SD › Melbourne › Best Hotels › Sofitel on Collins Review
Updated: January 6, 2022
Essentials
• Location: Collins Street, part of Collins Place.
• Hotel website: sofitel-melbourne.com.au
• Hotel phone: +61 (0)3 9653 0000
• Check prices for Sofitel on Collins

The chic French-inspired Sofitel on Collins features bright, spacious, and luxurious rooms between floors 16 and 50 with magnificent views from full-length windows.
Sofitel on Collins – Glorious high-rise on the city edge, with rare elegance and views.
With charm and style often missing in rivals, the Sofitel is genuinely sophisticated: it sponsors cultural events, regularly displays art in the lobby, and the staff greets guests with a hearty bonjour. With a city-fringe location, accommodations spread from the sixteenth to fiftieth floors and feature abundant floor-to-ceiling windows all over, so that every view is outstanding and among the city’s finest. The rooms and suites are as wonderfully refined and beautifully furnished as expected of this luxurious chain, but there is no pool. Plenty of shops, bistros, and bars, as well as a cinema, are on the lower levels of the hotel building, and it’s very close to theaters and the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).
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Sofitel on Collins – The Location
- Area: Fashionable, with a likable city-fringe vibe and big, beautiful parks nearby, the likes of which are not found elsewhere in the city center. Less than 1.5 km from the Melbourne Cricket Ground (see below).
- Address: 25 Collins Street, on the eastern edge of the city center. Part of Collins Place, a high-rise complex of shops, offices, and eateries. Reception is a floor above street level, but rooms start from the 16th floor.
- Nearest Transport: Bus – Scots’ Church (500m), Tram – Spring St (75m), Metro – Parliament (500m).
- How to Get There: Taxis to/from the airport (23 km) cost around A$80. For about A$20, SkyBus (approximately every 10 minutes, 24/7) takes passengers from the airport to the Southern Cross train station (2 km), but ask SkyBus about a free transfer from the station to the hotel. Otherwise, Starbus shuttles (5 am-10 pm daily) travel directly between the airport and hotel (about A$30).
- Handy to: Melbourne Cricket Ground (see below).
Sofitel on Collins – The Basics
- Guests: Mostly business people during the week and those attending cultural and sporting events on weekends.
- Pets: Not permitted.
- Views: Among the finest in the city. Not within an overbuilt area, so views in all directions include the city streets dotted with historical buildings as well as parks and the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).
- Private Pools/Jacuzzis: A large jacuzzi in each Imperial Suite. No private pools.
- Extras: All sorts of inclusions for Club Lounge members such as breakfast, light lunch, and evening drinks.
- Parking: Valet parking underneath the hotel building. Costs are not as high as elsewhere in the city center.
- How to Book: Booking.com will have the best rates.
- Phone: +61 (0)3 9653 0000
- Email: H1902@sofitel.com
- Website: sofitel-melbourne.com.au
Sofitel on Collins – Amenities
- Pool: Surprisingly, no pool. Simply no space, even on the rooftop which is on the 50th level.
- Spa: None, but these are very rare at inner-city business hotels.
- Fitness Center: Decent enough range of equipment and staggering city views.
Sofitel on Collins – Food and Drink
- Restaurants: No35 Restaurant – On the 35th floor, featuring panoramic views, refined French-inspired dining, and modern art lining the walls. Particularly impressive are the service and wine list. • Sofi’s Lounge – Lobby level and packed with art; casual but stylish. For a wide selection of drinks and sumptuous morning and afternoon teas.
- Bars: Atrium Bar on 35 – Attached to the restaurant and open daily from 5 pm. Stunning décor and views, and an extra-long list of local wines and boutique beers. Also, light meals.
- Breakfast: Not included. Buffet breakfast can be paid for when booking or on the day.
- Room Service: Available 24 hours.
Sofitel on Collins – Rooms
- Room Types: Classic Rooms • Superior Rooms • Luxury Rooms • Luxury Club Rooms • Junior Suites • Prestige Suites • Opera Suites • Imperial Suites • List of all Rooms
- Smoking Rooms: No smoking allowed anywhere on the premises.
- Best Room: The Imperial Suite provides luxuries such as a butler’s pantry, dining room for 8, and a jacuzzi for 2 in the extra-opulent bathroom.
- For Families: Not that well set up for families. Most rooms and suites can squeeze in an extra single bed, while a few also have connecting doors.
Sofitel on Collins – Local Transport
- Public Transport: Every few minutes, trams shuttle along Collins Street (and other roads) just in front of the hotel. Trams also head to suburban areas like South Yarra, Docklands, and St Kilda Beach. All trams are free within the city center and to Docklands. Two blocks west of the hotel is the major train station at Flinders Street (1 km).
- Taxis & Ride-shares: Arrange a taxi at reception or find one along the streets. Uber and Ola operate all over Melbourne.
Sofitel on Collins – What’s Nearby?
Best Nearby Restaurants & Bars
-
Plenty to choose from (including a food court) along the ground and basement levels of Collins Place, the high-rise in which the hotel is located.
- Pope Joan – Classy café alongside the hotel’s main entrance. Al fresco terrace setting, but undercover and distant from traffic.
- Howitt House – Very appealing street-side bistro virtually opposite the hotel. Light meals and world-class coffee. (50m).
- The George on Collins – Finest of several street-side cafés along this part of Collins Street. Colorful tables on the sidewalk and basement bar inside a restored historical building next to the Verandah Café. Contemporary cuisine. (600m).
- Verandah Café – Charming setting inside a historic church. Coffee and light meals at lunchtime. Pleasant stroll west down the street. (600m).
Nearby Shops
-
The Sofitel is spread across the highest floors of a massive high-rise called Collins Place, which also features several levels of shops and eateries as well as a cinema. Fashionable boutiques, meandering arcades, and appealing department stores are in all directions, particularly along Bourke Street, 2 blocks north of the hotel (500m).
Nearby Attractions
-
Less than 1.5 km away, the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) hosts up to 3 games of Australian Rules Football every weekend from March to September. The rest of the year, it holds cricket matches, including the renowned Boxing Day Test Match (from 26th December). Tours also available.
Sofitel on Collins – The Hotel

