Marriott Sydney Harbour @ Circular Quay

There’s no denying that staying at the Marriott Sydney Harbour, has its perks. We actually held our wedding dinner, at the Marriott Hotel Kuala Lumpur, back in the day, so you can tell it is one of our favourite brands, when it comes to luxury travel accommodation.

And in Sydney, the Marriott Sydney Harbour at Circular Quay, turned out to be a good choice. Based on a couple of obvious reasons:

1. Its Location

Located nearly at the end of Pitt Street, towards Circular Quay, the Marriott overlooks Sydney Harbour, and is a mere couple of minutes stroll to the Opera House, Harbour Bridge and historic Rocks district. Hence, its strategic location gives the hotel its popular name of ‘Sydney Harbour Marriott Hotel at Circular Quay’. There are many vibrant galleries, restaurants and theatres around the area so you will never be at a loss for things to do. In terms of distance, Sydney Harbour Marriott is just a 5-minute walk from The Rocks and the Museum of Contemporary Art. The Royal Botanic Gardens and the Harbour Bridge are each a 15-minute walk away.

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Sydney city center happens to be a relatively small and compact. From Marriot, it is only a 10-15 minute walk to the historic and ultra-modern shopping arcades and shopping malls like the the Strand Arcade, the Queen Victoria Building (QVB), Pitt Street Mall, DFS Galleria, and Westfield Shopping Center. You can shop for Australian and International labels, dine at variety of cafe, restaurants and bars, watch street performers, and then check out the beautiful Aussies at popular joints like The Ivy, Palmer & Company, and The Establishment.

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Circular Quay Railway Station is only a short 200 meters walk from Marriot Sydney Harbour providing easy access to ferries which take you to Manly, Parramatta as well as Darling Harbour. The railway might also be the quickest way to the airport, and less expensive to travel, especially if you are arriving or leaving in peak hour traffic. If you take the train, it costs only AUD18 per head to the airport. By taxi, it costs at least AUD40, depending on traffic congestion. However, if you are with more than 2 person and in non-peak traffic, a taxi might be a better option. There are privately operated airport shuttle services which take you from the city to airport and vice versa but this might cost you more in time since there are multiple pick-up points.

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2. Its Amenities and Services

Whether savouring finely crafted cuisine at Sydney Harbour’s renowned Icons Brassiere, or retiring to the spacious opulence of your hotel room for room service, complete with picturesque harbour views, you can bet you will have a good meal at the Marriott.

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Our room, the Opera Suite, on the 23rd floor of Sydney Harbour Marriott was gorrrgeous! It had a, upbeat, contemporary design, and as you enter the room, the spacious lounge with large floor to ceiling windows and a big view of the Sydney Opera house to greet you. The study area came with enough power-points for all our equipment, laptops and chargers. A real plus – if you agonize over sufficient points for your electronics, then you know what I am talking about! It’s such a pain when a place looks good but cannot support the basic functions that are all important to traveling writers! The huge king sized bed, flat-screen satellite TV, minibar and tea/coffee facilities were all in Marriott’s favour too of course.

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classy in the subtle touches – different welcome platters greeted us each morning during our stay

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catching the sunrise from our room window.. what a view!

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And being a fitness freak, of course we checked out the fitness centre, the sauna and the Spa. I had a great hot stone massage to loosen the knots in my lower back and it was bliss to lie there for just one hour!

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pain, be gone!!

3. Good F&B Service

The Customs House Bar is a 19th-century pub offering casual dining, while Icons Brasserie serves Modern Australian cuisine. Macquarie Lounge offers coffee, drinks and entertainment. One of the highlights of staying at the Marriott was the Executive lounge on the 30th Floor. There is computer section which comes equipped with 2 internet ready Macs and a colour printer, so you can actually print anything which is amended (such as plane ticket) right on the spot. Not only that, the staff were efficient and helpful – they even gave us a full ferry schedule when we asked for help on the ferry time tables.

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5.30-7.30pm happened to be the complimentary happy hour at the Executive lounge, and the finger food, sparkling wines and wines were of exceptional quality. They had a great rotating menu with a fantastic cheese platter which I loved. Talk about being spoilt rotten!

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Dinner at the Icons Brasserie was good too, but we found the room service menu more comprehensive and to our liking. We ordered room service most nights and watched the lights on the Sydney Opera house sails come alive, during Vivid Sydney.

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Sydney being a cosmopolitan city, you will meet a variety of internationals staffed at Marriot which, we felt, made it a very enjoyable stay as the little friendly chats we exchanged with them made our stay even better. Not only were they efficient at their roles, but there is a level of warmth and sincerity conveyed beyond the service.

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We had a great stay at the Marriott Sydney Harbour at Circular Quay and were sorry to leave. We will definitely be back!

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Add:
Sydney Harbour Marriott Hotel
30 Pitt St, Sydney, NSW, 2000, Australia
Web: www.sydneyharbourmarriott.com.au

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