2018 – Part 50 Hotel Review Ibis Brisbane Airport
We arrived at the hotel in the middle of the afternoon, and it was quiet. This allowed us to check-in quickly, empty the rental car before returning it, and then return to have a lazy afternoon and evening.
Why an Airport Hotel?
Our next flight, Brisbane to Cairns, was originally scheduled to depart late in the morning. Unfortunately the schedule changed and our particular flight was cancelled — as this occurred 3-4 months before the flight, there was plenty of time to determine alternates. First, the re-scheduled offer was to fly out late, landing at or after 11pm in Cairns. The only other option was the first flight in the morning departing at 6:30am. With another early morning flight departing from Cairns, I wanted to maximized the little time we had in tropical Australia.
With a 6:30am scheduled departure, and baggage to check, I didn’t want to have to manage any traffic congestion and found that both the Ibis and Pullman are a short walk away from the Domestic terminal. With lower rates for the Ibis I booked it using one of their pre-paid rates.
Proximity to the Airport
After we checked-in, I returned the rental car (their office was located offsite) and took the shuttle service to be dropped off at the Domestic terminal. Here I was able to do a dry run of the actual walk between terminal and hotel. In total it was just over 10 minutes without luggage. Signs clearly marked how to navigate through the parking garages to exit to a covered walkway to the hotel.
(Click on any of the pictures below for a larger image)
Walkway between parking garages
Covered walkway with singage
Entrance
Hotels are connected on the lower level
Room
Once we had our keys we easily found our room taking one of the available elevators. Upon entering the room was a decent size. In terms of other Ibis properties, the size felt comparable to the Hamilton Ibis we stayed at the week before at in New Zealand. Everything seemed new and fresh. Our king room faced away from the airport terminal and the blackout blinds were effective in ensuring the room was dark to allow us to sleep.
The bed was comfortable. As typical with hotels in Australia there was a mini-bar to chill any items we may have brought with us. The desk, complete with a few electrical outlets was good, however the chair was more fashion than function as I didn’t spend more than a couple hours sitting there using our laptop.
Bathroom
The bathroom was recently renovated. The walk-in shower was great, however counter space by the sink was minimal. As we only spent one night we didn’t want to unpack many items, however the lack of space would have annoyed both of us had we stayed at the hotel for several nights.
Restaurant
Even though it was possible that we could walk to the terminal and take the train into the city, our lack of energy had us agree on having dinner at Cribb Island Beach Club, their restaurant on the main level just off the lobby.
The restaurant was approximately half full when we visited, and our food arrived quickly. I stuck with a popular item — schnitzel. It was good, and with a float made the meal even more filling.
Filled from dinner we returned to our room and turned in early. With an alarm set before 5am, we wanted to get as much sleep as possible.
Check-out
After our alarm clock had us awake before 5am, we quickly finished packing and headed to the lobby to check-out. Upon arriving at the lobby it was apparent that using this hotel for early morning flights is quite popular as at least 6 people were in line to check-out. A handy feature available that we used was the express check-out. Just drop the keys and head out. With the keys left we then departed towards the terminal.
Read more about our trip by clicking here.