The W Sydney is a hotel built for influencers and those who want to be influencers.

There is a host of issues with this property - some can be fixed with training; others are due to building design. But given the clientele staying on site, I'm not expecting changes.

Booked one night using a 35k voucher plus points when bookings first opened up. Kept an eye on the initial reviews and saw how bad things were, so my partner and I went in expecting a real shitshow. Things weren't that bad, but not what you'd expect from a high-end hotel. Due to weather in Melbourne, we arrived fairly late (7pm) and end up having a super smooth check-in, taking the breakfast amenity and a 4pm check-out. The check-in agent hands us a A4 sheet explaining the hotel and its amenities and makes a point of telling us to arrive early for the breakfast as it can get busy later in the morning. Room was upgraded from a city-view Wonderful to a Darling Harbour Spectacular, and the sequence of opening the door and having the blinds automatically open to reveal the view of Darling Harbour and Sydney was quite impressive. A welcome card, a gift of a bottle of wine, and an invite to a Bonvoy cocktail tasting sit on the table. The in room wet bar looks fantastic and room design is unique and appealing. So far, not the shitshow we were expecting! I take advantage of the pillow menu and order some extra pillows to the room, then my partner and I freshen up and go out for dinner.

Things start to change when we get back from dinner around 10. We decide to head to the rooftop bar (29/30) and grab a nightcap. We're told that the place is busy by the host, but they have two lounge seats near the pool. We are taken there.. and they are entirely impractical for sipping cocktails, effectively padded banana lounges. The view after dark isn't much either, with a non-functional pool in front of the deep darkness of night. My partner and I decide to leave, but the host wants to re-seat us. She leads us past a bunch of mainly empty tables and people taking selfies, around a corner, and then to two side by side seats overlooking the highway. We look at the menu and all cocktails are $32 each. We leave and go downstairs to The Living Room. It actually is busy, and it's unclear if it's open seating or we have to wait for a table. A frightened looking host walks approaches us and asks if we're here for wine or cocktails. When we respond with cocktails, he tells us that they are actually closed. We go back to our room.

I still feel like a cocktail but need ice. My partner notes that the additional pillows didn't arrive, so I call and re-request them along with an ice bucket. About 30 minutes later, the doorbell rings and it's a runner with the ice bucket. I ask about the pillows. "Another guy is bringing them" he stays while walking off. At this point, we're both starting to fall asleep but decide to give it some more time and watch TV. Eventually, the doorbell rings again. It's another runner holding four bottles of water and attempting to hand them to me. I state that I was waiting for pillows. He responds no, that the order was for two bottles of water and two dental kits, then pulls out his phone and shows me his Whatsapp which has this listed with my room number and name (why are they using Whatsapp? how did they get the order wrong in two different ways?). I tell him that I don't need four bottles of water, that it's almost midnight, and to cancel the order. Comical. We activate the DND and go to sleep in the illuminated blue-green light of the smart light switches (don't expect complete darkness - the chrome wet bar reflects all and any light).

The next morning, we get downstairs for breakfast around 8:45. There's a short line to put our name down, then we're told to wait in a different line to be seated, but we're seated within five or so minutes. Everyone eating looks slightly miserable due to the tables and chairs - couples sitting next to each other with linked arms, groups of four at the bar. As we're seated, we're asked for coffee orders. A man at the table next to us says to his wife "I waited 45 minutes for this coffee and it's terrible." Fortunately, our coffees come somewhat sooner but he's right - it's push-button espresso, made even stranger given the manual espresso machine sitting unstaffed behind the bar. The variety of the breakfast is quite good, and all food on offer is fresh and tasty, especially the pastries and bottled juices. Staff swoop like hawks to clear plates, but never refill water glasses or ask if additional coffee is wanted. On leaving, the line to get a table for breakfast is easily 20 groups long.

Next, the pools. We decide to check out the indoor pool first. It is uncomfortably hot inside, and a couple trying to have a quiet swim together are getting the life story from an employee dropping two large bags of pool salt into the water. He invites us to have a swim, we decline. We head upstairs to the WET Deck and Infinity Pool, grabbing one of the last lounge seats in the place. This pool is impressive with great views of Darling Harbour. Despite all the selfies being taken in front of the W sign, this is not an adults only pool - kids are doing cannonballs while dads have swimming races. The glass roof is not UV coated either, which makes it perfect for getting a tan or a sunburn. Pool staff hand out sunscreen and guava slushies. My partner and I order cocktails off-menu to our room (they only have two cocktails on menu), and the server tells us that he has to translate our room number from English to French so he can understand what to write. The drinks are bad so we decide to cut our losses with one each.

Prior to check-out, we head back to our room to shower and pack. Housekeeping attempts to enter several times despite DND being marked on the door. I check the folio on the TV and see that they have charged us for the breakfast along with a strange $127 charge for "amenity". We leave the room and attempt to check out and are met with a check-in line at least 40 people long. There are people and bags everywhere, multiple lines for checking luggage or checking-in, and the Living Room is filled with arm-crossed folks waiting for their rooms. There's no space to walk due to how small the check-in area is. Staff are walking through the lines asking people if they have the Bonvoy app and if they can check-in online instead. Eventually, a staff member asks us if we need help. When I explain that I'm trying to check out and there's issues with the folio, she grabs my details, replies "Let me see if a manager is available", walks into an office and disappears. She returns ten minutes later and thankfully was able to remove the incorrect charges. My partner says "let's get the hell out of here" and I agree and high tail it.

All in all, an unsatisfying stay. The things that are meant to look good, look good - the view of Darling Harbor from your room, the infinity pool on the top floor, the teacup bathtub and chrome wet bar. All things that can be set up prior to you even arriving for your stay, and they look great in your next Instagram or TikTok post. But anytime I needed something that needed a near-immediate attention - an extra pillow, an extra glass of water at breakfast, the ability to check-out in minutes - it wasn't possible. All things that you won't see on Instagram and TikTok. It made me realize that while the W Sydney could train their staff better or make fundamental changes to the flow and layout of their building, they don't have any need to. People want to stay there to get their selfie in the pool in front of the W sign and to show off how large the breakfast spread is. I wouldn't pay $400 Australian a night for here based on what I experienced, but I also wouldn't get to brag to my friends that I stayed at the W Sydney.