We will be in Sydney from April 8 through 12 and would like to find a hotel in the price range of $125A or $150A. We have looked up All Seasons on Crown Sydney, Cambridge Park Inn and The Southern Cross. Any thoughts about these hotels? We also will be staying in Carines at the Koalacourt and in Ayers at the Heavitree Gap Outback Resort. Has anyone had any experiences with these hotels? Any suggestions are greatly appreciated. Thanks for any info, really appreciate it.

I have stayed at the Southern Cross in the past and found it perfectly acceptable. However, since the Olympics there has been a lot more hotels built in the city and if you were to do a search of all the major chains I think you will find some newer ones in the city, which beside being in your price range will be of a higher standard than those listed.

Re your hotel in Alice Springs - check where it is because I have a feeling that it is about three or four km south of the city centre. Fine if you are renting a car all the time, but if you are planning to get around without a car, it could be a nuisance getting a taxi all the time.

Hi Joppel, <BR> <BR>I am a little confused about your hotel booking at Ayres Rock, if that is where you mean by Ayers, the Heavitree Gap Resort is in Alice Springs which is about a 5 hour drive from Ayres Rock. <BR> <BR>I live in Alice Springs and know the Heavitree Gap Resort pretty well. Marg is correct when she said that this hotel is a fair distance out of town, too far to walk into the shopping area. It is also not a safe area to walk after dark due to a large population of itinerant river dwellers who regularly drink alcohol in the area. <BR> <BR>The hotel itself is in the average bracket for accommodation, they do have one nice attraction and that is the rock wallabies that can be hand fed at dusk. They are wild animals and come down from the range to the back of the hotel as night falls. <BR> <BR>There is no restriction on going there to do this so I would recommend a closer hotel to the centre of town to stay at. The best hotels are the Plaza hotel, Lassetters Casino, Alice Springs Four Seasons hotel, the Territory Motor Inn and the Diplomat Hotel. <BR> <BR>The Territory Motor Inn and the Diplomat Hotel are right in the centre of town, I think the Diplomat is probably the better of the two. <BR> <BR>One point about Alice Springs is that you should avoid the use of the standard Taxi cabs where possible, they tend to be used extensively by very unhygenic people. Most Alice Springs residents would not use the standard Taxi Cabs but instaed use the Private Hire cars, the Private Hire cars charge the same as the Taxi's but do not carry the unhygenic side of our population. <BR> <BR>Hope this helps

Thanks for the info on the hotel in Alice Springs. It's nice being able to find out about places before you get there. I will call and cancel the room and go with Prue's suggestion.

Paul, thanks for the info on the Heavitree Gap Resort and the taxi cabs. Will cancel right away and look at the other hotels you suggested.