Travel Review – Crown Metropole Melbourne

May 182013
 
the lobby of melbourne crown metropole

Sitting on Melbourne’s Southbank and tucked in behind the Casino, Crown Metropole is a convenient and comfortable business hotel, particularly if you’re attending conferences at the city’s Exhibition and Conference Centre.

In Sydney, the city’s casino is tucked on an old power station site in an inconvenient location so the locals can – and mainly do – ignore it. Melbourne’s Crown Casino on the other hand, has one of the best locations in the city.

While I’m personally uneasy about the role Crown seems to play in Melbourne’s social and political circles, that location makes the casino’s hotels a very convenient place to stay.

Networking vendor Cisco kindly flew me to Melbourne and put me up in the Crown Metropole hotel, part of the casino complex, for three nights to attend their Cisco Live! conference at the convention centre.

Attending a conference

While Crown Metropole isn’t attached to the conference centre like the Hilton South Wharf, in many ways it’s more convenient being just over the road from the other end of the Melbourne Conference and Exhibition Centre. If your exhibition is in the Eastern end of the building it’s a far shorter walk between the room and the event.

That convenience also translates to seeing the rest of Melbourne with major tram routes nearby and a short walk to Southern Cross Station. For Cheap Charlies, there’s a supermarket and liquor store across the road if you don’t want to partake of the expensive mini bar.

In room facilities

the tea making facilities in melbourne's crown towers

Nice choice of teas in the room

Along with the usual expensive mini-bar, there’s a good range of in room facilities including a nice range of Madame Flavour teas.

In the bathroom there’s also a pleasant range of amenities and very comfortable bathrobes. The bathroom itself has a full size bath to use some of the lotions in.

Work desk in Crown Towers hotel room

crown towers hotel room work desk

For the connected traveller though the most important thing are power points and there were plenty available including two easily accessible on the room’s desk. If you need more they are scattered around the room including under the bedside tables.

There’s also HDMI and component video connections to the TV if you want to stream feeds or practice presentations from your laptop. The TV has the standard hotel range of Australian Foxtel channels but lacks some of the international stations.

Wi-Fi is available at an extra charge but I didn’t use it and instead relied on a Telstra 4G hotspot. Some guests did report that they found the hotel’s network could get congested.

Hotel facilities

Outside the room, the hotel has the standard facilities of a five star hotel. The rooftop fitness centre is very nice though while it’s possible to do 25m laps in the pool, it will get crowded during the day. It also appears the gym is open to the public so there will be busy times there as well.

For eating, the first floor has the Mr Hive Restaurant which Cisco were kind enough to host dinner one night. It’s a nice place with good food at standard restaurant prices. Crown has dozens of eating establishments in the complex along with a somewhat expensive food court .

There’s no reason to eat in the Crown complex when its an easy walk into the city for cheaper dining options or down Clarendon Street to South Melbourne. The 96 and 112 trams which stop nearby will take you to St Kilda where there’s no shortage of pubs, cafes and restaurants.

Getting in and out

When it comes time to leave, checkout is easy and the service at all times was professional and courteous. Rooms were made up and cleaned properly. The beds were comfortable and the rooms quiet with very good block out curtains.

Overall, Crown Metropole is a good choice for business travellers attending the Melbourne Conference and Exhbition Centre, it’s also conveniently located for tourists. In all, it’s a good mid-priced hotel.

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Jetstar vs Virgin

Apr 232013
 
Jetstar plane at sydney airport

For the budget conscious business traveller, flying economy is an important way of saving money. In Australia, often that means the choice lies between Virgin and Jetstar.

When you’re self employed, you tend to watch your pennies and choose based on what you get for your money rather than just being focused on the perks when somebody else is paying.

Generally freelancers tend to be flying at the back of plane where it’s not so much worrying about whether Krug or Bolly to entitled executives but whether you’ll get slapped a $70 surcharge for your bag.

In Australia, affordable business flying tends to be between Virgin and Jetstar with Qantas being the best example of an Australian business exploiting its domestic market position while running down international operations.

Tiger doesn’t qualify as an airline suitable for anyone who needs to be somewhere at a given time so it isn’t relevant to business travellers.

Dollars please!

Much of the difference between Jetstar and Virgin are the underlying business models.

Virgin Australia was set up as a low cost carrier to compete against Ansett and Qantas but shortly after Virgin started operations, Ansett went bust and the startup airline found itself the nation’s number two airline.

Under CEO John Borghetti, any pretense of Virgin being a low cost carrier has been dropped and now the service competes on service against Qantas.

Jetstar on the other hand remains true to its roots as Qantas’ low cost operation and it plays firmly from the Ryanair book of screwing money out passengers at every opportunity.

