{"id":106428,"date":"2026-03-14T09:24:47","date_gmt":"2026-03-14T13:24:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/magazine.tablethotels.com\/en\/?page_id=106428"},"modified":"2026-03-14T09:24:47","modified_gmt":"2026-03-14T13:24:47","slug":"hotel-nelligan-essay-winner","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/magazine.tablethotels.com\/en\/hotel-nelligan-essay-winner\/","title":{"rendered":"Hotel Nelligan"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"row wpb_row row-fluid\"><div class=\"wpb_column columns medium-12 small-12\"><div class=\"vc_column-inner  \"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:20px;\"><\/aside><a class=\"image_link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tablethotels.com\/\" target=\"\" title=\"\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"161\" src=\"https:\/\/magazine.tablethotels.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Tablet-logo.png\" class=\"thb_image  center  retina_size attachment-full\" alt=\"\" title=\"Tablet-logo\" \/><\/a><aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:20px;\"><\/aside><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"row wpb_row row-fluid full-width-row\"><div class=\"wpb_column columns medium-12 small-12\"><div class=\"vc_column-inner  \"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"thb_image  center   \" src=\"https:\/\/magazine.tablethotels.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/a63e0a08-1200x900.jpeg\" width=\"1200\" height=\"900\" alt=\"a63e0a08\" title=\"a63e0a08\" loading=\"lazy\" \/><aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:50px;\"><\/aside><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"row wpb_row row-fluid\"><div class=\"wpb_column columns medium-12 small-12\"><div class=\"vc_column-inner  \"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:0px;\"><\/aside>\n\t<div class=\"wpb_text_column wpb_content_element\" >\n\t\t<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<h3 style=\"text-align: left; font-family: Figtree, AvenirNext-Regular, HelveticaNeue-Light, Helvetica-Neue, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 32px; line-height: 40px;\"><strong>The first special winner (mom division) in our hotel essay contest is a story about Hotel Nelligan in Montreal, Canada. It was written by Renata Lewis.<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:50px;\"><\/aside>\n\t<div class=\"wpb_text_column wpb_content_element\" >\n\t\t<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<p style=\"font-family: Figtree, AvenirNext-Regular, HelveticaNeue-Light, Helvetica-Neue, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 22px; line-height: 32px;\"><em>Featured hotel: <strong><a style=\"color: #000000; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tablethotels.com\/en\/montreal-hotels\/hotel-nelligan\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Hotel Nelligan<\/a><\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em>Written by: Renata Lewis<\/em><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: Figtree, AvenirNext-Regular, HelveticaNeue-Light, Helvetica-Neue, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 22px; line-height: 32px;\"><strong><em><a style=\"color: #000000; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/magazine.tablethotels.com\/en\/2026\/03\/write-away\/?noapp=true\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">See all the winning essays<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:50px;\"><\/aside>\n\t<div class=\"wpb_text_column wpb_content_element\" >\n\t\t<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<p>I went to Hotel Nelligan in winter, shortly after becoming a mom for the first time.<\/p>\n<p>At that point, I was tired in a way no amount of sleep could fix. I loved my new baby deeply, but felt so uncertain in my own skin. More than anything, I needed to go somewhere where no one needed me.<br \/>\nSo my sister and I took a short trip to Montreal.<\/p>\n<p>Old Montreal in winter feels more like a European city than a Canadian one, with uneven cobblestone streets and French conversations drifting past. At that stage of my life, I didn\u2019t need beaches, long flights, or reinvention.<\/p>\n<p>I needed to make peace with this new version of myself and say goodbye to what was.<\/p>\n<p>Inside Hotel Nelligan, the red brick walls absorbed the winter chill, and the warm lights cradled my unsettled mind. Notre-Dame stood steps away, steady as the city around her changed, and I admired her for it.<\/p>\n<p>When we checked in, the concierge welcomed us in French. I answered hesitantly, doing my best to keep up. He smiled, giving me permission to try, telling me my accent was good, and I was grateful for it.