The Rocks or Darling Harbour are your top 2 picks within the city. The Rocks being the preferred location.

December is hot in Sydney and you may like to be positioned on one of our beautiful beaches like Manly Beach or Bondi Beach. Both are accessible by public transport.

would the swissotel be okay? could you recommend anything cheaper or better value?

thanks

There's nothing wrong with the swissotel, its just your normal businessmen style hotel in the heart of the CBD. (A solid comfortable stay.)

It depends what you want....

I think being near the Rocks is heaps better position. You do have a similar type hotel like the Swissotel called "Old Sydney Holiday Inn" its located in the heart of the Rocks and a five min walk to Circular Quay/ Opera House/ transport.

Others to consider if you want something cheaper also in the rocks with a little more character.

www.lordnelson.com.au

www.therussell.com.au

Also have a look on www.wotif.com.au for an overview of accommodation available for your budget. Its a fantastic site for understanding what is available in Sydney.

ellemay, thanks for you response to the OP because I was about to post a similar question. I've read the trip advisor comments, and I have gone on Wotif, where the prices are really great.

But we will also be in Sydney at the end of a month long trip to NZ and AU. We'll be arriving on Dec 18th (I know--HOT, but no choice) and coming back to CA on the 21st, so, just 3 nights. Location is more important than fancy, or even view. We generally spend very little time in hotels, but we like to be in the middle of everything. And by the end of this long trip, we need to watch our cash flow, which we'd rather spend on activities than lodging. The way the US dollar is dropping, soon even Zimbabwe's currency will be stronger than ours (heck maybe it already IS)

Anyway, some of the hotels we were looking at you have mentioned: The Russell, Lord Nelson, The Holiday Inn, Sir Stamford and maybe even the Harbour Rocks. I would love to be able to take advantage of Wotif, but since you can only book 2 months in advance there, it does not help me now, and I am concerned about leaving accommodation at that busy time of year to chance. Would it be smart to do that, or to find something now? (Or maybe find soemthing now and then check Wotif later?)

Thanks everyone who reads this and takes the time to respond. These posts are invaluable!

I would book now and check on wotif later. Nothing worse than being disappointed and December is a bust time due to school formals / school holidays/ Christmas office parties etc.etc.

Any of the Rocks hotels you mentioned are all in prime positions regarding transport/ cafés/ restaurants/ and attractions.

If I was on a budget and wanted a comfortable hotel in a prime position I would probably opt for Old Sydney Holiday Inn/ Lord Nelson or if you can stretch the budget Sir Stamford/ Marriott Harbourside/ or Quay West Apartments.

All in TOP positions.

Thanks for confirming our gut instincts (had not even thought about proms, etc!) I will get right on this.

Hello again, I noticed that the Russell does not have air conditioning. As we will be in Sydney from 18-21 of December '08, this seems to be a deal breaker. My question is, how hot does it get in mid-December? I come from an area of very hot summers (104 F yesterday) and when the inside temp hits 82 I turn on my air.

Temperatures in summer can range from anywhere between the mid 20s to mid/high 30s, depending on weather conditions and where you are in Sydney. It depends how comfortable you would be in those temperatures.

bom.gov.au/climate/…cw_066062.shtml has the full details on city weather averages.

The Marriott on College Street (Hyde Park) is an excellent choice, I've stayed there a number of times.

Also, look at the Medina Grand properties near Darling Harbour, fully serviced executive apartments. Also the apartments at Star City are "very" nice.

I like the apartments during the Sydney summer because you have laundry facilities available. We used the laundry at our Medina Grand apartments regularly.

We go through many changes of clothes during Sydney's HOT HOT and humid summer.

Swissotel is OK, been there also. They had washer / dryers available for guest use but they were quite expensive to use.

Lovely city - wonderful people.

In terms of Hotel location, I would say anywhere in the city centre is fine. Sydney is a very, very safe city and very easy to walk around. So just pick the nicest hotel u can afford and go for it.