Novotel Queenstown Lakeside

I recently stayed at Novotel Queenstown for four nights and overall had a very good experience.nI would especially like to mention Mahesh, the night shift manager. He was very friendly, professional, and always approachable. He made me feel welcome and comfortable during my stay. He truly represents great hospitality.nI also want to appreciate Prabhat, who was working at the bar. His customer service was outstanding — very polite, attentive, and genuinely caring. He went above and beyond to make sure guests were happy, and his service really stood out.nHowever, I would like to share one disappointing experience. On Monday night, I was told that dining was closed. One staff member then told me I could order food from the bar. When I went to the bar and asked for a menu, a female staff member responded very rudely and said, “Do you want to take the menu home?” I was quite shocked by the tone and felt disrespected. This interaction was very disappointing and not what I expect from a hotel of this standard.nDespite this one incident, my overall stay was enjoyable thanks to the excellent service from staff like Mahesh and Prabhat. I hope the management can address consistency in customer service so that all guests feel respected and welcomed.

The hotel completely under-delivered on its name and reputation for our stay. The only positive during our 4-night stay was the location of the hotel, otherwise, it was the worst place we stayed for our whole trip.nIf I have to list issues:n- TV not working. With a 5-year old in tow, TV was an essential for us, and the process to use your Netflix account on TV was made unnecessarily complex and absurd. It took me 3 days out of our 4-night stay to finally make it work.n- Roller skating beds, which will move from their place with a touch. Good for fun and play, but an absolute nightmare otherwise. And, the maintenance team was so busy that it could put duct tape only before our last night there.n- Parking, they charge you additionally for parking, and still there is no guarantee that you will get it. They will kindly provide you with a map of the city to go and hunt for a parking space. However, hotel management has about 6-8 parking spots reserved for them in the hotel parking.n- Internet, unsecured and needs to be activated every 24 hours. Primed for an upcoming cyber criminal to hone his/her skills.

We’d totally stay here again! You cannot beat the location. Within a few minute walk you can reach anything you need. Many of the tours around the lake leave about a 7 minute walk from the hotel, and there’s a beautiful trail right by the hotel. The room was a good size, and serviced daily. We didn’t have issues with loud neighbors or anything like that. We had a super positive stay, and would totally stay here again!

Fantastic location for access to the town, amenities and town-based attractions!nAll of our interactions with the staff were polite and they were all very helpful.nFood at the restaurant we only had a breakfast there was excellent if a little expensive, even when the kids get breakfast for free.nThere are not nearly enough parks at the hotel for the number of rooms, and these are only accessible through expensive, paid, valet parking. Otherwise, try and find something free in the nearby hilly residential area bit like hunting for a unicorn, and not great for those with mild disabilities or play the parking meter lottery closer to the hotel.nI suppose it does provide a good reason to get out and see the region between the hours of 9am and 6pm, when the meters are monitored, but it can become expensive over the course of a week if you're parked during monitored hours.nWould I stay here again? Perhaps, if only for a couple of nights. For longer stays I'd look for something a little further outside of town.nOverall I think that the Novotel is a great hotel but is better suited to those travelling with a tour and not using their own transport.

It's extremely expensive and the expense is not really justified given that there's no pool, fitness centre or recreation area at the hotel. Also, the TV stations in the room are heavily restrictive and limited. Even IBIS in Christchurch was better because at least it had Al Jazeera. No international channels at all at the Novotel. Please consider having BBC, CNN or Al Jazeera available in the room. In order to get Netflix or Prime, this can be operated only via the app. Extremely frustrating. Restaurant menu is very limited. Room service is non existent. The QR code pasted on the mirror in the room for ordering room service does not work. Please check on this. When I tried ringing Reception or Housekeeping, there is never an answer. We have to physically go to reception if we need anything. Additionally, I paid my account in full at the time of booking and each time we had a meal at the hotel, I paid by cash to avoid transaction fees by charging these expenses to my card. When I was checking out on Thursday 8th January, the staff at reception advised me that there was an outstanding amount of NZD 37 buffet breakfast that had to paid. I had paid this by cash on Sunday 4th January in the evening to a staff member at Reception. I trusted the staff member on duty that day to update my room account and therefore did not request for a receipt. But she failed to update my room account and therefore, I was extremely frustrated and annoyed considering that I settled all my food bills by cash promptly each day. However, one of the staff members at Reception contacted this staff member and resolved this issue promptly. I would also like to mention that all the staff members at the bar, restaurant and also the cleaning staff are all truly wonderful, competent with exceptional interpersonal skills. I am extremely grateful to all of them for all the fantastic work they do every single day. The staff at reception are also very pleasant, courteous and well mannered. Just this specific staff member at Reception on Sunday 4th January evening who did not update my room account needs to be counselled.

Directions to Novotel Queenstown Lakeside with public transportation

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