The Establishment Hotel, Sydney

Sydney

The Establishment Hotel

We arrived in Sydney in our t-shirts, shorts and thongs looking completely out of place as it was 21 degrees, cloudy and raining. It was like arriving back into Manchester from a holiday. There were business people marching about the streets with their corporate umbrellas and winter coats on as we slipped about in our thongs (lethal in the rain) and may as well have had a sign saying ‘Queenslander tourist’ above our heads. I hadn’t been that cold for months and was panicking that I hadn’t even bothered packing a jacket, or even a long sleeved top as I’m so used to being boiling hot wherever we go!

The taxi driver helpfully had dropped us off at the other side of the building to where the hotel entrance was, we were especially grateful for this as it was pouring with rain. We eventually found the hidden door to the hotel in a back street and yet again felt a little under-dressed as we entered the uber-cool hotel that is the Establishment. I had painstakingly done my research and found this amazing boutique hotel at a good price so I was keen to get into the room to see whether it was as good as the reviews made out. We weren’t disappointed, the room was a showcase – marble bath in the centre with an optional screen to close the bathroom off if required. Two huge marble sinks, separate cubicles for a walk in shower and toilet. Bose stereo system, DVD, touch screen phone to enable you to: choose your lighting, set the temperature, set an alarm, order room service, switch the ‘do not disturb’ light on and book a table at a selection of choice restaurants. I was like a small child racing round the room on my voyage of discovery! After climbing over the bath to get into the bedroom for the third time, we decided we really ought to go and see the sights of Sydney.

We went for a walk down the street to an area known as ‘The Rocks’ which is at the Circular Quay harbour and is where a lot of the original housing and alleyways from the first settlers still exist. It is a very charming area, with lots of specialist shops, small restaurants and cafes, museums and the tourist information centre is here too (you may wonder why I mention that – but believe me, it is the most impressive tourist info centre I have been to, it even has a museum!). It was only about a 15 minute walk until we finally stepped off the street and onto the edge of the harbour where we got our first glimpse of the Opera House and Harbour Bridge. Well, it was one of the most breathtaking experiences just to see two of the most iconic and photographed structures right there in front of us. In a funny way, it finally hit home that we were in Australia! I must admit I got quite emotional, which was unexpected I have to say, Andy wasn’t quite sure what was going on when I suddenly started sobbing at the water’s edge!! From that moment I knew that I was going to love Sydney.