Travelodge Bonaventure 7737 Lundy’s Lane Niagara Falls ON Tel: 905-374-7171 Fax: 905-374-1151 Toll Free: 1-800-578-7878 Web site: www.niagaratravelodge.com
	Lobby in hotel	Lobby waiting area

Number of rooms in the hotel/motel: 118 – number of accessible rooms: 2

This three-storey Travelodge has 52 interior corridor rooms and 66 exterior corridor rooms. The numbers of the accessible rooms are 207 and 211. Both are smoking rooms. We audited room 211 and were told the accessible rooms are identical, except that 211 has one queen bed and room 207 has two double beds. Both rooms have adjoining rooms. Pets are not allowed.

The hotel is located on historic Lundy’s Lane (Hwy. 20) within walking/rolling distance of the popular Outlet Mall and a short drive down to the falls and the busy tourist area. It has a breakfast only restaurant but there are several full service restaurants close by.

PARKING: Parking is free at this hotel. There is one designated parking spot near the main entrance but the large parking lot is at the rear of the building. Persons with a side-loading van can pull right into the parking spot and lower the side ramp onto the cement sidewalk. If you have a rear-loading vehicle there is a curb cut to access the sidewalk.

The hotel entrance is covered and has a manual double door entrance with the doors opening out toward you. Luggage carts are available.

LOBBY: To the left of the carpeted lobby there is a small lounge area with a television surrounded by windows overlooking the busy Lundy’s Lane. The front desk is directly in front of you. There is also a snack machine in the lobby and a tour desk, which we were told, is seldom staffed.

ELEVATOR, HOTEL HALLS & ROOM ENTRANCES: The single elevator is around to your right in the lobby. It is large enough to accommodate a scooter and has nice low elevator buttons. There is no Braille in the elevator but on exiting you will notice the floor numbers have Braille.

During our visit in April/04 we found the carpeted halls to be dimly lit with only the wall lights turned on, however, there are pot lights in the ceiling. The hallways outside the rooms are 63” wide. If you follow the hallway to the very end, you will notice that it narrows to 45” wide and the ice and pop machines are located in a small room on your left. A door on your right opens to a balcony. There was virtually no room to turn around on a scooter and Linda had to reverse back down the hall.

Entry to your room is with a plastic key card. Room 211 is five rooms from the elevator and is adjoined to room 209. There is a ¼” high x 6” wide marble fire lip into the room. The door has a lever handle, a high peephole but no lowered one. A light switch near the door operates an overhead hall light as well as a lamp on the desk.

Bed and high heater/air-conditioner	closet beside bed	between bed and closet	between bed end and desk

BEDROOM: Room 211 has one queen bed while 207 has two double beds. The beds are set on platform bases. Bedside tables are on either side of the bed with clock radio and telephone with data port. At the foot of the bed there is a desk and a dresser. A round pedestal table and two tub chairs sit below the window, which opens to a rooftop view. Extension wall lamps with twist knobs are on both sides of the bed and a table lamp sits on the desk, along with all the fixings for tea/coffee. There is a nice low mirror on the wall over the desk. A TV with in-room movies and Nintendo is on top of the dresser. Plugs are located beside the dresser, close to the window. There is an open closet area in the bedroom with a luggage rack but no lower clothes rack, no iron or ironing board.

Overall, the room is large enough to take a person with a wheelchair or scooter as well as companion. However, manoeuvrability would be a lot easier if the round pedestal table was removed and the tub chairs moved against the wall. There is 76” from the bed to the window wall with the furniture moved; 40” between the foot of the bed and the desk and dresser; 67” from the bed to the interior wall (closet) and a further 24” if the luggage rack was taken out of the closet.

Narrow hall into bathroom and out to main hall	Moulded tub unit	Vanity open underneath	Toilet area

BATHROOM: Herein lies the problem. This bathroom is totally inaccessible to someone on a scooter or large electric wheelchair. You just wouldn’t be able to get in the door. If a wheelchair can turn on a dime it would probably be OK. The main door into the room has an opening of only 29” and opens into the hallway, which is 37” wide. The bathroom door, on your right, has a round knob, is 30” wide, opens into the bathroom and stays open against the toilet, which is behind the door.

The toilet is 16” high and has a 32” horizontal grab bar above the toilet tank and a 12” horizontal bar above the toilet paper holder. Towels are on racks from 45” to 65” high behind the toilet. The vanity is 30” with a 20” opening below, which may not be enough to accommodate knees. It has an oval sink with a push/pull/twist faucet and a nice low mirror. A hair dryer is 24” above the vanity along with a double plug outlet.

There is a moulded bathtub/shower unit. The tub is 17” high and 15” deep. It has a 4 ½” lip on the outer edge but no lip on the inside edge to hold a bath board. A bath seat would work in this tub. There is a 3’ horizontal bar on the back wall with a 2’ Plexiglas bar built-in to the unit and a 12” horizontal bar above the push/pull/twist water temperature control. A pull-up on the faucet operates the shower, which has no hand-held showerhead.

There is a space of 68” from the door to the tub; 74” from the wall to the electric heat unit; 40” from toilet to tub and 50” from the toilet to the sink, with the door closed. Transfer to the toilet would be from the front or the left. The entire bathroom is tiled and very well lighted.

Bonaventure Restaurant area	microwave and toaster

RESTAURANT: You can start your day off right in the Bonaventure Restaurant right off the lobby. This is a breakfast only restaurant and is open seasonal. During the tourist season it is open daily from 7:30 to 11:30 a.m. with a full menu, and in the off-season it offers a complimentary continental breakfast Monday to Friday from 7:30 to 10 a.m. and a full breakfast menu on weekends. Prices are reasonable and range from $3.75-$5.25 for various omelettes; $6.95 for the special of 2 eggs, home fries and a choice of bacon or ham or sausage, toast and jam, juice, coffee/tea; and pancakes or French toast from $3.65 to $4.25.

There are 3 steps into pool area	Pool washroom	interesting skirt on vanity	allows leg room

POOL: There is a lovely pool also off the lobby through two single doors. The first door has a knob handle while the second door has a thumb latch. The pool itself would not be accessible for a wheelchair or scooter user as there are three steps down from the deck to the pool with a grab bar on the right. However, the pool washroom is accessible with bars around the toilet and transfer to the toilet from the right. There is a wall in front of the toilet and a space of only 15” to the front of the toilet. An oval sink is open below with a movable flap. There is a 1½” step up into the sauna and a 6 ½” step into the shower, which is only 28” wide.

This hotel might work for someone with mobility impairment but who doesn’t use a scooter or a large wheelchair. A person with a wheelchair could manage if they can turn on a dime to enter the bathroom, don’t need a handheld shower and if they’re able to stand in the shower or transfer to a tub bench. (A bath board won’t work as there is no lip on the back wall.)

You must also be able to turn the knobs on doors into the bathroom and pool area.