This establishment is a disgrace to Sydney and Australia. The bouncers are rude and disrespectful…read more I would never come herr

I have been here twice, once after City2Surf and more recently on a Sunday afternoon for drinks…read more City2Surf was a clusterf**k and was packed. I went up to the bar to order drinks and tried to pay with my credit card, and the unfriendly lady bartender said "cash only" and scoffed at me. Same went with food, so my friend and I ended up popping out for a pizza across the road. My second visit was much better as it was a lazy but nice Sunday afternoon. Staff was a bit more friendly. By 4PM though, they had run out of salt and pepper calamari so we settled for hot chips, which were nice. It came with sour cream and a little bit of sweet chili sauce. Overall a decent place, but nothing special. It's a bit like Coogee Bay Hotel where its just a big place where drunk people go.

This is another of those pubs that I am in two minds about, but that probably has a lot to do with…read morethe rather stock standard pub scene you have in the front and the really nice beer garden, which also doubles as an Italian Restaurant, out the back. It's a pretty easy pub to find, and I've actually been here a couple of times (probably three, but one of those times was years ago). However the most recent time I came here it was one of those really nice days, which means that half of Sydney makes their way down to Bondi Beach. However, this pub wasn't as crowded as some of the other places in the area. It's a nice pub, but not really one I would be hurrying back to any time soon.

Aaaah The Royal Hotel. Home to the most motley array of punters in Bondi! This is the only Pub in…read morethe area so the crowd varies between the backpackers staying in the accommodation upstairs, to the toothless old men that come for the pokies, to basically anyone looking for a game of pool and a tap beer in this part of the world. It's a good place to watch all the usual sporting events and they're pretty obliging with the many big screen TVs scattered around - they put the electoral debate on for me once when I decided I wanted to watch it in a pub like sports. (That was a great idea by the way, see you there next election!) The Royal wears many hats- it has accommodation upstairs starting at $20 dorms, a bottle shop, live music, pool and a jukebox in the main bar, a whole gambling section which I would guess has a TAB as well as the usual blight of poker machines- not my idea of a party so I don't know what's in there. The beer garden bistro is pleasant enough and they have a great looking menu. The best time to go is over the weekend when a band is playing. Sunday afternoons are my favourite- but I have seen some hilarious scenes go down here all days of the week with some of the nutty regulars. This is a true old-school melting pot of a pub that Justin Hemmes has allegedly been trying to get his hands on for years, it would be a sad thing if one of the last remaining pubs in Bondi gets Hemmes-ified.

The rooms are perfect for a short-long term stay. The room we stayed in featured a kitchenette,…read morelarge bathroom and a very comfortable bed. There are large windows to let the sunlight in and to soak up the downtown area. Services are quite varied, they can accommodate almost every need necessary at a very affordable price, if not free. Everyone on staff was very friendly and made every effort to make sure our stay was a seamless transition to our permanent residence in Sydney. As an added bonus, they offer free bicycles to their customers, making getting around town and the neighboring parks that more enjoyable.

Quest Bondi Junction was the *perfect* place for our last couple of nights in Australia. The studio…read morewas immaculately clean, housing the comfiest bed and above-par hotel amenities (free on-site laundry with laundry detergent, iPod docking station, dishwasher and range, glass shower, traveler's kits, etc. etc.). Not to mention the complimentary rental bicycles, just begging for a ride down to Bondi Beach :) A big two-thumbs up!

We were out at Bankstown to dine in the food precinct there and stayed one night in the travelodge…read more Bankstown sports club is like a mini vegas - so many restaurants, bars and gambling, you don't need to go anywhere else. As you enter the complex you find the travelodge to your right. The front of house staff are welcoming and check in was hassle free. We were given our swipe card and explained where to find our way to the rooms. We were in an executive room so lucky to have free wifi (but if you don't, the club has it too). The amazing glass lift takes you up to your rooms with wonderful views of the surrounding areas, as did our executive suite. The room was spacious, a huge comfortable bed, futon/couch and it was extremely clean and well decorated. There was a kitchenette, microwave and POD coffee machine for the traveller which was convenient. We were also lucky enough to receive complimentary water, chocolate and a hand written card to wish us a wonderful stay. This was a lovely touch. Everything about the experience was great and extremely hospitable. Make sure you book, I understand it gets very busy with customers to the sports club and workers in the area.

