The Hotel Windsor

Stayed a Sunday night after a high tea reservation. Hotel could be great but some work is required by management. Definitely not a 5 star hotel or experience in my opinion. Dropped of my wife and no concierge was available. Hotel was charming and great for the history buffs. Rooms were ok and had old furniture that some would say may require some restoration. ie old cracked leather chair and a crack in the basin in bathroom. TV size was also smallish. As for cleaning we found a bandaid on the corner of the bed on the floor which was a turnoff. Breakfast was not buffet and included a main dish, juice and coffee or tea. Service was by an inexperienced waitress that obviously needed more training. Would not recommend or return unless it was a super cheap deal.

The staff were amazing. The food was absolutely delicious. Such a stunning old Melbourne icon. If I had one suggestion it would be an update on the dining chairs. They were stained & very uncomfortable, particularly when we were sitting for 2 hours.

Full disclosure: this was my first time experiencing afternoon tea, or as it’s referred to in Australia, High Tea. During a recent trip to Melbourne, my wife (who’s Australian) and I decided to treat my in-laws to tea at The Royal Windsor Hotel in central Melbourne. Walking into the place felt like stepping back in time. The decor and vibe were decidedly old school, reminiscent of a bygone era. To be honest, most of the clientele seemed like they hadn’t left since the 1900s, adding to that time-warp feeling. It was pretty chilled, but that can only go so far when the service is lackluster. Speaking of service, it was practically non-existent. Given that this was supposed to be a silver service experience, I was seriously let down. Everything took ages to arrive, and at times, I wondered if it would arrive at all! We ordered the high tea for $89 per person, and there was supposed to be a buffet included, but we only found out about that as we were leaving. Talk about a missed opportunity! As for the food, the finger sandwiches and snacks were a complete disappointment. They tasted like they’d just been pulled from a fridge somewhere, and honestly, they were harder than concrete! I encountered something called lamb ham for the first time, and let me tell you, if you’re ever offered this, just say no. It was a bizarre experience to say the least. The sweets were equally underwhelming; they had a weird gelatinous texture that was more mush than anything appetising. After this experience, I’m seriously reconsidering the idea of hotel afternoon tea. It’s a shame because I was looking forward to it, but this outing has definitely left a bad taste in my mouth—figuratively and literally.

We had a terrible experience at the Windsor Hotel High Tea today, Sunday, 5th October, for my daughter’s birthday. Our reservation was at 12 noon for five people. I booked the high tea online through the hotel’s official website, full of excitement for this special occasion. I even ordered a strawberry shortcake as a birthday cake add-on and provided clear instructions noting the celebration. The website also requested a photo upload to help the staff identify us for a warm greeting — despite privacy concerns, I did so, thinking it would make my daughter’s day more special. To our utter disappointment, not only were we not greeted, but we were treated very rudely by the manager on duty. There was no birthday cake, and when I inquired, the manager showed us a message on his iPad claiming they had informed me that cake was not provided. I never received such a message or email. While I was explaining, he walked away mid-conversation. Even at the counter, his behaviour was unprofessional — rolling his eyes, interrupting my daughter, and displaying a condescending attitude. A simple apology could have resolved the matter, but instead, he continued to argue and justify himself, leaving us humiliated. We walked out with heavy hearts, and my daughter’s special day was completely ruined. This experience was deeply disappointing, and we are still upset about how we were treated at what was supposed to be a prestigious and welcoming hotel.

Be transported back in time when you step into The Hotel Windsor. It feels like stepping into a historical monument of Melbourne, with classy architecture yet a cozy atmosphere, not to mention it is extremely well-kept and clean. All the staff we interacted with were happy, friendly, ready to be of service or assistance, and very accomodating. We received a complimentary room upgrade (from Traditional Queen to a Junior Suite) which was such a nice surprise, I hadn't even told them we were there for our anniversary. The room was more than double our originally booked room, and almost as big as my apartment. Such generous space with lovely classic timeless architecture that feels both fancy yet nostalgic. The prime location made it easy and convenient to travel between activities and restaurants, we even made fun discoveries of local shops and boutiques we otherwise would've never noticed before. We thoroughly enjoyed our breakfast the next morning and talked about how we'd like to come back, with other family members and friends. Thank you so much to The Hotel Windsor, especially the staff, for making our stay extra special. We will be back.

