The Hydro Majestic Hotel

If we had paid $200-300 per night for our room at the Hydro Majestic, I would be rating it four or five stars. However, we paid about $600 per night for the second highest room category at the property, and it was definitely not worth the money.

The room itself was a major disappointment. Yes, it had spectacular views out of sliding glass doors to a balcony, but the room itself was incredibly cramped, fraying around the edges and need of a refresh. We were surprised that the sliding doors were permanently locked, so we could not go out and enjoy the balcony.

The lobby, dining room, bar and long corridor leading to the rooms are grand and beautiful, with old-world elegance and charm. Many of the other common areas, however, are less grand and seem sort of sad and abandoned. The Hydro Majestic must have been an exquisite property in its day, but that day was a long time ago.

The dining room and bar get direct sunlight when the sun is setting and the staff lower blinds to block the glare. That makes it difficult to enjoy the views (which are the main attraction of the Hydro Majestic) during happy hour and dinner.

Service is generally competent, but not what one would expect from such an expensive hotel. The vast majority of the public-facing staff are young foreigners on a working holiday in Australia. They are sweet and earnest, but that's no substitute for the seamless service provided by experienced professionals. One exception was the Armenian gentleman in the dining room, whose excellent customer service is exactly what we would have expected at a hotel of this stature.

You'll probably like the Hydro Majestic if you can ignore the prices and lower your expectations of an exquisite five-star experience.

I love going to the Hydro Majestic but it is starting to desperately need some repairs and maintenance doing on it. Paint peeling off the walls, carpet looking dirty and very worn. Attention to detail with cleaning needed. Our airconditioning in our room not working properly so we checked to see and the filter had not been cleaned for a very long time. The fluff was so thick no wonder it couldn't work. Cleaned it out and worked really well. Meals nice, staff very friendly and helpful. Boiler house very very disappointed with both staff and food.
Maybe time to look for a new destination

The hotel is definitely lovely and has lots of old world charm. The rooms can be basic but have everything you need. The views, the staff and the breakfasts are my favourite part. Sitting in the comfy armchairs with a drink looking out into the valley while it was raining was a highlight.
My only gripe was the state of the shower. Black mold all through the tiles on the floor, on the paint on the wall and the ceiling. At this price point that shouldn’t be happening. I don’t mind the older bathrooms and things looking a bit weathered but the mold is poor form.

We had a very peaceful and relaxing stay at the Hydro Majestic hotel. Just what one needs before the silly season kicks in. The ambience, the welcoming staff and the overall cleanliness was fabulous. We caught the train to the hotel from Sydney and the hotel is only a short walk to the Medlow Bath station.
Specifically thankyou to Mahesh and your team for being such wonderful ambassadors for the hotel. My husband enjoyed the history tour. I enjoyed my jalapeno margarita at the Belgravia lounge.
Buffet breakfast was awesome and the pizza's at the Boiler house were delicious.
We also dined at Wintergarden but it was foggy and misty on that night so no sunset view possible. The service was impeccable and whilst it is fine dining so don't turn up hungry should be experienced at least once during your stay.
I highly recommend this hotel and yes we will be back in 2026!!!

My darling husband booked three nights including High Tea and Wintergarden dinner for my birthday, having told me many times about staying with his parents in this historic hotel when he was a kid. We arrived the day after the Bondi massacre and to be honest I was feeling like s*t. Still am. However - if anything could do you good, this is the place. Ironically, given the location, we arrived and spent the first 36 hours in thick cloud! But the Belgravia lounge - its deep lounges, its quiet calm, its enormous windows - soothed me, and after bar snacks and a few fantastic negronis we strolled through the hotel and were thrilled by its history. The following morning we relaxed in the deep-red chinoiserie surroundings of the Salon de The and read books, went for a walk, and later had a truly impressive dinner in the Wintergarden - we have high standards and were genuinely impressed by the food. Finally the cloud lifted the next day, and our Valley View room was worth what we paid - the view is miraculous. Our High Tea was in contrast with dinner a bit ordinary - less fresh, less delicious, but good scones and when we asked for extra cream and jam, the wait staff didn’t stint. We absolutely loved this experience and are already planning to return. By the way, we came by train which is very easy; the station is 7 minutes’ walk away.

