Three-star royals
Kate and Wills get night off from kids on Canada tour... in downmarket hotel
THEY’VE given themselves one night away from the children during their official tour of Canada.
And this is the place William and Kate have chosen – an unremarkable £95-a-night hotel in the country’s remote north west.
While their children Charlotte and George stay in rather grander surroundings as guests of the government, their parents are headed for threestar lodgings that are – according to some visitor reviews – slightly down-at-heel.
The Coast High Country Inn in Yukon is most notable for the giant carved Mountie outside and its ‘hops and grub’ pub.
The hotel is in the small town of Whitehorse – which played a part in the gold rush of the 19th century – and where the couple will sample some of Canada’s great outdoors and possibly try their hand at mountain biking.
Although it is one of the most expensive hotels in the region, rooms have been described as being on the small side [‘the smallest we’ve come across in all our travels around the world’ said one Trip Advisor review]. Other guests have complained about ‘yellow water’ from the hot tap while others said some of the rooms were ‘tired, dated and cramped’.
It is unlikely that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge – who start an official tour of the country today – will have that problem, however. The Mail understands that they are being given the best suite while they, like any parents with young children, enjoy a little respite from their brood.
The ‘premium Jacuzzi king’ room has, as the name suggests, a giant jacuzzi bath and its own little kitchenette. For a couple who have a housekeeper at each of their two houses in Britain there is no butler service – but there is a microwave, mini fridge, hairdryer and ironing board as well as its own fireplace and ‘terry cloth bathrobes’.
The price tag, £153 a night, will be picked up by Canadian taxpayers who are footing the cost of the trip – excluding the Cambridge’s Scotland Yard security team. The hotel has just one dining option, a pubtype restaurant called The Deck serving ‘rustic’ fare such as pulled pork and rock fish tacos.
The jalapeno slammers – perhaps not one for figure-conscious Kate – are an artery-blocking dish of peppers stuffed with goats cheese and cream cheese wrapped in bacon and fried. But it is believed the hotel’s head chef is preparing a special menu for their royal visi- tors. According to the website Expedia, the hotel is rated three stars. Trip Advisor rates it as a four, despite the mixed reviews.
William and Kate have stayed in some of the best hotels in the world on official foreign tours. In Manhattan they were housed in an £8,000 a night suite at The Carlyle which had its own butler.
And in April they relaxed at Mumbai’s five- star Taj Mahal Palace, one of the most opulent hotels in the world. A source said the couple were ‘delighted’ with their accommodation in Whitehorse.
Back at their base for the eightday trip, Prince George, three, and 16-month- old Princess Charlotte will continue to experience the royal treatment. They will stay with their parents at Government House in Victoria, the official residence of the Queen’s representative in Brit- ish Columbia. The 103-year- old building, set in a 36-acre estate, was first used by George VI and the Queen Mother in 1939, as part of their tour of Canada that year.
Staff have filled the ornate fountains with rubber ducks while chefs are devising special menus.
While George has already clocked up trips to Australia and New Zealand, it will be Charlotte’s first official overseas visit.