BLUE, Sydney Review

Sydney’s fashionable BLUE hotel is located within a redeveloped wharf in the heart of a luxury marina, situated in an inner city suburb called Woolloomooloo.

The wharf was originally constructed as a wool and cargo storage facility, and heritage listed in the late 1980s after narrowly avoiding demolition. It then underwent a sympathetic transformation into an hotel, an up-scale apartment complex (film star, Russell Crowe lives here, at the time of publication) and some of the most fashionable restaurants in Sydney. This makes it the perfect location if you want to mix with beautiful people, but it does mean that you are likely to be disturbed by noise if you stay in a room overlooking the restaurants. Request a room on the residential side of the wharf for a quieter night’s sleep, but be aware that this is not the place to stay for guaranteed peace and quiet, particularly at weekends.

As the rooms themselves were converted from the original wharf building, and in order to preserve the original structure, the resulting rooms are quirky and individual in size. All have a luxurious, industrial design feel, although ours was beginning to show signs of wear and tear; nothing major but, at the price, more was expected. Due to the unique design of the wharf, some of the entry-level room categories have small or no windows and can feel gloomy. Our Deluxe Pier View Loft Room was sleek and comfortable, but the upstairs bedroom felt cramped. We looked at some of the larger room categories and can report that, if you can afford them, they are probably worth the extra.

The architecturally-impressive WaterBar runs the entire length of the downstairs area of the hotel. It is one of Sydney’s most fashionable cocktails bars and is sophisticated, dimly lit, loud and glamorous. The bar is open to the rest of the hotel. Rooms run off each side and the corridors overlook the bar. This means that the bar noise travels, particularly to rooms on the lower levels. Breakfast was served in the restaurant area at the end of the bar, which can feel stark and empty in the cold light of day. A small peculiarity was that the entire downstairs bar and restaurant area of this hotel was a public thoroughfare. This is less obvious at night but, at breakfast, expect to watch commuters from the apartment complex walk by on their way to work.

In designer hotels, staff can sometimes seem intimidating, but here the team were friendly, approachable and provided absolutely 5-star service. From the concierge desk, we were able to secure last-minute reservations at restaurants that had claimed to be full.

Guests may use the apartment complex’s swimming pool, whirlpool and gymnasium. These are a short walk away and, whilst upmarket, fell short of our expectations for a 5-star hotel.

The hotel offers a beautiful view of the multi-million dollar marina and of the city sky line. It is an easy walk to the Royal Botanical Gardens and Art Gallery of New South Wales. A longer walk will take you to the harbour and central business district. Although a little out of the central hotel district, this is a destination in its own right. It is also within walking distance of the trendy, Potts Point café district, which is well known for its eclectic range of small restaurants and bars. We appreciated the proximity to the water and enjoyed walking through the beautiful parks to the harbour. If you don’t like walking or have mobility concerns, it is only a five minute taxi ride to most of the key tourist attractions in Sydney.

BLUE is a unique, designer, boutique hotel and the place to go to sample some of Sydney’s best nightlife. Best suited to the young and young at heart, it should be avoided by those who like an early night and prefer more traditional design to the quirky and unusual.

The hotel is located at 6 Cowper Wharf Road, Woolloomooloo, New South Wales 2011, Australia.

flickr image by oddgirl