We recently became members of the Le Club AccorHotels hotel loyalty program, so we thought it was time to stay in one of their hotels to start earning points. The Grand Hotel Melbourne is part of the MGallery Collection in the Accor chain of hotels and was a perfect choice for us to stay with the kids as they offer two-bedroom apartment accommodation as one of their room options.
We arrived at the hotel a couple of hours before check-in and were pleasantly surprised that our room was ready for us. Check-in takes place sitting at a desk rather than at a big lobby counter so it is a bit more personalized with a bit of chatter which is nice. Next to the check-in area is a great little sitting room or should I say Library – complete with comfy leather chairs, grand piano, gas fireplace, and plenty of books that you can grab to read. It gives a real cozy and warm atmosphere to the lobby area. The whole hotel actually has a lot of old-world charm as it dates back to the 1880s and was originally used as a railway administrative building.
The two-bedroom apartment here at the Grand Hotel Melbourne is a good size, and very spacious for a family of four. There is a well-equipped kitchen area where you can find cutlery, crockery, cooking pots and pan, oven, cooking stove, microwave, espresso pod machine, dishwasher, and a fridge freezer (including mini-bar items).
The huge living room area has comfortable sofas as well as a big dining table. There is also a good-sized desk with plenty of power points if you bring your own computer (although wi-fi is quite slow). The TV downstairs has quite a few Foxtel channels but does not have the best TV reception so some channels were quite fuzzy. A few days after our stay we received one of the MGallery post-stay surveys and we mentioned the poor TV reception problems to the hotel’s credit, within 10 minutes the hotel sent an email apologizing for this and that they would get maintenance onto it – great service by the GM.
Upstairs are both bedrooms and the bathroom area. Loved that the stairs have an automatic light on them which is great when traveling with kids. The main bedroom has a nice big comfy bed and plenty of cupboard space so would be perfect for a long-term stay. Also, like that there are plenty of spare towels kept in the cupboards too. There was a small TV in the room, but again the picture was all fuzzy and unwatchable. It didn’t affect us as we were only there for one night but it may have been annoying if we were staying for longer. The only other problem we had with the room was that the digital clock on our clock radio was not working so was always hard to gauge what time it was during the night. The second room had a double bed and also had plenty of cupboard space but no TV or clock radio there.
The bathroom was a good size and we really enjoyed the highly aromatic Appellees amenities. There was a good-sized shower (with a nice big shower head), no bath but did have a washing machine and dryer in there.
If you want a meal at the Grand Hotel Melbourne there is room service available or you can dine at the RAB Restaurant and Bar situated next to the library area. We tried out dinner here and while the menu is not extensive, the food quality was excellent and the pricing was reasonable. Our meals were the Pork Belly with mashed potato and must say the mashed potato here was something else, so delicious! Our other meal here was the Chicken Sandwich which was also very good. Of course, we tried out a couple of our favorite cocktails and had no complaints. Have to really commend our waiter Anton who was filled with enthusiasm and our kids thought he was fantastic!
We also had breakfast here at RAB and while there is no buffet breakfast like most inner-city hotels, our a la carte meals were delicious and reasonably priced and we didn’t have to wait long for them to be served.
Amenities here at the Grand Hotel Melbourne include an indoor heated swimming pool with a spa and sauna. There is a gymnasium but it is quite small compared to other hotel gyms. Next to the pool area on both sides are quite large courtyards along with BBQs and outdoor settings. We also used the valet car parking service.
The Grand Hotel Melbourne is ideally located on the corner of Flinders and Spencer Streets, making it easy walking distance to Crown Casino, the Melbourne Convention Centre, South Wharf DFO, Etihad Stadium as well as Southern Cross Station. With a tram stop right outside, it makes for a quick tram ride to Federation Square, the MCG, Rod Laver Arena, AAMI Park as well as the Docklands area. It is also a good hotel to stay at if you intend to go on the Colonial Tramcar Restaurant – (review here). The Grand Hotel Melbourne is easy to find, just look for the big tram stuck on the pavement near its entrance!
If you love the ambiance of old heritage buildings then you will definitely enjoy staying at the Grand Hotel Melbourne with all of its charm and character. We certainly enjoyed our family stay here and will not hesitate to return again soon.
