Ben Ell
Dec 19, 09, 2:53 am
I spent 7 nights at HI CHC CC for a work conference at the start of December 2009. I chose it over the Crowne Plaza as it was more central, despite being further from the Convention Centre (where i needed to be each day). Additionally, the recent refurbishment (August 2009) sparked my interest, and the pictures on the ICG website made it look like the CP rooms may have been starting to become a little bland in comparison.
Location was great, right at the point of the two pedestrian malls. Heaps of cheap eats around, shops, cathedral square is <5 mins walk (closer than CP). Bars and clubs on Manchester Street are right there. Taxi rank is right out front. Grand Chancellor Hotel and Hotel So are right across the road.
The convention centre is a 10 minute walk away, so really not a problem.
For the same price as a standard room at CP I booked an Executive room at the HI.
This review covers:
Hotel appearance
Restaurant/Bar
Executive Club Room (Room 1)
Standard Room (Room 2)
Executive Club Room (Room 3)
Hotel appearance:
Seemed pretty fresh and stylish lobby. Girls on the counter were great, laughed off my obvious fatigue.
Basically it looked like a recently refurbished hotel.
Restaurant/Bar
The lobby bar is called Streetside and is not a bad bar just to chill. Big windows give it a light and airy feeling, the typical tap beers for Canterbury (Speights and Summit) with a decent selection in the fridge. A plasma which when I was in there had A-League soccer on (coincidently a Reds game which I was quite happy to sit and watch), think I saw cricket on there another day so assume it shows sport most of the time. Theres also a mezzanine level with a few couches which can be a good place to read a book with a beer.
The feature restaurant here is named Zak's. I decided to give it a shot one night for no other reason than to give it a crack.
Went up, there were 4 tables occupied on a saturday night. This didn't change in the time I was seated.
Sat down, offered water, drink order etc.
The drinks menu had wines, but no beer selection. Had to ask the waiter. Just print an extra page with the beer selection, really, its not hard.
Sit there, make my decision from the menu. Close menu, sit patiently.
have a drink.
Sit patiently
Another drink.
Try to catch the eye of one of the waiters.
Another drink.
Sit patiently.
Try to catch the eye of a waiter. (This was probably 15 minutes of waiting)
Seriously, how can you forget a table when you only have to watch 2 or 3 each? And when someone is sitting there with the menu closed chances are they are ready to order.
Finally manage to get a waiter to come over so I can order. Ask for a Slow Cooked Lamb. Waiter takes the order, returns a couple of minutes later "Sorry, but this dish doesn't come as described anymore, it will come with potato mash and vegetables". Sure whatever no problem, but it sounds pretty basic for a supposedly nice restaurant, maybe they'll do something nice.
Dish comes out, nope it was just some sliced carrot, broccoli and cauli probably steamed, just like you'd do at home. The meat was great though, very tender, pretty good taste, the sauce was very good and nice and rich. It just needed something more impressive than some steamed veges.
I understand this isn't a temporary or seasonal change either as the waiter clearly said "it doesn't come like that anymore", which suggests its a permanent change. Its definitely sounded (from the menu) like its a change for the worse.
Anyway, order desert, a dark chocolate and orange mousse. Was pretty good, lacking a little in the orange taste in the mousse, but was still pretty good.
When I finish a pair of ladies from an adjacent table turn around to ask whether the desert was any good, I said it was pretty good. They make the comment "It was the only decent looking dessert on the menu". I agree with that comment.
So food and menu-wise - Zak's is pretty uninspiring. Not really sure any of it matched the prices they were asking.
Now this is the real clincher for me - I ask for the bill and present an "Entertainment Book Frequent Values" discount card (received from a recent ING promotion). This card is supposed to give a 20% discount on the bill.
The waiter looks at it and says "Whats that?". I explain, and he says "No, you need the voucher for that". I explain that this doesn't have vouchers, its only a card, and I have the book up in my room if he would like to see it. He still refuses to accept the card. I will be sending an email to Entertainment Book about this experience.
So all in all, Zak's is pretty poor, the menu, food and experience doesn't match up to the expectations or prices.
Room 1 - Executive Club
First impression "seriously?"
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y39/chunklet/HICHCCCExecRoom1-2.jpg
Walk through the door and find a room which is nice and appears modern, but staring straight at you is a tiny tube tv. A tube tv in a supposedly brand newly renovated room? And an executive room at that? The odd shape also means that while the floorplan may indicate its a room of certain size, the actualy usable space is smaller.
I know the tv is only a small thing, but really, who in their right mind still puts ......, old, small tube tv's in hotel rooms? Its something which gets noticed straight away and has a big impact in the way you view the room.
I put down my luggage and turn to the wardrobe to hang my suit and discover its a different shade of paint to the walls. Thats just laziness.
