Apartments Melbourne — Hotel in Melbourne

Location was good for this trip - easy access from southern cross station after the skybus into city - just hopped on a tram down Collins street and there in a few minutes. Lots of great places to eat nearby and an IGA store and liquor store next door.||||Fabulous old building with the lobby and ground floor still as it would have been when it was the treasury (Collins street is or was the banking zone). Upstairs is all modern with no sense of the history of the building, although the ceiling is a good height. Lots of coat hangers - always makes me happy. ||||March and June reviewers mention no luggage storage - that has now been fixed and you can leave bags. ||||Two comments:||First is that communication was very poor. Had to chase them for confirmation of the booking. That email confirmation said 'let us know if you are arriving after reception hours so we can tell you how to get in' but when I emailed - no response; so then I phoned them and they said wait till you get here, then ring us (so make sure you have charge on your phone!). Once I'd found the entrance - address is Collins at, but entrance is actually Queen street- and called I was told how to buzz into lobby but lo and behold, the person on the end of the phone had no record of my booking. Some while later, I get a call and was told how to retrieve my keys. Lucky I ate on the plane and didn't need the toilet.||||Second comment is that while spacious, the furnishings are a much cheaper quality than I expected from the photos. Very tired table to eat at; broken glass top on beside cupboard and I wouldn't want to sleep on the mattress for more than a couple of nights and the pillows weren't what I like but in an apartment set up there's never going to be a pillow menu!||||During the day lots of places nearby to eat and yes, lots of nice places at night - near to vue de monde - but not a wide range at night say compared to the Paris end. Bought gorgeous things at David Jones food hall, including wine and...

We booked a studio apartment and it was spacious and had all the amenities required including washing machine and dryer (although we did not use these). Furnishings and interior decor were all good, basic toiletries supplied, handily located next to a IGA (newspapers, groceries, etc), walkable distance to the Southern Cross Station. As these are apartments and not a hotel, room servicing is offered on a limited basis (once during our 4 day stay). We were topped up with bathroom consummables and towels before the weekend.||Reception appears to be staffed mainly by one person and while she does all that she is required to do, she is not bending over backwards nor overy helpful, nor particularly friendly or cheerful. Maybe a bit overworked.||Only once was there anyone on duty at the concierge desk (she wasn't particularly helpful or knowledgeable either).||When I made the booking through an accomodation website, I did make a number of reqests in the booking, apparently these are not acknowledged and should you have any particular needs or requests then you are best to ring up the reception.||The entrace to the apartments is on Queen Street and should you walk to it from Southern Cross Station then approach it from Bourke Street, it would make for a considerably shorter walk.||There does appear to be a number of suites/rooms with balconies and I recommend enquiring with the Apartments as to which ones these are, as these appear to be lighter rooms. ||Our rdark oom faced the next door office building and as we were on the second floor, we couldn't even see the sky, this was a real shame.||The is little in the rooms to remind you of the historical exterior. The closed restaurant and mezzanine gives an air of disuse, a shame as these are the only areas internally that show any historical features.||Location wise it is a wee bit of a walk to most things and I think I prefer the 'Paris'...

Stayed here for a few nights and thought it was pretty good.

Criticisms: It was confusing to find as the apartments are made up of a few different buildings (none actually labelled "Apartments Melbourne Domain") and was odd there being no sort of reception, rather, we were greeted by a man in casual clothes out the front who we were barely able to recognise from a stranger on the street. Fortunately the man ended up being quite accommodating, friendly, and helpful. The security bond of $500 (of which we were not informed prior to booking) is quite hefty, and it took a while after checking out to receive this back.

Positives: The apartment was modern looking and they had a decent TV with Foxtel. The appliances looked brand new, and the apartment was all-round "cosy". The aircon worked well (which was good in the sweltering heat when we were there). The view from the balcony was pretty decent, although not spectacular. It is close to Domain Interchange and it was very easy to catch the tram into the CBD, which we did quite often. The cost of the stay was well worth it and I felt like the prices were quite fair. I think this is due to the fact that the apartments are able to mostly operate autonomously with little intervention from any sort of staff.

Conclusion: Easily identifiable staff would be a great addition (perhaps a uniform or even a badge?) and the lowering of the security bond (at least for more temporary occupants) would be ideal. Also, a quicker return of the deposit would go a long way in keeping patrons happy. Some "Apartments Melbourne Domain" signage would also make it a lot easier to find the place. If these things were to be resolved (which they may be by now, as we stayed a little while ago) then I would definitely consider staying again! My actual rating would be 3.5 stars but unfortunately these reviews will not allow half-stars, so I'll have to go with a...