Police are investigating two incidents overnight after an attempted armed robbery at a hotel in Kingsford and an armed robbery at a service station in Randwick early today.

Shortly after 5am (Sunday 18 December 2016), three males have attempted to force their way into a hotel on Anzac Parade at Kingsford using axes.

When the men were confronted by a security guard at the hotel the men forced their way inside but found the cash registers had already been emptied by staff.

The offenders attempted to obtain cash from the safe and one male patron was struck on the head with an axe but was not injured.

Police believe the trio fled from the hotel in a stolen red VW Golf GTI with a NSW registration of BHB 37L and travelled to a service station in Frenchmans Road at Randwick.

The men forced an employee to open the cash register and struck him with a hammer.

After taking a quantity of cash and cigarettes the offenders fled in the VW while the injured employee was taken to Prince of Wales Hospital with minor injuries.

Police from Eastern Beaches Local Area Command responded to both incidents and have established crime scenes which will be examined by forensic experts.

The three offenders are believed to have been wearing dark clothing and had their faces covered with masks. They were armed with axes and hammers.

Police have urged anyone who witnessed either incident or with information about the vehicle to come forward.