Darwin City Hotel

The location is very convenient, close to everything, and the staff were friendly and helpful. My room was good, though I’d booked for one person and didn’t need three beds. Bring earplugs, since nearby nightclubs get noisy from Wednesday through Sunday nights.

This was the worst hotel experience I’ve had in Australia. The rooms had cockroaches, and housekeeping only improved after I complained. There was no smart TV in my room, and after two follow-ups with staff I was moved to another room, but only after 10 days. There’s only one lift. When it stopped working one day, it took almost the whole day to fix, so I had to use the stairs to get to the fifth floor. They also require a AUD 100 security deposit at check-in, and I’m not sure why. I’d paid for the whole month in advance, so I couldn’t switch places partway through. Otherwise I would have left on the second day.

The rooms were disgusting. We asked to move because our assigned room was covered in mold and had a really strong smell. The photo shows what was under the bed in the replacement room when we arrived. It hadn’t been cleaned at all.

I paid in full for a room well ahead of time, then had to cancel because circumstances changed. I gave them more than four months’ notice, but they wouldn’t offer even a partial refund. I suggested changing the booking dates as a compromise, and they kept the original payment while asking me to pay again for the new dates. They hid behind the cancellation policy, which may make this legal, but it still feels unethical and like shonky business practice. I’ll never stay here.