We were welcomed with open arms and treated like absolute royalty. Yes its a gorgeous place but its the staff that makes this place exceptional. It was such good value for money. Next time i will book a valley view room.

What a terrible experience. So very disappointing - from first being seated to leaving, utterly underwhelming. As we sat down, we were told we had a 90-min window on the table. There was one other table occupied (in total) so they were far from busy. Took 45 minutes to receive our order in full (half of the orders arrived about 10-mins before). Food was average - that is being generous. At the 90-min 'mark' we were told we had to leave as there was another booking and the bill was placed on the table. We were not asked if we'd like another glass of champagne/anything else - just given the bill. I pointed out the lengthy delay in receiving our food and the guy 'in charge' left us alone for a bit. Funnily no one arrived sweating on the table. So he lied. At this point, no one had brought our tea for the so-called 'high tea', and we were going to have more champagne but gave up on that. Half an hour later and the rude staff member from earlier was telling us he'd given us 2-hours and we had to go. Absolutely disgusting. Then, of course, they don't take cash and there was some protracted process trying to pay, Some butler guy at reception asked us how our experience was as we left and when I told him a little of what happened he just walked away. ...old world charm my arse. Old, tired and out of touch.

Had an overnight break in Blue Mountains and decided to stay at the famous Hydro Majestic as we had heard it was quite the heritage hotel with stunning views, and we were delighted with our stay!

Our room was a good size with a very comfy bed and lovely bathroom, it’s worth paying the extra to get the best rooms.

But the view was the standout feature, a clear panoramic vista of the Blue Mountains, we pulled the sofa chairs over and just watched the sunset, beautiful!

Special shoutout to Mahesh who looked after us so very well and made it a really memorable mini break for us

We stopped here for the view and ended up staying for a lovely meal at the Boiler House followed by an amazing dessert & coffee in the cafe. Staff were very nice and the views were truly spectacular. The building itself is worth the visit; an old grand hotel. Next time in the neighborhood I will plan to take a tour of the facility, and maybe even stay the night. Highly recommend this stop on your way to/from Blackheath.

My partner and I enjoyed (at last) a night at the Hydro after having to postpone in October 2025 due to rapid onset illness. Special thanks to Mahesh at Reception and Manager Adam for acknowledging our special circumstances and facilitating the change of date. Very clean and well styled Heritage room with lovely garden view, and an excellent dinner at top tier restaurant.

Excellent service and food ! Be sure to take the the hydro history tour with Danny. It is informative and amusing!

Sam & Jean

Hard to beat the spectacular views and ambience of the Wintergarden Restaurant. However, you go to a restaurant for the food and service.
Unfortunately both were ordinary. We had the traditional High Tea. Whilst well presented, the bread in tbe sandwich had dried, the scones were dry and crumbly as opposed to warm, fresh and moist. The little sausage roll had been over heated with the pastry dry and hard.
The waiters were friendly enough, but weren't easy to flag down, they did not scan the room.
We ordered an extra milk, hot water and pott of tea. They forgot the latter and we had to remind them of the pot of tea.

It was my friend’s birthday, so I invited her to High Tea at the Wintergarden, with its panoramic views to the Valley : and then came the afternoon tea platters. We had the traditional version and an oriental one, which had such an array, we didn’t know where to start! There were also beautifully crafted sweet delicacies that looked too fine to eat, but we did!! Thank you to the dear folk who created all of this and the birthday message.
We then took a tour through the Hydro with the History guide Mahesh: he explained the story and personalities behind the building, and highlighted features as we strolled the length of the buildings. We delighted in the striking decor of the many public rooms, as Mahesh gave more insights such a secret passageway!
Our hour long amble ended at the Pavilion Cafe, where there are artifacts to view. It was a truly memorable birthday celebration!

We spent two wonderful nights at the Hydro Majestic Hotel. We loved the feeling of the yesteryears and our room had a beautiful view overlooking the Megalong Valley.

The staff were courteous, respectful and helpful , especially the Duty Manager - Mahesh Kumarasena and Tara who were very attentive to our needs.

The buffet breakfast was plentiful and catered for different dietary needs (as far as I could work out) and again the staff were courteous and attentive, especially Emma.

All in all, we spent two wonderful nights and would recommend the Hydo Majestic for those who appreciate the yesteryears.