Sweeney's, should be renamed Smelly's. Upon entering, your nostrils are greeted with a vommy mix of…read moresawdust and spew, and don't you just love that. This is a bar that's all about levels. Entry Level is outside for the durry munchers. You'll see 2 tables worth sucking back on darts, whilst they talk about everything and nothing. They'll give you a "don't judge us" glance as you head inside. Ground Level is your standard mug punters. Pokies and Flat screens combine with VB and New to churn out the usual grumpy chatter, "ripoff that was a try, ref needs to go to specsavers", and my personal favourite - you charge $7 for a schooey of veebs? Level 1 is for "we are out of that beer at the moment" and mediocre Thai-meets-Burgers fare. The fact that the staff are clearly running a Thai restaurant but offer other options, should be the dead giveaway that you aren't going to enjoy your meal. Level 2 is for the not-quite-hipsters-but-weally-wannabe. They have the bottom half sorted - skinny jeans, and tiny shoes, but they've neglected up-top. T-shirts and standard dress shirts appear where we expect too tight buttoned-all-the-way-to-the-top tailored fits, and beards... where the heck are the too-ginger beards? Level 3, or is that 3.5, involves a split space. A random side room with beer quotes and a telly that looks like it was never really intended to be a room, and then the rooftop. A small, super-packed space chock-a-block with backpackers looking for a cheap beer or 10 before heading back to who knows where, with who knows whom. Smelly's is situated between work and the train station, so it is almost impossible to avoid at times, however if I was a smarter man, I'd make sure to avoid it each and every time... something about the place just lures me in sometimes though... gotta be sawdust and spew... gotta be.

Reasonably priced drinks in the CBD. Convenient to Town Hall and Darling Harbour areas. Roof top…read moreopen air deck is particularly nice on a clear day but is soon over run with smokers. Also features a pretty good Thai kitchen on the 2nd level. Great place to sit on the ground floor with your drinks and watch the parade of characters going in and out. Friendly staff. Good prices. Alciohol. Sweeney's knows what it is and doesn't try and be anything but, which is somewhat refreshing.

Great boutique hotel literally right across the street from the beach. I ended up staying here for…read more2 nights since the Crowne Plaza was full when I tried booking it. The two hotels are right next to each other so it wasn't too much of a hassle (I was at the Crowne earlier), but it was definitely a change going from a chain hotel to a boutique hotel. The room was smaller and the bathroom was way smaller, but it served its purpose since I wasn't planning to be at the hotel that much anyways. Thursday night was $215 AUD and Friday night was $230 AUD so at least it was cheaper. They offer a free continental breakfast for all hotel guests, but I didn't get a chance to eat it. It's a nice addition, but since my room was by the kitchen, I could hear everybody talking early in the morning since breakfast is available starting 7am. It's ironic that they have a sign telling guests to minimize noise at night, but it ends up being noisy in the morning. This would only affect the room by the kitchen though. Pleasant staff, decent room, nice location. It's a good, slightly cheaper hotel option. By the way, the hotel front door is always locked so don't forget your keys!

The only real complaint I have about the Dive Hotel is that I only had time to spend one night…read morethere. I had a flight out to London the next day, so a big factor in choosing the Dive, located in Coogee, is the fact that it's just 15 minutes from Sydney airport by car. Staying here meant I was able to spend my last night in Sydney right near the beach. Speaking of, only two of the rooms face the ocean, so try and get one of those if you can. I did and loved looking at the waves from my window. The surrounding neighbourhood makes you feel like you live in Sydney (there's nothing touristy about the area). Whilst not fancy, I felt very comfortable at the Dive and would stay here again.

