Mantra Pandanas

43 Knuckey Street, DARWIN

Mantra Pandanas is a pretty standard business hotel. But it stands out among the rest for four special reasons:

Pandanas plant (very prolific in the NT)

1. It’s new

There are two Mantra properties in Darwin. One is the Pandanas (newer) and the other is the Esplanade (older). I was a bit suspicious of the older Mantra after visiting their website and finding no photos of the rooms. The link to the Pandanas, on the other hand, featured photos of the bedrooms quite heavily.

2. CD Player

This is actually the first time I’ve ever stayed in a hotel that has a CD player in the room. I did not use it but it’s good to know it is there just in case…

3. Extra large lotus-shaped shower head

Coming from Queensland where water restriction is de rigueur I was pleasantly surprised to see this monster of a shower head. The size betrays little about how gentle water flows out of it. This one I used a lot!

4. Good ground coffee and a French press

Most hotels give you only two options of in-room coffee. It’s either decaf or caffeinated instant coffee. Mantra excelled in this in that you still get the instant option but you are also given the choice to have freshly brewed coffee using a French press. The hotel charges $6.00 bucks for a 50g pack but I think that is quite reasonable.

So whether for business or leisure in Darwin, I highly recommend the Mantra Pandanas!