Nautilos on The Harbour

The unit was spacious, with a very comfortable bed, and it was an easy walk to the Civic theatre for our night out. Getting in took a bit of effort because we’d been given the wrong code, but someone was easy to reach by phone. It turned into a great stay.

Communication about the parking and arrival was poor. I messaged beforehand to ask about parking but got no reply, so I had to call the booking agent for information and to pay. On the day, I also had to ring for the check-in details, even though they were meant to arrive much later than the time they were supposed to be sent. There weren’t any signs showing where to park either. The apartment was on the main street by the tram line, which wasn’t the street address listed for it. Cleaners came in before the 10am checkout. My daughter left her pillow behind. We noticed before leaving Newcastle and called the agent to arrange to collect it. They said they had checked with the cleaner and housekeeping manager, and were sure there was no pillow, but promised to call and post it if one turned up. We delayed our trip home until late afternoon in case it appeared. When we called again, they still said it wasn’t in the apartment, so we set off. Halfway home, someone else called to say they had the pillow and asked us to collect it. I explained we were already two hours away and what had happened. They said we’d need to send a prepaid postage package if we wanted it returned.

The rooms were well appointed and had a great layout, and it’s a great spot. But the way things were managed made the stay frustrating. I’d called ahead and told Tony that my Airbnb booking showed an 11am checkout. He said that was fine. Then Sarah called and said checkout was strictly 10am and I had to leave immediately because another guest had paid for early entry at noon. The cleaners arrived at 10, apparently unaware of what I’d been told. Another man said it was unfortunate, apologized for rushing me, and said they needed the room for the noon guest. That’s a management problem being pushed onto the customer. I sent management a screenshot of the booking as proof, but nobody acknowledged the mistake. We were also given only one building access pass for a three-bedroom apartment that sleeps six. Having to stay together because we couldn’t get in separately was a real inconvenience. Two passes should have been provided. A few changes to how this place is managed could make the guest experience much better.

We just needed a clean, comfortable place to stay and had no big expectations. Nautilos on the Harbour couldn’t provide either, and we left as quickly as we could the next morning. We waited until 5pm to get into the apartment, three hours after the 2pm check-in time. The check-in details were meant to arrive by SMS, but none came. After several calls, staff said the room was still being cleaned. At 4pm they said it might take another hour or so. We were exhausted, and many hotels were already booked, so we accepted their offer of a $100 refund and late checkout instead of cancelling and booking elsewhere. When we arrived, cleaning supplies were by the open apartment door and a young girl was on her phone. She said she needed to mop, so we waited about 30 minutes outside on the balcony. Inside, there were cobwebs in the ceiling corners, worn furniture, dust everywhere, missing pieces in the blinds and foul-smelling bed quilts. The refund never came. When we called about it, we were quickly told they “don’t do refunds like that.”