despite its airport location, the hotel and its staff has a friendly and welcoming vibe that matched with the positive impression of Saskatchewan and its people that I gained during my trip, and the hotel’s modern, well-lit and well-designed guest room make it an attractive place for working remotely.
