South Pier Inn-On the Canal

About as good as it gets. Little getaway to Duluth and stumbled on this place for a couple nights. Location could not be better for Duluth. Directly next to the Lift-​Bridge and a short walk to all the shops, restaurants and bars in Canal Park. Overall the property is well maintained. The lobby was open, well lit with a friendly staff. Check in was easy and we upgraded from a regular guest room with no view to a harbor view room. They have a schedule available of the incoming/​outbound ships to view.
We went to our room and were greatly impressed. The view included a large portion of the bay and city. Throughout our stay we were able to see three ships depart and arive. The room was very clean and presented well. The rooms with views get a set of binoculars to look out over the bay. Bathroom was stocked with coffee, cups, ice bucket and the other typical amentities. A mini fridge is included in the room as well. WIFI was strong and worked the whole time. Room had a whirlpool that was very clean and we used it twice. Fireplace worked great and had a control box next to the in room thermostat. Balcony had two chairs and table. Blankets were amazingly soft, pillows a smidge hard for my girlfriends likings but I had no complaints. TV had HBO and a DVD player. Breakfast was really the only thing I would comment on. The breakfast included donuts, pastries, oatmeal, array of fresh fruit, coffee, and a fridge with juices and yogurt. I understand its a contintenal breakfast but some more options or healthir alternatives might be worth looking into. Overall great reasonably priced getaway.

Great hotel with all the amenities! Amazing views of Lake superior and the lift bridge. We stayed in a «canal view» room and had exceptional views of the canal and bridge as well as the lake and downtown duluth. The service at the desk is excellent and very friendly. They even will give you a ship schedule so you know when the giant ships are expected to arrive and depart. Whether you’ve never been to duluth or have been there 1000 times, you need to stay at this hotel! The views alone are worth every penny but then they throw in a fireplace and jacuzzi and balcony to go with it! This place is worth the price all the way around. One of the best hotels around. anywhere.

A spontaneous, solo road trip to Duluth last summer led me to the South Pier Inn-​On the Canal. I wanted to stay somewhere near the aerial lift bridge, and this was the perfect location. It was a little spendy but worth every cent. The staff welcomed me with warm smiles and gave me many great recommendations on sites to see and places to eat.
–Canal Park
–Enger Tower
–Canal Park Brewing Company (had the turkey burger: P)
–Northern Waters Smokehaus
Right before leaving I mentioned to the front desk lady how I never saw a ship come through the aerial lift bridge; what a bummer! She mentioned this to the owner and he gave me a private tour of the lighthouse on his property; such a kind gesture that I’ll never forget.
This place has left a memorable impact on me and I can’t wait to return this summer!

My partner and I have been coming to South Pier Inn for two years running, as we make it our Christmas getaway. Honestly, we wouldn’t consider staying anywhere else. Being right in Canal Park is such a cool location with just a quick walk to local shops, Vikre Distillery, Canal Park Brewery, and more. We LOVE the suite we stay in, with a big-​screen TV, electric fireplace, jacuzzi, and panoramic view of Lake Superior. Seriously, what more can you ask for? The ambience is perfect, the rooms meticulously clean, the beds supremely comfortable. Branden, the manager, stands by truly fabulous customer service and will do everything he can to make your stay an exceptional one. We’ve recommended South Pier to many friends already, and we look forward to coming here in future years.

This is my husband and I’s go-​to hotel in Duluth. The view is gorgeous from the room, service is great, and we love the extra features like the fireplace and jacuzzi in the rooms. I wouldn’t stay anywhere else!

I really enjoyed my stay here and would definitely consider returning here is my take on the place.
–Location, Location, Location. This place is amazing for viewing the big ships coming into or going out of the harbor. Definitely worth the splurge at least once but you will want a canal view for that and it’s not cheap. We were staying just one night and so we went for it. I saw one boat during the afternoon coming in (but did go view it from the pedestrian area which you can do without staying at the hotel-​but staying at the hotel is great because while you can find out in advance via Duluth Shipping News website (or call the Maritime Visitor Center) staying here just makes it much more likely you will get to see one of these ships travel through the canal and enjoy the bridge going up and down. At night they offer wake-​up calls if you want to be woken up for the viewing… I definitely recommend this as it’s totally worth any lost sleep.
Other things the hotel excels at are: great complimentary continental breakfast, great service, again proximity to canal park/​maritime center, great wi/​fi.
Room for improvement: my bed could of/​should have been better for the money. It was very soft… too soft. I hope mgmt will consider working on this.
The living room has a couch and a couple of fashionable but less functional chairs. I am a big guy and didn’t dare sit in them.
Note the tub is in the living room of this 1-​bedroom suite. I was traveling with a friend and we were on the first floor. The whole point is keeping the shades open and watching the canal, for obvious reasons this didn’t work for us… for a couple this may work better.
Overall, I think this place is a great option for people fascinated with maritime transportation and just love bridges and the scenic wonder. Harbor rooms are cheaper and probably better suited for those on a budget or staying a few nights where you would have a few opportunities to walk over to canal to see the boats coming under the bridge.