But then I notice, the general maintenance of the room is extremely poor. Not only the mismatched shades of paint, but the wardrobe unit has scuff marks all over it, like the layer of paint is extremely thin. Go to put my daypack on the small ledge and notice that the edge of the ledge is just beat to hell. Seriously seriously marked, scratched, looks very very shabby.
I have a rummage around the room and also find there is no hotel information folder on the table. I later asked about this at reception and was told "Ah yeah, they are being printed right now, so some rooms have them and some don't."
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y39/chunklet/HICHCCCExecRoom1-7.jpg
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y39/chunklet/HICHCCCExecRoom1-6.jpg
The bathroom is nice enough, but the shower is a shower/tub combo. In my opinion that is not good enough for an Executive Club room. It might pass in a standard room, but the Executive rooms should have individual showers imo.
However, I also noticed that while this hotel has supposedly just been renovated, it doesn't appear to incorporate the features of the 'new brand' - for example the curved shower curtain rail. It had just a plain straight rail. However, having said this the curtain was of the more fabricky type so didn't stick or get attracted to you.
The bed is comfortable enough.
During my second night there the music coming from Manchester Street below (My room faced that direction) was incredibly loud. The windows are supposedly double glazed, but the noise was incredible. Not only street noise, but the music coming from the bars. I can tell you that at 1:30am one of the bars was playing "Show Me Love". After about 2.5 hours of being unable to get to sleep from the music I trudge down to reception to ask for a new room. I get asked "Would you like one for only tonight, or for the rest of your stay?". I say that if I'm moving I may as well move for the rest of my stay. Sure, here's your room key and new room number.
I go up, collect my stuff, go into my new room and.................................... Standard room.
He never actually said it was not another exec room. I think that that is something worth mentioning, especially if you ask if a person wants to move for the remainder of the stay.
Now don't get me wrong - I know staying in a city hotel will involve some street noise, I fully expected it and I can handle some noise no problems (as a regular backpacker I know all about noise from staying in hostels). But this was stupidly loud, to the point where I knew what songs the bars were playing.
(That was room 1003 by the way, so if you get allocated a room below about x05 I would ask for a different room immediately).
Room 2 - Standarad Room.
So I move down to my second room, to open the door and find it to be a standard room. Whatever, I'll deal with it in the morning.
Being on the opposite side of the hotel its much quieter and I drop off right away.
The next morning I had a look around the room.
The bathroom is EXACTLY the same as an Exec room. Not nearly the same, not an inch smaller, literally exactly the same.
The main room has a real tv.
None of the finish problems of the Exec room.
Decor however was the same.
I can honestly say, in this hotel you are paying a premium for a not as nice room on a higher floor.
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y39/chunklet/HICHCCCStandardRoom2.jpg
(Just a note with this pic, the curtains sit maybe 3/4 of a metre away from the windows, so the room is slighly wider than it appears here)
Seriously, thats the only differences, the exec room is on a higher floor.
Given the standard room has a real tv and is finished nicer I'm going to guess that the exec rooms have not been fully refurbished yet (no mention of this anywhere of course).
Go down to reception the next morning and inquire about moving back to the room type I paid for. They have a note about my noise complaint, I apologise for being a pain but re-iterate that i normally have no issues with noise, it was just outta control that night. They will search for a new room for me and let me know how they get on. Almost immediately ring me to offer a two double bed room (my booking was for a King), I do say I would prefer a King but if thats all they have I'll take it. They say they'll keep searching, it shouldn't be a problem to find one.
I return to the hotel later in the day and they have a new room sorted, 1007 (thats how I know x05 is about the cut off).
Room 3 - Executive Club Room
Enter room, immediately realise its exactly the same as the first Exec room I had. So it appears that if they are still refurbishing the rooms they haven't done any of the Exec rooms.
The layout of this room is better though, its possible to watch tv from your bed as its not on the opposite side of the room from the small tv this time.
I have a quick look at the fit an finishing again, same complaints again. The edges of cabinets are just beat to hell. And the cracking in the walls is even worse in this room
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y39/chunklet/HICHCCCExecRoom2-1-1.jpg
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y39/chunklet/HICHCCCExecRoom2-2.jpg
Conclusion:
Most important - DO NOT PAY A PREMIUM FOR EXECUTIVE ROOMS AT THIS HOTEL.
You are paying a premium for a room which is not as nice as a standard room, but is on a higher floor. That is the only difference.
If they are still refurbishing the hotel (I have no idea to be honest, the website gives the impression its finished and the bathrooms and doorways all look pretty much brand new), this recommendation stands until they finish, whenever that may be.
Do not accept a room with a number <05 on a thursday or saturday night. It can be far too loud.
Don't bother with Zak's restaurant, it falls below expectations.
