5 star hotels, in my opinion, are meant not only to provide you with evertything you need for comfort and convienience but to involke a sense of luxury and indulgence.
Blue seemes to have everything but maybe its the vast space of the building, the decoration or the fact that thing are a bit worn on close inspection but this didnt really cut it for me. There was dust on the pictures, bath tiles were scruffy, tap was wobbly, hot water took ages to heat up, mini bar very over priced.
Staff were friendly, room service ladies actually made it for me they wre so jolly and wonderful. The food was pretty average though. Location ok if you want the walk.
Out of 10 against other 5 stars Ive stayed in Id give it a 7 and no I wouldnt stay there again.

Firstly let me start by saying how terribly disappointed I was the Blue Hotel. I have just returned to Melbourne after spending two nights at Blue. How on earth they have managed to classify themselves as a 5 star hotel is completely beyond me - perhaps back in the day when the hotel first opened - but in this day and age 5 star they certaintly are not.

The official website even boasts about the award they won in 2005!! Its not 2005 anymore its now 2008 move on!!

I made my booking 3 weeks prior to our stay and because May is classified as "low season" I really didnt expect to have any problems.
The day prior to arriving I called the hotel to double check my booking - they had no record on the computer of my reservation - the girl I spoke to went "out the back" to look through the paperwork and sure enough there was my reservation which had been forgotten about (in her words). The next day when I arrived with my partner we were greeted at the front desk by a girl who was not only dressed very badly but had no idea what she was doing. We were given a key to the third floor and on arrival found out that it defiantly was not the room I had booked. We went back downstairs to tell the girl at front reception who was very confused. She then attempted to find the room I had booked and got it wrong again!! After the third try we finally got our room.

How disappointing - the room was anything but "5 star luxury" as is described by many websites. There were scuffs all over the walls, paint chipping off corners, scuffs on the down stairs mirror and the furniture was looking a little worse for wear. There were blue faux fur cushions on the couch that were old and matted while on our bed lay an old, pilled electric blue arcylic blanket. The paint job in the main room and the bathroom looked very cheap. But perhaps the worst thing about the hotel is on the 5th floor where the ceiling is very low as you walk up (or down) two steps into the alcove before your rooms front door. My partner who is 6ft tall was walking out the front door - the alcove has no lighting (this only comes on later at night) - he began to walk down the steps and did not see the low bearing ceiling - he hit this so hard he landed on his back on the steps with a big gash to his head. The next day he also had a very sore neck. We went downstair to tell the girl at the front desk and all she could say was "oh!!!! oops!!!!" There are no signs anywhere to warn tall people to look out for the low ceilings and low beams. If this had been an older person then they may have done some serious damage to themselves.

I would not recommend anyone I know to stay at the Blue Hotel

After a very long over night flight we arrived at the hotel utterly exhausted at 8 in the morning. To our great relief the room was ready for us and the reception clerk was very nice & helpful with ideas of where to eat and what to do in the area. The bellman was there to help with the bags and made sure we had a taxi when needed.

Our room was modern with enough room to move around. The beds were very comfortable -- the best we encountered on our trip. Also a good-sized TV and club chair + table with a view of the wharf and street. It was clean and well maintained. The windows kept the street noise out even though we were facing the wharf/street. We did occasionally hear some of the other guest’s doors closing in the hallway.

The bathroom had a nice aesthetic, but the sink was definitely more form than function. The shower was good and the tub was large and comfortable. Excellent counter space and storage.

The area had a solid choice of restaurants close by. We liked Charlie's across the street for breakfast; for dinner, take a 10 minute walk up the steps to the Potts Point area, we found several good restaurants there -- much more reasonably priced than those right next to the hotel on the wharf.

Very positive experience, would highly recommend.

Stayed in this hotel for 2 nights at the start of a holiday visiting friends living in Sydney, and loved every minute. After battling through the rain from the airport, we had a warm welcome from all the reception staff, and fantastic service in the bar where the "mixologist" recommended cocktails...just the thing to help us get over to sleep after a long flight!

The rooms are very comfortable and the view made the long flight from London fade into distant memory! The location was great too...didn't feel like being in the city but only a short walk through the botanic gardens to the opera house! Much nicer than the CBD.

Would recommend the restaurants on the wharf for a treat...where the service is friendly, and you can get there without getting your hair wet! The only negatives...the weather - wettest for over 10 years!!