Hotel recommendation Sydney

trackerC

Hi
We recently came back from Sydney & stayed at a great place in Woolloomooloo (this is just next to the quay & botanic gardens, to get into the central dsitrict & central quay you just had to walk through the wonderful botanic gardens & if you wanted to get into centre by cab it costs just a few bucks) It is called Mariners Court & can be found on websites. It is a quiet place but really homely, great complimentary breakfast, free movies in the room, little balcony for every room & a 1 min walk from the cowpers wharf, fab eating places & Russel Crowes apartment to boot! All for about 35-40 pounds per room per night. To book I got a great deal with Wotif.com which is an Aus website & has the best prices & deals that I have found for Sydney. I would suggest even if you want to try another place to try this website.

researcher

This probably won't help but.....

We had to work in Sydney, and we only knew a few days in advance of arriving there, so I had no time to book accommodation. However, in the lonely planet guide book they said that there is a hotel booking centre at arrivals, run by the local government....

On arrival we told them what we wanted and we were given such a choice, we decided to centre ourselves near the Rock's/business district (right near the harbour) and we were paying around £70 for 5* hotels. Ok, we were on expenses, so we could have saved and gone to a 4*, but.....

I'd pop to the library, get the Lonely Planet guide book, (there will be a website/email address for the booking dept), and I'd email and find out how long in advance they book.

PS, are you tied into 4 days at Uluru, as we found (as did many others) that two was sufficient?

GiJo

Weymouth Man - we're booking our flights and some accommodation through Austravel so if we decide on Southern Cross will do it through them.


Thanks for the recommendation trackerC

Researcher - we're not tied in to anything at the mo. Spent 2 hours at Austravel coming up with a suggested itinerary. Return flights have not been released yet, so we're "tweaking" our itinerary and looking at other suggestions to the ones that Austravel have come up with before making our minds up. The stay at the Red Centre is a 2 night/3 day Pacific Touring package starting in Ayers Rock and ending at Alice Springs, with an added night at Alice Springs.

researcher

GiJo - of course I don't know you or your personal preferences - but I can tell you that the trip to Uluru, although interesting was a bit of a let down. We would definitely have spent more time elsewhere if we could re-live the trip. However, travelling down from Sydney to the NSW/Victoria region was fantastic - the vineyard visits, the small towns, the people, the food were absolutely amazing, as was the scenery. We hired a car and it was so easy to wander off for a few days. We stayed in the Albury/Wodonga region and we'd return anytime.

Sydney is an amazing city, and we loved it. As is Melbourne!

(We are saving for a return trip - but this time we'll have to pay for it ourselves! :rotfl: )

We used to research guide books, so we are pretty hard to impress - I loved Australia.

I'd also endorse www.wotif.com - I still use it now! (Can get some excellent UK bookings as well as far east)

GiJo

I know it's so easy to get sucked into the "you must see/do this....." scenario, especially from companies who, after all, want to make a buck or two out of you.

Some friends of ours were on holiday in Oz not long ago and did the red centre thing, so we're going to pick their brains before making a final decision.
I have an uncle who has lived in Oz for about 50 years and has never been to Uluru/Ayers Rock - he says "it's just a big red rock in the middle of nowhere" :rotfl:

coolagarry

We just got back from Sydney and had a great time - so much to do. We booked the holiday through travelmood and got a very good deal compared with others who quoted us http://www.travelmood.com/default/default.asp?loghit=true

They booked us into the Clarion Suites in Darling Harbour and it was a great location. http://www.hotelclub.net/hotel.reservations/Clarion_Suites_Southern_Cross_Darling_Harbour.htm
Right on the edge of the Chinese quarter.. A short wakd from Paddys Market. Foodwise it you're into Chinese then it's heaven, If you're not then Darling Harbour has about 30 different restaurants around the harbour at varying prices and to various tastes.
If all else fails there is a Pizza Hut etc nearby in George Street.
The Ferry nearby will take you to all the attractions. Three 'musts' for me were Climbing the Harbour Bridge (not at all difficult) Going to the Opera House (we attended a concert of Faure's Requium) and shopping in The Queen Victoria Buildings in George Street.... A truly magnificient piece of Victoriana)
There was a Holiday Inn just down the road which looked very nice.

GiJo

I think these suites are what used to be the Quality Suites Southern Cross, anyway still not able to get a quote for the dates we want. Will have to keep trying as they do look very nice and in a good position.

Thanks for your suggestions.

laughing_cow

richardw wrote:

https://www.sullivans.com.au available through many agents aswell.

I stayed here in April and can recommend it. It's a small family run place and the staff are great. I arrived at 8.00am and didn't expect to be able to check in to my room until the afternoon, however, my room was ready so they let me have it straight away which was appreciated because I was fit to drop!

There's a very good information pack in the room with restaurant recommendations, discounts at local shops, cinemas etc. They will also take you on free walking tours of the area on request. Bicycles are free and there's a small swimming pool.

I've stayed bang in the centre before; this hotel is in the suburb Paddington, but it's easy to get into town on foot or by bus. Locally there's a great market selling clothing, jewellery, foods, crafts etc on a Saturday and there's plenty of places to eat and some interesting shops/boutiques. It's also on the bus route down to Bondi.

Have fun!

GiJo

This hotel looks good, and in a family run establishment you're not just a room number are you!! Will def consider.

At the moment my whole waking hours seem to be revolvin around this holiday and it isn't until next October. I expect once we've booked everything, I'll settle down a bit.