I found this quaint hotel on Hotels.com, but found out that it wasn't really a hotel, but a step up…read morefrom a hostel. It surely had private guest rooms, but I was surprised to find out about the shared centralized bathrooms and showers. I probably should have read through the reviews, but I couldn't turn down this deal, due to the close proximity of the Bradley Park location. The property was basically 1 km from the start line of the 2018 Blackmores Sydney marathon and half marathon and decided to book this one - mainly due to that aspect. And so, I booked this hotel accommodation, not knowing well enough that this is like an upgraded hostel. The Glennferie Lodge is basically a two story private residence - or what looks like it in Kiribilli / North Sydney Australia. It's nice that it is nestled in the suburbs of North Sydney, away from the urban twang from the central business district across the bridge. The neighborhood that it sits on is a quiet area, which is always nice to be in. I booked two nights here at the Glennferrie Lodge and possibly had a good stay here, even though having to go to the restroom at 2:30am & 4:15am, and need to leave your room wasn't the highlights of my stay. Just needed to be said. Keep that in mind when you are looking for affordable accommodations here in the northern suburbs or even in the Sydney's central business district. For me, Glennferrie was affordable enough and logically sound. The overall experience here at the Glennferrie Lodge was ok and good at the same time, although the aforementioned shared bathrooms outside the individual units was a bit annoying. I guess that came with the territory when you acknowledge booking with them. They assigned me room 59, which was one of the rooms on the ground floor. As you can imagine, those shared bathrooms / showers were on the higher level. So, having to climb stairs at 2:30am for the restroom wasn't fun, but necessary. The Glennferrie Lodge is located at 12 Carabella Street in the Kiribilli / North Sydney Australia neighborhood. They accept major credit cards for payment, which is always a good thing for travelers and people who wish to stay local. Getting here is usually done through private car. They have parking spaces here for guests. Best bet is to utilize these spaces or other nearby residential streets, if possible. For me, I got here initially through walking from CBD area of Sydney via the Sydney harbor bridge, although taking Uber thereafter was way better. However you want to get here is fine. Sometimes, finding a nice place outside the CBD area for a relaxing weekend can do a lot of justice. The house itself was beautiful, however, when you walk through the level where the reception was - the floor squeaked pretty loudly. Hard to tip toe about when the floor does that. The room I got was nice. Since I was there for 2 nights, I slept on both beds, one on each night. Seemed the right thing to do really. They had me in a room with 2 single beds. The unit itself seemed albeit small, but it was large enough to be habitable and cozy. The ambiance of the room was nice and everything was working correctly. The WiFi was spotty during my stay or not working properly, so I just used my network data. The room itself was clean and seemed like a small apartment, but with 2 beds, instead of one. All in all, it was a good stay. The prices here were pretty good. I believe it was about AU $80-$100/night, which isn't bad at all. Just need to remember the thing about the shared bathrooms, showers, and you should be alright. The check in and out service was fine, friendly, and quick. The beds were pretty comfortable and I managed to get good amount of hours of sleep for the race and enough to get up early for the early flight out to Christchurch, NZ the Monday after. It's a cute place, if you don't mind the bathroom / situation. Consider coming to the Glennferrie Lodge, where it can be cost effective to be here. Although it's not a bad location from the CBD area of Sydney, best bet is to just get around with a rental car or even uber. Recommend if you are visiting Sydney and need a place that's budget friendly. 4.0 stars for the overall experience. 3.0 stars for the bathroom trips upstairs. 4.0 stars for the room and bed. comfort. Support local! B

The Glenferrie lodge is close to public transport in Milsons point. It's a nice place to go For…read moreshort and long stays. When my other half and I checked in we were told those who booked with them on their site they'd be a complimentary buffet breakfast for us. We'd booked with trivago however he had given us the pass which was awesome. The food was nice they served tea, coffee, juices, cereal and hot food. The tea room has a TV and an outdoor seating area with a lovely garden. We got a deluxe double bed room and it was spacious. There's a TV, desk, lounge chair and two bedside tables next to us and a shared balcony. They'd also provided a guest book with info regarding the area; eateries, transport and emergencies such as nearest hospitals. Around the lodge you'll find canvases of the sydney harbour and well known sydney landmarks which was refreshing. The showers and bathrooms are shared and they're all unisex. All generous sized with everything you may need ie. Bins, soap, hair products etc.

Sebel Suites is centrally located within Chatswood CBD. It's conveniently close to Westfield…read moreChatswood, the Mandarin Centre and Chatswood train station. Chatswood Chase shopping centre is also within walking distance. Sebel Suites is modern, pristine and run efficiently. Location wise, it's convenient but doesn't have beautiful views unlike Darling Harbour and other popular areas. The hotel is comfortable and the staff are accommodating. Sebel Suites also offers long term accommodation. There is plenty of public transport nearby, making sightseeing very easy. Parking is also available (at a cost) and is great for those who have driven interstate or who have rented a hire car.The hotel/apartments are not suitable for a romantic weeknight. My family and I stayed here for a week or two upon returning to Australia after 9 years living overseas. The central position allowed us to visit family and friends, go house hunting and do odd jobs. It was a little expensive but was very convenient. We could also do the shopping and with plenty of entertainment nearby, we had lots to do and see. Sebel Suites is most suitable to those conducting business in the North Shore area. The hotel is also a short 15 minute train trip to Sydney CBD. If you want a view, it is best to book a room on the top floors. Otherwise you will most likely have a view of the train station or other high rise buildings. Within our apartment we had a washer and dryer which was a major positive. The rooms were also very spacious.