Visited Australia earlier this year and stayed in several hotels during my trip. All of which had some fault with them. Of the three though, I would consider my stay at Macquarie Manor to be the best of the lot.
This hotel is located in the Hobart CBD on Macquarie Street. It is not at the corner, but a couple buildings away from it and across the street from the Travelodge. Part of the reason why I decided to book this hotel was that it was a boutique heritage hotel. The building was built in 1875 and has Edwardian architecture. It was originally the home of a surgeon and then used as a venue of Hobart's high society so there is a lot of history in these walls.
Upon arriving to the hotel for my stay, I checked in at the lounge area in front of the dining room. The hotel's dining room restaurant is affiliated with Nant, a local whisky distillery.
Going back to why I booked this hotel, the other reason was that the rooms are huge. I got a standard room that was over 300 square feet with high ceilings and space for an elegant sofa and table. My room was actually in the annex part of the hotel as an extension was built to expand on the original building.
Heading up to my room, I had to go through an annex walkway. It is unheated, so it was quite cold during the winter. The room's bathroom was also a bit chilly, so I would close it to contain the warm air when you turn the room's heater on.
The room was the most comfortable one that I stayed in. Mostly because of the size. The room's interior and bathroom still looks rather new like they did a renovation recently. As for the cons, the free hotel Wi-Fi wasn't working well in my room for most of my stay. I had to head into the main building to get a good connection to login.
And I was unable to try out the restaurant during my stay as it seemed like they were having staffing issues. It was the winter season, so that was understandable. Still it would have been nice to have been able to stay in and enjoy a steak and whisky dinner here when it was cold out.
The Wi-Fi and restaurant issue were minor though compared to the billing issue that I had to deal with after my stay. I pre-paid for the room prior to my stay, but I noticed a double charge on my credit card after I returned back to Seattle.
After going back and forth with the hotel about this snafu without success, I contacted the online travel agency I booked the room through to resolve the problem with the hotel. The charge was refunded, but it left a bad taste about my stay here. If there was an issue, I feel it should have been brought up during my stay or upon checkout.
Overall, I liked my stay for the most part at Macquarie Manor. The location is great and the size of the rooms plus the historical aspect of the building are key selling points. Though given the billing issue I dealt with, I would recommend booking directly through the hotel's website rather than a travel agency. read more