Hotel 181 The Esplanade (Cairns, Australia)

The hotel is an easy walk to the town centre of Cairns with numerous markets, restaurants, and entertainment options. For travel purposes, the airport and rail stations are quick drives away.

The apartments are spacious and are fully functional spaces to live in for an extended time. The multiple bedrooms and baths are great for families. The laundry facilities and the underground parking are nice feature for convenience purposes.

The views from many units are simply gorgeous. Those with ocean views can look at the water with no obstructions. Other views include looking over the beautiful tropical garden, the waterfront area of the harbour, and the esplanade area.

The hotel does not have regular cleaning services and is considered "self-catering". This translates into you cleaning up your own messes for the duration of your stay as you'll likely have no cleaning service unless an arrangement is made and paid for. Many rooms and common areas suffer from this lack of attention and look unkempt.

Many of the rooms show signs of wear and tear. There are older appliances and air conditioning units that are in disrepair and can be problematic when used. TV reception is poor and the kitchen utensils have seen better days.

The staff is largely indifferent to the quality of your stay. Complaints or questions will receive shrugs instead of action. The lack of toiletries and largely nonexistent Wi-Fi lessen the pleasure of the stay.