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Considering a stay in Geelong at The Waterfront Apartments with our management team at "STAY IN GEELONG". We believe we have one of the best properties to stay on the waterfront. Whether you are travelling for business or pleasure, you will find the Waterfront Apartments Complex conveniently located beside the Novatel Hotel on the corner of Eastern Beach Road & Yarra St Geelong. Surrounded by cafes, restaurants and other waterfront attractions, The Waterfront Apartments Geelong and Townhouse are located within the CBD, and the wonderful Geelong Waterfront and Eastern Beach. All apartments are beautifully appointed with quality fixtures & fittings and can accommodate from 1 - 6 persons. Apartments are available on a two nightly, weekly or monthly basis and can be serviced at your request.
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
HOTEL STYLE
Mid-range
Great View
Location
2-4 Yarra Street Corner Eastern Beach Rd & Yarra Street, Geelong, City of Greater Geelong, Victoria 3220 Australia
The Waterfront Apartments
3.6 reviews
Getting there
Good for walkers
Places to stay are graded on a 0-100 scale. The higher the grade, the easier it is for travellers to find restaurants and things to do within walking distance.
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These apartments are in a great beachfront location. However, there is no reception. They email instructions to you which (allegedly) allow you to access the carpark & your apartment. We didn't get the email. Upon arrival we got a message telling us how to access our apartment letterbox & get the keys. The letterbox was down low so it was "on the knees'' to access the keys. Problem?? we were given the wrong code???? A very nice chap arrived, accessed our keys for us (using the correct numbers) & was most helpful in taking us thru the carpark {very tight) & into our apartment. Very nice apartment, well equipped & furnished. Great bed. However, no toilet roll holder in the bathroom, it was on the floor or the cistern. The washbasin had a water leak & this wet the floor. The shower was over the spa bath & had an (insurmountable) metre high wall to hurdle to gain access & as we're both in our 70's, we could not shower. The coffee table in the lounge area looked like it was found outside an opportunity shop, old, chipped, ugly & totally not in keeping with the apartment. Bedroom curtain was broken. For the price we paid ($280) for 1 night, I expect a much better standard, I am sure there are far better options in Geelong, we won't be back! We feel ripped off!
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Date of stay: October 2022
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Room Tip:find another option, not worth the money.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We were greeted at the entrance and shown our underground parking spot, then taken up to our apartment and shown around, given details of the area which was lovely. The apartment has an amazing view, we were in apartment 2407, the living area and both bedrooms had large windows with views of the foreshore and bay. Rooms were clean and comfortable. The apartments are in walking distance to a lot of restaurants and the foreshore, we really enjoyed our stay.
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Date of stay: January 2020
Rooms
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Greg A, Manager at The Waterfront Apartments
Responded 22 Feb 2020
Thanks for taking the time to review the offered apartment. The apartments located with bay views are really the best option for accommodation. Individually owned and updated according to owners requests and needs. To say something of the location we are very blessed. Everything within walking distance. Bonus
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I stayed there for 2 nights for a family holiday. The location is the "ONLY" benefit of living there; close to Geelong Westfield, Coles and a few Waterfront restaurants and bars. The room is indeed spacious but furnitures are quite outdated; shaky chair legs and old sofas.
Pluses (+) They share an indoor pool and gym with Novotel Geelong Free Wifi Waterfront View Location
Minuses (-) Old Bed Linen and pillows Kitchen utensils are old and unclean *(the water boiler is very unclean got black burnt out stuff inside) *(some glasses and mugs are unclean before guest's first use) Furnitures are outdated
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Date of stay: October 2015
Value
Cleanliness
Service
Trip type: Travelled with family
Room Tip:waterfront view
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Greg A, Manager at The Waterfront Apartments
Responded 19 Feb 2016
Thank You for taking the time to review the apartments. We have notified the maintenance and cleaning departments and have brought the room back to standard. We are glad you enjoyed the bay at what Geelong has to offer. We would be pleased to accommodate you again if you are returning to the area.