<\/p>\n<p>In the shower, I sighed in relief. I took my time, noticing the pattern of the tile, the weight of the water, and the scent of the Le Labo soap hovering in the steam. There was no rushing, no one to worry about, and in a burst of appreciation for the moment, I let out a tiny scream of joy. Maybe I was a terrible mom for feeling so happy, or maybe I was simply savoring a rare, unguarded moment.<\/p>\n<p>My sister and I sat with our coffee until it went cold. We talked for hours about motherhood, our goals, and the versions of ourselves we were learning to let go of. We shared belly laughs, lots of tears, and even moments when we sounded like two girls without a care in the world.<\/p>\n<p>Hotel Nelligan gave us a warm, unhurried corner in the world in a season of life that felt cold and consuming. There I resolved that life, though different, wasn\u2019t over. I could be a mother and still hold onto my dreams, ideas, and my identity at the same time.<\/p>\n<p>When we left, Montreal was still grey, rainy and cold, and life went on as it had before. But I carried a new confidence back with me: the reminder that life inevitably changes, but it\u2019s up to us to be intentional about what we want to hold onto. I was still capable of noticing the world, and having children didn\u2019t mean my story was finished.<\/p>\n<p>Some hotels give you escape.<br \/>\nSome views of beautiful landscapes.<br \/>\nSome marble staircases and infinity pools.<\/p>\n<p>But what Hotel Nelligan gave me is the sweetest luxury: time to myself and the space to simply be human.<\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:70px;\"><\/aside>\n\t<div class=\"wpb_text_column wpb_content_element\" >\n\t\t<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<p style=\"font-family: Figtree, AvenirNext-Regular, HelveticaNeue-Light, Helvetica-Neue, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 22px; line-height: 32px;\"><em>\u2014 <a style=\"color: #000000; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tablethotels.com\/en\/about-tablet?noapp=true\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Learn more about Tablet Hotels<\/a>, the original boutique hotel curators and booking site.<br \/>\n\u2014 <a style=\"color: #000000; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tablethotels.com\/?noapp=true\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Search our entire hotel selection<\/a>, featuring only the world&#8217;s most exciting hotels.<br \/>\n\u2014 <a style=\"color: #000000; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/cb.tablethotels.com\/join\/magazine-signup?noapp=true\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Subscribe to our newsletter<\/a>, for bold opinions, big discounts, and unbelievable hotels.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:70px;\"><\/aside><div class=\"vc_separator wpb_content_element vc_separator_align_center vc_sep_width_100 vc_sep_pos_align_center vc_separator_no_text vc_sep_color_grey wpb_content_element  wpb_content_element\" ><span class=\"vc_sep_holder vc_sep_holder_l\"><span class=\"vc_sep_line\"><\/span><\/span><span class=\"vc_sep_holder vc_sep_holder_r\"><span class=\"vc_sep_line\"><\/span><\/span>\n<\/div><aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:10px;\"><\/aside><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n"},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[vc_row][vc_column][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row full_width_row=&#8221;true&#8221;][vc_column][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;] The first special winner (mom division) in our hotel essay contest is a story about Hotel Nelligan in Montreal, Canada. It was written by Renata Lewis. [\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;] Featured hotel: Hotel Nelligan Written by: Renata Lewis See all the winning essays [\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;] I went to Hotel Nelligan in winter, shortly after&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":106577,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-106428","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Hotel Nelligan, Montreal \u2014 Tablet Hotels Essay Winner<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/magazine.tablethotels.com\/en\/hotel-nelligan-essay-winner\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Hotel Nelligan, Montreal \u2014 Tablet Hotels Essay Winner\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"[vc_row][vc_column][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row full_width_row=&#8221;true&#8221;][vc_column][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;] The first special winner (mom division) in our hotel essay contest is a story about Hotel Nelligan in Montreal, Canada. 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