Hotel Review

Samphire Rottnest Island Review

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Immanuel Debeer | 28/01/2021

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66/ 100

Our Rating

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  • 10/ 20
    Location & Cost
  • 15/ 20
    Hotel Design
  • 9/ 20
    Room Design & Amenities
  • 16/ 20
    Service & Facilities
  • 16/ 20
    Food & Beverage
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Pros

  • Best luxury accomodation on Rottnest Island
  • Unique location
  • Restaurant is fantastic

Cons

  • Overpriced

Rottnest Island, right off the Western Australian coast, isn’t exactly known for luxury holidays. While some enjoy that aspect of the island, others (myself included) have been longing for something a little bit more luxurious.


So when Samphire Rottnest Island was announced, naturally I had high hopes for this new hotel/resort. Last week, the hotel finally opened, and even though I had booked my room months in advance, I had no idea what to expect.

Rottnest Island Western Australia

Booking Samphire Rottnest Island

Bookings can only be made direct. As it stands Western Australians are still locked up in their own state, so the management at the hotel is seizing this opportunity to cash in; and who can blame them!

When trying to figure out which room to book, I was amazed and slightly confused by all the different room types available, especially considering the big price differences and lack of room details available on the website.

In the end, I settled for the “Beachfront super king suite” at a staggering $635 a night. I figured that since it was a suite, the price would be justified…

I expect these prices to come down in the future when W.A. opens up again to the rest of the world and the country, but in the meantime, Samphire Rottnest is the latest “hot” destination, so I expect they will be very busy this summer!

Getting There

I don’t visit Rottnest often. In fact, I’ve only been 2 or 3 times in the 10 years I’ve lived in Australia. So instead of catching the expensive and boring ferry, I opted for the Rottnest Air Taxi which can be booked for $495 return for up to 3 passengers. If you’ve never flown to Rottnest and feel like splurging a little bit, I highly recommend it!

Checking In

A day before our arrival, the hotel concierge called up to welcome us and see if there was anything she could book. I decided to book dinner at the new restaurant and breakfast for the next day (yes, oddly you have to book for breakfast). I also asked if there was any chance of getting picked up from the airstrip and although that seemed like an odd request to them, they organised for someone to meet us there.

Since we arrived at 12:30, we decided to try out the restaurant for lunch while we waited for our room to be ready. Around 2 PM, I checked again on the room which still wasn’t ready (apparently).

The Room – Beachfront Super King Suite

When we finally got the keys, I was somewhat disappointed with the room. By no stretch of the imagination could you classify this as a suite, let alone a “super king suite” and at $635 a night I would expect slightly more. The size of the room would be a “standard” room at any other luxury hotel and considering for the same price you can stay at some of the best hotels in Australia/Perth (Ritz & Como), I would think twice about returning.

On paper, the “beachfront super king suite” sounds nice, but there isn’t much view of the ocean or beachfront to be had. Instead, you are served with the Rottnest Island walkway which is right in front of your room. When you are enjoying the outdoor space, you might feel like a monkey in a cage while the rest of the island walks past your room and has a clear view. If you prefer privacy (like we all do), don’t book the ground level rooms.

Inside, the room could be described as minimalist. It’s not bad, but it feels slightly basic, maybe a bit sterile. The bathroom was almost as big as the “suite”, and while I love a large bathroom, this one just felt like a wasted space.

Samphire Rottnest Island bathroom

I wish they spent a bit more thought (and perhaps money) on the finishes of the room to match the price tag.

Samphire hotel Rottnest Island review

Samphire Rottnest Pool & Facilities

In the middle of the hotel is the pool area, which feels a bit caged in thanks to all the prominent fencing surrounding it. I understand that it’s hard to work with Australian regulations to create a beautiful pool area. Still, I’m sure there are more creative ways to include a secure pool area without compromising on design.

Samphire hotel Rottnest Island pool

The pools themselves are not heated and on the small side (granted there’s plenty of ocean right next door).

While the hotel doesn’t have a gym, they do offer fitness and yoga classes daily. I don’t think these were running yet while we stayed so I’m unsure if there’s an extra charge.

Service & Staff

For most of our stay the staff at the hotel were great, and it’s hard to fault them considering they just opened. However, there were a few occasions where the attitude let down the whole experience. When you stay at a hotel that advertises itself as a luxury destination, as a guest, you don’t want excuses. Instead, you want staff that can accommodate your requests to the best of their ability.

To give you an example; when it came to checking out, I asked if there was the possibility of a late checkout. The resolute answer was “no, we’re fully booked”. While that might be the case, there’s no harm in counter offering a 1h or even 30 minutes later checkout time. My next question was if it was possible to get a lift to the airport. The response was “we’re very busy, and it’s our grand opening today”, as a paying guest I couldn’t really care less about how busy you are or how much more important your other guests maybe…it’s not like I was asking for a kidney transplant! After pointing this out, the request was met, and we did end up getting a lift back to the airfield (it’s a 1km ride).

Lontara Restaurant Review

The brand new Lontara restaurant on Rottnest Island was fantastic! Headed up by Quim Hernandez and Will Meyrick, the restaurant draws inspiration from South-East Asia with some top Western Australian ingredients.

The food was outstanding, and while the service was a bit slow, the staff (mostly European) were very friendly and accomodating.

Lontara Rottnest Island

The restaurant is all outside (I believe there’s an inside portion which is yet to be finished?) and space is limited, so make sure you book before you arrive on the island.

