Vancouver is my home turf, and the waterfront is where I hold hotels to their highest standard, because the city gives them so much to work with. The Fairmont Pacific Rim, facing the harbour across from Canada Place, is the rare property that seems worthy of its view. It is glossy, contemporary and confidently urban — a glass tower wrapped in a line of poetry, with a lobby that behaves more like a gallery than a waiting room. I've walked past it a thousand times; spending a night inside reminded me why it sits near the top of everyone's Vancouver list.

Let me start with what the hotel gets emphatically right, because it's most of the stay. The service is, in the words of one guest and my own notes, "second to none" — warm without being stiff, quick without being brusque, and attentive to the point that staff remembered my name by the second morning. My harbour-view room was genuinely stunning at first light, handsomely designed and properly equipped, and room service arrived promptly and hot. The rooftop pool and bar are the social heart of the place, the contemporary art collection is no marketing gimmick, and the lobby lounge has a buzz most city hotels would pay dearly to manufacture. Add Botanist — one of the best hotel dining rooms in the country — and the Willow Stream Spa, and you have a property that fills a rainy Vancouver day without asking you to leave.

Location, and the seawall at your feet

For a certain kind of trip, the position is the whole argument. The Seawall is quite literally at the door, Canada Place and the cruise terminal are next door, and the whole downtown waterfront unspools from the lobby. As a base for exploring Vancouver on foot — which is how the city is best seen — it's about as good as it gets.

Almost everything here operates at a genuine five-star pitch; the friction comes when the little things don't quite keep pace with the view.

Where the polish thins

Honesty is the job, and even a hotel this accomplished gives a fair reviewer something to note. The most common theme in recent feedback is value — the on-site extras add up quickly, and more than one guest felt the room-service costs in particular were steep. I won't quote figures, but go in knowing the incidentals mount. A smaller number of travellers found the service merely good rather than exceptional on their visit, or had a final bill land higher than they'd expected with a few details falling short of a true five-star standard. And on at least one night, lobby-lounge energy — such an asset by day — carried up into the guest floors later than some guests would like.

None of this is damning; it's the ordinary friction of a busy luxury hotel operating at capacity, and my own stay was overwhelmingly on the excellent side of the ledger. But if you're paying attention to what you're getting for a big night out, keep an eye on the extras and, if you're a light sleeper, ask for a room away from the lower lounge floors.

Who it's for

This is a hotel for the traveller who wants the modern, design-forward end of luxury with the water at the door — equally at home for a romantic weekend and a serious business trip, as its many road-warrior fans attest. Book a harbour view, make time for the rooftop and for Botanist, and mind the incidentals.