Cosmopolitan Apartments

The shower drain in the Bluegum Apartments bathroom was partly blocked, and our staff had to remove a large amount of hair before they could shower. Even after that, the water drained very slowly and a very unpleasant smell came from the drain. The apartment’s cleanliness was very disappointing, and the cockroach infestation was the worst problem. With so little notice, we grudgingly accepted the 2-bedroom place, but the accommodation was definitely sub-standard. This started with accommodation for employees staying in Newcastle on successive weekends. For the first weekend we booked a self-contained 3-bedroom apartment at the Cosmopolitan Apartments in Hamilton through Air BnB. The day before check-in, we got an email, not from Air BnB, confirming the booking but naming a different property. I called straight away and found out it was managed by a group called “Jesmond Executive Apartments”. Or perhaps “Newcastle Executive Apartments”. The emails named Newcastle Executive Apartments, the property link went to a Jesmond Executive Apartments website, and the reservations email ended in @jev.com.au. Sounding a little dubious yet? Everyone we spoke with was polite and seemed helpful, but getting answers and solutions to basic questions was anything but easy. The substitute was a 2-bedroom property, not the 3-bedroom apartment we had booked. It cost less, but it wasn’t what we’d reserved. The number from the original booking had a recorded message directing us to a “main reservation” number for Newcastle Executive Apartments. When I asked why the accommodation changed, one employee said the Cosmopolitan Apartments had weather damage and were no longer habitable. In a later call, another employee said the property was fully booked with no vacancies until December. Conflicting explanations from reservations seemed to happen all too often. With less than 24 hours before check-in, we reluctantly accepted the replacement. When we asked about the price difference against what we’d already paid, staff said they couldn’t see the Air BnB booking details and that we’d need to discuss it with the host. Trying to reach the original host sent us back to the main reservation number. We were told to call it again, that they wouldn’t answer, then that it would go through to the mobile we’d just tried and be picked up. We did this, and the host answered. They agreed to credit, but not refund, the difference and apply it to a future booking. As we needed somewhere in Newcastle the following weekend too, we now seemed tied to this company. The rest of this is more about the people behind the property than the Cosmopolitan Apartments. They credited the difference and added a discount for the next booking. But it took five phone calls and three days to get paperwork to confirm and pay, and the only accommodation they could offer was a 2-bedroom apartment.