I was almost put off by the reviews and was thinking of staying else where, like the Crown Plaza, however I happened upon an offer of a $99 a night deal with an upgrade to a deluxe room, so thought for that money I will give it a go.
We stayed 2 nights and checked in on the Friday evening (23rd Oct). Parking could be an issue during busy periods, on street parking was full and there is another car park just a stones throw from the hotel (which is free on weekends).
Check-in was easy, the woman was pleasant enough, but had that “air” of not really wanting to be there, smiling seemed difficult, but inoffensive and as helpful as she had to be.
The hotel is an old heritage building, charming enough and is going for the “trendy, Boutique” angle which works. Don’t come here expecting safe décor and I would try not to compare it to other hotel’s in the area, you are not going to get the safe beige, creams and chocolate palettes but be greeted with shades of grey, blacks, striped carpets, wall papered ceilings and the odd splattering of wood finishes, that seems out of place. Whilst I am sure this hotel is aimed at all ages, I would say their target markets are the 25-45 year old professionals, who enjoy a fashionable edge.
The hotel is self rated 5 “stars” however I think 4 is more appropriate, why? Because I had to think about the room and nothing was safe or automatic, which is where I run into the negatives. I appreciate that this is a heritage item, but I wonder why you would place a bar outside hotel rooms? Whilst it wasn’t so noisy, mainly as people were indoors on the chilly evenings, during summer this would impact noise levels considerably and nothing has or probably can be done to insulate the rooms. However the noise from the other customers talking in the hallways and closing doors could be improved with sound proofing the internal walls.
I also think block out blinds especially in the room I stayed (Room 211) would be a benefit and while there are lovely black velvet block out curtains, you cannot close the curtain’s entirely, due to the window being recessed into a wall that leaves a gap of about 30cm and the light floods in, I had to strategically place a bottle of wine to rest on the sill to hold the curtain in place.
The bathroom could also be improved. The sink seems large and excessive and doesn’t add any functionality to the room, it is also placed quite a way from the mirror, so getting ready is harder also as the lights are dimly lit and even the full length mirror doesn’t save you, again due to the lighting, have fun putting make-up on ladies’!
There is also a lovely bar of soap, now maybe this is my fault for forgetting shower gel, so I had to use the soap, but maybe 2 bars would be a better idea as I need one for the sink too. With the floor being wet after a shower I needed the soap to wash my hands, I am a fit 30 year old and yet still went flying when trying to get the soap from the shower and cutting my wrist and bruising my arm in the process, better still maybe have liquid dispensers and that way there is no waste of the almost full soap bar that will be thrown away after my stay.
Still on the bathroom … I would not stay here for a romantic weekend. The glass doors have a gap and while you would not be able to see anything unless you make a point of looking in, it doesn’t offer any privacy or noise reduction. All those bathroom noises might be a bit of a mood killer and you might spend an unnecessary amount of time trying to flush…. takes about 3 goes.
While this might sound minor I think that in order to be a true 5 star property it needs to change in a few areas so that my stay is easy, practical, and functional and doesn’t require me to think about fixing the short falls.
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