Before leaving for our trip to Australia last summer, I spent a lot of time deciding where to visit and stay. It was difficult making choices as there were so many places I wanted to see! Although I am not really a city person, I knew I wanted to experience Sydney. After a lot of research I decided we would stay in the area known as the rocks. This is the oldest part of Sydney and situated close to the harbour, opera house and famous bridge. Having chosen the location, I set about looking for accommodation.

Sydney is an expensive city to stay and the rocks is probably the most expensive area of the city. There are numerous accommodation options, many well out of my price range! However I finally found a hotel that had good reviews and was affordable. The Rendezvous Stafford is part of the Singapore owned Rendezvous chain. There are 13 hotels in the group throughout Australia, New Zealand, China and Singapore.

The Hotel.
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The Rendezvous Stafford is conveniently situated at 75, Harrington street, a few minutes walk from circular quay, where ferries leave regularly for destinations such as the Zoo (well worth a visit), Manly beach, Bondi beach and Darling harbour. It is a fairly small hotel with 61 rooms.

We arrived by taxi from the airport, about a 30 minute drive. From the outside the hotels appears small and welcoming. When we arrived we were immediately helped with our bags by the concierge. The reception area is brightly lit with complimentary fruit on offer. The receptionist was efficient and very friendly. My first impressions were that I was going to like staying here!

I had booked a studio room for our 3 night stay; as I wanted to be able to self cater, at least for some of the time. The room is accessed via a key card. Our room was on the second floor and had a spacious balcony with a partial view of the Sydney harbour bridge. The room was really well planned with a decent sized kitchenette leading to the sleeping area.

The kitchenette consisted of a hob, fridge, microwave, toaster and kettle and sink. There were several cupboards to store food. When we arrived I was pleased to find a little basket with complimentary tea, coffee and chocolate. There were adequate pots and pans and utensils plus enough crockery and cutlery for 4 people. The room was serviced every day and used tea and coffee replaced. There was a small table for eating with 2 chairs. It would have been good to have been given an extra chair as there were 3 of us!

The sleeping area consisted of 1 queen bed and a sofa bed. The queen bed was really comfortable and although I had read a few reviews criticising the sofa bed, my son found it comfortable and slept well! The room had a flat screen TV, although there was so much to see and do in the area, we rarely had time to watch it! The T.V sits on a long desk and there was a writing pad and pen provided for guests use.

The bathroom was well fitted and really clean. There was a bath and shower and plenty of white fluffy towels. Another little basket at the side of the sink was provided with complimentary toiletries.

Overall I loved the room and found it really quiet too.

Other facilities.
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The hotel has a lift to all floors and is suitable for guests with a disability. On the ground floor; next to the reception area, there is a small outdoor pool and sauna. The sauna was not in operation when we were there in August and we didn't use the pool as the weather was chilly. The poolside has tables and chairs.

There is a breakfast lounge next to the pool although we didn't eat here so I can't comment on what its like.

The hotel has a small reasonably priced guest laundry. This is something I find really useful when travelling for any length of time and I made good use of the washer and dryer! Next to the laundry is a small gym. My oldest son was keen to work out whilst I did the laundry!

The hotel offers free internet access. The hotel advertises free car parking, although this is not something we needed.

Overall
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As you probably guess I was really impressed with this hotel and would love to stay again. The staff were really friendly and helpful. In fact the receptionist even offered to check us in for our flight to Singapore, printing our boarding passes choosing us decent seats whilst we were out exploring the area.

The location is excellent, just a few minutes walk from circular quay, the opera house and Botanical gardens. The hotel is also conveniently situated for all public transport links to other parts of the city and beyond. The Rocks has numerous restraurants, cafes and shops to suit all tastes. There is a good sized Woolworths about a 15 minute walk from the hotel if you are self catering.

I booked this hotel via the Wotif site as this was the cheapest option. I cant remember exactly how much I paid per night but it was around £120.It is of course well worth price checking as there are deals to be bagged! If you are planning a trip to Sydney, then I can highly recommend this little gem!