Don't get me wrong, this isn't a BAD hotel. But its premium offerings fall below expectations and the restaurant isn't what they make it out to be. If you arrived, stayed in a standard room and didn't bother with Zak's, you'd think it was a perfectly fine hotel, probably even a good hotel.
Location was great, right at the point of the two pedestrian malls. Heaps of cheap eats around, shops, cathedral square is <5 mins walk (closer than CP). Bars and clubs on Manchester Street are right there. Taxi rank is right out front. Grand Chancellor Hotel and Hotel So are right across the road.
The convention centre is a 10 minute walk away, so really not a problem.
For the same price as a standard room at CP I booked an Executive room at the HI.
This review covers:
Hotel appearance
Restaurant/Bar
Executive Club Room (Room 1)
Standard Room (Room 2)
Executive Club Room (Room 3)
Hotel appearance:
Seemed pretty fresh and stylish lobby. Girls on the counter were great, laughed off my obvious fatigue.
Basically it looked like a recently refurbished hotel.
Restaurant/Bar
The lobby bar is called Streetside and is not a bad bar just to chill. Big windows give it a light and airy feeling, the typical tap beers for Canterbury (Speights and Summit) with a decent selection in the fridge. A plasma which when I was in there had A-League soccer on (coincidently a Reds game which I was quite happy to sit and watch), think I saw cricket on there another day so assume it shows sport most of the time. Theres also a mezzanine level with a few couches which can be a good place to read a book with a beer.
The feature restaurant here is named Zak's. I decided to give it a shot one night for no other reason than to give it a crack.
Went up, there were 4 tables occupied on a saturday night. This didn't change in the time I was seated.
Sat down, offered water, drink order etc.
The drinks menu had wines, but no beer selection. Had to ask the waiter. Just print an extra page with the beer selection, really, its not hard.
Sit there, make my decision from the menu. Close menu, sit patiently.
have a drink.
Sit patiently
Another drink.
Try to catch the eye of one of the waiters.
Another drink.
Sit patiently.
Try to catch the eye of a waiter. (This was probably 15 minutes of waiting)
Seriously, how can you forget a table when you only have to watch 2 or 3 each? And when someone is sitting there with the menu closed chances are they are ready to order.
Finally manage to get a waiter to come over so I can order. Ask for a Slow Cooked Lamb. Waiter takes the order, returns a couple of minutes later "Sorry, but this dish doesn't come as described anymore, it will come with potato mash and vegetables". Sure whatever no problem, but it sounds pretty basic for a supposedly nice restaurant, maybe they'll do something nice.
Dish comes out, nope it was just some sliced carrot, broccoli and cauli probably steamed, just like you'd do at home. The meat was great though, very tender, pretty good taste, the sauce was very good and nice and rich. It just needed something more impressive than some steamed veges.
I understand this isn't a temporary or seasonal change either as the waiter clearly said "it doesn't come like that anymore", which suggests its a permanent change. Its definitely sounded (from the menu) like its a change for the worse.
Anyway, order desert, a dark chocolate and orange mousse. Was pretty good, lacking a little in the orange taste in the mousse, but was still pretty good.
When I finish a pair of ladies from an adjacent table turn around to ask whether the desert was any good, I said it was pretty good. They make the comment "It was the only decent looking dessert on the menu". I agree with that comment.
So food and menu-wise - Zak's is pretty uninspiring. Not really sure any of it matched the prices they were asking.
Now this is the real clincher for me - I ask for the bill and present an "Entertainment Book Frequent Values" discount card (received from a recent ING promotion). This card is supposed to give a 20% discount on the bill.
The waiter looks at it and says "Whats that?". I explain, and he says "No, you need the voucher for that". I explain that this doesn't have vouchers, its only a card, and I have the book up in my room if he would like to see it. He still refuses to accept the card. I will be sending an email to Entertainment Book about this experience.
So all in all, Zak's is pretty poor, the menu, food and experience doesn't match up to the expectations or prices.
Room 1 - Executive Club
First impression "seriously?"
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y39/chunklet/HICHCCCExecRoom1-2.jpg
Walk through the door and find a room which is nice and appears modern, but staring straight at you is a tiny tube tv. A tube tv in a supposedly brand newly renovated room? And an executive room at that? The odd shape also means that while the floorplan may indicate its a room of certain size, the actualy usable space is smaller.
I know the tv is only a small thing, but really, who in their right mind still puts ......, old, small tube tv's in hotel rooms? Its something which gets noticed straight away and has a big impact in the way you view the room.
I put down my luggage and turn to the wardrobe to hang my suit and discover its a different shade of paint to the walls. Thats just laziness.
But then I notice, the general maintenance of the room is extremely poor. Not only the mismatched shades of paint, but the wardrobe unit has scuff marks all over it, like the layer of paint is extremely thin. Go to put my daypack on the small ledge and notice that the edge of the ledge is just beat to hell. Seriously seriously marked, scratched, looks very very shabby.
