We spent 5 nights in this Hotel using our Marriott Reward points. On checking in we were offered an upgrade to a room overlooking the Harbour but at a cost of $A 30 per night. I said that as an owner of two weeks in Son Antem Mallorca I would have expected this upgrade for free. I was told that if I had Gold Status then we would have been upgraded for free. As I am retired and do not spend time travelling around the UK and Europe I have no opportunity to use Marriott Hotels but I pay maintenance charges for my time share each year of approx £1400. Unfortunately this counts for nothing whereas I feel that as a loyal member of the Marriott family by virtue of my timeshare ownership this would have been recognised as warranting an upgrade when available.
No criticism of the Hotel as it is very comfortable but due to the strong Aussie dollar the food and drink was expensive.

As a Marriott Gold member I was surprised that there was no recognition of the status. The room was small with an unattractive view of the back f a building.

I ad to ask about the executive lounge. breakfast and cocktails very crowded. Had to wait for a seat all 3 days. Did meet some very friendly Americans because we were all crowded in the back room!

Definitely not a god value for the money. The location was great though. Access was easy from the airport. 15 minute train ride and then an easy 5 min walk up Pitt street. Hint: get off at Circular Quay stop.

This is, BY FAR, the nicest Marriott I have stayed at. But, it is still a Marriott, and not a luxury property.

The location is outstanding...literally only a couple of blocks to walk almost anywhere in the area, or have access to the trains/buses/ferries that will take you anywhere you cannot walk. If I ever return to Sydney, this is definitely the location where I would want to be again. It's in the middle of everything you could possibly want to do, but this hotel is also on a relatively quiet street, so there is not too much street noise.

The lobby is modern and "classic hotel." There is a bar and a gift/sundries shop. I will say that I found the elevator layout very challenging...they have a LOT of elevators, so you never wait for very long for one to come, but they are arranged in a line, so you potentially have to run 50 or so feet if the one on the end opens up while you are standing at the other end. I learned after a couple of times to just hang out in the middle of them all and try to keep looking both ways to see which one was going to open. This is easier to do without luggage/packages, and I definitely missed an elevator a couple of times since I could not get to it in time.

I stayed here for 4 nights over New Year's, and had decided to divide up the stay into 2 rooms--2 nights with a city view and 2 nights with a Harbor Bridge view to ease the cost a bit over the holiday period. Upon arrival, I found that they had very nicely upgraded my first 2 nights so I had the Harbor Bridge view for all 4 nights. Since I reserved the room back in February (for a December stay), however, I was very disappointed in the 12th floor room they put me in. Yes, I could see the bridge from the back corner of the window, but I was also looking at the dingy rooftops of a couple of buildings next door. So, I went back to the front desk and asked if they would move me up to a higher floor. After some discussion, they were able to accommodate my request, and they moved me to the 23rd floor, which was a wonderful view, and much brighter. I was also a little worried about hallway noise, especially on NYE, but I can honestly say that the only noise I heard from the hallway for my entire stay was when someone knocked on my door to bring something. I love that this was such a quiet hotel!

I was surprised that they suggested that guests leave the hotel to watch the fireworks. I actually thought that we had a really good view of the fireworks from the window...and while we could not see up and down the river, we had the fireworks on on the tv, too, so had the benefit of watching it out the window and on the tv. Plus we did not have to sit outside in the heat for 9 hours waiting!

The rooms themselves are very modern and comfortable, and as a Marriott Rewards member (free to join online) I received free internet for the duration of my stay. The beds were comfortable, the sheets of nice quality, the tv was about 40 inches (I think) and had a huge array of channels (including some American ones), the desk was comfortable and there was an iron/ironing board in the closet. My couple of complaints about the rooms are that the bathrooms really steam up when taking a shower since there is no door/curtain on them and there is no fan, so if you want to do your makeup/hair/brush your teeth, the mirror is all fogged up and you have to go use the mirror in the room. It also seems like in a property of this caliber there should be slippers provided in the rooms. And, twice during my stay I came back to the room somewhat late in the day (left around 9-ish, returned around 3) and the room had not been made up. I could not understand that. Finally, the rooms do not have the classic luxury of "better" hotels like the Four Seasons or the Shangri-La properties. True, they don't have the prices of those hotels either, but there is something to be said for "extra touches" which are not provided here.

I ate both in the bar in the lobby and also in the restaurant...both are "ok-good." Definitely not great, but the prices were not too bad compared to most restaurants in Australia, and the food was better than average at both.

So, would I stay here again? If I were on a budget, yes...if not, probably I would upgrade to the Four Seasons a couple of blocks away. But since this was a holiday period and the price of 4 nights at the Marriott was the price of 2 nights at the 4S, it was not a tough call, and I definitely enjoyed my stay here. Liked, not loved...but it was overall a good experience.

The hotel location is excellent, at a walking distance from Sydney's main attractions, the Opera House and Sydney Bridge, very close to ferries and in an area with plenty of bars and restaurants. Design of the hotel lobby is impressive with several floors directly looking over the reception area. Check-in and generally speaking service were efficient and professional, informing me straight away about benefits provided by my Marriott Rewards status. My room was spacious, quiet and well-appointed with a widescreen TV panel and a device combining the alarm clock and iPod dock functions. The bed was large and comfortable. All this was probably worth 5 stars. Unfortunately, it was not the case of the bathroom. Certainly, it had been renovated with new sinks, faucetts and a new shower cabin. However, unmatching tiles on walls and on the floor showed that there had not been a full renovation / upgrade but more a kind of modernization. That's a pity as it would better support the rather hefty 279 AUD price tag (breakfast excluded). Breakfast was very good, the buffet offering a large selection of fruits, yogurts, breads and pastries. Although the Marriott Sydney Harbour is undoubtedly a very good hotel it definitely falls short of the 5-star status.