Loved the room. We didn’t have the view but it didn’t matter. Very clean and put together. Great staff and perfect location. I’ll be back for sure

Not really sure exactly how we stumbled on this hotel for our most recent visit to Duluth but we will most definitely be back AND be recommending it to friends. While it was slightly more expensive than he accommodations that we would typically choose for ourselves, I think that the added expense is definitely worthwhile. We had a room with a balcony overlooking the lake. I am writing this review looking out at the city and an ore boat moving quietly through the waves with a glass of wine in my hand and I couldn’t possibly be happier. Easy walking distance to all that Canal Park had to offer but just far enough off that beaten path to render itself nearly silent… other than the seagulls and lapping waves, of course. Our room had a fireplace and jacuzzi tub as well as a refrigerator, good sized bathroom and comfortable king size bed. Clean, quiet and non-​commercial! Oh… and free wireless. Boom! Don’t expect much out of the free continental breakfast (coffee, juice, muffins, Whole fruit, yogurt) and you won’t be disappointed! We will be back!

I love the location of this hotel. You have a great view of the lift bridge and Lake Superior. The rooms are clean and spacious. There is also coffee and pastries in the morning for breakfast along with juice and yogurt. I would stay here again.

People I never felt so compelled to warn other people about hotel, so I’m writing this review. I want to start out by saying that I have stayed at many hotels in my years as a Fortune 1000 executive. However, I’m a realistic person and know a good or bad thing when I experience it. I was so excited to be so close to the bridge at South Pier. I wanted to be as close as possible to the boats. The rooms are clean and location is great. All rooms other than the large corner suite will have the terrible situation I will describe.
Every room has a main window and a smaller (but still large) window facing either the bridge or harbor. The smaller window allows the guests in the next room to look right into your room. I don’t mean a little look, their view faces right in your door and all of your other windows. This was the poorest architecture I have ever seen. They can see your ENTIRE room including a full view of your bed. Two separate neighbors in two separate nights and my wife caught them looking in at her and our room multiple times. They were probably unintentional but you can’t even enjoy your stay. Your neighbors come to that window when they see boats, so you will see them multiple times daily/​nightly.
We had to close the blinds! There was no way to know when your neighbor would be at their window, so you couldn’t relax at all. If you choose to stay there after reading this, you were warned. Trust me you will never stay there again due to this terrible window placement. Once you walk in the room and view your neighbor’s window facing right at your room. It’s a total invasion of privacy. If you choose to pay the very high price to stay your nightmare will begin when you see the window that I’m talking about. Within 1 hour you will see someone looking at a boat but also looking at you and what you’re doing. I found 3 other posts describing this situation online. Take my advice on this one.
All the best,
Mike

This is a lovely little non commercial hotel located right next to the lift bridge. I missed the parking lot at first because it is the very first right after the bridge! However, it has a cute little office and plenty of parking. It is still within walking distance to everything canal park has to offer.
It is a little more expensive, but it has great rooms. They are very private to the point that one other room shares the entrance to a shared staircase and you have to go outside to get ice.
There is a patio off of every room. Unfortunately even though the description of our room said «lake view,» we had a room facing the parking lot. Not very pretty, but the bridge is there and since we went in March, there wasn’t much need to step outside anyways. I would definitely make sure that you are facing the lake. The rooms are clean and I guess some of them had fireplaces.
They are very environmentally friendly and ask if you would be willing to reuse the towels and keep the temperature at a reasonable level. This is a plus for me, but I know not for everyone!
The continental breakfast was small, but decent. There was some fruit, pastries, yogurt, and juice. Overall I’m glad I gave my money to a small company.

We stayed here one night (our first night) in Duluth a few weeks ago. We were very impressed with the room! We checked in semi-​late (around 9pm), settled in and headed straight out to dinner. Afterwards, we came back to the room before a concert we were seeing at Grandma’s. When it came time for the concert, we walked a short 2 – 3 minute walk across the bridge and into Canal Park! The location of this place was amazing. After the concert, we enjoyed the in-​room jacuzzi (we were in a queen suite).
We were very impressed with the quality of the room for the price — it definitely felt like more of a boutique spot than a chain hotel. The massive windows gave amazing views of the canal, the fireplace and jacuzzi were both incredible additions to the room, and the price was cheaper than local chain hotels. We’ll be back!

The new favorite place to stay in Duluth. Rooms are clean and elegant in a spare, modern way. Each room has its own private balcony. The «neighborhood side» rooms look out on the parking lot, so do yourself a favor and book a harbor or canal view (the latter lets you watch boats clear the lift bridge as they enter and leave the harbor). Great location: a short walk across the bridge puts you in Canal Park with access to the lakewalk and other Duluth-​ly goodness. Staff were friendly. The free breakfast looked a bit sparse, but you really should just walk across the bridge and hit the hippie coffee shop in Canal Park instead anyways.
Highly recommended.