OK.. very behind in this thread but thought it might be worth sharing some thoughts:
Property: PH Canberra - now I have read from PH enthusiasts that this is a disappointing PH... but the romance of the colonial feel and the vision of drinking GnTs on the balcony were too much for me to resist
Status: Mr Up (who's name it was booked under) is Platinium
Room booked was the balcony one with Club access.. not sure the name now
Rate: Not sure
Received: Massive disappointment upon check-in.. no valet, concierge or door staff (even in a 4 star hotel they have someone to open the door.. sounds ridiculous I know but for a PH..).. reception staff pleasant but when I asked if the buffet breakfast in the restaurant was available for a discounted price as part of the Club room she said it was up to management discretion.. went away.. came back and said no.. full price
Anyway.. headed to the room which was nice and full of the colonial charm I had hoped for
Club lounge was good.. service good along with the assortment of food and bev
Housekeeping was disappointing.. didn't clear the ice bucket and empty glasses from the room.
I know these are little things but again this is a PH we are talking about and I have stayed in them in Sydney, Melbourne, Paris, and Zurich and this initial experience was very below PH standards.
Second night we had the buffet in the restaurant (against our better judgement).. terrible.. except the staff...
Now this is where the trip changed.. We explained to the restaurant staff about the disappointing experience we had had so far and they empathised.
They offered a glass of the house wine as compensation (blah.. when the lifts were down for 30 minutes in Zurich they gave me a complimentary glass of Dom in the lounge) and we explained that it wasn't about the compensation it was productive feedback for them.
Next day was a completely different experience.. door staff were present, polite and helpful with doors, bags and the like; housekeeping took the ice bucket, glasses, etc, and did a great job. CSM rang to make sure everything was ok (and offered a bottle of wine for the room).. Amazing turn around.
So this tells me that they take their customer feedback seriously... but it should't have happened in the first place IMO.
Will I stay there again??? Hmmm.. not sure.. I think some AFFers have suggested that there are better hotels in Canberra.
I did love the history, gardens, furnishings and architecture of the hotel.
Hope this helps
By the way.. it was confirmed that the buffet breakfast in the restaurant was included in the club room rate.. not that we tried it after the dinner..
