Hotel Elms Christchurch, An Ascend Collection Hotel — Hotel in Christchurch

We recently had to undertake insurance repairs at our home, which required us to temporarily relocate for nine days. With Christmas just around the corner and a young family of five to consider, we felt incredibly stressed as we tried to find suitable accommodation that could comfortably meet our needs.

A friend recommended Hotel Elms, and from the moment we arrived, any worries we had simply melted away. Anthony and his incredible team turned what could have been a challenging time into what felt like a peaceful and luxurious retreat.

The service was exceptional—nothing was ever too much trouble. The rooms were spotless, beautifully designed, and thoughtfully appointed, with large comfortable beds that made our stay all the more restful. Every member of staff that we met was warm, welcoming, and genuinely eager to help in any way they could.

Given the length of our stay, we made full use of the hotel’s restaurant and room services. Our school-aged children were absolutely delighted by the buffet breakfast each morning, and the food was just as delicious as it looked. A particularly memorable moment was our toddler’s birthday during our stay—the chef went above and beyond making a delicious banana cake that was delivered to our room and the look on our 4 year olds face will stay with me forever. We also had our 3 “Elf on the Shelf” join us in the lead up to Christmas and it was extra special when the room service staff helped create magic and memories for our children!

We’re immensely grateful to Anthony and his team for their outstanding hospitality and care. I would wholeheartedly recommend Hotel Elms to anyone looking for a hidden gem in the heart of the city. It’s a beautiful place to stay, that’s also affordable and I have no doubt you’ll be just as...

Mixed reactions for my recent stay. I booked a Super King Suite for 6 days, 5 nights. Room had two lights not working. Exhaust fan in bathroom would not turn off leaving constant noise at night. Lights in hallway never dimmed nor turned off leaving constant light filtering under the door frame. Walls were very thin and could hear people in hallway and in other rooms. To boil the kettle you had to place the obscenely large kettle under the bathroom tap, which was difficult due to the stone-shape of the sink, not to mention, bathroom water! There was no menu for room service in the room so had to look online, only to discover that their online menu did not match the restaurant's actual menu. Service was of great quality, however, perhaps its only redeeming factor.

The food... well, to say the least, was terrible. At $32-$42 for a meal, the meat portions were laughably small, the chips were not crispy, my fried chicken was BLACK with burn, and what is with the seeded grapes in the rice?! Seemed to be the general consensus among the other hotel stayers as multiple times I observed food being sent back. Dessert was OK at times, but for $16 per dessert, the two scoops of vanilla ice cream with clearly brought chocolate sauce was such a let down. The breakfast was also disappointing as the "toaster" (a conveyer belt into an oven) always produced burnt bread. When using the hot chocolate function on the automatic coffee machine it produced a cup of hot water with 3 coffee granules in it. The food was NOT IT! Staff were very friendly.

Overall, would not stay again and would not recommend. Only thing I enjoyed were the staff who were lovely...

Nice clean, recently renovated room. Warm room, comfy bed, and very clean. Was apparently upgraded from superior to deluxe room. The room was designed awkwardly with two large beds cramped into a small space, the reason I booked a room with one bed was because we didn't want to be cramped by the other bed. Bathroom had poor ventilation and TV didn't have all the channels that were in hotel guide. The cleaners were friendly and were excellent, they not the desk staff were the ones who made our stay comfortable. I couldn't commend them more. The lady that checked us in was also very friendly and greeted us with a smile whenever she saw us. I do however wish I could say the same about the other desk staff (including the manager) who rarely seemed to wear a smile or greet and gave a cold check out. We didn't make it to the restaurant though it did smell great. It was also very popular and as a result meant we often couldn't get a car park during the evenings. We also were surprised to find no desserts on room service menu. The gym Is also a treadmill and bike put in a cabin on the roadside outside. I hope this doesn't come off as a complaint rather an attempt to provide a fair and complete review. We too work in customer service and appreciate the difficulties faced in dealing...