April
Google
Positives: Good location, unusual/quirky accommodation, comfortable bed, hot tub upgrade available, free, average tasting (for Melbourne) coffee from the nice guys at the cafe downstairs except on weekends when they are closed. Negatives: The airstream (#6) we stayed in was incredibly cold, the heater barely worked and all the windows have to be left open a crack for ventilation, even still there was black (mold?) on the window sill and the towels never dried (they did replace them every morning because of that but still), everything felt cold and damp. Our friends in #5 had the same experience. We asked for extra blankets and were given 1 thin one each, the kind you might use to protect the back seat of your car if you your dog normally sleeps there. The towels were so old and faded looking , they looked like they belonged to your grandmother and had been bleached a million times (maybe on purpose as part of the vibe?) , I know they were clean but they looked dirty. The cheap pink plastic door to the bathroom didn't close properly so the steam from the shower kept setting the fire alarm off. We moved to #4 , warmer but the plastic brackets holding the shampoo and conditioner to the wall in the bathroom fell down in the middle of the night. But the worst was their digital key. You use your phone to access the building (via metal stairs with a funk of unknown origin) and your room. Sounds simple enough, download the app, open the doors, find your airstream etc. Except we arrived at 10 pm, and went straight to the hot tub, no place to put my phone so I leave it on the bed, the door closes and unfortunately automatically locks behind me. So we are stuck in 10 degree C winter weather in our wet bathing suits with no phone. We borrow one and after a series of tries find the emergency after hours number except we get a recording, when you select "left phone in room" the automated voice calls you an idiot. Not funny. We have to leave a message since no one is answering the emergency number. We try again and again and again until someone finally answers. He sounds like he has been asleep. Tells us there is a spare key. We get back in but unfortunately since the airstream is freezing it is hard to warm up. Two nights later my husband doesn't realize my phone is in the room charging and it happens again. Luckily we remember the code in case no one answers the emergency number again. The last night we switch rooms. They leave a key for us but don't tell me my phone will no longer work to get into the building so we have to coordinate with friends to let us in the building. My sense is that this happens frequently. If you are going to have this kind of system at least be available. We also had a question on a Saturday but no one answers the regular line on the weekend I guess. I tried to leave a message but the mailbox was full. What kind of business are they running? The "free" minibar had really awful cheap wine (I am making a point about it because in Australia it is easy to get really good wine for not too much money) but we drank it anyway because what a nightmare that place was. oh and one last thing, the pink astroturf around the airstreams was wet and mushy and dirty looking from the rain, it reminded me of the weird trend in the 70s of people putting carpet in their bathrooms, it had that feel. I wouldn't complain so much if it wasn't freaking expensive. I mean it felt like camping in the rain but paying to stay at a high end hotel.