Overall, my stay at the Brassey was fine - however for the high price charged I'd expect the heat pump to work and the windows cleaned. Black mould and dirt around the inside of the windows detracted greatly from what is a nice room (decent size). I felt some of hotel decor could be updated, and could do without fake flowers in the hallways. I like the historic pictures of Canberra on the wall, however.

There was also mould in the inside of the shower frame. For a city that should be conserving water, the shower heads were a joke, with a more environmental showerhead surely being in the interests of Canberra residents.

Most of the staff were really great, but one can't help but notice one of the senior staff, perhaps owner, who drank a lot, and the rudeness of one of the receptionists who could not even offer a thank you after paying a pretty hefty bill.

To cap things off, I missed my breakfast and an early morning flight because the hotel forgot to give me a wakeup call. No apology was offered.

When I think of Brassey, I think of lack of attention to detail and the brashness of some of the staff (although as I noted above, most were very professional) - this outweighed the price.

We recently stayed in 2 deluxe queen rooms for 2 nights booked through not1night. I had asked for our rooms to be next to or close to each other and our rooms were across the hall. The location was within walking distance to where we needed to go. As previously mentioned the hotel is also close to the cafes at KIngston. Our rooms were spacious, bathrooms huge (ours included a bath and separate shower).The stairs were narrow and creaked but this was to be expected of the building given its age and history! Loved all the old photos in the hallways, we walked along other hallways just to look at the photos! Had dinner in the restaurant on our first night - food and service was excellent. The buffet breakfast had a good variety, only thing missing was an egg station if you wanted the option for an omelette etc, though didn't ask the staff if this was available as we were satisfied with the choices on offer. Parking is free, which is an advantage over nearby hotels who charge for parking,though carparks are open area. After reading some of the previous reviews I was a bit apprehensive about staying here, but was pleasantly surprised. We would definitely stay here again. Also our experience with not1night was good too considering we amended our original booking from one night to two.

It is a grand old building, that has been well maintained. We love the location, walking to dine at Kingston or Manuka. We had a standard double, which was fine, not flash but good, clean and comfortable. Great value with brekky included, in the lovely dining room. Receptionist could be more welcoming. We had a lovely weekend without the kids and no one was going to spoil it!

I recently stayed at Brassey of Canberra for a work conference. Prior to arriving I googled to see what they looked like and was not impressed. But the photos did not do it justice. I found the rooms where a good size, clean and comfortable.

Only two things were not up to standard. My key failed every time I tried to enter my room, so I had to get it redone at reception, this was annoying.

And the second was the receptionist when we arrived, who was less than helpful. Admittedly she seemed busy, but that was no excuse for her almost rudeness, to us and all the people from my work, who all had a similar experience. So it might pay to do some training in this area of customer relations.

The breakfast each morning was of good quality. And the bar staff at night went out of their way to be service.