Veriu Broadway — Hotel in Sydney

I booked the Broadway property through Booking.com months in advance for a combined work trip/family holiday with my husband and 1 year old. Accustomed to the standard payment through the booking.com platform or on arrival at the property, I was surprised to receive a text message a few days before my arrival requesting off-platform payment through a link. Thinking this seemed surprisingly dodgy for a reputable chain I called them and was informed that this was in fact how they wanted me to pay so they can avoid booking.com fees. The funny thing was, despite expecting me to literally go against all online safety advice (including the advice of booking.com itself) and pay through a random text message link to save them a service fee, they also ADDED their own booking fee that would see me pay $20 more than my original booking. Like I said, dodgy.

Anyway, I requested to pay at the property and was told that I could, and that a special note had been added to my booking. Cut to two hours before check in, I receive a notification that my booking has been cancelled. In shock, I immediately called and was informed that my booking was cancelled because I hadn’t paid via the text link. Oh, and also we’ve IMMEDIATELY rebooked your room and if you want to rebook you have to stay in Green Square.

Anyone who has travelled with a 1 year old will understand that planning an enjoyably holiday requires every single aspect to be considered beforehand, so being shunted to a totally different location was less than ideal. Trying to get any genuine acknowledgment and appropriate compensation for the mistake from management was tortuous, like getting blood from a stone. There are many things I’d like to call the manager we spoke to but to get past the moderators I’ll stick with “used car salesman”. Apparently the fact that they were honouring our original booking price was actually already giving us a discount because the same day booking rate is much higher. No matter that the only reason we were rebooking was because of Veriu’s mistake.

Despite being promised an equivalent room in our new hotel - we booked a kitchenette suite to prepare meals for our baby - we were initially placed in a cheaper room with no kitchenette. This was resolved and id like to give them the benefit of the doubt that it was an honest mistake but after my experience of them trying to cost cut at every point, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was a further attempt to give me less for more.

Even without this unfortunate beginning, Veriu feels like a cost-cutting budget hotel branded to be higher-end than it is. It looks nice, the rooms are comfortable but the service feels cheap. Things like cleaning every second day and making people pay $5 for toiletries. It’s basically removing all the little luxuries people like about hotels. If I felt like they advertised this as being the case, or if the price point reflected the cost cutting measures i wouldn’t have a problem but I paid equivalent to other hotels that would provide better service. I travel to Sydney regularly and can name about 5 other chains at the same price point with way better facilities and service.

They have a loyalty program where you can get discounts and things for free but, again, I’ve never had to sign up for things like that at equivalent chains, so I’ll just go elsewhere next time.

In the interests of balance I will say the rooms are comfortable and quiet. Green square is a good location if you haven’t already organised an entire holiday around being in a different location. I did end up receiving free parking in compensation but only after multiple phone conversations calls taking up half my day at work.

A overall unfortunate experience. Will not...

*Location was perfect and not much of street notice from 5th floor. *Rate was reasonable with direct booking *Apartment was well built and deco *Complimentary drink *Coffee was good - made by Ashley *Front desk staff - great help with lost property, again by Ashley (because of that I added 1 more star) *Check in /out :Very impersonal

Negatives: Cleanliness & noise Cleanliness between 1-3 stars Usually I wouldn't write a negative review, with Covids it was very disappointed that 4 * apartment would still failed to meet basic cleanliness standard. Deluxe one bedroom - table chairs rusted and balcony not cleaned. Kitchen was half the size of in the photo. The apartment wasn't cleaned well, dust all around the skirting, fingers prints all over appliances, pillows were full of yellow stains even the protector covers in same condition, some don't even had protector covers, when asked for Cleaned covers, was shown a pile of yellow stains pillows and left the bed with dirts. Utensil was dirty and missing. *You would need to bring your own shampoo and body wash, only couple were provided for 3 people for 2 nights. Squaking noise when the chairs was moved even heard from next apartments, good luck with sleep. A simple addon rubber sole would have solved the problems. Wall was thin between apartments, it was unfortunately we had party next apartment from 10pm -4am with call girls, until we tried out Veriu number out of desperation and to call in security. As the room has no connected phone nor was there any number or info who and what number to call for emergency. Reception closed at 5pm or 8pm on a Friday. Any feedback / complaint seems to have no interest, very distinct from other 4 accommodation. *No refund for extra unused parking ticket either, but they were happy to keep it on your behalf for your next visit.

It is like a well designed accommodation managed by a bunch of no care management to properly trained the staff and addressed issues. It is a shame, would suggest the management staying themselves and checkout the issues raised by guests. There is absolute lack of TLC.

Would have given one stars for the experience, but there were good points. However, even without COVIDs, the standard of clean pillows and high touch areas were...

False advertising, terrible service, and an overall disappointing experience.

The listing stated "secured car parking (additional cost) on site," but there was no on-site parking at all. Instead, we were directed to a shopping centre parking lot around the corner. Having public parking nearby does not count as "on-site secure parking." We were travelling from Melbourne with a car full of valuables and relied on the security promised in the listing, this was a blatant lie.

The ad also claimed "Reception is onsite and ready to assist during your stay." When we arrived, no one was at reception, and we had to wait 30 minutes before someone finally showed up. Since there was no secure parking, we had to unload our entire car on the street. The receptionist provided zero assistance with our luggage, something you’d expect from a proper hotel. When we asked for help, they seemed completely clueless until I suggested they find a trolley, which they did, eventually.

Another false claim in the listing was about the gym and pool. It states to check the listing for details, but when we asked, we were told there was no pool and that the gym was five minutes away at another location that apparently allows hotel guests to use their facilities. Another misleading statement.

The condition of the property was poor. The public restroom on the ground floor had no toilet paper or hand towels. When my wife mentioned it to reception, the staff member silently handed her two toilet rolls and expected her to deal with it. No apology, no offer to fix the issue, just laziness and bad service.

Our own room wasn't properly cleaned either. The bathroom bin had not been emptied, with hair and used feminine hygiene products still inside. Completely unacceptable for the price we paid.

To top it all off, the Airbnb messaging system was a joke. Instead of a private conversation with the host, my messages were dumped into a chatroom with 11 other people. There was no personal service, it felt like a cheap, hands-off rental disguised as a hotel.

For the high price we paid, this place completely failed to deliver. False advertising, unhelpful staff, and dirty...