Novotel Swan Valley Vines Resort — Hotel in The Vines

After checking into the hotel i went to make a coffee for myself and my wife and felt something crawling on my leg... when i looked closely there was a line of ants across the floor from one end to the other and a couple of baby cockroaches on the room desk. I immediately called reception and told them about the problem and they moved us to another room.

After trekking across the resort, we settled into the new room but very quickly realised that we were not receiving the wifi signal and could not connect to the wifi anymore. In addition, the movies on demand that was suppose to be available was not working either so once again we called the front desk and they said they would look into the matter.

My wife and I decided to get dinner to give the staff time to sort the issue, so once we were done with our meal, we went to the front desk to get an update on the situation. We were met by the duty manager Bernadette who basically shrugged her shoulders and dismissed us and said that there is not much she can do about the our situation. She told us that the cleaners came to our previous room and found no issues and that WE would have to call the technical support team to sort out the wifi and movies on demand issue. The condescending tone in her voice was UTTERLY REDICULOUS and she treated us like we were the ones who had been causing a fuss over nothing. She also told us that because WE had moved rooms before that she will not be moving us again. We left the reception desk gob smacked at the poor level of customer service and still no closer to a resolution.

So to NOVOTEL SWAN VALLEY, i apologise for inconveniencing YOU today, i am very sorry that i expect a clean room that is insect free or to have the wifi and on demand facilities as advertised. I am sorry that i do not want to BE here anymore after being treated like second class citizen because of the miss management of this Resort. Unfortunately, I am not willing to leave at this time because we got here after 5pm and it is now 9pm and we have not yet unpacked a thing or had a shower or seen any of the other activities on the premisses. So unfortunately i have a pre-paid package deal purchased through the ACCOR group and if i leave i would be facing penalties of $150 so for that reason ALONE... i regrettably have to stay at your establishment with the WORST / RUDEST duty "management" team i have ever come across!

To anyone who read this review, THANK YOU for taking the time to read it because i would not be wasting my time with a LONG REVIEW like this if i didnt feel it ABSOLUTELY justified. People shouldn't be treated like this at a Resort because it leaves you with a BITTER taste!

30min later...

I was about to post this review but surprise suprise we are STILL ON THE PHONE and receiving flack from the staff on duty. So now i am LEAVING with or without my $150 and i HOPE that this review makes NOVOTEL SWAN VALLEY VINES RESORT lose 100X this amount and that the staff on duty today learn that what happened to my wife and i here today is NOT...

Hi,

I booked a 2 bedroom apartment on the 10th of July for one night.

This was a birthday surprise for my sister.

I have attached my phone log, and you can see I called 3 times on Thursday and triple checked everything.

Firstly, no one answered at 8 am when I called the first time...

Then the second time at 9:37 am spoke with a young man at the reception Peter.

I told him about my sister's birthday and I had requested a bottle of sparkling wine when we arrived at the accommodation. I asked if we were able to check in earlier, and he couldn't confirm if we were able to. He confirmed that the bottle would be there for extra charge.

I called the third time at 12:13pm. and asked if the room had been cleaned and that the surprise bottle would be in the room. Peter confirmed that the room was clean and ready to check in. He promised that the bottle would be at the accommodation.

On arrival at 1:30pm. I was told that the bottle is not in the room yet and that the room hasn't been cleaned.

We decided to have a drink at the bar while we waited for the room to be ready.

I witnessed Peter running with a sparkling wine bottle on his hand through the bar just after we sat down.

Around 15 minutes later, we were approached by another gentleman from the front desk, who informed us that the room was ready. Very unprofessional with the casual way of speaking to us gests. He didn't really apologise or was informative and spoke as we were staying in a one-star motel.

He said at the end, thanks guys! and we think it's just not an appropriate way of talking to ladies. He wasn't informative about anything that was available at the resort.

We had an appointment at the Aura Spa but due to be given the wrong directions by Peter at the reception we were late getting to our appointment.

We then came back to the reception area, where one of the construction workers knew exactly where the spa was and showed us the way. We were 10 min late.

Got to our private townhouse number 11. Photos included: No paper towels were provided in the kitchen area or side tables in the lounge area. One lamp didn't work in the dining area. There was empty water carafe in the fridge. There were no water bottles.

Downstairs in the unsuite bathroom were stained toilet and outdated shower with staines on the shower screen. Both showers were outdated and just untidy. Due to this, we decided not to have a shower. The unsuite's standing lamp was dirty and had bugs in it. Tired looking town house what needs to be upgraded.

On a positive note, the scenery and the peaceful nature, surrounded by animals, was amazing.

We had two facials at Aura Spa. It was the best experience in a long while. Thank you,...

Facilities are run down and in need of updating. Staff were not interested in making things right.

Upon checking in at the desk, I was advised to drive all the way around along back streets to the parking lot closest to the room. There was no lift at that side of the buildings and the stair case to the first level was poorly lit. It was dangerous lugging my case up to the next level.

The room was spacious, however the carpet was visibly dirty and not been vaccumed.

There was a large flat screen TV, but we were unable to watch anything as the internet was not working. We were unable to cast anything to the TV as there was no wifi. The reception staff were not interested in trying to offer a solution, they just agreed that the internet is bad.

It was extremely busy at the cafe at dinner time. I had reserved a table online prior to arrival, however the staff did not have it on record. After finding a table, ordered dinner. It took about an hour to come out. Wait staff were very apologetic about the delay. The menu had minimal choice to cater for allergies (which was noted at time of booking), and the chef was unable to make anything other than stated on the menu.

Breakfast was smorgasbord-style, plenty of variety. But again not allergy-friendly. We ordered fresh eggs and hash browns which were delicious.

The next night's dinner was a disaster. The only cafe onsite was fully booked! We decided to order room service. The online menu had a notification of an expected delay of 45 minutes. After 2.5 hours we walked to reception to find out what was happening (neither room service or the cafe were answering the phones). Our order had not even been placed at the cafe! How can an establishment take bookings for guests, and not have enough staff to cook and service these guests who have booked their stay!

Breakfast the following morning was again a smorgasbord-style, very busy. We ordered the eggs and hash browns again as they were allergy friendly. The barista coffee however, was made with the incorrect milk and caused a severe allergic reaction. Nobody followed up with us afterward.

At checkout, reception staff were not interested in hearing our...