Perry Wheeler

Review of Rydges South Bank Brisbane

One of those hotels that you're most likely to vis...

One of those hotels that you're most likely to visit if you're going to a conference and the business is footing the bill, which is a shame as it's actually a good base for exploring Brissie.

Right on top for the Southbank entertainment and restaurant precincts and only a short walk over the bridge to the CBD, I'd have no issue with staying there for a short city break. I was there for three days on a B&B rate and have no complaints.
So, if you've read this far, you're probably thinking about staying there and want the key points...

Rooms - It's a city hotel, it's close the entertainment hub and next to main roads and the train station so it can get a tad noisy - ask for a room higher up - I did and they put me on level 6, nice and quiet (better chance for a decent view as well as a bit of peace). Decent flat screen tv with very basic foxtel although the HDMI-in didn't work on mine. Clean, well maintained room with above average bits and pieces: 2 x queen beds, safe,kettle with tea and coffee, iron and board, plenty of storage, mini-bar that wasn't shockingly overpriced and, most importantly, desk with enough power.

WiFi - Free and not bad for a hotel service. reliable and fast enough for HD video streaming. No problem with using my VPN provider

Staff - No problems. Front desk staff helpful, knowledgeable and polite

Pool - yes, technically there is a pool but I have seen bigger Jacuzzis. Don't expect to do laps.

Food - Better than average breakfasts in the Bacchus restaurant; my kids would have loved the pancake making machine when they were younger and I'm so going to copy their potato and spinach rosti as an alternative to hash browns. I only needed room service once and it was very good - piping hot food inside of ten minutes - I doubt that it would have arrived faster in the restaurant. Poolside bar does a mean margarita although I might have been less tempted if I'd realised beforehand that it was going to be $22.

Overall? It's a big, concrete, chain hotel. Comfortable, clean and efficiently run. High on convenience lower on charm.

Tips: Unless you're a sound sleeper, try to avoid rooms below level 4. If you're attending the conference centre, there is direct access across a private shared plaza at the back of the hotel. Main access to this is via stairs next to the Bacchus Restaurant - but get someone to show you the quicker way via the service door on Level 2