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Terrible experience trying to stay here. Wish I’d read the reviews before booking! After ringing ‘good star stays’ to try and get Information in on check in, where to pick up keys etc, alarm bells started ringing when the phone was off for half an hour. Finally John called back saying he’s had an influx of bookings, can’t see the booking from booking.com, it’s a Sunday… the list went on. He kept asking about how many ppl were staying, how many rooms we needed etc. John said he would call back when room was ready (this is after 3pm when we should have been able to check in). Didn’t get a call back so we called him, he gave complicated instructions on how to get to the room, and that maybe only one room would be ready, and to call if the other one isn’t. He also said he needed to charge us extra $18 for credit card fee. We got to the apartment, it has not been cleaned, beds are slept in. A total mess. By now we have wasted 1.5 hours waiting for our room. We have since received a refund which after reading other reviews sounds like we were lucky. I highly recommend avoiding this place and staying at the beautiful R Hotel around the corner. I really don’t know how John is still in business.
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Date of stay: August 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
I’ve being indecisive about writing this review for a stay I had late December 2019 with "Staying Geelong", however as you can see, I’ve written the review!
I’ve previously stayed at the Waterfront Apartments Geelong over the years, however those previous stays were booked through another booking agency, and we had never experienced any issues with the apartments we stayed in. On this occasion however, I inadvertently booked my stay at The Waterfront Apartments Geelong with "Staying Geelong".
I had arranged to meet the Staying Geelong Duty Manager at a specific time in the foyer of the Waterfront Apartments (there is no reception desk, lobby or concierge located at the Waterfront Apartments, as there are in other apartment buildings that I’ve stayed at, in other locations across Australia)! Whilst I arrived on time, the duty manager did not, and when the duty manager arrived they accompanied me to the apartment I was allocated and showed around the apartment.
As for my stay, I booked a “one-bedroom executive apartment”, however the apartment I was given, in my view, was NOT an executive apartment!
The apartment overlooked Brougham Street, it was extremely dated, the blind on the main window was not a block-out, which meant the street lights shone brightly through the window in the evenings, and I could see people walking in the street, on the opposite side of the road to the apartment, which made me think, could they see me! However, there was a blind on the window in the bedroom that does block out some of the street light. The smoke detector on the ceiling was hanging off and I contacted the duty manager who organised a maintenance person to reattach the smoke detector to the ceiling, but by the next day, it had all come off and was hanging down again. The dishwasher was filthy, I’ve never seen a dishwasher so disgusting, it made me feel ill.
The bed had the worst mattress I’ve ever slept on, to the point that the mattress was so hard and uncomfortable, that it gave me an extremely sore back that I needed to have several physio appointments when I returned home. The pillows were just as uncomfortable, that I woke up with a headache each morning of my stay. Not a good combination!!
The underground car park is challenging and awkward, so allow yourself extra time to manoeuvre into the ramp to find your allocated car park.
The positive points of the Geelong Waterfront Apartments: the complex is located in a central location within the Geelong central activities area. Westfield shopping centre is across the road from the apartment building, and across the road from parkland and the waterfront, close to Geelong Yacht Club, and there are many restaurants and cafes within a very short walking distance. However, given those positive aspects, it also becomes noisy with cars and revellers leaving the many bars around the area.
In conclusion, I didn’t enjoy my stay at all at the Waterfront Apartments Geelong, and more than likely I won’t stay there again, unless it’s booked with an alternative booking agency!