On our second night, we tried to book in the morning but learned that “sorry the restaurant is fully booked”, instead of offering to put us on a waitlist the hotel staff just left it at that. When I later checked directly with the restaurant staff, it turned out that there were plenty of tables…

Lontara Restaurant Review Rottnest Island

Lontara is also the place you go for breakfast on the island. Unfortunately on our second day, we learned that at 9:30 AM (we arrived at 9:38 AM) the kitchen was already closed! I felt that they could be more accomodating, especially towards hotel guests. I don’t know many hotels which close breakfast at 9:30 AM, especially considering it is not included with the price of the room.

Lontara Restaurant

Best Rooms At Samphire Rottnest

When booking a room at this hotel, don’t be misled by the website description. Here are the best room types (in my opinion):

  • Beachfront Upper Super King Suite: best for views and privacy since you’re on the 1st level overlooking the beach. (just don’t expect an actual suite, more like a standard room in terms of size)
  • Poolside Upper King Suite Ocean View: cheaper than the ocean side but still more private compared to the ground floor rooms which are directly adjacent to the pool

I would avoid anything described as “beach lane”, it’s not a beach lane. These rooms overlook the bungalows next door which look terrible. Also, avoid the “Beachfront” rooms on the ground floor unless you like to be stared at by every person using the walkway right next to your room.

Summing Up – Samphire Rottnest Conclusion

Did I enjoy my stay, yes! Will I go back? Probably not. Whilst the hotel is nice enough, I really missed the “wow” factor I was expecting from a hotel at that price point. Is it the best accommodation on Rottnest? Absolutely! There’s nothing else on the island that appeals to me personally in terms of accommodation. Hence, in that regard, Samphire Rottnest is a welcome addition, but when you factor in the cost of getting there, it is not exactly value for money.

Hotel Details

  • Address:
    Rottnest Island WA 6161
  • Phone:
    (08)929 25011
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Immanuel Debeer

Chief points nerd and travel hacker at Flight Hacks

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  1. Fantastic review and sums up our experience last weekend.
    An addition on the practical side regarding rooms, nowhere to hang anything in the bathroom so we hung on the balcony. It rained overnight and everything was drenched
    The staff were fantastic – no fault there

    • Thanks for the comment Dayle! I must have missed the hooks but it’s a very valid point you make, especially being on Rottnest where it’s a given that you’ll end up in the water at some stage.

  2. This is a very kind review! You have hit the nail on the head though. I had low expectations prior to heading over but was shocked by our experience. I feel sorry for people paying good money to stay here. The accommodation looks similar to what you would find in a mine camp. Not sure if sound proofing is good so that may be an issue going forward. When we stayed much of the communal areas weren’t finished. Several staff commented that they wanted to wait 4 more weeks to open. For example the restaurant isn’t complete so we dined in the cold, wines hadn’t arrived yet and construction generally was happening eg: landscaping, paving, painting, carpentry. Construction was mainly being finished in the central pool area including nail guns being used close to guests, scaffolding was present and barriers to the children’s pool were in place. Drilling was happening outside our hotel room door and reception rang to ask if work could occur in our bathroom. There were no paintings in rooms, no hooks to hang towels, generally the furnishings are hard. We had to ask about 10 times to get a portacot set up. We were locked out of our room as apparently the computer system registered us as checked out. We gained access to our room to find cleaners in there and when we did check out one of the cleaners asked us what room we were from as they weren’t being advised correct information from reception. Staff are presentable and polite but if you have an issue there is a sort it out yourself attitude – don’t expect to feel special or pampered. I would really not recommend this hotel if you crave luxury or peace and quiet or are disabled (as pathways/ramps are not complete and lots of construction is occuring). Overall the hotel opening as an unfinished product is very disappointing and staying in a unfinished hotel isn’t enjoyable. I am not sure how the hotel was approved by government authorities for opening. I never would have thought using nail guns in close proximity to customers is ever a good idea as well as having partial barricades to separate construction work and customers.

    • Thanks for your comment Michelle! I tried my best to give an honest review, maybe I’m getting soft haha!? 😀
      I 100% agree with the “sort it out yourself” attitude, I hope they will try setting a higher standard as time goes on. Personally, I had high expectations, which were based on the price they charge per room. I’m not sure what room type you booked but our suite was a far cry from being what they advertised. I do agree that they should probably have finished construction before opening, it’s not acceptable to be paying luxury prices just to watch tradies firing their nailguns around the pool.

      • My parents booked an ocean view room but as they booked early it was approximately $300 per night. Later they booked a room for us with pool views for approximately $350. My parents asked to be near our room and were relocated to a pool view room. I think the ocean view rooms have increased in price significantly to approximately $700. When you add in ferry and breakfast costs it becomes expensive and there is no sense of luxury or quality. It was good to find your honest review, I hope they sort out the management side of things but really it is a cheap hotel at crazy prices…even $200 per night would be expensive!

        • $200 a night, you are kidding. I wonder where you usually stay? Like it or not Rottnest Accommodation has always been 25% more than mainland, I think because of the Rottnest Island Authority surcharges. We are paying $400 per night for a poolside room and whilst it’s probably comparable to $300 ish in Perth, we are on an Island, with no cars, wildlife all around us and the beautiful Indian Ocean 50 metres from where we sleep. Let’s celebrate it, not knock it. I haven’t been game to stay a night on Rottnest for 20 years given the quality of what else is here (Pinky’s excluded) but this is great. We booked again for March, hope to see you back!

          Ps. Minor work still continues but it’s early days, so I am prepared to cut them some slack. Enjoy…

          • Hi Sean, great to see you enjoyed Samphire! If I were to stay again, I’d probably opt for an upstairs poolside room too. This seems to be the best value proposition in terms of their offering. Cheers, Immanuel.

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