Capella Sydney
Mar 12, 2023, 4:11 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Sydney, Australia
Programs: HH Diamond, Marriott Titanium/LTG, IHG Platinum
Posts: 1,921
Capella Sydney
Sydney's newest luxury hotel, opening 15 March 2023.
First review of the property (might be behind a paywall - try incognito):
https://www.ft.com/content/5be2388a-...1-7756717a4414
Hotel's website.
https://capellahotels.com/en/capella-sydney
First review of the property (might be behind a paywall - try incognito):
https://www.ft.com/content/5be2388a-...1-7756717a4414
Hotel's website.
https://capellahotels.com/en/capella-sydney
Mar 20, 2023, 5:53 am
#4
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Parts Unknown
Posts: 10,051
Mar 20, 2023, 6:55 am
#6
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Parts Unknown
Posts: 10,051
Marc is going for history, arts and culture with his new property. It looks like a wonderful restoration and conversion to a luxury, boutique property.
Mar 20, 2023, 7:13 am
#7
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Europe
Posts: 2,598
It seems the very best PH team members ventured over to Capella, understandably so... PH is pure misery -- need to catch up on the thread over in the Hyatt forum.
Mar 20, 2023, 7:45 am
#8
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Parts Unknown
Posts: 10,051
Mar 20, 2023, 11:55 am
#9
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Germany
Programs: Some
Posts: 11,506
I never understood this view-hype. Yes, a nice view is good and some views are a deal breaker (dirty courtyard or wall etc.). But I would never pay high sums for the same room with a view or choose the 2nd best hotel. Especially in cities.
Mar 20, 2023, 5:25 pm
#10
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Parts Unknown
Posts: 10,051
Admittedly, the PH view and location is worth the hype but Dabinett and the utter deterioration in luxury service has made it a no-go.
Aug 3, 2023, 6:45 am
#12
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: NCL and LBA
Programs: BD*G, BAGold, Hyatt Diamond, SPG Plat
Posts: 3,269
Just booked here on a Virtuoso rate for early December. Will report back once I have stayed. Looks very nice and by all reports the standards are up to if not better than the PH. Seemed a no-brainer at 40% the cost of the PH!
Aug 4, 2023, 1:49 am
#13
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Parts Unknown
Posts: 10,051
This is probably one of the better Capellas for service because of Marc and former PH members.
Aug 21, 2023, 5:57 pm
#14
Join Date: May 2004
Location: TPE
Programs: AA EXP 2MM
Posts: 504
I recently stayed at Capella Sydney in a Skyview Room and it was a very good experience. The finishings of the hotel and room are outstanding, and the workmanship is top notch. In this respect, it is undoubtedly one of the most luxurious hotels at which I've stayed in recent years. Breakfast was plentiful and great quality, and the living room was a nice place to hang out and grab a coffee. I didn't participate in any of the activities on offer, but the Culturists were always uber-friendly and willing to help. I didn't need them for recommendations, reservations etc, so YMMV.
Hotel staff were very visible, and no one seemed stressed by the high occupancy due to the World Cup. The pool, gym, and spa were also nice, but for me suffered from having no direct view outside (although there is natural light via the glass ceiling0.
A bit surprising is that the room wasn't outfitted with a Toto washlet. Given Capella's background and the increasing popularity of them, I find the decision to just go with an ordinary Toto toilet a bit unusual.
We had a simple meal in Aperture, the restaurant in the lovely atrium on the ground floor. Our burgers and sandwich were very run of the mill.
The hotel charged a 2% credit card fee. This is not unusual for Australia, but I don't recall mention of this made on their website.
As has been noted, except for a handful of suites, the hotel doesn't really have any views. I didn't mind this the first couple of days, but by the third day, I was getting a little tired of keeping my curtains mostly closed so the crane operator across the street wouldn't be peering in. And even if I didn't mind that, there wasn't anything beyond a clock tower to look at. I just was feeling boxed in. Ultimately, it comes down to how much one values a view. My feeling with regards to Sydney is that it is such a picturesque city, whether it be the Circular Quay area with the iconic sites, Hyde Park, or even more distance vistas to the water or various communities, a view is worthwhile and enhances the experience. Of course, to each his/her own.
All in all, it was a very enjoyable stay. I wouldn't hesitate to stay again, but I'd probably cap it at two nights. After leaving Capella, I moved to the recently renovated IC for a few nights. To even compare the quality of these two hotels in the same breath is an insult to the Capella, but I can't deny that as much as the quality of the rooms and services was so much inferior at the IC, peering out my window and just taking in the opera house and bridge, and watching all the ferries was enormously enjoyable, as well as having breakfast on the 32nd floor. The same argument can be made for the PH, which many on this forum and elsewhere have criticized for declining service.
With the new build Waldorf coming in a few years, at least there will be another option in the area, which already includes the FS, Shangri-la, and Crown.
Hotel staff were very visible, and no one seemed stressed by the high occupancy due to the World Cup. The pool, gym, and spa were also nice, but for me suffered from having no direct view outside (although there is natural light via the glass ceiling0.
A bit surprising is that the room wasn't outfitted with a Toto washlet. Given Capella's background and the increasing popularity of them, I find the decision to just go with an ordinary Toto toilet a bit unusual.
We had a simple meal in Aperture, the restaurant in the lovely atrium on the ground floor. Our burgers and sandwich were very run of the mill.
The hotel charged a 2% credit card fee. This is not unusual for Australia, but I don't recall mention of this made on their website.
As has been noted, except for a handful of suites, the hotel doesn't really have any views. I didn't mind this the first couple of days, but by the third day, I was getting a little tired of keeping my curtains mostly closed so the crane operator across the street wouldn't be peering in. And even if I didn't mind that, there wasn't anything beyond a clock tower to look at. I just was feeling boxed in. Ultimately, it comes down to how much one values a view. My feeling with regards to Sydney is that it is such a picturesque city, whether it be the Circular Quay area with the iconic sites, Hyde Park, or even more distance vistas to the water or various communities, a view is worthwhile and enhances the experience. Of course, to each his/her own.
All in all, it was a very enjoyable stay. I wouldn't hesitate to stay again, but I'd probably cap it at two nights. After leaving Capella, I moved to the recently renovated IC for a few nights. To even compare the quality of these two hotels in the same breath is an insult to the Capella, but I can't deny that as much as the quality of the rooms and services was so much inferior at the IC, peering out my window and just taking in the opera house and bridge, and watching all the ferries was enormously enjoyable, as well as having breakfast on the 32nd floor. The same argument can be made for the PH, which many on this forum and elsewhere have criticized for declining service.
With the new build Waldorf coming in a few years, at least there will be another option in the area, which already includes the FS, Shangri-la, and Crown.