Crowne Plaza Alice Springs Lasseters by IHG — Hotel in Desert Springs

We gave a 4. But this was not because of the room. The major plusses are the breakfast restaurant/staff and the outside restaurant in the Casino and its staff. The food in the latter was excellent - and well priced. As was the alcohol. The Hotel is well located to almost everything - airport, brewery, casino, town etc.

The staff in the breakfast area were excellent - as in the Casino outdoor restaurant. The food in both was very good.

The room was another question. Situated close to the front it had a small balcony overlooking the laundry. The room itself had a kitchenette, albeit with virtually no utensils etc. A small fridge and a coffee machine that had issues. The room had virtually NO hanging space bar a broom closet and had 2 "Queen" beds with little room for anything else. It also had a nice little "lounge" area with a TV that had reception issues and a remote whose batteries had seeped whatever it is that batteries seep - and didn't work. You had the feeling things were reasonably lax.

The main problem was the bathroom. At first we didn't think it had a toilet - only to find it secreted behind the bathroom door. Due to the size of the bench (and it was not that big) you had to slide sideways onto the toilet to use it with your knees against the bench. The bench itself had a sink that was almost useless. The tap had a short neck so that any use meant splashing water over the bench - even to wash your hands. The outlet was so constricted, water just sat in the sink - making a nice look while shaving or brushing teeth :) The shower had two "roses/outlets" - and it took quite a genius to work out how you moved between the two (the staff couldn't until we asked at the front desk). The taps were placed well out of reach of anyone taking a shower - and as the temperature of the water moved from hot to cold and back you had to constantly leave the water to move the tap. The soap etc dispenser was the same. Who-ever designed this bathroom should never be allowed to design another one.

The room had a few decent lights in the entrance but only a dull lamp in the "lounge" area. You could not read. It had an electric switch at the door that had to be turned on before the bathroom lights worked. It had other switches that appeared to do nothing !

Except for the bathroom it did not have one other mirror ! There was clear space for one but there was none. This did make it hard at times and you have to ask - WHY ?

When we asked if there was another room where things were laid out properly we were told NO !!! - in no uncertain terms ! Well - no - unless we wanted to pay a few hundred dollars more. We were meant to be in a Double Queen Suite with Lounge !

To top it off when we mentioned the difficulties with the toilet experienced by the two men with me (both are 6 foot), the front desk suggested the "boys" might like to share a separate room - ie nudge nudge - wink wink ... (homosexuality being the clear inference ...). My son and husband were quite amused by this. Clearly their friendship was "misinterpreted". I was not amused !

My husband asked if their was a secure car parking area. He was told - "only at the front in the open BUT do not leave ANYTHING valuable in the car". We didn't. Mind you she also said they did have cameras.

So - a 4 if you count the restaurants and THEIR staff etc. Overall we enjoyed Alice but we still laugh about the design of that bathroom. How could anyone place a toilet in a corner behind a door ? Or have a sink that had the wrong tap and didn't empty.

Does anyone do checks on such things ?

Clearly not at the Crowne Plaza...

Staff were great. Room service was amazing.

Only disappointment, was the newly renovated Suite rooms, absolutely disappointing, and will not be utilising those rooms again, nor recommending them to anyone.

I have stayed many, many times over many years at this property and in these very rooms, and the change is beyond comprehension, and the price only increased.

Prior to the renovation all suite rooms had a large bedroom area which had a large bathroom with a bath, separate shower and toilet, built in robes, stereo system and comfortable arm chairs. The separate living space had a fully functional bar with barstools, 4-6 seat dining table, 5 seat sofa lounge with coffee table, ADDITIONAL TOILET, mini bar, and a stereo system.

Why would anybody in their right mind, remove the second toilet from these suites, or the bar or the large sofas, or any of the other ridiculous changes that Crown has imposed on this once amazing property.

When I walked into the room, I almost returned to reception to confirm if this was indeed the suite room I had been given, because upon entering, it was clearly a massive downgrade from what this property used to consider suite rooms, however before bothering your wonderful staff I decided to view your website, and indeed these are the best suites you have to offer at this property. Why anyone would change such wonderfully appointed, large spacious, suites with TWO toilets, full bar, and dining area, and turn them into poorly designed, built and renovated in an obvious rush due to the visible poor workmanship is beyond me. Someone in Crown Corporate should have to answer for it. I can tell you as a local, and after speaking with other locals in regards to this, everyone was absolutely shocked and astounded after viewing these newly renovated and appointed rooms, that you could renovate rooms in such a downgraded manner, yet charge more for offering...

The customer satisfaction survey that I have just completed now requires that I leave a review before I can proceed. I didn't want to leave a review but I have to. Room 2111 is where we stayed on the 3rd of August 2019. We were upgraded from a single room to one with 2 rooms. The heater was maxed out at 30 degrees when we first went in there. I thought it was weird. Then after using the airconditioner for an hour or so the room smelt like old milk or stagnent water. This didn't go away. My 2 year old son also found old bandaids in the shower. For me this is the worst case scenario... I told reception; I also said I didn't want to make a big deal about the bandaids but it was a pretty bad thing to find in the shower (especially by a 2 year old). She said housekeeping would come by about the smell. No one came and I was a bit disappointed. The kitchen was nice but the main drawer had a small problem with its slides. If you pulled the drawer out too far (not all the way) it wanted to fall on the floor...

Aside from the two big issues, the beds and pillows were SO comfortable. The included breakfast kind of made up for the issues we had. Considering the price of the room I was very surprised to have a full breakfast included. That was a full cooked breakfast for 2 adults and 2 children. My kids loved it. Bacon, watermelon, grapes and yoghurt. After staying in average and more expensive hotels on the drive up from Adelaide I really appreciated the beds and food. It was the 2nd cheapest place we stayed in between Adelaide and Alice Springs and it was by far the...