Hearthstone Inn Sydney

The hotel seemed like an okay place to stay, especially if the price is kind on the budget. There were some strengths and there were some weaknesses still to be overcome it seems, judging from recent reviews posted online. The hotel's strengths were clean rooms that were found to be comfortable, a great chef putting out well-liked meals, friendly staff and the location.

Many guests found comfortable and clean rooms at this hotel. Some said they were spacious with comfortable beds and a couple of guests added that they enjoyed quiet rooms.

Guests liked the location and said it was close to shopping, convenient to major highways and the Cabot Trail, and on the main street for getting into town, only a 4-minute drive away. Others used it as a base for accessing a few area attractions by car that were all within an hour's drive and some guests found the location convenient to the ferries to Newfoundland, about a 25-minute drive from the hotel.

Staff were well liked for being friendly and helpful by many guests.

The chef and restaurant were a bright spot for several guests who really enjoyed the dining on site.

Some guests felt the laundry facilities and the pool added value to their stay.

First of all, the property appeared tired to some and the hotel had some maintenance and housekeeping issues. It seems that the property is older and that it can use some upgrading.

A couple of guests complained about the heating, saying it was difficult to maintain a constant temperature or that it took 3 hours to heat up the room. A couple of guests said the Wi-Fi was poor. A couple of guests said the pool was not heated at all and was freezing cold. A couple of guests were disturbed by either the smell of smoke in a room or what was described as a mouldy smell. 

Housekeeping sometimes dropped the ball. One guest said they were given a room where the phone and TV didn't work and the room was dusty, and another accused the housekeeping staff of not making the bed nor replacing the towels.

A few guests found uncomfortably soft beds.

The free breakfast was the subject of mixed reviews, where some said 'great' and some said 'terrible'.

Last of all, one guest claimed to have been charged $20 extra over and above the online rate that they had already paid.