Apartments @ Kew

When this prestigious group of eleven serviced townhouses was newly built some 10 years ago it held one of only a dozen 5 star ratings in the whole of Melbourne. It has played host to world dignitaries, tennis elite and the odd Hollywood actor or two. Today some of the shine has started to wear off but that now translates into exceptional value for money, especially for families looking for the space of a full townhouse without having to pay a king’s ransom.

These townhouses represent some of the best family accommodation within the serviced accommodation sector. They are much larger than your average apartment, have kitchens that are not only full size but very well equipped and the location is in a beautiful quiet tree lined street close enough to walk to major shopping facilities.

Surrounded by multi-million dollar properties, as you arrive at the property you realize the location is prized. Access to the secure basement car park is via PIN and there you will find two tandem car spaces marked with your townhouse number. Keys can be collected by prior arrangement from one of the key safes and two stairwells provide access up to a central podium. From here a quick look around will identify your townhouse number.

As you enter the townhouse you note that the soft toned colour scheme with red granite bench tops is starting to get a little dated yet the place is immaculate. With the spaciousness and homely furnishings you also realise this will be a relaxing stay. You find that the property is better equipped than most other short term accommodation and it actually has all the essentials to make a longer term stay comfortable. Small touches like a decent amount of cutlery and crockery, over 100 Foxtel channels combined with the ability to play a dvd and even full sized appliances in the kitchen and laundry make life easy. It is also amazing how necessary mops, brooms, dustpans, buckets, vacuum cleaners, clothes racks and other such simple things become when staying for several weeks.

You pop out into your private rear courtyard and note that the outdoor furniture isn’t just flimsy plastic but solid hardwood and you also make a mental note to request an optional portable electric bbq for some alfresco dining. Then you venture upstairs to find two or three bedrooms and a main central bathroom. If you have chosen a two bedroom townhouse you find a king sized bed in the master bedroom and a two person corner spa in the main bathroom. If you have chosen a three bedroom property you find a queen sized bed in the master bedroom and an additional private ensuite bathroom.

After staying for just a week you start to know the friendly Park Avenue housekeeping staff and if you have had any maintenance issues you find yourself surprised at how quickly they were fixed. A week or two on and you are really getting to know the people in the other serviced townhouses, many of them are relocating like yourself and looking for a long term rental or to buy into the area.

Just prior to vacating you fill out the guest comments sheet thanking the Park Avenue staff for their excellent service and you also write that it was a pleasure to stay somewhere where the marketing had painted such an accurate picture. You swap phone numbers with your new friends and head off to your permanent home realising that not all temporary accommodation is the same.