Oaks Melbourne Southbank Suites — Hotel in Melbourne

Stayed 3 nights Fri - Mon to visit NGV exhibitions. Location to NGV & 2 bedrooms for 3 senior adults was key in chossing Oaks. Also a member of Minor rewards. All 3 of us were disappointed in the quality and faciities for the following: |Rang ahead to Oaks Reservation requesting high floor and quiet room for 3 seniors|So we got Floor 19 and front facing 8 lane main arterial road so 2 of us got no sleep for 3 nights.|Room did not have 3 plates, bowls, cups so we had to improvise. Remember this is a 2 bed suite so should have at least cups, plates etc for 4 people. So Housekeeping needs to lift its game. |There is only a 2 1/2 seater lounge so 1 person had to sit on dining chair to watch TV.|Couldn't open the balcony door due to car noise constant.|Saturday night got back at 11pm to be told by Reception that there was no Hot water, so no showers that night.|Dishwasher didn't work even after we got reception to come and check it.|Capsule coffee machine leaked so we didn't bother. |When we checked in on Friday, we requested an 11am checkout (1 hr after standard check in), Reception said that would be ok. On Monday as we were doing final checks etc thinking we had at least another 45mins, a staff member at 10.05 am knocked to ask why we hadn't checked out. We told them that we had requested on check in an 11am check out which reception said could be accommodated. It was now only 10.07am. Perhaps the housekeeper noted we cam back to our room at 9:45am having shouted ourselves breakfast around the corner as we got tired of sharing plates etc.|We took pictures of the dented in rubbish bin, the few plates and cups/glasses we had and the lounge to accommodate 4 persons so that we could share with others who might be thinking of staying here so that they know that this is a true review. My friend who paid for the accommodation is older and asked me whether I had written the review yet. She hardly ever travels and so visiting Melbourne was a big deal for her. She was really really disappointed in this accommodation and was the frst to say she would never stay in this place again. As a Oaks rewards member I will be staying later in the year at another Oaks property in Queensland. I hope that that accommodation experience isn't as bad as the one we had at Oaks Southbank. Mebourne, ...

Stayed 2 nights. Did not meet expectations given the price. I booked a studio for the 2 nights, first impressions were great - beautiful foyer and check in staff quite nice. Upon arriving into the room I noticed the glass panel that seperates the bedroom from the living space had a big crack in it - it had been covered up with plastic obviously to protector from shattering. I was heading out for the afternoon and let reception know about it when I walked out - they did offer to move my room but whilst I was shocked they would put guests in the room I didn't see the point in moving to another room. I returned back to the room several hours later, walked in and the room was freezing! I checked the heater and it was on 30c big was blowing cold air - I went looking for a blanket in the cupboard and there wasn't one. I went downstairs to reception to ask for a blanket and ask them about the heater - I was met with a blank stare as if they couldn't understand why this was an issue. I was told there was no maintenance staff and they'd try fix it the following day - I told them this wasn't good enough as it was due to get to an overnight of 2c in Melbourne, I was then told they would try find me a heater (still no mention of the blanket I had asked for) About half an hour later so received a call to the room to say they had no heaters and they would relocate me, I took up the offer and was moved to another room. The heater was working a lot better in this room but still it was on 30c and it was only just taking the chill out of the room. Not an ideal situation given the temperature but I was out most of the 2nd day so I didn't make any further fuss. A few other things to note was the carpet in the building smelt and looked dirty, the bathroom in the new room also appeared to flood after I had a shower. Having stayed in multiple other Oaks hotels in Melbourne this one definitely does not meet the benchmark that Oaks ordinarily pride themselves on. Whist the location is great, I will stay...

If Oaks Southbank fancies itself a reputable establishment, then I must’ve stumbled into the wrong universe—because what I experienced was the dictionary definition of atrocious “hospitality.”

Nitya, who clearly believes customer calls are optional listening exercises. Twice—yes, twice—she slammed the phone down on me when all I asked for was assistance with the Chromecast. Nothing screams “five-star experience” quite like being treated as though my doing the job you’re paid to do is an unbearable inconvenience.

And then: Milen, the self-proclaimed supervisor. This woman embodies condescension in human form. Instead of hearing out a distressed guest, she bulldozed through my sentences, laughed when I asked if all staff are this disrespectful, and, when confronted, simply ignored the question like a petulant child. Her “resolution”? A smug little “well, what can I do?”—followed by the announcement that she had “other customers at the counter”, and offering up an email address for the manager because they will allegedly be too busy in meetings to attend to guest concerns. Ah yes, because clearly I’m not a customer that counts.

Let’s be clear: laughing at a guest’s frustration is not conflict resolution—it’s professional suicide. Milen displayed the kind of arrogance and lack of accountability that would embarrass even the most untrained intern. If this is the calibre of “supervision” Oaks Southbank needs to rethink their hires.

This wasn’t customer service—it was a crash course in how to alienate and humiliate guests. Oaks Southbank has managed to take hospitality, strip it of all decency, and serve it back with a sneer. I am utterly disgusted.

In short: disrespectful staff, tone-deaf “management,” and the emotional intelligence of a toddler. If doing the bare minimum feels beneath you, perhaps reconsider your career trajectory instead of clocking in with half-hearted effort and a full-blown attitude problem.

I also have evidence of my call with Milen which I will upload...