My boyfriend and I recently stayed here for our trip to a convention held nearby at the Gold Coast Convention Centre. Mardi Gras is a small, (I presume) family-run business; each apartment is individually owned by others. The apartments are non-serviced, so you will have to do your own dishes, cleaning and take rubbish out.

We had booked online using their website - the booking system used is eTourism Online. While we had no problems booking online, check-in became slightly confusing. Although the website states that the total deposit is $100 plus an extra amount (around $50 for us), only $50 was taken out. When asking why we had to pay extra than what we were originally told on their website, we discovered that Prue, one of the resident Managers (she was on the desk when we checked in), only takes the $100 at booking sometimes, and that the $100 deposit was no longer policy.

While this did throw our budget for our trip out immensely (we ended up having to borrow from friends to get through our weekend), this was only minor. We stayed in Apartment 27. It was decorated in a simple, slightly minimalist style, which impressed my boyfriend, who was expecting something dingy for the total amount we paid ($460 for four nights).

Everything uses keys, and the apartments themselves are really secure. There's also a swimming pool, spa and an barbecue that are available for use. Kitchens are stocked with cooking equipment, utensils, plates etc.

Because the apartments are individually owned, some of them look nicer than others - presumably their owners have put more work in. Things we noticed with ours were that repairs on tiles are easily noticed, and that one of the track blind panels had fallen out of its own accord while we were in the lounge room.

While there are better and slightly cheaper rooms in other hotels/apartments nearby, there's something good about staying with a small independent business. Everyone staying is friendly and relaxed, and you don't feel intimidated by anyone. I think we will stay here again when we are next at the Gold Coast.

Approximate cost: $115/night