Statesman Hotel

The room was really nice, and the staff were helpful. Dinner was a letdown, though. The menu was very limited because the chef was on holiday, with no steak or fish, just two chicken choices and a vegetarian burger. We both ordered chicken parmesan with chips and salad. The chicken was overcooked and dry, and the salad had too much strong dressing to eat. Some of the lettuce was black and slimy too. Not a good look or taste.

I’ve usually had a great time here, and the hotel has plenty of history. This stay ended with me wanting to check out as fast as I could: I saw a middle-aged woman with dark hair smoking something from a glass pipe in a storage room at the end of the hallway. Never again.

I never stayed at the Statesman Hotel, so this is only about the customer service I received. I called two days before my booking to ask what a refund would involve, before deciding whether to cancel. I expected a cancellation fee and wasn’t asking for anything special, just wanted to understand my options. The person I spoke to immediately sounded hostile and said she’d already heard my “sob story.” That wasn’t true: I’d only sent a brief email with few details. She then accused me of cancelling because I’d changed my mind about going to Spilt Milk Festival, and asked why I hadn’t questioned the higher price for one night. I was travelling to see Canberra for the first time and consider whether to go to uni there; when I booked, I didn’t even know about the festival. Booking.com showed the total price, not a nightly breakdown, so I was confused by that point. I understand cancellations cost the business revenue, but I work in hospitality and wouldn’t tell a customer that. A hotel should feel like part of a holiday, and after that call I didn’t feel welcome. The conversation could have been handled with more care and less hostility. I do appreciate being charged the cancellation fee rather than the full stay, but hope the Statesmans will be less accusatory toward young people.

The location was good, and the room was clean, but getting up and down the stairs was exhausting. There wasn’t much in the room. The fridge was for drinks only, with no freezer, and for a two-day stay there were just three coffee sachets in a jar, with no refill. The TV offered free-to-air channels unless you knew how to stream on the smart TV. It said there’d be a video explaining the setup and information, but that never appeared. Room service only made the bed. The cups and glasses weren’t cleaned, and nothing was provided for us to clean them ourselves.