Alto Hotel On Bourke - Melbourne, Australia 

We stayed here for 4 nights during the winter, and it was overall not bad for a city centre hotel. We got a 1 bedroom apartment. The lounge area felt a bit more like a hallway, but considering the price we paid (AUS$215 per night) for a city centre hotel I can’t really complain. The hotel seems to be located in the seedier area of Melbourne, with numerous sketchy looking casinos and ‘gentlemen’s clubs’. It did not feel dangerous, though that may be a different story if you wander around late at night, which we didn’t. One thing to note is that there was a 3 person shooting a few years ago on a Monday morning outside a King Street club, a few minutes walk from the hotel. I wasn’t really worried, because shootings generally occur in a lot of major cities and this was a one off incident, hopefully. It was, however, only a 10 minute walk from all the good city centre shopping malls and restaurants. It is also located within 20 minutes walk from all the main sights. Melbourne’s sights tend to be quite spread out so I think most hotels are about 20 minutes walk from the sights. Staff were generally quite helpful, although this does depend on who you get at reception. There is free coffee/hot chocolate/latte etc all day and night that you can get from the machine in the restaurant, which is good. The restaurant felt a bit like a train station waiting room, but this is really not an issue with all the restaurants within walking distance of the hotel. Who wants to eat in the hotel anyway? Seven Eleven, Subway, and Hungry Jack’s just a 3 minute walk away. Hotel was equipped with 2 TVs, one in the lounge and one in the living room. The hotel is right next to the tram tracks, which run 24 hours a day, except between midnight and 7 am, and we hear them run past every 3 minutes or so. They are fairly loud.

Have just returned from a few days stay at the Alto Hotel in Melbourne with my husband and children (aged 7 and 10 years)and what a great find thanks to this website! We stayed in the 3 bedroom, 3 bathroom apartment. Really well appointed with simple decor but everything you need. The rooms aren't huge but we weren't there to spend a great deal of time in the hotel, not when Melbourne has so much to offer. The staff were just great and very helpful with tips and ideas to help make us and the kids feel welcome. The hotel is close to lots of transport options, trams, trains and walking distance to most CBD areas. Very quiet rooms as well. We enjoyed the added touches of complimentary reading, relaxation rooms, coffee, hot choc, umbrellas etc. Would recommend the Alto to most types of travellers although if you had toddlers, the internal stairs in the 3 and 2 bedroom apartments might be a safety issue.