While I did receive a warm welcome and a glass of ...

While I did receive a warm welcome and a glass of champagne upon check-in, the rest of the experience went downhill from there.

In my room: One evening I returned to the room to discover the the air conditioning, coffee maker, tea maker did not work. I called the concierge desk to have someone come up, but it rang 30 times with no answer. In fact, I never saw the concierge desk staffed. The in-mirror television in the restroom didn't work either, but that was the least of my concerns at the time. Several of the bathroom fixtures were loose or crooked.

In the DEQ restaurant: Arriving back to the hotel later, I stopped in for a late dinner and cocktail. A snobby bartender put a menu in front me when I sat down, but didn't greet me, and didn't return for 15 minutes. When trying to flag her down, she gave me the "hold on a second" finger, and still never returned. I left and skipped dinner that evening.

The culminating experience was when I requested transportation to the airport during an early morning checkout. I'd asked the day before if a taxi could be made available. I was instead given a black car with a significantly higher flat rate fee. The driver was unpleasant the entire way to the airport, and then when we arrived informed me that he could not accept my debit/credit card as a form of payment. This was my only payment option, aside from US dollars, since I was travelling internationally. He held my luggage hostage while he called the hotel. I spoke briefly to the front desk staff, mentioning that they should have confirmed the form of payment before I even got into the vehicle. They asked the driver to just drop me off and return to the hotel, but they never spoke with me again, so I have no clue if I was to be charged for dealing with this INCREDIBLY RUDE AND OFFENSIVE driver.

When I stay at the Ritz Carlton, I expect a stellar experience across the board. This entire stay at this property was lacking in customer service, hospitality, and general politeness. All this, at a Ritz-Carlton price too!

It is disappointing to visit Canada for the first time and to have this experience. I would not recommend this property to a friend, a colleague, or anyone in my industry for future meetings or events. Avoid having the same experience as I did and stay at a different Toronto property instead.