Introduction

I’ve just arrived in Darwin overland on The Ghan train from Adelaide. I’ll be spending three days in Darwin. From here, I’ll be continuing my journey by plane, with a very early departure from Darwin to Cairns. That’s why I figured it would be easiest to book a hotel at the airport, simply to avoid having to wake up even earlier on the day of departure.

Location

The Mercure Darwin Airport is located opposite the terminal building, on the other side of the car park. It’s part of a resort that includes an Ibis Hotel on one side, the Mercure in the middle and a Novotel on the other side facing the airport terminal. The resort is surrounded by lush vegetation. The Mercure has its own pool, which is not very large. But then there’s the larger main pool, which sits between the Mercure and the Novotel, and looks as though it was only recently built.

Check-In

Check-in for all three properties takes place at a centralized reception area right on the corner of the roundabout as you approach the terminal building. It looks so nice, everything is open to the elements and there’s a gentle breeze passing through here in the evenings. The young lady at check-in hands me the key to my room, together with a map of the resort to help me find my way.

Staff & Service

While the location and layout of the resort are really nice, the service and staff are a bit of a mixed bag. Basically, there’s is only one restaurant for the whole resort and the kitchen is very obviously not in a position to cater for all the guests. As a result, no matter what you order, you can expect to wait for at least thirty to forty minutes until the food arrives.

Tropical Pool Villa

I’ve booked a tropical pool villa facing the lush greenery around the hotel. It’s just a short walk from reception, but getting around is, admittedly, a bit confusing.

The villa is fully self-contained and detached. There is a whole row of villas on either side of mine, but only six in total have their own pool.

Inside, the villa looks as though it was refurbished not too long ago. It’s in a contemporary style that emphasizes the use of wood and warm brown colours. I appreciate that in Australia rooms with a double bed usually seem to have a king, and the Mercure Darwin Airport is no exception. The bed is a nice, good size and the mattress has a nice firmness to it.

The bathroom is a good size and features a walk-in shower. The water pressure is excellent and the temperature is easily regulated. There are a few minus points though for flooding. Although, to be precise, this is not caused from spillage directly, but from the water drops splashing and spraying.

The Private Pool

And then, of course, there’s the private pool which you can look out onto from the bed. The sliding doors facing the bed open up onto a small patio with a sofa in the left corner. As it is a legal requirement in Australia, the pool is enclosed. Behind the enclosure is a deck chair with a side table.

The pool is just lovely and offers welcome respite from the midday sun. The temperature variance up here is quite remarkable. During the day it’s about 31 degrees Celsius. But as soon as the sun goes down, it very quickly cools down to the point of being rather fresh.

Amenities

In terms of amenities, there is a welcome card with my name on it when I arrive, together with a complimentary bottle of red wine, some still water and a bowl of fruit. Especially the still water is very much appreciated, as the tap water is badly chlorinated and not very pleasant to drink.

The room also has a Nespresso machine with complimentary Starbucks capsules, as well as a kettle with Dilmah teas and Nescafe. The fridge is empty but for two small cartons of milk.

Dining

As previously mentioned, there are two places to eat for the entire resort, and it‘s obviously not enough. First, there is Splashes, which is the pool restaurant next to the newly built large pool. However, this is not open in the evenings.

And then there‘s Cossies, which is the main restaurant where breakfast is served and dinner is available until 22h00. However, last orders have to be placed by 21h00. The service at both restaurants its simply dreadful. Everything is grubby and looks as though nobody can remember when the place was given a good scrub. The breakfast buffet is really quite offputting. Only tinned fruit is available and there are several blocks of cheese lying together in a bowl in the cooling shelf, of which several have already, and very obviously, started going moldy. There are no individual portions of butter, and instead you‘re expected to scrape off as much butter as you like from a huge slab that is literally covered in the crumbs of all the previous guests who used their own knife instead of the one provided next to the slab of butter.

I also have dinner on my first evening, and that was actually quite enjoyable. Apart from the fact that it took the food a whole fifty minutes to arrive.

Conclusion

The Mercure Darwin Airport Resort is a beautiful property set in a lush tropical garden and the new reception and pool area are very nicely done. I can also highly recommend the pool villas if you want the luxury of a pool and still have your privacy. From what I understand from a chat with one of the staff, over the next few years they’ll be updating and renovating the Mercure and the Novotel in the coming years. I think the restaurant situation needs to be addressed urgently. Apart from the fact that there is insufficient capacity, the dining experience is a serious let down, and breakfast is just plain off putting.