My eldest son and I flew into Melbourne, Victoria, Australia sometime in the 2nd week of May 2012. However, my son had to leave for the United States after a few days stay as he had to report for his summer internship job. It was winter time in Australia and summer in USA. The rest of my family (my wife and 3 kids) would only join me in the early part of June 2012. So, I was alone in cold and sometimes rainy Melbourne for about 10 days.
Before I flew into Melbourne, I checked agoda.com for hotel prices and it would cost me a small fortune staying in a typical 3 star hotel for about 3 weeks. What I noted was that there were boarding type hotels where several people would share a room making the cost for a night pretty cheap.
There was one particular hotel which offered single room for 1 occupancy. And this hotel is called Space Hotel located at Russell Street, Melbourne.
There was one particular hotel which offered single room for 1 occupancy. And this hotel is called Space Hotel located at Russell Street, Melbourne.
Space Hotel offers many types of different accommodation:
Dorm - where you share rooms and toilet with others.
Rooms without toilet for single, double, family of four and family of five and the starting price per night are AUD68, AUD82, AUD106 and AUD115 respectively.
Ensuite Rooms (with toilet) for double occupancy, family of three and family of four and the starting price per night are AUD98, AUD124 and AUD133 respectively.
For more info please visit https://www.spacehotel.com.au/
From the above, a private ensuite room for a family of four only cost AUD133, that's freaking good price if you are not into 5 stars hotel facility and only need a place to have a night's rest.
Since my son and I have experienced staying in the university dorms while we were in our Freshman year in US university, we had no qualms sharing toilet and opted for the double room without toilet.And when my son left for US, I moved into a single room for AUD68 per night.
Like I mentioned my wife and 3 other kids would join me later. Unfortunately, Space Hotel does not offer Ensuite Rooms for Family of Five and my wife was not too keen on sharing toilet. And Space Hotel policy would not allow 5 people to stay in the Family of Four Ensuite Room.
It was not until I actually checked into the Space Hotel did I find out what sharing of toilet actually meant. It is not like in the US university hostels where we practically shower together with others. The shared toilet in Space Hotel only accommodate a single person i.e. you have the toilet by yourself. Most of the toilets have a basin, a water closet and a shower cubicle but some may just have a basin and shower cubicle. The toilets are clean as the house keeping staff do consistently clean them. Below is a photo of a shower room without water closet at Space Hotel.
Complimentary coffee is provided but you are only provided two milk capsules per room. You can get free coffee packs at the 5th floor where the common kitchen and laundry machines are located. You can actually buy your own food and store it at the refrigerators provided by Space Hotel. It will cost you AUD4 to use the washing machine and another AUD4 for the dryer.
Every room is also equipped with a TV and an alarm clock with ipod docking station and wardrobe. Below are photos of the single room I stayed in for more than a week. The very first photo of this article is the view outside my room :)
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| The 3 in 1 Nescafe is from Coles for AUD4.99 |
I must say that the bed was surprisingly comfortable to sleep on. Fresh towels can be obtained from the reception. And every single night, I get to watch a movie or two on the GO channel for free.
All in all, I will say that Space Hotel is great if you are on a budget. The location is pretty good as Melbourne Central Station and QV Centre is just few minutes walk away and it is also near to Lygon Street ( very near to Mercadante Restaurant which I mentioned in my article Melbourne Coffee and Food is Freaking Good). And for your information, I did not book my room at Space Hotel through agoda.com but instead directly with Space Hotel website as I found it to be cheaper.
Like I was saying, my wife was not keen to share toilet, so I moved out of Space Hotel and checked into Katz Apartment (this time booked through agoda.com as it was cheaper than booking directly with Katz website http://www.ozstaysapartment.com.au/ ). It cost me about AUD260 plus per night for a two bedroom apartment but it came with a sofa bed and therefore just nice for the 5 of us. However, I suggest you drop by Big W located at the basement of QV centre and buy a new bedsheet for AUD10 for the sofa bed.
The Katz Apartment at 160 Little Lonsdale Street location is also pretty good as QV Centre is just across the street and very near to China Town. Actually, it does not really matter where you stay in Melbourne Central Business District as the CBD is not that huge compared to other cities around the world. So for the four nights stay at Katz Apartments, it cost me more than the 10 or more days I stayed at Space Hotel alone.
The Katz Apartment comes with a kitchen where all the pots and pans are provided, a washing machine but no dryer and balconies which is great for a smoker like me. Fresh towels can be provided upon request and you are expected to throw the waste before you check out.
Conclusion - if you are looking for a budget hotel for a family of four with ensuite room, I recommend Space Hotel :)
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Melbourne Central Business District - Getting Around
Melbourne Coffee and Food is Freaking Good
Melbourne Aquarium - An Experience Not To Be Missed
KPop in Melbourne and Sydney Australia - Where To Get Them
Chevron Towers Surfers Paradise Gold Coast Australia
Update October 2012 - If you are looking for accommodation for 3 people in a single room in Melbourne CBD, check out Formule 1 Hotel located at the corner read Elizabeth St and Collins St. Please click here to my article Formule 1 Hotel Melbourne CBD Budget Hotel.
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