Canadian Pacific Hotels (CPH) was a division of the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) that primarily operated hotels across Canada, since passenger revenue made a significant contribution to early railway profitability. CPR restructured the division as a subsidiary in 1963. In 1988, CPR purchased the Canadian National Hotels chain, making Canadian Pacific Hotels and Resorts the nation's largest hotel owner. In 1998, all CPH properties were branded as either Fairmont or Delta.

In 2006, Kingdom Hotels International and Colony Capital purchased Fairmont, consolidating their hotel brands to form Fairmont Raffles Hotels International (FRHI), which in turn became a subsidiary of AccorHotels in 2016. In 2007, BC Investment Management Corp. bought Delta Hotels, which was purchased by Marriott International in 2015.

Early hotels

Passenger revenue made a significant contribution to railway profitability, so facilities such as hotels were essential for attracting passenger traffic. The three earliest locations were Mount Stephen House, Glacier House, and North Bend. These initially were only dining stops, necessary because steep railway grades made hauling a dining car uneconomical. Thomas Sorby's design for these three hotels was inspired by Swiss chalets.

Hotels were established mainly at locations which connected with other passenger rail or ferry routes, but some rural locations became tourist destinations in their own right, especially in the Canadian Rockies and Selkirk Mountains. The original Banff Springs Hotel was described as a "Tudor chalet in wood", and its success prompted CPR to lobby the government to create Banff National Park, the first in Canada. National parks protected CPH's commercial interests in such localities. The opportunity to participate in mountaineering excursions led by professional Swiss guides featured in CPH's promotion of the accommodation. Scenic images, often including a hotel, illustrated the CPH publicity brochures.

Urban and township land sales financed the construction of the early hotels. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, CPH commonly adopted a châteauesque architectural style for building or enlarging significant hotels. The earliest example was Château Frontenac. Notable features included steeply pitched copper roofs, blue-green from oxidation, ornate gables, dormer windows, and irregularly placed towers and turrets.

The visual appeal of this design prompted other railway companies to imitate it. CPR and its later competitors Canadian Northern Railway and Grand Trunk Pacific Railway (which became part of Canadian National Railway (CN)) built Canada's grand railway hotels in every major Canadian city. However, CPR quickly reverted to a simpler style with a flat roof and limited ornamental features when designing most city hotels.

With growing automobile traffic and tourists seeking cheaper accommodation, CPH retained only the more profitable urban and destination hotels. The resort hotels opened only in summer. Year-round opening began in 1969 for Banff Springs Hotel, and in 1974 for Chateau Lake Louise.

CPR restructured the division as a subsidiary in 1963.

Bungalow camps and tea houses

Each bungalow camp consisted of a group of cabins with a communal lodge set in a relatively remote forest area, reached by hiking or horseback. They initially catered to an elite type of tourist, mainly American, but they gradually attracted a broader audience. The log cabin at Lake Louise, Alberta (1891–1893), was a forerunner to this concept. The subsequent adoption of the log design created a pioneer appearance, but also provided the necessary insulation for a cold mountainous region. CN copied the concept at Jasper Park Lodge. Despite the rustic cabin exteriors, the interiors contained the modern comforts of the period. They were presented as more adventurous than a hotel stay, yet it was scarcely roughing it.

The CPH rest structures and teahouses at scenic locations along nearby trails similarly adopted a rustic design. Teahouses existed at Summit Lake, Twin Falls, Natural Bridge, Lake Agnes, and the Plain of Six Glaciers. Most rest houses were one-storey cabins at lower elevations.

CPH initially encouraged automobile travel by building camps along the Banff–Windermere Highway which opened in 1923. Automobile vacationers switched to inexpensive campgrounds in the 1930s, and CPH disposed of the least profitable bungalow camps, followed by the remainder in the 1950s.

Later hotels After a 24-year break in building or acquiring properties, CPH constructed a series of hotels and motels between 1955 and 1999. The larger ones mostly adopted the "Chateau" prefix. The company operated several international properties before it exited that market.

Chains acquired

In 1988, CPR purchased the Canadian National Hotels chain, making Canadian Pacific Hotels and Resorts the nation's largest hotel owner. In 1998, CPR purchased the Canadian Delta Hotels chain and the international Princess Hotels chain. The following year, San Francisco-based Fairmont Hotels and Resorts chain was acquired. Minority shareholders were Kingdom Hotels (USA) Ltd. and Maritz Wolff & Co, each holding a 16.5 per cent interest. All CPH properties were branded as either Fairmont or Delta. In 2001, CPH was renamed Fairmont Hotels and Resorts. Later that year, Canadian Pacific Limited spun off all of its subsidiaries into separately traded companies, which included Fairmont Hotels and Resorts.

In 2006, Kingdom Hotels International and Colony Capital, which also owned the Raffles and Swissôtel chains, bought Fairmont. The following year, BC Investment Management Corp. bought Delta Hotels. In 2015, AccorHotels acquired a controlling interest in FRHI, adding the Fairmont, Raffles, and Swissôtel chains to its Luxury Hotel Brands portfolio. That year Marriott International bought the Delta chain.

Canadian portfolio Once under CP brand Bungalow camps

Name Opened Locality Disposals/Redevelopment Emerald Lake Bungalow 1901 Emerald Lake 1959 beginning of several lessee changes; 1979 Pat & Connie O'Connor acquired. Fairmont appears to still hold crown lease. Moraine Lake Bungalow 1913 Moraine Lake 1930s sold. Lake O'Hara Bungalow 1920 Lake O'Hara 1954 Brewster-Ford Mountain Lodges; lodge still operates;Fairmont appears to still hold crown lease. Lake Windermere Bnglw. 1920 Lk. Windermere 1929 sublease for girls' camp. Subdivided and sold for residential properties in 1965. Lodge building relocated in 2010 and is now an events space. Wapta Lake Bungalow 1921 Wapta Lake 1954 subleased; Storm (Castle) Mtn. Bnglw. 1922 Storm Mountain 1930s subleased; Storm Mountain Lodge. Yoho Valley Bungalow 1922 Yoho Nat. Park 1954 subleased; The Whiskey Jack Hostel is the only surviving building. Radium (Sinclair) HotSprings Bungalow 1923 Radium 1948 subleased to Addison; 2001 Addison's Bungalow Camp relocated. Vermilion River Bungalow 1923 Vermilion River 1929 closed; 1932 subleased to Victor H. Lord, who revived it;now known as Kootenay Park Lodge; several subsequent sublessees. Devil's Gap Bungalow 1923 Kenora 1961 sold to Austin H. Ford; 2008 abandoned;2019 partially destroyed by fire. Nipigon River Bungalow 1923 Nipigon 1935 sold to Don Gapen, who ran as Chalet Lodge for several decades;2018 Red Rock First Nation, refurbished and reopened. French River Bungalow 1923 French River 1945 sold to Clarence Honey; 1965 beginning of several ownership changes;1988–92 major renovations followed by 3 owners; now French River Lodge.

Hotels