While Virgin isn’t shy at trying to upsell you, booking a ticket though Jetstar involves twenty minutes of declining various options and additions. By the time you finish booking a Jetstar ticket, you’ll often find the price has gone up in the meantime and you have to start again.

Another irritation with Jetstar is its codeshare arrangement with Qantas which means the airline inherits its parent’s screwy seat allocation systems which block out availability based on a passenger’s frequent flyer number.

You will obey

A big difference between Jetstar and Virgin is the customer service, Virgin’s cabin crew tend to be helpful and cheerful while Jetstar’s seem to be on a KPI which encourages frowning and stern warnings.

Jetstar’s attitude to mobile phones is instructive. Unlike Qantas and Virgin who allow passengers to use phones until the cabin doors are closed, Jetstar order customers to shut down before boarding. This is a nuisance if you’re running your own business.

Another nuisance is the airline’s attitude towards laptops where Jetstar’s crew usually insist passengers have to shut down when the plane starts descending rather than when the pilot turns the Fasten Seatbelts sign on Qantas and Virgin.

This sounds trivial but just this alone should be a deal breaker for many small business travellers.

On a one hour Brisbane – Sydney or Sydney – Melbourne flight, this effectively gives a time poor business traveller twenty minutes work time from 90 minutes on the plane.

The Seventh Circle of Hell

The seventh circle of hell in Jetstar's Melbourne terminal

The seventh circle of hell in Jetstar’s Melbourne terminal

While we’re on the topic of Jetstar’s Melbourne operations, a special mention should be given to their poorly signposted gates at the airport.

Situated at the most remote part of the terminal building – almost as remote as Tiger’s abysmal tin shed – Jetstar’s gates are disorganised mess that make boarding difficult. The airline advises getting to the gate half an hour before the flight and at Melbourne that is good advice.

For those arriving in Melbourne, getting off the plane involves fighting your way through queues, lost children, Bedouins building campfires and peasants clutching chickens. If you’re really unlucky you may find yourself accidentally trying to board JQ5749 to Wagga Wagga.

What’s good about Jetstar

Decent legroom on Jetstar flights.

Decent legroom on Jetstar flights.

Despite airline’s drawbacks Jetstar has some things going for it, the main one is the airline’s modern fleet compared to Qantas or Virgin. Jetstar’s A321s have better leg room than the 737s flown by the other carriers – Qantas’ 767s are comfortable like your grandad’s armchair and almost as old.

If you’re flying longer distances such as Melbourne – Cairns or Perth – Sydney, particularly the ‘red eye’ flights heading east from Western Australia, then Jetstar is the more comfortable choice for economy fliers.

Then there’s cost – usually Jetstar is cheaper than Virgin for most flights and at busy times the cost savings may be worth the irritations – but check fares from all three airlines before booking as sometimes the Airline Gods may decide Qantas has the cheapest fares for the time you want to fly.

As a low cost carrier, Jetstar is the reality of flying’s present and a vision of travel’s future. If you have visions of glamour when catching a flight, then shell out for a business class fare.

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Travel review – Mt Warning Rainforest Park

Mar 222013
 
Mount Warning resort offers camping and cabin acommodation

Nestled in the caldera of a long extinct volcano on the New South Wales – Queensland state border, Mt Warning is one of the spectacular and quirky geographic features of Australia’s East Coast which boasts being the first place on the continent to see the sunrise*.

Climbing Mount Warning is doable as a day trip from the Gold Coast, Byron Bay or even Brisbane but to get the best experience staying a few nights in the surrounding rainforests is a good idea, particularly in warmer weather when it’s not a good idea to climb mountains in the middle of the day.

Mount Warning Rainforest Park is a private campsite on the road to the mountain offering cabins, powered caravan sites and unpowered campsites.

Camping sites

 

Mount warning rainforest resort unpowered tent camping site

Unpowered camping sites

We stayed in an unpowered camping site during the September school holidays. Despite it being a busy period, there was plenty of space available and each site had its own campfire. It’s up to you to get the wood.

The sites are comfortable and the ground isn’t too hard for tent pegs. Be warned that it can get cold at night depending on the season.

beware fo snakes at mount warning resort camp site

Beware of snakes!

As the site is in a rainforest, be prepared to meet some of the locals. There’s no shortage of brush turkeys, snakes, lizards and frogs around the grounds so tread carefully at night and don’t leave food lying around.

There are some less desirable locals as well and while the campsite does seem safe, the Mt Warning carpark does have a reputation for thieves. So keep valuables locked away and out of site.

