5 hotels in Melbourne with genuinely free Wi-Fi

From Wi-Fi data limits to wireless speeds and room rates, here are the details of five hotels in Melbourne offering free Wi-Fi.

Heading to Melbourne for business or pleasure? In this article we list five hotels that offer free Wi-Fi in Melbourne.

Australian hotels have a reputation for making internet access an expensive add-on to the bill. 

It seems relatively easy to find hotels in Asia, Europe and North America that offer free Wi-Fi, but here in Australia charges in the vicinity of $25 per day seem commonplace.

Here are some things to consider if you need Wi-Fi access in your hotel:

• At those prices, it actually makes more sense to use mobile data via your smartphone (if your plan includes data) or a mobile hotspot device. 
  
  For example, Telstra offers a mobile Wi-Fi hotspot for $79 including 5GB of data with a 30 day expiry, so that could pay for itself in one trip. Recharges start at $20 for 250MB with 21 day expiry and range up to $180 for 12GB and 365 day expiry.
  
  And as we recently reported, you can now get prepaid mobile with unlimited calls within Australia and 6GB of data per month for $39 per month.

• In some cases, what you get for free is only a basic 256Kbps service. That's slow, although it is adequate for checking email, checking in online for your next flight and so on. If you're planning to sit in your room and work online for a protracted period, you'll likely prefer something faster.

• You may also find that free services limit the amount of time you stay connected, either per session or per day.

• Also remember that Ethernet is a handy alternative to Wi-Fi for connecting to the Internet in your hotel room via a laptop.
  
  Ethernet tends to provide more consistent speeds, which is particularly important if your room is relatively distant from the closest Wi-Fi access point. Some hotels put an access point in each room, which largely eliminates that problem.

• Also keep in mind that some chains (for example, Marriott) operate loyalty programs that grant free or more generous Wi-Fi access to members.
  
  This is worth keeping in mind if you are a regular traveler, especially as such programs are usually free to join.