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Date of stay: December 2019
Rooms
Cleanliness
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Greg A, Manager at The Waterfront Apartments
Responded 22 Feb 2020
Thanks for your review.The one bedroom apartments we represent are located at the Brougham Street side of the building and only offer street or if up higher city views. The location is in the heart of the CBD precinct, so traffic and people noise is a given. If not used to this it can become distracting. The apartments in the complex are all individually and privately owned, numbering 76. A good number of the apartments are owner occupied, therefore if operating rentals there is no option for a reception area. All guests are met and taken through the car park, then shown the lobby access, then on to the apartment itself. The car parking issue, is unavoidable, however we walk each guest through the best way to navigate. Fixtures and fittings of the apartments are updated and discussed with each owner. We try our utmost to offer comfortable, clean accommodation. Once reading any comments we address the concerning issues within our power to rectify. The precinct of the waterfront and proximity to the CBD shopping, parks, arts and restaurants is definitely a positive for the apartments location. Thanking you.
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The easy to use contactless check in is just the start of the great stay at The Waterfront Apartments. Firstly the apartment was perfect. Large and roomy living and dining area with a well appointed kitchen complemented the spacious bedrooms. A furnished balcony provided a perfect place to rest and watch the world go by. The location was perfect, right on the waterfront and close to a great selection of restaurants, cafes and hotels. You are one block away from Westfield shopping centre. Overall an excellent place to base yourself when visiting the region and one we would not hesitate to use again. One small word of warning, you get one free off street parking spot in the underground parking area - if you have a vehicle larger than a compact then getting around the carpark is not for the feint hearted!
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Date of stay: November 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
I am still here as I write this review which I never do but have been pleased with the room (a one bedroom) and everything in it. I have everything I need except maybe a desk area to work but the dining table works a treat.
Jenni has been a delightful host and when I needed a blanket last night (I am from Queensland) she dropped one at the door to keep me warm and toastie.
Did not have to go through a reception area as all the apartments are individually owned.
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Date of stay: July 2020
Rooms
Location
Service
Trip type: Travelled on business
Room Tip:Ensure you get a beach front room, I am overlooking a car park.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Firstly this is a review of an apartment owned and operated by gold star and we stayed in apartment 4601. There was some confusion when we arrived as we had requested an early check in and assumed this would be ok as we had it heard back from the operator but when we arrived at 1.30pm we were advised by John that our room was not ready. That was fine and we chose to go shopping while we waited. We rang John back at 3pm or “2.52pm” as he informed me that he was overwhelmed because it was school hols and he had 24 apartments to run and new housekeeping staff and our beds had still not been made up. He said there was linen in the cupboard and I could make my own beds if I liked....ummm no thanks I paid over $350 a night and none of this is my problem. I told him I would meet him at the apartment at 3pm. At 3.25 Jonh came out of the apartment building looking flustered and handed us the keys. Once we got to our apartment it was pretty obvious that other than John himself changing the linen it had either not been cleaned properly or he should sack his house keeping. There was food on the floor of the main bedroom so obviously not vacuumed, dust all over the furniture, ripped cushions on the terrible sofa, cupboard missing in the kitchen with hinges just placed on the shelf, grubby fingerprints on back of door, sticky coffee cup ring on the coffee table, bedroom wardrobe had old broken lamps and rubbish in it, the only dishcloths left had been used not even a fresh chux so I could wipe things over. 1 glass besides wine glasses for a family of 5, I could keep going but you get the picture. I bought this all to John’s attention via text and he didn’t even bother to respond which if he had of offered an apology I probably wouldn’t have bothered with this review. I am not the only person on here who has reviewed gold star this way I so they obviously have no intention of changing. Like the previous reviewer besides the location I would rate gold star a -00000 infinity. The location is great so do yourself a favour and book with another operator in the same building.
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Date of stay: July 2019Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Greg A, Manager at The Waterfront Apartments
Responded 15 July 2019
Thanks for taking the time to send in a review. As one of the other two accommodation providers at these apartments I will attempt to respond. The location is definitely the best in the Geelong CBD. Just the proximity to the beautiful bay and the offerings of the Central Geelong. Shopping, tourism attractions and a gateway to the Bellarine Peninsula. As far as your comments are concerned please come again to experience the location and definitely look at staying at the apartment complex - The Waterfront Apartments or Bay Escapes. I guarantee you will be well looked after. Cheers.
