Checking into the Hotel Zed Tofino,
where the lobby isn't off-limits to cyclists
Ian Stalker
Talking about giving cyclists the opportunity to get off the beaten path… and at the same time enabling their pedalling indoor presence to raise a few eyebrows.
The Vancouver Island community of Tofino has just seen the opening of the Hotel Zed and hotel president Mandy Farmer says the property has a remarkably welcoming feature for cyclists that is probably unmatched anywhere else in the world.
The hotel is found right off the Multi-Use Path (MUP) — popular with cyclists — which runs to downtown Tofino and avid cyclist Farmer notes her property has accommodated riders who want to pass through part of Hotel Zed but don’t want to walk their bikes while doing so.
“I just thought it would be so cool to have a funky detour where you can actually bike through a hotel lobby without getting into trouble,” she says of the “bike-through lobby. We also have bike parking inside the lobby, so people can explore while they are here. We are rebels against the ordinary and a bike path that runs directly through your lobby is definitely not ordinary!”
“Everyone is welcome to hang out in our groovy common areas or if you’re on a roll and want to keep rolling… just follow the path and it’ll take you back to the MUP!”
Mandy Farmer
CEO & president of Hotel Zed
Cyclists are actively welcomed to pedal through the lobby, with the hotel having created what Farmer says is a “designated colourful path with lots of room around it through the lobby. You exit through the back of the lobby and tour through the hotel grounds and rainforest before meeting back up with the multi-use path.”
Cycling is popular in Tofino, with the Multi-Use Path seeing lots of riders.
The Hotel Zed is promoting itself as a retro-chic, “ridiculously fun property” that has a colour scheme featuring burnt orange, avocado green and eggplant purple.
Among other hotel novelties is the Psychic’s Den, with that setting home to “a twinkling, starry ceiling, a stunning crystal ball (the hotel found it in a vintage store), seating imported from Morocco”; and hotel visitors are also offered tarot card readings. The Psychic’s Den can be used for events and promotions.
Farmer says plentiful room is found in the lobby, which means cyclists will easily be available to avoid physical contact with non-cyclists. The property hasn’t received any complaints from non-cyclist guests, who tend to be looking for the “un-ordinary.” Two-wheeled lobby visitors are asked to stick to the “clearly-marked beautiful, multi-coloured path that is absolutely impossible to miss! It takes you in a loop back to the MUP, but if you want to stay and explore Hotel Zed, we’ve got some bike parking near our front desk! Why not check out the Psychic’s Den, the Sunken Living Room or the Mini Disco while you’re here?” Farmer says of the unconventional property.
The lobby area was designed to accommodate the path right down to its automatic doors, so the property isn’t worried about bike traffic issues.
“We welcome all rebels to use the path, whether they’re staying here or not,” Farmer says. “Everyone is welcome to hang out in our groovy common areas or if you’re on a roll and want to keep rolling… just follow the path and it’ll take you back to the MUP!”
Farmer acknowledges that arriving in the lobby by bike is unconventional to say the least.
“I can’t think of anything more amusing than being able to ride my bike in the lobby and not get in trouble,” she says.
Farmer also notes there are 12 lobby parking spots for bikes.
“For meter-maid issues, 12 spots is plenty,” she jokes. “We don’t expect to have more bikes than that in the lobby at one time. If we do, we will add more parking. That’s easy.”
