Adelaide Royal Coach in Adelaide

We chose this hotel very deliberately, and unfortunately the experience didn’t live up to what was advertised.

One of the main reasons we booked was because the hotel promoted having a steakhouse on site, a spa bath, a heated pool, and a buffet breakfast. In reality, almost all of these key features were unavailable or not as described.

On the night we stayed, the “steakhouse” had effectively run out of steaks — the only steak option available was a steak sandwich. The “butcher’s cut” was bangers and mash. We understand the hotel was closing for Christmas, but this wasn’t clearly communicated, and the steakhouse branding was still being used despite the lack of steak options.

The buffet breakfast, which the website stated was open on Wednesdays, was also closed due to Christmas Eve, with the restaurant shutting a day earlier. Again, this wasn’t disclosed at the time of booking.

The spa bath was extremely slow to fill due to very low water pressure, and when we used it there were visible flaky particles floating in the water. After draining the bath, there was residue left on the sides, which was quite concerning from a cleanliness perspective. The shower pressure was also very poor.

The heated pool was cold enough that we couldn’t stay in it for long, despite being advertised as heated.

The mocktails we ordered couldn’t be made as listed on the menu because ingredients were unavailable. We were given a bag of chips as an apology, which didn’t really address the issue.

Other frustrations included:
• Free Wi-Fi only working on one device at a time, which is impractical, especially for a family room
• A smart TV that didn’t allow access to apps or streaming
• Very thin walls, with street noise and early-morning bin trucks clearly audible
• Construction noise outside one of the windows

To be fair, we were given a room upgrade when we asked about a bath, and the sticky toffee pudding dessert was genuinely excellent — the highlight of the stay.

Overall, this wasn’t a relaxing or comfortable experience. While closing for Christmas explains reduced services, it doesn’t excuse advertising amenities that aren’t available or failing to communicate limitations upfront. With clearer communication and better maintenance, this could have been very different.