Amazing beautiful historical hotel. So glad I got to stay here. Restaurant is lovely and comfortable. We had the pleasure of seeing an art show being hosted by the hotel which was great, and we could see a bunch of the other rooms for interest. Bath rooms can be a bit small but is well appointed. Bed room is great with TV and working desk, and good bed. The pub and wedding in the function hall downstairs were not any problem at all. Would definitely come back.

After many( almost 40 years) experiences at the Windsor, regrettably this last experience was our last. So disappointing. The establishment has been consistently wonderful. Brekky no longer a great buffet, now a rigidly enforced ala Carte. Menu offers “ eggs your style” I asked for a tomato omelette. Told “ not on menu”. One of the “ main courses is toast and Vegemite. A MAIN. COURSE! Tv 📺 n room did not work. Fixed, but failed again. Shower in room needed a genius to balance between scalding and cold. ( And five minutes to work out). Room vacant for over two hours mid morning. Not serviced. At W prices, just not good enough. Room 208 25/ 28sept. Goodbye.

Charming old hotel with classic features and atmosphere. Stayed in a traditional queen room with warm, cosy décor, older style furniture, creaky floor boards under nice carpet. No view, and a few external fan noises and vibrations. Room includes a separate small room with the fridge, coffee/tea making facilities, some bar items, room safe, ironing board, clothes rack and set of drawers. Gowns provided but had to call housekeeping for slippers.|Decent bathroom with tub/shower combo. Bit of effort to adjust hot water. Can open the bathroom window for fresh air. Bed was fine. Two flattish pillows provided on bed so was necessary to order a couple more from the pillow menu. Many Foxtel tv channels. Writing desk (chair was somewhat stained). Overall a decent comfortable room.|Would not rate as a 5 star hotel though as service was quite standard without any wow factors or extra touches. I'm sure there would be porter assistance with luggage to your room if required but its something you might automatically expect with a higher rated hotel. Did not bother me. For the same price in Melbourne CBD I could have booked a suite with kitchenette etc., and a pool, at other hotels but this was a nice opportunity to stay in a traditional landmark hotel in Melbourne with history.|Good location in Melbourne CBD with nearby tram stops (including the free city circuit tram) and parliament train station. Walking distance to Little Burke St and all the restaurants. Also parks, theatres and went to the nearby Kino movie cinema.|Pleasant stay.

A fantastic high tea. Wonderful, creative flavours in new treats alongside traditional favourites, some with a twist. Would highly recommend.

This hotel has charming and clean rooms with modern bathrooms which met my expectations. What didn't meet my expectations was the service quality. They need more hospitality training for the front desk staff. An obvious sign of a mismanaged hotel is when the staff say your room number out loud at check in. This is not the standard practice in the industry and a safety risk. At first, I brushed off my first negative encounter with the front desk staff. But after seeing poor interactions with other guests and a second negative encounter myself, I felt inclined to write a review. In summary, if you can find a good deal on this hotel and don't come with high service expectations it's fine, otherwise I would recommend looking elsewhere.

The Manager who welcomed us was just delightful. He went out of his way to make our experience feel special for my mums birthday. We had a beautiful table near the window with the sun shinning. The food was superb. The pastries divine. The service was excellent. Everything was perfect. The special touch of a cake with Happy Birthday was such a lovely surprise. We all had a great time. Thank you lara

My experience here was far better than the current yelp reviews. The room was definitely dated decor wise but that's the charm, isn't it? It was updated in terms of outlets, working water and pressure, heating and AC etc. The tv kind of sucks but who comes to Melbourne to watch tv anyway. Bed was comfortable and the hotel is pretty. The service was great. Only complaint is the exceptionally overpriced restaurant. $18 for orange juice, a chai latte, and a tiny pastry. Skip it.

The high tea experience was wonderful and really made our day . The hosts were amazing and very helpful and even though we had restrictions , they still made the afternoon amazing. Thankyou for a wonderful time and I will definitely be doing it again.

Sadly the Guinness happy hour at $10 a pint is over and $13 is too unpalatable so it's the hunt for reasonable Guinness on tap at better prices! Still a good bar to visit for an ale, lots of history good access to public transport!

