VANCOUVER, BC – Vancouver is running out of hotel rooms – just as the city prepares to welcome the world for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. For more than two decades, Vancouver has added little meaningful hotel inventory. According to Destination Vancouver and the BC Hotel Association, the city has roughly the same number of hotel rooms today as it did in 2002, despite significant growth in tourism and global events.
The reasons are layered: hotel closures, pandemic-era housing conversions, tighter short-term rental regulations, and a slow development pipeline. During the pandemic alone, more than 550 hotel rooms were removed from the city's inventory after being converted into supportive housing.
Meanwhile, demand continues to rise. Vancouver hotels operate at approximately 80% occupancy year-round, with peak summer periods reaching as high as 95% – among the highest rates in North America. Industry forecasts suggest the city may face a shortage of roughly 70,000 accommodation nights during the busiest stretch of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with more than 45,000 visitors seeking lodging on peak match days. Into that gap steps The Como.
A Boutique Hotel Arrives at the Right Time
Located at 1825 Comox Street in Vancouver's West End, The Como is a 32-room independent boutique property designed to offer a personalised, neighbourhood-rooted hospitality experience. Just two blocks from English Bay, steps from Stanley Park, and surrounded by the restaurants, cafés, and cultural life of Denman Street and Davie Village, the hotel sits at the centre of one of Vancouver's most iconic visitor districts. The Como opened quietly in early 2026 – not as a reaction to the city's hotel shortage, but as a reflection of something more personal.
Why Now. Why Here.
Husband and wife Karim Salamatian and Thuy Duong Salamatian didn't set out to solve Vancouver's accommodation shortage. They set out to build the kind of hotel they enjoy discovering while travelling – small, personal, and deeply connected to its surroundings.
Karim, raised in Victoria, BC, and Thuy, originally from Vietnam with a background in hospitality, spent nearly two decades living and travelling overseas together – across Europe and Asia, drawn to places where hospitality felt intuitive, thoughtful, and rooted in the local community. Eventually, they knew they wanted to bring that feeling home.
After purchasing the former Shato Inn, the couple reimagined the property as a boutique hotel shaped by the experiences, cultures, and values they'd discovered abroad. "We honeymooned at Lake Como and stayed in a small hotel where our names were remembered by the second morning," says Thuy Duong Salamatian. "That feeling stayed with us. When we found this building on Comox Street, the name felt like it was waiting for us. We wanted to build a hotel that invested serious thought in what would make a guest's stay wonderful."
"For us, hospitality has always been about bringing people together," adds Karim Salamatian. "Whether it's in our home or across different places we've lived, it's an extension of who we are."
The location is no accident. The Como sits where everything Vancouver is known for converges – English Bay and its famous sunsets two blocks away, Stanley Park at the end of the street, Denman Street's diverse restaurant strip as the front yard, and the Seawall, Davie Village, and downtown all within easy reach. The West End is the part of Vancouver that lives in people's memories. The Como puts guests squarely inside it.
A Different Kind of Hotel Model
By keeping the model intentionally lean, The Como creates space for something often missing in high-demand markets: genuine attention to guests and meaningful value at a premium location. Rather than pushing occupancy to cover the fixed costs of amenities few guests need, the hotel directs that bandwidth toward what matters – knowing what a guest needs before they ask.
Guest services are available in English, Spanish, Vietnamese, Tagalog, Arabic, and Mandarin – reflecting both the owners' backgrounds and Vancouver's international audience.
Designed for Modern Travellers
The Como offers:
• 32 rooms, including standard rooms, kitchen suites, and private patio retreats
• 15 rooms with full kitchens designed for longer stays
• 11 rooms with large, furnished private decks – a rarity in Vancouver hotels at any price point
• Seamless digital self-check-in alongside 24-hour in-person guest services
• An oversized Wellness Suite with a private Peloton bike, yoga and meditation space, and full-body red-light therapy panel
• Complimentary e-bikes for exploring the city
• Secure underground parking
• Dedicated in-room workspaces and high-speed Wi-Fi
• Locally sourced amenities, mini-bar offerings, and artwork integrated throughout the property.
The Bigger Picture
Vancouver's hotel supply problem is well documented. A Hotel Community Impact Assessment by Destination Vancouver and the BC Hotel Association finds the city may need 10,000 additional hotel rooms by 2050 to support tourism growth and major international events. The same number of hotel rooms exist today as in 2002. The city lost more than 550 rooms to COVID-era social housing conversions alone. Average downtown occupancy runs at 80% year-round and spikes to 95% in summer – among the highest rates on the continent. Without new supply, Vancouver risks losing an estimated $30.6 billion in economic output by 2050.Boutique, neighbourhood-based hotels have been identified as among the city's most urgently needed accommodation types. The Como isn't waiting for a policy fix. It's already open.