Hotel Review: West Hotel Sydney

The West Hotel Sydney is a charming boutique hotel in the city center of the largest city in Australia. In this extensive hotel review, we’ll explain what you can expect of staying at the newest member of this Curio Collection by Hilton property.

Sydney has quite some different luxury hotels and I’ve tried quite a few, including the Harbour Rocks Hotel and the InterContinental Sydney.

• Classification: Five Stars
• Room Category: Arcadia Room
• Month of Stay: July

The West Hotel is a tad more modern than these options and also located closer to Darling Harbour, yet only a couple minutes walk away from the city center and a short hop by taxi to the Circular Quay. I’d say the location is quite nice even though you need to be aware that there is no view.

Rooms at the West Hotel Sydney

While there are a couple of different room categories at the West Hotel Sydney, the three lowest categories are all the same regarding the size and just differ by the view.

I got a double upgrade thanks to my Hilton Honors Diamond Status, but still ended up in a smallish room with not-so-great views.

Nevertheless, I thought that the design of the room is stylish and the space is used efficiently, beginning with a comfortable Queen Bed with two nightstands.

Opposite of bed, there’s a flat-screen television and closer to the window, there’s an armchair as well as a little desk with a chair.

The latter definitely doesn’t qualify as an office chair nor did the table really qualify as a proper office desk, but the setup is okay to get some work done.

The entrance area is really small and just comes with a tiny wardrobe, so it’s a bit challenging to put your luggage anywhere, but as the rooms are really small, I expected that. At least, there’s a fridge and also a Nespresso coffee machine, which I appreciated.

What I thought was a bit sad were the somewhat boring views of the building next door (particularly as this is supposed to be a much nicer view than base rooms).

Meanwhile, the bathroom made a good first impression on me without being generously sized.

There’s a single sink as well as a toilet and a walk-in shower.

The latter is nice enough though and offers a rain shower head with good shower pressure. That’s all I want from a decent bathroom.

While the rooms at other hotels like the Novotel Sydney are smaller, I really enjoyed the design at the West Hotel Sydney and would say that the rooms are nice enough for a business trip with limited luggage.

Breakfast at the West Hotel Sydney

While most normal Hiltons do offer a buffet, it’s not too uncommon to offer a rather small buffet for boutique hotels of the Curio brand. At the West Hotel, the buffet spread is indeed quite small.

There are just a couple of bread options, some juices, cheese, cold cuts and a selection of fruits, but that’s about it.

Yet, you can also order a couple of hot options from the menu, which is something I really like.

The quality of everything, including the eggs benedict was really good as well, so I’m drawing a positive conclusion here.

However, it’s worth noting that the full breakfast including unlimited hot options is only free for Hilton Diamond members, those having a Hilton Gold status only get the limited buffet for free.

Gym at the West Hotel Sydney

The West Hotel Sydney doesn’t offer much in the way of recreation options. The only real offering is a gym, which to my surprise, isn’t that small.

There are just a few machines, but there’s one full strength machine as well as a selection of dumbells alongside the typical cardio machines.

This might not sound all that fancy, but for a boutique hotel that’s more than enough, in my opinion. Other boutique hotels I’ve stayed at either offer no gym or an even more limited selection.

Overall impressions of the West Hotel Sydney

While I wasn’t overly impressed by the West Hotel Sydney, I really enjoyed the stylish rooms and the yummy à la carte brekfast. While the size of the rooms sure is a downside, it’s one I can live with in a good location and a modern hotel. As the West Hotel ticks these boxes and is also often quite affordable by Sydney standards, I’d surely book it again as a Hilton Honors Diamond member. With free breakfast, this hotel is just a really good deal.

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