Hotel review: Abode Hotel Canberra

Abode Kingston is one of the brand’s apartment-style hotels shining a spotlight on Canberra’s suburban spirit.

The Abode Hotel Canberra is a brand sprouting in satellite suburbs all over the city. ‘Abode’ means a place of residence, a house or home. You will find stylish iterations of such humble Abodes in Gungahlin, Woden, Belconnen, Tuggeranong, Murrumbatemen, Malua Bay, Narrabundah and Kingston.

Abode Hotel Canberra ushers in a modern but rustic charm.

Stay in one of these suburban locations and you will learn a lot about the inhabitants of the nation’s capital and how they like to roll. The pull to get away from big-city crowds remains a source of inspiration for visitors to Canberra all year-round. And we reckon it’s time we stopped dreaming and started packing for that weekend escape.

Be it an extended stop-off on the way to the ski fields, a chance to check out the city’s hot new bar scene, the promise of brunch with the in-laws, or the happy pursuit of leaf-peeping, the Australian capital is emerging as a great place to escape. One of the most popular things to do in Canberra is to visit during Floriade, the flower-filled spring festival. There are also great museums and galleries where dilettantes can complete their arts and culture education.

Having explored the delights of Canberra by day, it’s only natural that you will want somewhere comfortable to retire to at night, this is where the Abode Hotel brand comes in.

Every corner at Abode Murrumbateman is squeaky clean.

First impressions

Abode Hotels’ eight properties are located in unique regional and residential areas such as the renowned wine region and sparkling NSW South Coast. Canberra has some of the best restaurants in Australia. But if you’re in the city for business, chances are you will want to stay put. If that’s the case, you can pick up supplies from one of the local farmers’ markets and utilise the kitchen in your self-contained accommodation.

While all the Abode Hotel offerings in Canberra are different, what they have in common is they are designed for those who enjoy all the creature comforts. We have booked into the Abode Kingston for our stay, which has 63 apartment-style rooms, located in the heart of Canberra’s inner-south.

A luxe stay awaits you at Abode Hotel Canberra.

The style of the room

Don’t be surprised if you find yourself feeling right at home within minutes of checking in to an Abode Hotel. This is not your standard, cut-and-paste hotel experience. In fact, the brand’s focus is 100 per cent built around providing a sense of homely comfort.

The staff remember our names and instantly make us feel like we are welcome from the moment we check in at the marble reception desk with terracotta-toned pendant lighting. They truly treat us as if we are part of the family – both Abode’s and the local community.

A stay at the Abode Kingston is the antithesis of staying in a big city hotel. And the challenge presented is in finding the motivation to leave. The rooms are wheelchair accessible and include a balcony.

Your suite opens up to scenic ocean views of Malua Bay.

And forget about organising a pet sitter. Abode Hotels considers all fur babies to be family members, too. For an extra charge, the pet-friendly rooms mean families can keep the whole clan together whether they’re away from home on a work assignment or celebrating with a wine-tasting weekender.

You can book a modern one-bedroom hotel apartment, a king studio or courtyard studio, balcony room, or one that sleeps three (with the addition of a sofa bed).

Ambience of the rooms

Expect a lot of blond wood, rattan and eucalypt greys and greens in the Abode Kingston rooms. Although each hotel has unique design touches that nod to its individual surrounds, they all have a similar look and feel.  Our room reflects the colours of Canberra’s countryside, which has been painted green after recent rains during our visit.

Stay with your furry friends.

Canberra is an easy city to travel with kids. We’ve also chosen to check into Abode Kingston to take advantage of its location in the buzzing Kingston Foreshore precinct. Staying here, in this simple yet stylish room, feels like performing a giant meditative exhale. Guests are encouraged by the friendly reception staff to do what they feel: whether that’s sipping wine in one of the city’s best bars or watching the light outside change from the comfort of your bed.

Sleep on the cosy queen bed.

The rooms are clean and quite minimal and the hotel itself feels like the kind of apartment living we all long for. There’s much to be thankful when ensconced in these rooms, where it feels like Marie Kondo has had a say in the clean lines and minimalist approach. What we love is that a lot of the ambience comes from the lighting.

The ambience of the room is chic and minimalist.

Amenities

The relaxed, serviced apartment-style rooms offer all the creature comforts, such as unlimited free wi-fi, kitchenette facilities, a washer/dryer, rainfall shower, Google STAYCAST streaming, a bar fridge to store your treats and plenty of space to spread out.

The two-bedroom apartment comes with complete amenities.