I love an old hotel. I appreciate that the rooms may be non-standard shapes and odd sizes. I like that there are nooks and crannies. I'm usually at least somewhat astounded by the history. Hotel Windsor has all of that and, to boot, some very kind service. That said, I wasn't blown away by this establishment. This is mostly on account of the rooms. I found that the inside facing rooms felt particularly claustrophobic, despite having natural light. And, while the rooms were visually appealing, the furniture, especially the chairs and the bed, weren't all that comfortable.

Future schmuture, sometimes you just wanna drown yourself in old school glamour. Like an aging Marilyn Monroe, Hotel Windsor is in some ways a shade of her former self, but for chronophiles like me, therein lies the appeal. She's a little faded, a little dusty, but there's no mistaking what a drop-dead knockout she used to be. We're talking a proper, fit-for-a-royal hotel, one that visiting celebrities made a beeline for, one with a colossal, splendiferous lobby, with a concierge in top hat and tails, with brylcreemed bellboys and wall hangings listing the famous people that have bedded down there over the years. And the Cricketers Bar on premises where touring cricket teams used to drink together in the days when professional sport was less professional and more fun. The rooms are gargantuan and spacious, the bathrooms better than my one at home, and there are robes in the cupboard, robes halfway between bristly and soft with just the right amount of stiffness, none of this pussy fabric-softened robe with no backbone to speak of. I loved this place. I cannae wait to go back.

Everyone has seen The Shining, right? Classic Jack Nicholson film set in a creepy hotel in the middle of nowhere, scary twin girls, REDRUM and all that? I am convinced that hotel was based on The Windsor. Having said that, I don't recall there being any elevators filled with blood, but rather an incredibly stunning hotel with a classic, vintage, 'old-world' charm. Gorgeous staircases, decadent rooms and while not every one will get a great view you will be spoiled and feel like you are in New York City circa the 1920's. I love this hotel and it is always my number one pick when treating myself to a staycation and my number one recommendation to inter-state guests.

We arrived at the Hotel Windsor on the night of our wedding, in all our finery, to be told that our room was "unavailable due to plumbing issues". In other words, 'we sold your room to someone who checked in before you arrived.' I made sure we wouldn't have problems checking in late on this special night, as I called days before to be told reception is manned 24 hours. Well, then being siphoned off to a partner hotel around the corner was meant to be the compromise. A corporate, lack-lustre, non remarkable place that if I had known we'd be staying at, I would have opted to stay with my husbands family in the mansion out in Eaglemont they were renting. My husband is from La, and I wanted him to experience the iconic Melbourne landmark of the Hotel Windsor. Instead, he experienced their lousy greed with overselling rooms. Their disgusting customer service of not being able to 'afford' more than 1 complimentary nights stay, and their pitiful public relations of not going out of their way to move MOUNTAINS for us, in the aftermath of ruining our wedding night. Not until we made further complaints, and dealt with 2 different employees, we were given a refund. Though what is the money worth? Absolutely nothing, considering the damage is done, and will NEVER be able to be undone. Thank you, Hotel Windsor, you did ruin our wedding night. Don't ever take it for granted that your room will be available here, even when you PRE-PAY for it, and yes, even on your wedding night. Whoever is involved in making these business/financial decisions for the company, I hope that no one ruins your daughters' wedding night, which I'm sure she will go to lengths to plan and dream of.

5 star... Really? You can't fault the bones of this lovely old hotel. But in many unflattering ways The Windsor is showing its age along with its gradual and nonchalant decline into mediocrity. Customer service was not wonderful but, unlike other elements of The Windsor, I can't really find cause for harsh complaint. Our check in was seamless, swift and friendly. Check out was much the same. We were not asked about our stay and there was no mention of the refunded $50 deposit (though I'm assuming it will show up eventually). The water pressure in the shower was lacking. It was also ridiculously hard to control the temperature (full hot provided tepid water that fluctuated annoyingly). The provided toiletries weren't extensive or impressive. I imagine for most business travellers these big bathroom issues would make for a less than ideal start to the day. I would appreciate differing pillow options as those provided are huge and soft, offering no support. An extra blanket would also have been great as the room temperature was a little chilly for my liking. I had an awful nights sleep due to these issues and the fact that the hotel is extremely creaky (it sounded as though a herd of elephants were partying above us). I didn't particularly appreciate the mismatched decor nor the somewhat tatty furniture. When there are dark marks on the mirror, the bath is worn, the chairs are stained and the linen frayed you are right to question The Windsors supposed five star rating. Our superior room came with free wi-fi, though many other options offer only paid Internet. The television was extremely basic: unless willing to pay your only viewing pleasures consist of Australian free to air channels. The hotel provides a great central location and for people visiting Melbourne it's easily accessible via taxi or public transport. Should you chose to stay I'd strongly recommend requesting a room at the front of the hotel (with parliament facing views). Otherwise you'll be uninspired by the insipid alley scenery. To be frank there are many better accommodation options in Melbourne offering cheaper rooms with better facilities. More importantly The Windsor pales in comparison to other establishment (The Langham immediately springs to mind) that claim five star status. Unless you could get a room here for under $100 a night (which, really, is all it's worth) I'd strongly recommend choosing elsewhere.