Just a stunning place to stay. When you walk in your greeted with a smile and made feel welcomed. Beautiful surroundings A nice place to relax and feel like you’re going back into time.

tl;dr: view - spectacular; atmosphere - tired and a tad dingy; dinner - expensive but decent; breakfast - awful; service - hit and miss; rooms - tiny and over-priced; value - non-existent; amenities - not great, pub-quality; cleanliness - mostly satisfactory, except for the common bathroom facilities; noise level - acceptable for the valley view rooms, but too near the highway for comfort elsewhere.

The building is well-decorated, but stands in need of serious renovation works. When you pay this much for a room, you expect the hotelier to invest in the maintenance and upkeep of the building to the extent that exterior concrete is clean and weeds don't grow between the cracks, that woodwork doesn't look like it hasn't been touched by a tradesman since 1928, and that bathrooms are somewhat better than an average pub. The Hydro, sadly, is less than Majestic today, and seems to be valued as a opportunity to leverage the natural beauty of the setting in order to relieve guests of more than the actual value of the accommodation provided.

We booked two nights in a "Heritage Valley View Room". Bad move. The rooms are cramped and uncomfortable, and while one expects the other rooms to be more spacious, the value proposition doesn't stack up. Even the Heritage Rooms cost more than an average 4/5 star room of similar dimensions (though seriously, I have *never* encountered a 4/5 star room as confining as these). Even the ensuite was more comfortable than the room itself! The furnishings (billed as 'art deco inspired') were at least tasteful, though felt somewhat out of place. The lipstick on this pig was, indeed, artfully applied. But it's still, unquestionably, a pig.

The view was spectacular, but inadequate compensation for the intense discomfort of squeezing oneself into the shoebox-like dimensions of this well-appointed torture chamber. A room this small, one imagines, must have been staff accommodation rather that guest accommodation according to the original design, and a single bed would certainly have left sufficient space for a single person to dwell in modest comfort. The "queen size" bed - which was a tad narrow in my view - left far too little space for even one guest to feel any degree of comfort. Set your expectation of the Heritage Room to that of a sleeping pod, and you might be pleasantly surprised, though not with the price tag. As as a regular hotel room it disappoints most intensely.

The Belgravia Bar provides a comfortable common lounge, oriented around the panoramic view of the Megalong Valley that the building has been built to utilise to maximum effect, and does so extremely well. However, the splendour of nature is framed by inadequately maintained masonry that leaves the guest feeling a little cheated. The baby grand piano resting invitingly at one end of the room sports a laser printed "Out of Order" message affixed to the fallboard with sticky-tape. Just another invitation to a disappointment party. The gentleman's facility adjoining the lounge features a tastefully decorated vestibule that opens into a period bathroom that carries it's age well, but fails to inspire confidence in the level of hygiene due to the evident age and state of deterioration in the flooring and fittings. There is, however, sufficient soap on hand to instil a modest degree of confidence that standards are maintained in line with regulations if not with value.

Dinner at Wintergarden Restaurant was a highlight of the stay at the Hydro. The menu was well executed and met expectations, though a little expensive all things considered. The service was impeccable, however, and meets with our approbation. While we intended to sample the two-course menu upon entering, the quality of the meal was it's own advertisement and we elected to add dessert. The food and service did not disappoint, but it too fell just a little short of the expectation that the price establishes. I'm glad I experienced it once, but would not be tempted to pay twice.

The continental breakfast, by contrast, was a thorough disappointment. A 100% 'average' offering with a price tag that evokes wonder for all the wrong reasons. Astoundingly, the self-service buffet on offer does not include any kind of coffee service, prompting the bewildered guest to ask the staff (on the rare moments they actually appear after taking your room number for billing purposes) if coffee is provided at all. The waitress I encountered advised they could indeed take my order, and dutifully produced, with acceptable promptness, a thimbleful of my desired beverage which was unceremoniously plonked - albeit without spillage, but nonetheless, 'plonked' is the only accurate description of the manner of execution. I was truly in awe of the skill it took to cast, as it were, such a tiny cup and saucer upon my table without any eye-contact. It's difficult to describe the effect produced too, by the happy-go-lucky "cheers, mate!" cast over the shoulder in what I assume was my general direction as the waitress swiftly trotted at as seemly as pace as possible back to the kitchen, presumably to avoid needless conversation over the size of the cup and the disparity between it and the general expectation guests would have of a "large flat white". A more satisfactory breakfast can be had across the highway in Medlow Bath, and I highly recommend avoiding the "complimentary breakfast" option, even if you have already paid for it.

