Kelle W.
1/5
Booked a 3 bedroom (6 pax) apartment for our family of 6 adults
(Apt 303) following two phone conversations (including a phone walk through the Meridian website together) with the Manager of Beaches on Sixth (Lyn) where we enjoyed a stay at the same time last year.
The property is in a good location with lots of eating options and opposite the beach. It is also opposite a busy main road and can be quite noisy. The rear of the property faces a lake with much less road noise.
The apartment we were allocated does not appear in any of the photos shown on the website. The standard of accommodation is in no way reflective of the images shown in the Meridien website link provided to me when discussing our options. It is completely misleading. The apartment we were allocated presented as very 'down at heel' in much need of painting, repairing and a deep clean. Further, for an apartment sleeping 6 people, we had access to one car bay, however all other apartments have two car bays. We were informed 'the owner was using the other car bay'. The only other parking options are visitor parking when available and 2hr street parking. There are all day parks on the street, however there was a large van, a coaster bus (taking up two all day bays) and cars parked in these spots that did not move over our entire stay of 5 nights. This makes it difficult when out and about enjoying the region, having to be mindful to come back and move the car every two hours, if another park is available. Difficult in peak summer holidays.
303 smelt musty, mouldy and sour, was dirty, dusty with visible black mould and cobwebs on all window frames, in and around the air conditioning and on the main ensuite screen door. Walls were covered in scrapes, dirty marks, stained brown carpet in the living room, furniture (master bedhead, lounge, dining chairs, coffee table, TV unit) were visibly dirty, dusty and grimy, the settee show brown dirt and ingrained grime, the sheets were stained (outside laundry issue), pubic hair in the toilet area and the windows/sliding doors and balustrading glass so dirty they were nearly opaque. I understand being near the ocean however this level of dirt/salt/grime has obviously built up over time. The refrigerator had leftover 'sticky brown food smears' on the freezer handle and the freezer smelt sour. Another significant concern is the unlocked cupboard of 'handyman supplies including paint tins, mineral turps, sharp tools that can be easily accessed by smaller children.
The carpet edging tacks in the main bedroom protrude through the carpet (and into your foot), causing pain and ongoing discomfort. Importantly, the main and second room beds were very, very old and lacking in any spring support/movement at all, requiring a bamboo and old style foam (caked in dust) mattress toppers to make up some level of comfort. Despite this, it made for a significantly uncomfortable sleep.
In terms of utensils, they needed a wash before use and plates were old style catering grade mismatched. It is not well equipped for a holiday rental (one pair of tongs and no salad servers).
Management were notified immediately (via phone and email) on arrival and invited to view themselves, they declined due to Sunday being only day off however Colleen (building Manager for Meridian) arrived within 10 minutes of our call ending. Colleen and her husband viewed the apartment and conceded after a while it was 'not good enough', and proceeded to clean the windows, mould, vents and some surfaces that afternoon and the next day. They were apologetic and did their best to remedy the situation.
I would not recommend staying at this property without confirming the apartment you are booking is as advertised on their website.
