While in Melbourne for the past five days, the hotel which I chose to stay at was the Jasper Hotel. This hotel is located just near the intersection of Elizabeth and Franklin Streets. While not right in the heart of Melbourne it is still in an excellent location for almost everything as long as you are happy to make use of public transport or walk.
Checking In
Check-in was no problem, I arrived a little after 2 pm, and the room was ready. The staff were friendly, and the special requests I had made in the online booking process had been noted and were fulfilled. Specifically, the requests were for a high floor (which I received a room on the 8th floor) and for a room at the rear of the building (I was overlooking the Queen Victoria Markets, rather than the street). These two requests being fulfilled I was quite pleased about.
The Room
Walking into the room, I was pleasantly surprised. The room while not in perfect condition was well maintained and clean. There is a closet with ample space for clothing, as well as a smaller cupboard with a few shelves. There is a small fridge and tea and coffee making facilities. The bathroom has a shower, toilet and basin. I had booked a Queen Room, and this included the queen size bed, and a table and chair.
There were just three negatives that I found in the room; the first was that there was only one chair in a room which is designed for two guests. The shower cubical was kind of tight, I am a fairly average size and it tight to move around in so anyone much larger may find it to be small. Finally, the table could have been a little deeper. However, this is a minor thing.
What I liked about the room was the ability to open the windows for fresh air rather than needing to use the air conditioning all the time. Rather than a curtain, a blackout blind was included which helped with the sun early in the morning. Finally, the size was right and while not over the top there was space to move around.
Facilities
One of the negative aspects for me is many of the facilities I would like are not onsite. Parking was available close by but not available at the hotel. Even though I did not have a car with me, this did play a part in the decision not to get a rental car for a couple of days.
The other important facility missing was an onsite Gym. Don’t get me wrong there was a gym available it was just slightly inconvenient. It was located one block away, and the hotel did provide a pass for entry to the Gym. However, this meant leaving the hotel and may not be to everyone’s liking having to make the trip from the hotel to gym and back.
The only other thing of note is the lift; it is slow. However being that the hotel only has eight levels this is not too much of a problem.
Getting Around
Even though the Jasper Hotel is not located right in the middle of Melbourne, it is right on a major Tram line, which will take you down to Bourke St or Flinders St in a matter of minutes. From here you can get to anywhere you want.
Of course if you don’t really want to take the Tram, it is also more then possible to walk. Most of the places to visit are within about 2 km or 30 minutes walk, such as Crown Casino, Federation Square, Docklands, Bourke Street Mall, and many other attractions. Any further then this and you may like to consider the Tram
Overall
I would definitely recommend this hotel to anyone that is travelling to Melbourne, as a couple or on business. If you are travelling as a family I would check what rooms are available which may be suitable. The best things are about the hotel was the price was reasonable for the location and the staff were more then happy to help on just about anything that I needed.
