Sydney for 11 days
 

My daughter is going to Sydney university and I would like to find some central accommodation for the stay, that isn't going to break the bank. Thanks

I was just in Sydney and stayed at The Russell in The Rocks area of the city near the waterfront, specifically the Circular Quay ("quay" is pronounced "key," as it is in Singapore), where both ferries and several other forms of transportation converge. The two best features of the hotel are its location and its helpful staff. The building itself is full of idiosyncrasies that take some adjustment on the part of guests. Rooms vary in size, there are narrow corridors hither and yon, the elevator serves only part of the building, and there are many steps. It is a gamble what a guest will get in the way of a room, but, nonetheless, accommodations are comfortable and I recommend it highly. As for price, until you check out other Sydney hotels, you think The Russell is expensive. After you scan rates elsewhere, you'll dash back to The Russell. ZZ

Www.wotif.com.au to give you an idea of what's available.
Contact the property direct to book - you may get a better deal with no upfront payment & less restrictive cancellation policies.

Have your daughter contact Sydney Uni - they may have accommodation or suggestions.

YHA Sydney Harbour - brilliant location & facilities.

Sydney Uni is very close to CBD - easy access by bus.

I forgot to mention www.wotif.com.au (pronounced "what if") in my first posting, so I'm glad that Bokhara2 has. I had already been in Australia more than two weeks before it dawned on me that I had not booked a room in Sydney. A hotel clerk in Brisbane recommended wotif after I complained of my difficulty in locating anything. You do have to pay a small fee, but this site tells you immediately what hotels have availability and what the rates are. None of this switching in and out of different Web sites and trying to remember the details about all of these unfamiliar places. Not intending to talk down to anyone, but I did not know what CBD meant before I went to Australia. Now I know that it means "Central Business District." The Rocks is adjacent to it---towards the water, by the way. ZZ

Thanks, Russell hotel is $250 with private bath. I'm too old to share. Going to look at Watif.com. And didn't know what CBD meant!

I wouldn't fancy sharing either.

At the Sydney Harbour YHA, you don't have to. As you'll see from the link, they have private ensuite rooms (bathroom & toilet in the room) for $142/night.

http://www3.yha.com.au/hostels/nsw/s...ydney-harbour/

The reason I recommended it was that I thought the accommodation was for your daughter (although people of all ages stay there) and it won't "break the bank".

The Russell is a charming little hotel. Hope you enjoy it.

My daughter will be going into her University room and I wanted to stay in center for 10 days. It's a long way to go to just drop her off! I was looking at some studio apartments.

Why not have a look at some of the self catering apartments on Wotif? We have a lot of good quality, purpose built apartments for short term rental. They are ideal, as kitchen & laundry facilities are included, they are more spacious than a hotel room and usually comparable in price.

Each property listed has a map, details & pictures. I always book direct - just use Wotif as a resource to find a property. Look at "self catering apartments". There are some good deals at the moment.

When are you coming? These rates are current and will fluctuate in high/low season - and are higher on Saturday nights in many city properties.

If you see one you like, come back & ask us about it before you book, so we can advise on location etc.

I was looking at Annam self catering at $155 a night. Thanks

Not especially central - in Potts Point.Noise may be an issue.

I don't know the apartments.

Annam apartments, 21 Ward street - looks pretty close to the corner of Kings Cross Road and if so, there could be quite a bit of traffic noise as Ward Street is a feeder street in/out of the area & Kings Cross road is very busy with cars roaring up the hill to the intersection of Darlinghurst Road.

It's not the loveliest part of Kings Cross. The address may be Potts Point, but its footsteps from the main drag of Kings Cross' less salubrious "Club" end and not an area I'd be walking around on my own at night.

That said, I'm quite happy and do often visit the real Potts Point - from the El Alamein Fountain south, frequently as I have family who live in that area.

I recommend the official tourism site for NSW (http://www.visitnsw.com). You cant contact the accommodation directly. Hope that helps!

If you are looking for something close to Sydney Uni there is a Medina in Chippendale, on City Rd (self-catering apart hotel chain). On the other side of the uni there is Rydges on Missenden Rd. Both are middle of the road accommodation, and I know people who have stayed there and found them acceptable as they get recommended a lot for conferences. There are many buses down Broadway and it will take you about 20 minutes to get to Circular Quay, and about 15 mins to Town Hall / QVB from the stop near St Barnabas' Church. Additionally here is a link for many hotels in the Sydney Uni area:

http://www.altaanz.org/uploads/5/9/0...ommodation.pdf

The list also doesn't mention UniLodge, directly on Broadway, near the Broadway Shopping Centre, and I can't vouch for it but it is a good location and I'd take it into consideration.

Lavandula

Oh, and CBD = central business district (I guess you might put this as between Town Hall and Circular Quay, others may disagree).

Lavandula

On Lavandula's list a friend stayed at Vulcan and quite liked it. It's a slightly odd location, some of nowhere but on a busy street, but not far from Sydney Uni, it may however be a bit of a hike to your daughter's college. Do you know which one she is staying at?

Also recommended is Marque on the corner of George and Quay street. It's directly opposite a major bus area so transport would be easy.

And finally, on the other side of Sydney Uni this small B & B run by an artist is also highly recommended.
http://www.bedsandbreakfasts.com.au/Australia/