I have a rummage around the room and also find there is no hotel information folder on the table. I later asked about this at reception and was told "Ah yeah, they are being printed right now, so some rooms have them and some don't."
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y39/chunklet/HICHCCCExecRoom1-7.jpg
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y39/chunklet/HICHCCCExecRoom1-6.jpg
The bathroom is nice enough, but the shower is a shower/tub combo. In my opinion that is not good enough for an Executive Club room. It might pass in a standard room, but the Executive rooms should have individual showers imo.
However, I also noticed that while this hotel has supposedly just been renovated, it doesn't appear to incorporate the features of the 'new brand' - for example the curved shower curtain rail. It had just a plain straight rail. However, having said this the curtain was of the more fabricky type so didn't stick or get attracted to you.
The bed is comfortable enough.
During my second night there the music coming from Manchester Street below (My room faced that direction) was incredibly loud. The windows are supposedly double glazed, but the noise was incredible. Not only street noise, but the music coming from the bars. I can tell you that at 1:30am one of the bars was playing "Show Me Love". After about 2.5 hours of being unable to get to sleep from the music I trudge down to reception to ask for a new room. I get asked "Would you like one for only tonight, or for the rest of your stay?". I say that if I'm moving I may as well move for the rest of my stay. Sure, here's your room key and new room number.
I go up, collect my stuff, go into my new room and.................................... Standard room.
He never actually said it was not another exec room. I think that that is something worth mentioning, especially if you ask if a person wants to move for the remainder of the stay.
Now don't get me wrong - I know staying in a city hotel will involve some street noise, I fully expected it and I can handle some noise no problems (as a regular backpacker I know all about noise from staying in hostels). But this was stupidly loud, to the point where I knew what songs the bars were playing.
(That was room 1003 by the way, so if you get allocated a room below about x05 I would ask for a different room immediately).
Room 2 - Standarad Room.
So I move down to my second room, to open the door and find it to be a standard room. Whatever, I'll deal with it in the morning.
Being on the opposite side of the hotel its much quieter and I drop off right away.
The next morning I had a look around the room.
The bathroom is EXACTLY the same as an Exec room. Not nearly the same, not an inch smaller, literally exactly the same.
The main room has a real tv.
None of the finish problems of the Exec room.
Decor however was the same.
I can honestly say, in this hotel you are paying a premium for a not as nice room on a higher floor.
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y39/chunklet/HICHCCCStandardRoom2.jpg
(Just a note with this pic, the curtains sit maybe 3/4 of a metre away from the windows, so the room is slighly wider than it appears here)
Seriously, thats the only differences, the exec room is on a higher floor.
Given the standard room has a real tv and is finished nicer I'm going to guess that the exec rooms have not been fully refurbished yet (no mention of this anywhere of course).
Go down to reception the next morning and inquire about moving back to the room type I paid for. They have a note about my noise complaint, I apologise for being a pain but re-iterate that i normally have no issues with noise, it was just outta control that night. They will search for a new room for me and let me know how they get on. Almost immediately ring me to offer a two double bed room (my booking was for a King), I do say I would prefer a King but if thats all they have I'll take it. They say they'll keep searching, it shouldn't be a problem to find one.
I return to the hotel later in the day and they have a new room sorted, 1007 (thats how I know x05 is about the cut off).
Room 3 - Executive Club Room
Enter room, immediately realise its exactly the same as the first Exec room I had. So it appears that if they are still refurbishing the rooms they haven't done any of the Exec rooms.
The layout of this room is better though, its possible to watch tv from your bed as its not on the opposite side of the room from the small tv this time.
I have a quick look at the fit an finishing again, same complaints again. The edges of cabinets are just beat to hell. And the cracking in the walls is even worse in this room
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y39/chunklet/HICHCCCExecRoom2-1-1.jpg
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y39/chunklet/HICHCCCExecRoom2-2.jpg
Conclusion:
Most important - DO NOT PAY A PREMIUM FOR EXECUTIVE ROOMS AT THIS HOTEL.
You are paying a premium for a room which is not as nice as a standard room, but is on a higher floor. That is the only difference.
If they are still refurbishing the hotel (I have no idea to be honest, the website gives the impression its finished and the bathrooms and doorways all look pretty much brand new), this recommendation stands until they finish, whenever that may be.
Do not accept a room with a number <05 on a thursday or saturday night. It can be far too loud.
Don't bother with Zak's restaurant, it falls below expectations.
Don't get me wrong, this isn't a BAD hotel. But its premium offerings fall below expectations and the restaurant isn't what they make it out to be. If you arrived, stayed in a standard room and didn't bother with Zak's, you'd think it was a perfectly fine hotel, probably even a good hotel.