When choosing accommodation in Melbourne this time, our basic requirements were: staying in the same room for all six nights to avoid the hassle of moving luggage, having a washing machine in the room or a laundry room in the hotel, and a location with convenient transport. After searching around, we found that Melbourne accommodation meeting these requirements isn't exactly cheap... In the end we settled on Clarion Suites Gateway, a four-star apartment hotel that feels a little dated but has decent reviews and a good location.
📜 Information
📍 Location
Clarion Suites Gateway isn't in the busiest shopping district of the Melbourne CBD; it sits in the lower-left part of the CBD, between Southern Cross Station and Flinders Street Railway Station. That makes it very convenient both for getting to and from the airport (Southern Cross Station) and for heading out to the suburbs (Flinders Street Station) — you can simply walk to both major transport hubs.
On foot
Coming from the airport into the city you'll get off at Southern Cross Station, and from there it's only about a 10-minute walk (800 metres) to Clarion Suites Gateway.
I'd suggest that after leaving Southern Cross Station you walk straight down to Flinders St and then follow Flinders St — that route is flat and easy with luggage. If you follow Google's shortest route, part of the way goes up and down and isn't easy to walk. (We took that route at first... only later did we realise the lower route was easier.)
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| The easier walking route |
Tram
Since trams within the Melbourne CBD are free (inside the Free Tram Zone), you could also consider taking a tram to the hotel. However, there's no single line that takes you from Southern Cross Station straight to Clarion Suites Gateway — you'd need to change once, plus haul your luggage on and off, so the total time is probably about the same. Weigh it up; walking may well be easier!
Driving
The hotel also has a car park. Unlike Taiwan, where hotel parking is usually free, many Australian hotels charge separately for parking. At Clarion Suites Gateway parking costs AU$30 per day (about NT$600). If you need it, check the details on the hotel's official site: https://www.clarionsuitesgateway.com.au/hotel-information/car-parking/
🏢 Hotel Environment
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| There are a few steps at the entrance (with a wheelchair ramp beside them) |
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| The reception desk right inside the door |
Walking in, you can immediately sense the hotel's age, but overall the environment is clean and bright, and the ground-floor lobby is quite spacious. Since we arrived on a weekday and there probably weren't many guests, check-in went smoothly. Besides the room rate, the hotel also takes a deposit, refunded after check-out once they've confirmed there are no issues.
The in-house restaurant at
Clarion Suites Gateway is on the ground floor and is called William Bar & Cafe, but it has been temporarily closed since the pandemic, so stays no longer include breakfast.
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| The plain, simple lift lobby |
The hotel doesn't have many facilities. There's an indoor swimming pool, but we didn't use it so we didn't take photos — here's a shot from the official website instead:
🛏 The Room
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| The room gets good natural light |
Living room and kitchen
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| The living room and open kitchen just inside the door |
This time we booked a One-Bedroom Suite without a view. The room is very spacious: besides the separate bedroom, the living area is combined with an open kitchen that has a large countertop — handy both for cooking and for putting things down!
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| A corner of the living room has a small desk and a not-very-large TV |
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| A roomy kitchen space |
The kitchen is very well equipped: gas stove, medium-sized double-door fridge, microwave, oven, toaster, kettle and more, plus a full range of plates, bowls and cookware. It's perfect for guests who want to cook for themselves — just buy oil and seasonings at the supermarket and you can cook right in your room!
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| All kinds of plates, bowls and cookware |
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| Gas stove and oven |
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| A selection of tea bags and instant black coffee |
The washing machine is a front-loader with a drying function. You need to bring your own laundry powder or liquid — we bought laundry pods in Taiwan, which are easy to carry when travelling overseas.
Bedroom
The bedroom is a reasonable size and the mattress is on the slightly soft side, but still comfortable to sleep on. As we weren't in the busy district, it was pleasantly quiet at night too. That said, the side facing the Yarra River may be noisier since the railway lines are right opposite; our room faced the back, but we could still hear a little noise.
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| There's a TV in the bedroom too |
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| Safe, ironing gear, plus extra pillows and blankets |
Bathroom
The bathroom is a decent size with nothing especially good or bad about it, though the shower is a fixed rain head only — unlike most Taiwanese hotels, which at least also have a handheld shower head. Still, the water flow and pressure are strong and the hot water is fine.
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| Bathroom amenities |
Overall the stay was pretty good, though a few things lost points:
- Sound insulation from the corridor and the living room is poor — it feels like the walls have no soundproofing at all.
- Housekeeping is lazy: they don't replace your towels; instead they fold the towels you left on the floor and hang them back up. We noticed because a freshly "hung" towel had a hair on it, and one time we happened to be there while they were servicing the room and saw them hang it straight back — we asked them to change it on the spot. There was also a layer of dust on the windowsill, so their cleaning clearly isn't thorough; they're just cutting corners.
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| A surprise little welcome gift |
If you're looking for a place in Melbourne with a kitchen and laundry facilities,
Clarion Suites Gateway is relatively affordable. If your stay includes a weekend, the average still works out to a not-so-cheap NT$6,000 or so per night. The hotel is a bit older but well maintained; the only thing we weren't happy with was the housekeeping.
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