One of the most gorgeous looking hotels in Melbourne, I expected to get a fair bit with my stay here and looked forward to relaxing in one of the classiest hotels in town. However, while the lobby was really lavishly decked out (the chairs, the ceiling, the chandeliers!), and the corridors quite luxurious , the rooms themselves were fairly simple and while I paid a discounted corporate rate as I was there for a conference, I still felt that the rooms were incredibly pricey for what they were ($200++ a night). The beds weren't all that comfortable either! I also cannot believe that hotels in Melbourne are still lagging behind the rest of the world and still not offering complimentary wi-fi. I've travelled in many countries and this attitude of using internet as a cash cow is just unbelievable. But I paid for it, slave of the internet that I am. I paid for the extravagant price for internet only to have it stop working in half an hour. It took another 2 hours before it came back online (that's 2 hours on the phone with tech support too, we ended up trading stories of ourselves). To their credit, they decided to waive my cost to make up for the angst. Is it worth the per night cost? I don't think so. But if you want to be seen in the lap of luxury, then go for it. The afternoon high tea is also one of the more expensive ones around. While definitely not the sugar disaster the Langham was (I have that story written up on the blog somewhere if you are interested), it also wasn't that impressive. There are better high teas out there, so I would suggest giving it a skip. Still, if you are staying here, and going here for the high tea for the full package, then why not. Can't hurt to do it once, right?

My boyfriend and I booked a "staycation" at the Windsor and while overall we were fairly happy with the hotel, it just doesn't have that 5-star sparkle you expect from a hotel of this price. The lobby downstairs is intended to look historic but instead looks kind of dated in my opinion. We stayed in a room that is slated for renovation and the room itself was nice, but no stand out. I have stayed in better rooms for cheaper in the States so I was a touch disappointed. On the plus side however, the location is amazingly close to some of Melbourne's best dining and the service at the hotel itself was top-notch. I probably wouldn't stay again but it was a fun once-off.

A private room was booked in March for my mum's special birthday. Our Event Organiser told us there would be no problem catering for 3 FODMAP diets (including my mum). A menu was promised weeks before. Whilst the dessert menu arrived 2 days before the event and was satisfactory, the so-called savoury one arrived less than 24 hours beforehand and it was revolting...cucumber, dill and goat curd sandwiches,pumpkin sandwiches and olive and red pepper sandwiches, followed by a zucchini and goat cheese salad! (So much for the lactose intolerant people!) To avoid my mother being embarrassed at not being able to eat anything savoury, as she had specifically asked for everybody to have more savoury than sweet food in the room, I had option but to self cater for the event. I was up at 7am on the day of the event making sandwiches and getting a professional caterer to make savoury slices and sausage rolls. For $90 a pop (!) there was no compensation or follow-up call after the event to me, who paid for the whole thing in full 4 days before! Disgraceful! If we had been told from the beginning they couldn't do it, or provide us with edible food, we would have gone elsewhere, no questions asked...but this was not the case. They made us a couple of slivers of chicken and salmon sandwiches to try and make it better, but it most certainly didn't. Shame on you!

Some of the rooms are VERY small. Ours , luckily, was a bit larger. The carpet in the lobby is awful and needs to be replaced, Looks like stains from a flood. Old hotel so expect that. The location is good. Cleanliness - BAD ! We had huge amounts of mold in our shower and had to tell the manager who agreed it was "disgusting" when I showed him pictures, but offered nothing other than to "try to clean it". It was very noisy too. Stay elsewhere