Casino New Brunswick

The floor is small and cheerful — a manageable spread of tables and slots with the odd poker night, staffed by people who seem genuinely pleased you came. There's no high-limit theatre here, and it isn't pretending otherwise.

That modesty is its charm: you can learn a game without an audience and play for an hour without feeling swept along. Serious players will find it light, but for a casual Maritime flutter it's exactly the right size.

The rooms are clean, roomy and resort-simple rather than luxurious, with the sort of comfortable, unfussy fit-out you'd want after a concert and a late supper. They won't dazzle, but nothing about them will let you down either.

It's a compact hotel, so everything — floor, spa, showroom, pool — is a short indoor stroll away, which is a real plus in a New Brunswick winter. Just set your expectations to 'easy and pleasant', not 'grand'.

Dining leans casual — a buffet, a bar and a couple of easygoing rooms — and the star turn is the concert hall, which pulls surprisingly big touring names for a city this size. Time your visit to a show and the whole trip lifts.

The spa and indoor pool make for a genuinely lazy morning after, and it's all under one roof so weather never enters into it. The honest caveat is that the food and extras are functional rather than memorable; you come for the ease, not the cuisine.

This is some of the best plain value in the guide — rooms are affordable, the resort is self-contained, and a concert night can turn a cheap weekend into a proper one. For a low-key getaway it's hard to fault on price.

It won't wow anyone chasing grandeur, and it isn't meant to. Come for a relaxed, good-value Maritime break with a bit of a show, and it delivers precisely that.

The most modest house in the book and the most relaxed — good value, warm service and a show most weekends.