This is a place that I have driven past many times and always admired the splendour from the outside and imagined how it may have been back in the good old days. An opportunity presented itself to not only stay at the hotel but we availed and did the complete dinner bed and breakfast package.
We opted against the room with a view as a price differential of circa $400 seemed excessive, however it is possible that the rooms with views are larger. It is not possible based on the price, they could be smaller, regardless of the views.
Upon arrival we met with the perfunctory front desk manager who checked us in and then delivered her monologue on the hotel etc. This kind of set the scene for the next 12 to 14 hours.
When we went to our room, its immediate impact was too have us thinking of Paris. Not for the grandeur of the city itself but more the hotel rooms where if you took a cat, you certainly not be able to swing it.
It is possible that when the hotel was designed queen beds were not a thing. To describe the room as compact is possibly being generous, however it was well appointed and certainly cozy.
The end of bed closed door galley style bathroom was a pleasant surprise with the original shower being designed to get you washed and little consideration to water conservation, and I give the shower a 9 out of 10 rating.
We went to the dining room for our dinner, to be greeted with a wine list that had zero imagination, and not much more appeal.
The set menu comprised a three course selection that on paper looked quite good. I had chosen the lamb dish and was offered my choice of rare, medium rare or well done, and I chose the well-done version. I love rare steak, but not rare lamb…..given I grew up on a sheep station, I know how I like my lamb!
It turned out this choice was purely lip service as the lamb that landed in front of me could not possibly have been started from scratch was barely warmed through at an absolute variety of the rare addition. The 2x entrees and now 2x mains felt as thought they were prepared en masse and reheated as required.
The clincher to add a further level of disappointment to the meal was that not only did the compulsory 3 course meal feel a little overpriced prior to eating it, and certainly after it was served, the sides which were essential to the meal were not only overpriced, but also over egged. There was enough there to feed four people and most of it would have gone straight into the bin as it was simply too much for two.
The third course of dessert comprised three choices of sweets that I imagine would finish at the bottom of any list of choices for me, and they were mostly left on the plate.
As noted above we were there for breakfast as well and the offering was quite good and a pleasant surprise from the experience to date. However in true form when I requested my flat white coffee to be served in a takeaway cup I was politely advised there would be an additional charge if it was served to me in a takeaway cup.
The very helpful waitress then pointed out to me but if I were to take a sip of the coffee and then requested a takeaway cup there would be no charge. Go Figure!!
I have a rough idea of the demographic the hotel is trying to attract and certainly in my observation I am not one of them.
I note that the staff were across the board quite helpful and pleasant, even including al perfunctory receiving receptionist, who was significantly more cheerful on our exit than our arrival, however there is close to nothing that could have me want to stay there again.

Thank you Bijan for making our high tea so enjoyable. What excellent customer service we received yesterday and a chance to use my Italian too.
You have helped us create such a beautiful memory of three friends who took a long train trip and had an amazing catch up.
Such a pleasure to meet someone who takes great pride in welcoming guests and treating them with such finesse. You are a true asset to the Hydro Majestic and the true essence of excellence. Grazie tanto per la tua cortessia

What a let down - booked two rooms to take my elderly dad away for a calm weekend. Friday night got an email confirmation but only for one room. Rang reception and reservations for two hours - NO ONE ANSWERED. Rang the following morning at 8am and finally got someone in the restaurant to answer who transferred me to reception we confirmed two rooms. Arrived at 1pm with high tea booked in, the world’s loudest pianist playing in the dining area with both our table and two others asking for quieter music. The trainee wait staff did their best but orders went missing. Room one was lovely for my dad, however the other room looked over the highway, with two broken windows wedged together with cardboard to stop them rattling. Thankfully we ventured to Blackheath for dinner. Breakfast was served until 10am, we arrived at 915 and from 930-10 were told 4 times by staff that they were packing up and to hurry up. Then all of the tables were moved around us. So we gave up and left at 950. This place needs to work out why it charges so much for so little. It’s chaos and needs to work out how to be customer focused

Room was very nice with fantastic views