Siesta Sydney

Vanessa was especially kind and welcoming. Since my flight was later in the evening, she invited me to use the kitchen and lounge areas, which I really appreciated. One of the best budget stays in Sydney. The room and shared spaces were very clean and well maintained, and the location was close to all the action, so getting around was convenient. The genuine Latino hospitality made the stay.

The rooms have basically no window padding or noise cancelling, so city noise kept waking me up. They do provide earbuds. Otherwise it was fine and what I expected for the price. The place felt a bit sketchy, but that’s what comes with shared amenities.

The room was tiny and got really stuffy and hot, with no air conditioning or even a fan. My view was just of the other guest rooms. The bed was stiff as a board, and the only blanket was a ratty, thin one, no duvet. The bathrooms and showers are shared. Someone kept running up and down the corridors in the middle of the night, and the place felt sketchy. The area seemed really bad at night, with creepers and all kinds of people around. The fire alarm is super strict. You can’t even use any kind of spray or it’ll go off, and triggering the smoke alarm costs $200, so you have to go to the shared bathrooms to use sprays. The doors are like fire doors, so if you accidentally let go, they slam shut and lock you out. Without your key, the only way back in is to go down to the front desk. They do provide food and washing machines and everything, but this reminded me of a place called Havelock House, which is pretty much a flop house. Of all the hotels I’ve stayed in, this was by far one of the worst. I highly do not recommend it.

We got upgraded to an en suite for free, and the room was good for what we paid. The reception staff were really lovely and happy to chat. They also let us store our luggage before check-in and after check-out, so we could explore without carrying our bags.