Amenities

There’s plenty of powerpoints and free gas stoves at the camp kitchen, so there’s no problem with charging devices and cooking dinner.

Mount warning rainforest camp kitchen camping site

The campsite kitchen with powerpoints.

Some large, ex-commercial fridges are available for residents to store food. Make sure you mark what’s yours and hide anything like chocolates, wine or beer as any communal storage is going to see those things walk.

The camping area toilet blocks are clean and pretty well maintained, although the hot water controls for the showers can be difficult to figure out.

Be prepared for a cold shower until you manage to get the buttons working. The buttons are also outside the shower cubicles so try and grab the stall closest to the controls so you can lean out and press them mid-wash.

Mount Warning Resort Games Room and Swimming Pool
Swimming pool and games room

Should the weather turn bad – the area is a rainforest – there is a games room has some basic arcade games ($2 a time), pool table and TV for shelter. Outside is a small, well-maintained swimming pool that’s handy for cooling off in the warmer weather.

mount-warning-rainforest-resort-office-and-wifi-hotspot

It’s safe to say the wi-fi hotspot has become the modern campfire.

Outside the site’s reception is comfortable porch which has seats, coffee tables and free wi-fi. You can expect to find guests on their laptops and iPads at all hours checking email and Facebook posts. There’s also a couple of handy power outlets.

Mobile phone coverage is patchy in the district so don’t expect reliable phone communications or fast mobile data. The site has a Telstra payphone that’s accessible at all times.

Service

The site is family run and service is homely, the office isn’t always occupied so it’s sometime necessary to rouse some office help.

One of the missed opportunities is catering to the gathering of people accessing the wi-fi hotspot, offering drinks and snacks past the office’s 6 o’clock closing time would be nice.

Provisions

The office sells basics and snacks but for serious shopping it’s best to call in at Murwillumbah twenty minutes away which has all the major supermarket and shopping chains. There’s also camping supply stores if you’ve lost or forgotten anything.

Coming in from the West, Kyogle has a small choice of supermarkets while the local village of Uki offers a picturesque pub and general store.

Attractions

While climbing the mountain is the main attraction, there’s plenty of other things to see.

Being Australia’s capital of ‘alternate lifestyles’ there’s no shortage of yoga and healing centres. The hippy capital of Nimbin is picturesque 45 minute drive south.

The Border Ranges and the Gold Coast Hinterland are also worth exploring in their own right with some spectacular scenery and the campsite makes a good base for explorers.

Transport

Like most of rural Australia, there’s little public transport. There is a train service to Kyogle and frequent coaches to Murwillumbah from Brisbane, Sydney and the Gold Coast. A local bus passes the Mt Warning turn off once every weekday and its a fifteen minute walk to the campsite.

Rock formations on the way to mount warning resort camping park

Rock sculptures in the creek on the way to Mount Warning

The best way of getting to Mount Warning is by car, taxi or to hire a bike in Murwillumbah. On the way to the campsite you’ll pass a creek where people have build various sculptures out of the rocks.

Costs

The cost for a family of four camping was $50 per night. There’s no extra charge for showers or cooking facilities.

Overall, the Mount Warning campsite is a good, economical place to stay for those happy to sleep out and enjoy the rainforest.

*While many say Mount Warning is the first place on the Australian mainland to see the sunrise, in the summer months parts of southern NSW see the sun earlier due to their latitude. If you count all Australian territories, then various small uninhabited rocks along with Lord Howe and Norfolk Islands see the sun first.

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Big data, mobile apps and smarter logistics – why Avis is buying Zipcar

Jan 032013
 
Avis and Zipcar seem a good fit for hire and share cars

With no bad press over New Year’s Eve it looks like hire car service Uber avoided the surge pricing traps of last year and the good news continues for the online booking industry with the news that Avis is buying car sharing service Zipcar.

Assuming the acquisition isn’t another example of the greater fool investment model, Avis’ purchase of Zipcar makes good sense in expanding the hire car giant’s footprint into the share car business.

Regrettably Avis use the 1980s term “synergies” four times in their media release but it does seem the businesses are a good fit both in fleet sharing and improving both company’s services.

Zipcar’s technology is another asset which Avis can use, the car sharing service’s ability to track vehicle locations means better fleet management for the hire car business.

The logistics angle of car share services is something that’s been highlighted by Uber’s CEO Travis Kalanick at various times, most recently at the service’s Sydney launch in November.

Another aspect of the car sharing and hire car booking services is their Big Data advantages which the online startups bring.

Historically, car hire companies have been reasonably good at gathering data on their customers with loyalty schemes, direct mailing and plugging into airline frequent flier programs. However they have been left behind by the Big Data boom in recent years.

