Paihia Beach Resort & Spa — Hotel in Bay of Islands-Whangaroa Community

We had an unacceptable encounter during our stay at Paihia Beach Resort during the recent weekend of 11-12 June 2022. We waited a week for the management to get back to us but no one contacted us despite the receptionist promising us the manager would. We booked in for a 3D2N stay using a family package voucher for a 2-bedroom apartment on 11 June 2022. We were given 2 adjoining rooms 107 and 108, and the key pass to only 107. We were surprised there was no internal door lock or latch, so we checked to make sure the 2 doors locked properly from outside (which they did). After finally falling asleep on an unfamiliar bed, just pass 12 midnight, someone suddenly barged into our room in 108! We were woken up in fright, and the lady who came in said she was the hotel staff, thought room 108 was vacant but saw the toilet light on so she came in to check! She then abruptly left the room. Needless to say, we could hardly sleep the rest of the night as every noise (the soundproofing was not good) would jolt us up. The next morning, we brought up the matter to restaurant staff during our breakfast, and he reported it to the receptionist on duty, Mr V. I am not posting his name here out of courtesy, but he really handled the matter very poorly. Despite the heads-up from the restaurant staff, V. told us matter of factly that the staff on overnight duty, Ms J., did not know 108 was occupied as it was reflected as unoccupied in the computer system, hence she likely wrongly entered the room. We were then told to write an email to the manager about the matter and the manager would take it from there. It was completely unacceptable how the whole matter was handled: Ms J., did not even bother to convey the incident to the daytime staff so that it would not occur again because of the way the computer system recorded the room status - this is something that should never have happened and completely preventable in future. Neither she did convey her apology to us for what happened. V. replied matter of factly about what happened, pushed the matter back to us to write an email despite us standing in front of him, and only offered an apology when we asked if this was how he was going to handle this. No one called or emailed us back despite V. promising his manager would get back. We checked out the next morning. Frankly, I do not wish to spend more of my time on this matter and writing this review takes time, but in the past week, I have been waking up in the middle of the night every night, repercussion of the fright I got from the intrusion of our privacy and safety. Looking at the hotel's attitude, I have not surprised if this happens again to another unfortunate person or family. No matter what the management might reply to this (if they do), it has already been shown how poorly they handle guests' privacy, safety, and concerns. We would not be...

Overall this was an underwhelming experience. A four star resort rating would be pushing the truth. A five star resort is far from reality. One the positives is the location: One of the undeniable strengths of Paihia Beach Resort and Spa is its prime location. Situated in the heart of Paihia, it offers convenient access to the beach and nearby attractions.

The negatives are many. Unfortunately, the passage of time has taken its toll on the premises. The overall aesthetic appears dated, and we noticed signs of wear and tear throughout the property, including broken pool lounges. Notably, the pool itself suffered from tiles falling off and large patches of paint chipping, and one pool a very disgusting colour, all in all giving an impression of neglect The rooms, while comfortable, lacked a wow factor. They felt average and could use a refresh to meet the standards one would expect from a resort and spa of this caliber. We found dead cockroaches in bed side table lights and around the floor. We had two rooms for our group and noticed significant differences in the rooms, indeed one was missing drawers in cabinets. Regrettably, it seems the owners are making cutbacks across various elements, affecting the overall guest experience. From a noticeable decline in service quality to skimping on pool towels, these seemingly small details collectively impact the proposed five star ambiance. A major disappointment was what seems to be a decision to sell off the car park, forcing guests to park on the street. This was an inconvenience.

In summary, Paihia Beach Resort and Spa, while still offering a convenient location, offers an aging premises, pool issues, average rooms, and poor service quality making it fall short of the 5-star experience that is advertised. There needs to be significant investment in the resort. We...

We stayed here for 4 nights in July 2025. We had rooms 404 and 405 which were studio rooms on the top floor. During our stay there was extremely heavy rain and room 405 which was at the end of the building became quite damp and very musty smelling. We suspect that being on the end of the building it was subject to leaking internally, however there were no obvious leaks, just a wet mouldy smell which was very unpleasant. 404 was absolutely fine. The hotel itself is one of the nicer places to stay in Paihia, but is not what I consider 4 star. The resort itself is quite tired and dated, although it was clean and the views are outstanding especially from the top floor. We had breakfast each morning and dinner one night. The breakfasts were perfectly okay, although not much variety on the menu at all, especially for those wanting a light breakfast option. Dinner was not great. I had the seafood pasta which had prawns and a piece of fish which I suspect was frozen it was so awful. The prawns were nice but the pasta was sweet and not at all an authentic italian dish which I found very disappointing. My husband and son had the slow cooked beef, and while it was much better than the seafood option, was not fall off the bone tender at all, so was also a let down for the price tag. The highlight of this hotel were the staff who were all very nice, polite and keen to please. With a bit of money spent on refurbishing the place and attention to the restaurant offerings, the place would be very good. I hear the spa is excellent but cannot comment on this, as it was booked out...