Rydges Sydney Airport

[Jacob L]

Great Shots Adam,
Might consider it myself

[Adam.S]

Thankyou, I am glad some have enjoyed the photos.
I felt a bit self indulgent at the time for putting them online.

Originally Posted by Sarah C

how clean was the glass?

Upon my arrival I was informed that a window-washing crew were to be working on the outside over a potential 2-day period.
During my stay I did not see the window cleaners, although the windows weren't too bad anyway. Only noticeable being a little dirty during the early morning when the sun is shining in directly from the East.

I believe I read somewhere that the windows are cleaned fairly regularly, however I guess it's luck of the draw; all you need is one 'dirty shower' to undo the good work done by the window cleaners who may have just completed their task a few hours earlier!

Being a new building with new glass helps too I think.


Jacob - I think an overnight visit is well worth the pricey stay (perhaps a late checkout too) just to get a fairly detailed perspective of the airport's daily operations. A radio scanner and a real-time internet flight radar website certainly add to the experience.

[Robbie J]

So, I'm assuming there are no open windows to shoot your pictures from? Everything is shot through the glass? What about a rooftop viewing area at Rydge's? Is that on offer?

[Sarah C]

Thanks for the review Adam and answer to my question.

[Adam.S]

Robbie J - Correct, there are no rooms with open windows or a balcony which overlook the airfield. The hotel does offer rooms with a balcony, but they look out to the courtyard area.

http://www.rydges.com/accommodation/...ms-and-suites/

Also of note, all 'Superior' rooms do not have views of the airport, you need to instead book a 'Deluxe' or 'suite' room.
*If using the Hotel as a 'day room', you will be put in a Superior room only*

Booking a 'plane spotters package' is not essential in order to get a room with a view, although a theory I have is that the hotel tries to accommodate guests who book this package with a room located somewhere in the 'middle' of the hotel.
Whereas without booking the package, you may be more likely to be located at either end of the hotel - ie. a room at the Southern end of the building may not provide much of a view of the Northern end of the airfield and vice versa given that the hotel does not run exactly parallel with the airport.

To give you some idea, here is an external photo of the hotel:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/2951328...2235/lightbox/

I stress, this is just a theory of mine and I may be quite incorrect.
Regardless, booking any Deluxe room will provide you with a great view of most (if not all) of the airfield.

As for the rooftop - I am unsure what kind of access is available to guests for photography. You would have to check with the hotel first. Would be great if it could be done though.


A interesting article about the best plane spotting hotels around the world mentions Rydges at Sydney.
http://www.globalairportcities.com/p...1/entryID=1216
(London Heathrow's hotel looks good too!)





Admin Update:

Some photos of the Rydges Sydney Airport Hotel Dreamliner Room view and Viewing Deck.

http://yssyforum.net/board/showpost....0&postcount=36

Kurt A.

[Adam.S]

I have finally got around to uploading the photos from my stay at the Stamford Plaza Sydney Airport Hotel from a visit back in August 2013.

The photos are not of the highest quality compared to what other group members here have produced, however I thought I would share them as they provide a good perspective of the airport's overall daily operations; as well as showing what views of the airfield this hotel has on offer to compare with that of the Rydges Sydney Airport Hotel
My Stamford Plaza photos:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/295132...7644846781725/

and again my Rydges Hotel photos:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/295132...7640753878254/

Cheers.


(Not sure if I should have started a separate thread for this, however thought having the web links here in the same thread makes for a good comparison between the two hotels)

[Grahame Hutchison]

Certainly a great selection of liveries on September Day 2 Adam

[Adam.S]

Originally Posted by Grahame Hutchison

Certainly a great selection of liveries on September Day 2 Adam

That is true Grahame, some days are certainly more 'colourful' then others.

It is amazing to see how the airport 'scenery' changes over time; whether it be changes to aircraft liveries, or types of equipment and/or Airlines which no longer fly into Sydney any more.

Each photography outing to the Airport really does act as a 'snapshot' of the current-day operations of the time.

[Stephen Brown]

Geeks and others,

Just a follow up. If you have the cash the room to get at Rydges is 805. It is the room directly underneath the viewing deck and has panoramic floor to ceiling views of the airport. It can get a bit pricey though. But you can relax and watch all the activity from the comfort of your hotel room.


Taken from inside the room through the glass.

[Greg Hyde]

Maybe open balconies over an airport may be a security issue. (RPG's etc)

Also Rydges may have "self cleaning glass", no kidding it does exist.