Sofitel on Collins is located in the less hectic eastern part of the city center.

The building in which the Sofitel is located is 50 floors high, so views are extensive in all directions.

Part of a well-known international chain, the hotel is extremely luxurious and opulent.

The Sofitel takes up the highest floors of the Collins Place high-rise of shops, cafés, and offices.

The reception area overlooks the atrium within the Collins Place building, which is packed with places to shop, eat, and drink.

Just around from the reception area, Sofi’s Lounge is a casual but stylish place for a drink or light meal.

For stupendous views and refined French cuisine, dine at the No35 Restaurant on the 35th floor of the hotel building.

Views from the hotel restaurant are more impressive than almost any other in Melbourne.

Attached to the hotel restaurant on the 35th floor is the classy Atrium on 35 lounge and bar.

Guests staying in the suites and some special rooms have access to the exclusive Club Lounge.

Views from just about every window in the hotel make most guests stop, admire, and, perhaps, take a photo.

Even the well-equipped fitness center offers the sort of views not possible at rival hotels.

All rooms and suites are located between the 16th and 50th floors, so the views are exceptional.

The suites are beautifully furnished and offer many full-length windows.

Views from the higher floors include the Yarra River and Melbourne Cricket Ground.

Alongside the hotel entrance, Pope Joan provides a pleasant setting and tasty meals and coffee.

Also in the Collins Place building and only meters from the hotel reception is an excellent food court.

At basement-level below the hotel, this cinema shows art films not usually screened at larger mainstream cinemas.

Virtually over the road from the hotel is the appealing Howitt House café.

Worth a short stroll from the Sofitel is the charming Verandah Café in a historical Baptist church.

With a colorful setting along the sidewalk and a downstairs bar, The George on Collins is a pleasant walk from the hotel.

Centre Place is one of many fascinating lanes in the city center. It is a few minutes’ walk west down Collins Street from the Sofitel.

The hotel is located between the 16th and 50th floors of Collins Place, a high-rise with plenty of shops and other amenities like banks.

The hotel is located in a quieter section of the city center but the nearby streets are still lined with fashionable boutiques.

Trams frequently shuttle along the street in front of the hotel. All services within the city center are free.

Two blocks north of the hotel is Bourke Street Mall, a pedestrian area with arcades and department stores.

One attraction of staying in the eastern part of the city center is the number of historical buildings along the streets.

Only meters from the hotel are the sort of inner-city parks not found elsewhere in downtown.

A few minutes south of the hotel is the scenic Yarra River.

Close to the Sofitel, Federation Square is a riverside area popular with tourists.

The Forum Melbourne is one of several theaters within a short walk of the hotel.

The cheapest way to travel between the airport and hotel is on the SkyBus.

Costing a little more than the SkyBus, but more direct, is the Starbus shuttle service between the hotel and airport. Check rates and availability: Sofitel on Collins
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