How's Business at Comfort Inn & Suites Saint-Jérôme

General Manager: Manon Leclerc
No. Rooms: 85
Meeting Space: Banquet, meeting, conference room, six meeting rooms that can accommodate 100 people, 2900 sq. ft.

“Business is doing quite well but we still have to work hard because of the increase of new competition in the city last year, and [this] is going to intensify in the next two years,” says general manager Manon Leclerc.

The Comfort Inn & Suites Saint-Jérôme is located at the gateway of the Laurentian mountains, at the beginning of the Linear Park Le P’tit Train du Nord, 10 minutes from Saint-Sauveur and only 30 minutes from Montreal.  The hotel is walking distance from the downtown area and customers have access to eight restaurants, terraces and a bar located on-site.

The mix of travellers to the hotel consists of:  business, 70 per cent, tourists, 15 per cent, conferences, 10 per cent and overseas travellers, five per cent.

Leclerc has seen a decline in the numbers of American travellers this year.  “The American dollar doesn’t help travellers,” he says.
“Since the opening in fall 2001, we have made two major renovations. We have added 18 rooms in 2003. We redesigned the lobby, front desk, corridors, breakfast area and business rooms, last year” he adds.
 
Although the hotel has only been open for seven years, it has received a number of awards.  In 2008, the hotel was a finalist in the Amelioration & Investments category for the Saint-Jérôme Chamber of Commerce.

It has been a Gold Award Winner for Choice Hotels International every year since its inception, and in 2007/08 it won the Comfort Inn of the Year award for Choice Hotels Canada. In 2007, the hotel was also a finalist for the Choice Hotels International Hotel of the Year.  Other awards include the Grand prix du Tourisme Québécois 2005, Innovations Award for the Saint-Jérôme Chamber of Commerce 2005, and Investments Award for the Saint-Jérôme Chamber of Commerce in 2002.

“The focus for the coming year will be to offer high quality professional and personal services for our business and leisure travellers—to allow guests to be as comfortable as they would be in their own office or home, to give them a lot of amenities and to continue to keep high quality rooms,” says Leclerc.