Dive Hotel

Coogee Beach is a wonderful place. The beach, right across the street from the Dive Hotel, is beautiful and features a nice swimming pool. The Coogee to Bondi path is magnificent. Strongly recommend eating at Sugarcane Restaurant, which is very close to the Dive. The rooms at the Dive are unremarkable. However, the common area (where you'll enjoy breakfast) is relaxed and very pleasant.

Chose this hotel to stay in as thought it was close to the Sydney Airport & it was close to the ocean, a convenient way to start out on our 16 day drive North to Cairns. Being dead tired getting off the long flight we got our car hire & immediately got lost leaving the airport. What would have been a 25min drive was 1 1/2 hrs. Okay our mistake, be sure to have a good GPS system, we foolishly used the IPad too much on the plane. Eventually once we got accustomed to our road guide system we got to the hotel & got checked in. The +’ vs- hotel is right at the beach, it’s a small one. There is free parking-a real +in any area of Sydney, there are several restaurants & food stores within easy walking. The -‘ves- room small, worn looking, looked onto a brick wall. We never did figure how to get the lights turned on but to be honest we were so darned tired we crashed quite early. Receptionist said the lights should have been activated with our room key. The following morning leaving Sydney it took an hour just to get out of the city & it wasn’t morning rush hour. Would we recommend this place or stay there again? Perhaps, depending on where we were planning to visit or travel to next. Not convenient if seeing city attractions.

This hotel is small enough that you feel noticed as a guest. It’s literally only steps from the ocean and the Coogee scene. If you have mobility issues beware, lots of steps no escalator. The check in was friendly and engaging, common room a great place to enjoy a cup of tea. Our king room was in the middle of the first floor, no view but quite spacious (the bathroom is quite tight though) Would definitely return and book a room with a view or balcony to better enjoy the views. Thanks!

Loved staying at the Dive Hotel - located directly across the road from Coogee Beach is a gift in itself, but then to have family-style, open-living dining/reception space and outdoor eating were perfect to begin to relax after 24+hrs on a plane from winter climes. We were greeted with smiles, animal love and treated well throughout our stay, with staff helpful with suggestions. Our room was spacious & comfortable, with kitchenette facilities; while the bathroom was small but functional. We were up early each morning for a walk/swim combination, joining the keen boot campers of the area with a little less intensity. We took local buses into town or up to Bondi junction, which work fine, although are quite slow as they weave through many suburban street stops first. For us, the main disappointment was the lack of innovative nearby restaurants, taking inspiration from the location. We enjoyed Barzura more than Sugarcane of the Carr St crowd, both of which have fun menu/wine options. The Coogee Bay Rd offerings, while covering a wide cross section of cuisines (japanese sushi; italian; thai; spanish; indian; turkish; brazilian; fish & chips; pub grub; burgers), were all fairly casual/basic.

We recently stayed at The Dive and loved the warm informal welcome that we received. We were a little disappointed with our room (it was at the back of the building) it looked dated and quite retro. The bathroom appeared to have had a new shower base, so it was clean along with the bedding which was very clean and crisp. The bed was comfy along with the pillows. The room was cleanish but dull !! I would say that it's a mid range hotel certainly not luxury. Our room was ok in size however, the bathroom was quite small. The breakfast area (although the breakfast was complimentary) didn't appeal to us. We took advantage of the parking as it was convenient. The location is fabulous. Overall, a reasonable stay - would I go back...... not sure!

My husband and I spent a lovely week again at the hotel, with the usual warm welcome from Merecedes, Terry and their team, not forgetting Lucas and Ruby. This was our second visit as it is a home from home. It was great swapping stories with guests around the breakfast table and in the courtyard in the evening. We had an ocean view room which was great as it had a small balcony where we could sit and watch the world go by. The hotel is not only close to the beach but also lots of lovely bars and restaurants. Merecedes always has suggestions of places to go and restaurants to have an evening meal at. We would definitely come back.

We have stayed at Dive plenty of times during the past 8 years and it is an OK, mid-range, boutique hotel, well located at Coogee Beach and if you are fortunate enough to get a front room you get a nice view over Coogee Beach. Not ‘Luxury’, but good sized rooms. Bathrooms, decor and furnishings are aging and rooms have less than Luxury bedding and towels. Nonetheless, perfectly fine. DIY Continental breakfast of cereal, toast, tea, coffee and a bowl of oranges in the communal are was the fare today, as usual and that is fine. Plenty of cafes just down the road if you want the full-on brekky or more varied menu. What WASN’T as usual was the massive hike in the parking charge from $20 to $30 for the night! Not only increased but now ‘Cash Only’! Didn’t object to paying $20 as that isn’t unusual for the area, but that charge previously could be paid by Credit Card when you paid your bill, so theoretically should have been part of a visible, taxable income stream for the business. However, not now. Dive has 5 customer car parks. So If you do the maths this is a potentially, untraceable, untaxed Cash revenue goldmine of $54,750 per annum. It is such a blatant, greedy and unnecessary rip-off that it has really annoyed me. Future guests planning to stay at Dive should be aware of the additional charge to their accommodation cost!

Short stay, mid week. I stayed in room 19, with incredible view at beach and ocean. There is also a small balcony. The room was very spacious, with separate kitchenette. Large bathroom with rain shower and bath. The room was very clean. Free wifi. The airco did not work (there was a note in the room explaining it), which did not matter. The weather was warm (about 24 Celsius and sunny) but large balcony doors provided cool sea breeze. I had a rental car and could park behind the hotel at a parking for AUS 25 per night (hotel has 5 spaces). The beach is just across the (busy) street. Very quiet, mainly because there is no bar or restaurant at the hotel. Next door though is a large hotel / bar / restaurant, so no need. I did not opt for the breakfast in the hotel, but just got a coffee down the street in Coogee. I arrived early around 12 noon but the friendly staff had my room ready for early check in. Very comfortable! There is no elevator, so if you have trouble carrying luggage up the stairs, you could try to book a room at ground floor or ask help from the friendly staff.

Sorry but this hotel whilst having some strong points was not the luxury boutique hotel the websites suggested. We loved the friendly welcome, location and informal atmosphere but from the quite basic rooms to the do it yourself breakfast there was little luxury