Book a Continental Breakfast Package and you can enjoy your first meal of the day at leisure in your room.  For the remaining meals of the day, if you want to eat out, you can. But you can also self-cater and get a decent coffee thanks to the in-room espresso machine.

Pull up a chair for afternoon refreshments.

The hotel also has bikes that you can borrow to do a hot lap of the lake. It’s nothing out of the ordinary to see a fellow hotel guest cycling into the horizon on one of the hotel’s bikes, map of the region in hand. They’re likely bound for the local farmers’ markets or heading off on a self-guided scenic route of the neighbourhood.

You can borrow a bike at the hotel’s lobby.

Location

It’s a five-minute drive to the Parliamentary Triangle from this particular Abode Hotel, which is one of the most popular places to visit. Fancy a game of Frisbee? It’s just a two-minute drive to Manuka Oval. Want to check out some of the city’s best boutiques? It’s a 10-minute drive to the CBD. That’s the beauty of a weekend away in Canberra. Make sure you factor in time to see some of the world-class museums and galleries, too.

In-room digital room guide, Your Abode, further encourages self-exploration and local immersion, serving as a modern-day guidebook of each hotel and its surrounding area. In-house publication, A+ Magazine, also features profiles on community heroes and showcases what’s on offer when you peel back the curtain of these under-the-radar destinations.

Abode Apartment Hotels buck the trend of city-centric hotel brands, inviting travellers to instead explore and engage with regional and residential communities across Canberra and surrounds. For those who don’t have time to take a road-trip to Canberra, it’s just a 12-minute drive to the airport.

Abode Hotel is located near the airport and surrounding areas in Canberra.

Restaurants and food available

Abode Kingston is located just a short stroll away from Kingston Foreshore, one of Canberra’s dining and cultural hotspots. Guests at Abode Kingston can enjoy wandering down to the string of acclaimed restaurants, bars, cafes and renowned cultural, national attractions that necklace the Kingston Foreshore.

There are even treats made with midnight snacks in mind. Want to hole yourself up in the hotel? Well, you have our permission. Retreat to the privacy of your room at Abode Kingston and you can have your meal delivered at the touch of a button through Your Abode.

You may opt to prepare your meals or have your food delivered.

Packages

Would you prefer to leave your itinerary to the experts? All of Abode’s eight hotels offer curated packages that are unique to the property’s location and celebrate the area’s natural environment, people and produce.

At Malua Bay, beach lovers can make the most of the coast with a surfer’s package complete with their own surfboard. And those with a nose for adventure in Canberra can book a hot-air balloon ride over the city.

Malua Bay is only a few steps away.

Shared recreational facilities and gardens surround Abode Belconnen, located in a vibrant mixed-use precinct in Canberra’s northwest. Book a cultural highlights package at the Belco locale and you will be in position to cycle loop around public sculptures dotted around the burgeoning arts precinct. Only Abode Belconnen has a restaurant, pool and gym.

All of Abode Hotels’ experiences benefit small businesses in the area, giving these regional and suburban destinations a piece of the tourism pie and easing the risks of over-tourism in our cities.

Check in at Abode Belconnen.

The verdict:

This is a brand that practices what it preaches, supporting local events throughout the Canberra region. Abode Apartment Hotels also sponsor a number of professional and semi-professional sporting teams including women’s cricket team, the ACT Abode Hotels Meteors. It’s rooted in its surroundings and a top spot to stay.

Abode Hotel Canberra is undeniably homey.

Score: 3.5/5

We rated: The fact this is an accessible hotel and there are rooms designed for the mobility impaired.

We’d change: We’d love to see Abode Hotels in Ainslie, so as to take advantage of proximity to the hub that includes Edgar’s, Edgar’s Inn, Mama Dough, and Wakefield’s Bar & Wine Room. It’s one of the best corners of Canberra for eating and drinking.

Notes: Abode Hotels’ properties showcase environmentally minded features throughout, right down to the toilet paper. Abode Murrumbateman has its own water tanks and a communal kitchen where you can cook up a storm with that day’s bounty from the local markets. Just don’t be surprised if your hotel neighbours want to join you for dinner – Abode Hotels is all about family, after all.

As for the cherry on top, by holidaying in Canberra and surrounds, you’ll already be taking steps towards becoming a more conscious traveller. Canberra is the country’s only 100 per cent renewable energy-powered city, and one that is committed to becoming a zero-emissions territory by 2045.

Where: 14 Kennedy St, Kingston.

This article was originally written by Madelin Tomelty and updated by Carla Grossetti.