Companies like Zipcar, Uber and taxi hailing apps like GoCatch have big data in their DNA, having been founded in the era of cloud computing and social media they have access to more information and a better ability to use the knowledge they gather.

At Uber’s Sydney launch Kalanick described how Uber’s traffic volumes increase in San Francisco when the Giants win a game, the interesting thing is that the surge happens three hours before the match starts.

Insights like the traffic patterns around football games and holidays are gold to a high inventory business like hire car services. They are also important to the entire logistics industry.

This latter point is probably the most overlooked part of all with the current rush into social and mobile based apps – the market intelligence that these services gather.

While it’s tempting to dismiss that market intelligence as just monitoring who likes cats or cheeseburgers, the application of that data is transforming supermarkets, airlines and even concert venues.

Avis seem to have understood that it will be fascinating to see how they will Zipcar’s data, whether their competitors will figure out the importance of what these services offer remains to be seen.

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Travel review: Marriot Marquis, San Francisco

Nov 252012
 
located near the Moscone Centre is the Marriott Marquis hotel

San Francisco’s Marriot Marquis is a welcome place to rest after a tough flight or a long day at a conference, just be careful when you take on the coffee machine.

The first impression of the Marriot Marquis San Francisco when you step out of a cab is that it is a very busy place. Being situated next to the city’s Moscone Centre makes it is the centre for the convention trade which overruns the hotel when a big convention like Dreamforce is on.

Something all major conference destinations do well is dealing with crowds and the Marquis is no exception. The reception desk is efficient, fast and friendly – right down to having no problem with a check-in earlier than the stipulated 4pm. Exactly what a traveller needs after a cramped 13 hour flight.

The room

A standard room at the Marquis is a comfortable size with a genuine king sized bed. Beside the bed is a clock radio that is simple to set and actually works, this is something many other hotels should take note of.

There’s plenty of room to spread out with a good sized bath, plenty of storage space and a deep wardrobe. In the wardrobe is the standard digital safe for valuables.

On the TV there is the usual range of cable TV, free to air stations and in-house movies. Interestingly the cable selection included Russia Today but not the BBC World Service or Al-Jazeera.

Power sockets are plentiful including two mounted on the writing desk for easy laptop charging. Wireless networking, which costs an extra $14.95 a day, gives reasonable download speeds and is more than adequate for most cloud computing tasks.

The Coffee Machine of Doom

Unlike the user friendly beside clock the one cup drip coffee machines are quite possibly the most difficult devices ever installed in a hotel room.

in room coffee maker at the san franciso marriott marquis

The evil Marriott coffee maker

Thinking the first one was broken, I sent it back. It turned out it wasn’t but I never quite got the knack of figuring out how to work them.

Along with being horribly user unfriendly, the disposable cartridges in the thing are horribly environmentally unfriendly. Generally give the things a miss and visit one of the many good coffee shops in the neighbourhood.

Fitness Centre

The fourth floor fitness centre features the usual range of equipment but in a complex the size of the Marriott expect it to be busy at peak times, at 7am the place was packed.

The swimming pool and fitness centre at the Marriott Marquis San Francisco hotel

The Marriott Marquis’ swimming pool

Upstairs on the fifth floor is a respectable 30ft swimming pool which doesn’t get too busy, however more than four lap swimmers at one time will be difficult. The pool is quite shallow at one end and enthusiastic tumble turners should take care at the end of their laps. Note the pool opens at 6am, half an hour after the rest of the fitness centre.

Location

For attending conferences at Moscone the location is unbeatable and being right on Market Street in downtown San Francisco with Union Square, Westfields and all the major shopping outlets close by.

Harbourside tourist attractions are some distance from the hotel although the Marriot is close to the Powell terminus of the city’s iconic cable cars to Fisherman’s Wharf. The vintage K-Line street car service also runs to Fisherman’s Wharf via the Embarcadero waterfront.

Both the BART and Metro are around the corner at the Powell Street Station – the BART takes half an hour to San Francisco airport but it’s unlikely you’ll need that if you can afford to stay at the Marriot. Cabs to the hotel are around $65 including a 20% tip.

Overall

It’s difficult to fault the hotel as the service is friendly and efficient while the rooms are comfortable with all the features required for a good business stay.

Overall, if you’re not on a tight budget and you’re attending a conference at the Moscone Centre or have business in the SoMA district then the Marriot Marquis is a good choice. If you’re in San Francisco for the tourist experience or you have business in the Financial District then you’ll probably find hotels closer to what you’re in town for.

Paul travelled to San Francisco and stayed at the Marriott courtesy of Salesforce to attend their Dreamforce conference.

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