scrb

Found a good rate for this hotel, in what seems to be a prime location (would be first visit to Sydney), about $130 plus taxes per night.

I've been looking around wotif.com and it appears you can get cheaper around the Central Station or further out east (or west too presumably).

One example is Mercure Sydney, which has a 4-day rate of about $100. Quite a bit out from the harbor but could always take the metro out (plan to get a weekly travelpass for about $30-35 USD).

Stamford is suppose to be a nicer hotel. So is the location worth it?

One annoying thing is that all the hotels seem to do is charge exorbitant rates for Internet, either like $10AUD an hour or $30 AUD a day. Tried to find out how much Stamford charges but no response.

nwtraveler

I've been to Sydney once and stayed at the Sheraton On the Park. The location and service was excellent. Across the street from Hyde Park, all the major bus lines were on the street in front of the hotel, Darling Harbour was a short walk and Circular Quay was short bus ride. I don't know how the prices will compare with Sir Stamford, but definitely check it out.

Bokhara2

If you can get Sir Stamford for $130/night, grab it. The Stamford is a much better property, located opposite the Botanic Gardens and steps from Circular Quay and the Opera House.
Mercure Sydney is, as you say, near Central Railway and not a particularly attractive part of George Street and Broadway. As part of the Accor chain, I imagine the hotel itself would be fine, but as in most cities, the areas around major railway stations are far from the most attractive.

I like the Sheraton on the Park too; but would be surprised if you could get it for $130/night. Given my choice, I wouldn't hesitate to take the Stamford.

Bokhara2

Posted too soon. Internet: You will find internet hot-spots in the common areas of many hotels, casual restaurants, coffee shops & bars if the hotel charges are too steep for you. Alternatively, there are internet shops throughout the city.

On whether the location near the harbour v's central railway station is worth an extra $30 ... only you can answer that. It would be to me, especially on my first visit to a city whose icons centre around the harbour.

scrb

Thanks.

Central Lodge is really inexpensive and it's in a better location than the Mercure, but not as nice as the Stamford.

But it gets lukewarm reviews on TA. It doesn't have a lift for one thing.

I figured Central Station would not be as nice, although I see a lot of postings for Chippendale, Waldorf, etc. which seem to be in that area.

With the metro lines though, it seems getting to the harbor area wouldn't be that difficult. Of course, being able to walk to it would be nice but I imagine the restaurants and shops are more expensive near the harbor than down town?

Susan7

Steer away from Chippendale, if you were going to get mugged in Sydney that's where it would happen. Two friends lived there for many years and it was a relatively frequent occurence.

Central railway is not in the downtown area. It's on the periphery of the city and, as Bokhara notes, it isn't a particularly nice area. It is, however, a hub for both trains and buses. The light rail also runs in that area. Food options in that area would either mean going to Chinatown, Glebe or Newtown.

There's not really much difference in terms of price between restaurants and shops in the harbour area (Circular Quay) and the CBD, both are a bit inflated relative to suburban shopping areas. The CBD is however fairly dead at night. The area with elevated tourist rates is Darling Harbour, rather than the Circular Quay area.

farrermog

Agree, go for the Stamford if you can get it at that price. If not, consider the Travelodge Wynyard York Street.

Peteralan

That is a great price for a hotel of that standard and position. I would seriously advise you to take it if you can still get that price.

scrb

Sounds almost unanimous.

I seem to recall that they have ISDN connections? Does that sound right? Are those common in Sydney?

Bokhara2

I would be surprised if a hotel of this standard did not have both wifi and cable internet connections, but they'd soon advise if you email them.

scrb

Did email, no response.

Well, fares have gone up by $200-300 in the past week so now I'm thinking hard about Australia vs. off-season Europe.

Obviously the weather would be better in Sydney vs. say Barcelona -- and I've been to Barcelona before -- but I like saving money too.

JoanneH

I just stayed at the Somerset Darling Harbor suite was $160 night but more than made up the extra cost in eating breakfast and some dinners in, food out is not cheap in Sydney. Its close to everything and bus is just at corner.

scrb

Joanne, so you did takeout or did your hotel have a kitchen?

One of the ways to get affordable meals in London is to go to the food halls at department stores like Marks and Spencer, where they have good quality takeout meals for relatively good prices.

Does Sydney have something along those lines?

Susan7

We don't really have an equivalent to Marks and Spencers, David Jones food hall is fairly expensive. There are, however, lots of cheap and good restaurants in Sydney. Just steer away from the tourist areas, like Darling Harbour. Chinatown which is quite close to that area has quite a few excellent cheap restaurants. There are also several food halls in that area, set up like hawker stalls in SE Asia. Ethnic food is generally the best bet for good quality take-away and eat in food.

There's a cluster of very cheap Lebanese restaurants in Surry Hills/Strawberry Hills. Very cheap northern Chinese food at Ashfield, Vietnamese in Marrickville. You can access most of these suburban areas by train. There's a book called Cheap Eats in Sydney which could be worth buying.