Enjoyed six nights in a Premier Grand Harbour View Room on level 33 (Horizon Club) in early August, as a result of previous TripAdvisor reviews. Above all, we wanted a hotel in Sydney which had amazing views of the harbour…

My girlfriend and I couldn’t decide whether or not to pay the extra for the Horizon Club, but the guarantee of a room on floors 30-35 made that an easy decision. As an added bonus, the use of the Horizon Club lounge is great, and adds a certain degree of value when you take into account complimentary (and very nice) breakfast on the 35th floor, free soft drinks and snacks throughout the day and free canapés / alcohol before you head off for dinner.

One day – at the suggestion of a member of staff – we tried Café Mix on Level 1 for the main hotel breakfast (where there is a full cooked breakfast). BIG mistake, there was a queue for a table, it was packed inside, noisy, cramped and just not very relaxing when you are on holiday. Breakfast for 2 (if we hadn’t been a Horizon Club guest) would have been $78 AUS, which is very steep for what it was. So for our remaining days we continued to enjoy the peace and serenity of breakfast in the HC lounge, together with stunning views over the bay.

The bedroom was fabulous – every luxury you could want, literally, and even an umbrella in the closet to take out if it was raining. Bed was super comfy, the bathroom luxurious with a huge array of nice freebies. The only negative comment would be the bathtub being quite narrow by normal standards, but still very comfy. Above all, the views from the bedroom were awesome – in the room category we had, there were 5/6 big windows offering 270 degree views. We didn’t pull the curtains once, preferring to lie in bed and watch the city at night, and then get treated to lovely sun rises each morning.

There was a turndown service provided on five of our six nights (don’t know what happened on the Sunday!), and we were made to feel like special guests. From the moment we arrived, we were whisked straight upstairs by a member of staff so we could check-in at the HC, making it feel like a very exclusive hotel within a much larger five star property (think The Signature within MGM Grand in Vegas).

We were concerned about the comments on here re: access to the hotel as people say its up a steep hill. It’s really nothing to worry about – true, older or infirm guests may have a problem, but its only one block up a steep hill, as long you enter via the back entrance. Go in the main entrance and it’s two blocks up a steep hill. Taxis were easy to come by, and there was never a queue of more than one person ahead of us - even at peak times on a Saturday night. Concierge was most helpful, and the porters did a great job.

All in all, the hotel met our every expectation and really MADE the holiday in Sydney. It wasn’t cheap, but it was well worth it, and we look forward to returning one day.

i stayed over 2 nights in an opera house harbour room. i have stayed there previously -usually in a horizon room. rooms and view from hotel are excellent. as iam a frequent race goer i would have loved for the room to have the racing sky chanel. as this was not possible i tried the bedside radio. unfortunately could not obtain a station due to the high static. so my weekend was spent walking down to the local pub & hotels in the area.
i had dinner in their alitude restaurant which was expensive but excellent. nick the wine waiter was very good and knew his wines. i inquired about getting a seat next door in the horizon bar but was told they took no bookings. i was somewhat upset that when a window seat came up i was told i couldnt sit there as it had been reserved. maybe they should ive their guests a bit of priority. anyway i would stay there again . the staff are friendly
and helpful but like everyone when you go to a five star hotel you want everything to be perfect.

I am currently staying at the Shagri La hotel in Sydney and can honestly say, after spending four weeks touring around Australia, that it has been the worst experience of the whole holiday.

I booked the Shangri La – the Horizon package at extra cost for the additional benefits it offers - as a special surprise for my new wife – this trip is our Honeymoon – and we were both really looking forward to staying at the hotel. However the experience thus far has been a complete disappointment.

Firstly, we spent 40 minutes in the reception whilst the receptionist muddled around with the computer. After asking us if it was our Honeymoon she said that she would check us in as we’d “only have to wait in a line at the Horizon reception”. We finally received our room keys and were told to go to the 31st floor where unfortunately the coffee service had finished but we could wait there whilst they prepared our room. We had just had a 7 hour trip and really just wanted to relax in our room but agreed to wait. After discovering our key cards didn’t allow us access to the lift we eventually made it to the Horizon club lounge on the 35th floor. We waited for 10 more minutes then tried to access our room, again couldn’t get the lift to work so asked the receptionist at the bar (who was very helpful) and she showed us to the 30th floor (where we should have been directed in the first place). Finally got our correct keys and got to our room where we discovered two single beds. IT’S OUR HONEYMOON! So, it was back to the club lounge to complain. One of the staff pointed at her colleague who explained that all king rooms were taken and that there wasn’t much she could do. After some complaining by my wife she agreed to upgrade us after one night to a king room with harbour view which we were really pleased about. At this point we also had to ask about how the Horizon package works – which we’d paid extra for remember- as no one had bothered to advise us about the Horizon lounge on the 30th floor where complimentary drinks are provided or any of the other hotel facilities included in the Horizon package. So, after that it was back to lift where key card wouldn’t work again. After spending 5 minutes going up and down in the lift we finally got back to main reception to get keys coded again. We finally got into our room one hour after arriving at reception and I’m not really looking forward to a night spent in single beds!

The hotel looks fantastic and the views are something really special but when you are spending almost £800 on a hotel for three nights you expect some level of good service. It has been one disaster after another and I would urge anyone thinking of staying here to think again!

Adrian Tomkins

Stayed in the Shangri-La for four nights as part of our honeymoon in July. We arrived before 9am and were delighted to have been checked in early. The receptionist who checked us in was in training. She was excellent, extremely polite, efficient and welcomed us to the hotel, congratulating us on our marriage. It was a great start.

As part of our booking with Trailfinders, we were given an upgrade to an opera view room. While we were grateful for the gesture, we could not really see the opera house unless we strained our necks out the window. The room was freezing. We turned the air-con off ourselves but for whatever reason, the room still felt cold for the duration, not that we would let that have any major impact on what we thought of the hotel. The decor was rich yet not over-stated. There was a great feeling of relaxation throughout the hotel.

Cafe Mix, where we had buffet breakfast was ok. I couldn't help but think that it was trying to be something it wasn't, and failing miserably. The music was completely wrong and not fitting of a 5-star hotel's restaurant. You could see what the hotel was trying to achieve but something was missing. Clearly, this isn't a major factor in deciding where to stay but something that did stand out for me. The food was fantastic and in general the service was fine. We had wanted to eat in Altitude and the only night we could was a Sunday, when Altitude is closed. I could not understand this, when the hotel looked relatively busy. Go figure.

Staff in general throughout the hotel were ok. While concierge, in particular was brilliant, I would question the staff of Blu bar on the top floor of the hotel. Again, something was missing here, like it was overly-pretentious and every patron was to feel grateful for being allowed to even enter the side bar, let alone the bar that faced onto the harbour bridge. This feeling I got from the bar staff in particular.

While in general the hotel was fine, and we didn't have any major complaints, I'm not entirely sure this hotel is world-class 5 star. I would certainly like to experience some of Sydney's other alleged finest before returning.