Stayed here for 5 nights on business (conference at the adjacent Exhibition Centre). Rooms clean and well laid out. Most of the staff were very friendly and were very helpful when I asked for things (mainly directions to nearby attractions so I could get an idea of the city). Breakfast was a bit on the dull side. After 5 days, I was certainly ready for a change, but the lady who made the omelettes was very cheerful and made things there were pretty good.

The hotel is located on the edge (rather than in the middle) of the tourist areas of Melbourne. But, the views over the river and city (I was on the 7th floor) were pretty good. Excellent location for the exhibition centre.

Stayed here over Christmas 2006 with my husband and 2 young children. The hotel has changed hands about 3 times in last few years and it shows. We stayed at the Crowne Plaza darling Harbour Sydney before this hotel and were obviously spoilt as this hotel was really disappointing. The room was really small with small double beds and the view that we paid extra for was naff - overlooking building work and the motorway.

The hotel was cold (literally) and the staff not overly helpful. The restaurant was okay in decor but food wasn't very good, not much choice and cold most of the time. We had Christmas lunch in the restaurant and it was the most depressing meal ever! Having been shout at by the manager at breakfast that we all had to leave at 10.30 so they could prepare - although usually open till 11am and we had 2 kids who wanted to unwrap presents before breakfast so had to woolf down our food, we weren't looking forward to lunch and we were right. The food was over cooked and bland with 2 veg, 2 meats and 2 types of potatoes.

The location of the hotel was also not great, apart from Crown Towers, which has a great food hall, shops, casino and cinema, there is nothing else in the vicinity to do and when you have small kids you can’t go gambling!!

The hotel is ok if you are a business traveller staying a night or 2 but not more. It also doesn't help that Melbourne’s best hotel is over the road and has so much more atmosphere, it really rub’s your nose in it that you made a bad choice of hotel to stay in!

Stayed four nights. Room wasn't the largest but comfortable enough and very clean. Bed and linen were fine. Bathroom had all the necessities. Room safe was a bonus. Staff very friendly and helpful. Valet parking at $27 a day was worth the convenience. The hotel is a short walk to Crown Casino and Melbourne Convention Centre. The former has 40 restaurants, cafes and bars so we ate there rather than the hotel. Can recommend Rockpool and Lucky Chan for dinner but not the Jasmine Thai. Probably the worst thai food I have ever been served. The Automatic Cafe is good for breakfast. It's an easy walk into the CBD or you can catch the free city circle tram at corner of Spencer and Flinders after 10am. Telstra Dome is also a short walk away.

I cannot fault the Crowne Plaza. When we were checking in we asked for a 'nice room' - chancing our arms! We were given a choice of views, placed on the top floor looking over the city with the most amazing view of Melbourne. We could lie on the chaise long watching the world go by. The pool was amazing. It was always empty, all glass with nice dim lighting and a jacuzzi. The bathroom in the hotel was fabulous too. The hotel is connected to the Crowne Casino if you fancy a gamble or two! The Blue Train restaurant down the road does really good value food (lovely pizzas). I would recommend this hotel for views and nice, modern rooms, to anyone.