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Firstly be aware this is NOT a hotel, but a residential building, 25% owner occupied and 75% investors renting their apartments. That means standards are certainly not standard throughout as you would expect in a hotel.
I found this out when I called to see what hours reception was open…what a joke - there is NO reception area. I was supposed to be emailed details of entry, codes etc but received nothing and that was after phoning and emailing the owner of #4601. Luckily I made a note of some of the things he told me and was able to access the broken letterbox to get the key. The second bed was not made up, tho promised and there was no linen to make it up. The broken plastic concertina door obviously didn’t close properly. The bedroom was so small each bed fitted snugly in an alcove, with a walk thru to the shared bathroom. Main bedroom wardrobe contained vacuum cleaner, ironing board, 2 lamp shades, a stool and assorted wire hangers. Probably handy having the clothes dryer next to the wardrobe, as the bathroom didn’t even have a place to hang a towel. A sofa and two armchairs were in a line in front of the tv. Outside balcony had dust covered table and seats. Rails and glass featured cobwebs. In general the apartment was clean, but the sugar bowl with a scrape of sugar and the coffee tin with a dusting of coffee didn’t impress. The door closer was on a kitchen shelf, the door lock was missing, walls are scuffed and the bedroom curtain was not fixed properly to rails. Grubby fingermarks inside the front door welcome you.
Overpriced at $200/night you should spent a little more for something with a higher standard. The owner of this apartment has another in the building - so be careful if you choose to stay there.
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Date of stay: March 2019
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Travelled with family
Room Tip:Speak to apartment owner and ask for interior photos - tho standards vary considerably.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Greg A, Manager at The Waterfront Apartments
Responded 2 Apr 2019
Responding on behalf of one of the other short term rental operators at The Waterfront Apartments. Yes, you are correct in that we do have a lot of apartments owner occupied, others are long term let and the balance are represented by short term accommodation operators. Your experience is unfortunate and by no means not representative of the other operators. Please come again to Geelong.
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Kate & Jenny at 'Geelong Bay Escapes' made our booking for a 2 bedroom Waterfront Apartment and it didn't disappoint.The view was spectacular, the amenities were brilliant, it was so close to Westfield (please note we are shopaholics and were able to feed our babies and leave them to nap in the apartment with their dads so we could shop and pop back and feed when needed). We stayed in the 2 bdrm apartment and it suited us (4 adults and 2 infants). For the price you pay, its a fabulous deal being so close to the action (walks along the pier, dinner at the amazing restaurants, shopping etc). They are beautiful well looked after apartments and nice and modern. It also goes without saying that Kate & Jenny were an absolute dream to deal with, From the moment I booked, Kate was exceptional, so easy going and willing to help (knowing we had 2 newborns). We were greeted by Jenny who showed us around the apartment explaining all the do's an dont's (which was an amazing help). These girls made our stay stress-free, so much so that we have rebooked with Geelong bay escapes for next year. Highly recommend booking any accommodation through Geelong bay escapes as they have many beautiful apartments over Geelong and you'll have peace of mind knowing you are being well looked after!! Thanks Kate and Jenny
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Date of stay: June 2015
Value
Cleanliness
Service
Trip type: Travelled with family
Room Tip:Book through Geelong bay Escapes - Waterfront Apartment
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Greg A, Public Relations Manager at The Waterfront Apartments
Responded 12 July 2015
Thank You for your glowing review. So glad to hear you enjoyed The Waterfront Apartments complex.
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There are more places to choose from in the Geelong area.
PRICE RANGE
AU$224 - AU$337 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
LOCATION
AustraliaVictoriaCity of Greater GeelongGeelong
Prices are provided by our partners for one room, with variable occupancy rules as provided by the property, and reflect total costs of the stay, including all taxes and fees known to our partners. Please see our partners for more details.
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