Kaikoura Seaside Lodge — Hotel in Kaikōura

My experience at this facility was the worst out of my first 14-day trip to New Zealand. Self check-in was messy and confusing as we took 5 rooms for 10 people that travel together, with no proper instructions and nobody to assist, and the counter was closed even though we arrived around 4:30 pm.

Somebody from the property stormed into my room at 11:43pm at night while my wife was already sleeping, accusing me of getting into the wrong room. The exact words used on me were "You got to the wrong room” , “You were lucky to have the room for tonight”, You have to check out by 10am tomorrow, and don't bring anybody into the room." I was stunned as I booked and paid for a room for 2 at the location that night. Was confused by what it means that I am lucky to have a room which I had paid for. The tone was rude, not considering that we were sleeping and it was 11:43 pm. I ignored and chose not to argue because it was late at night.

In the morning, I went to the counter and tried to express my dissatisfaction.   The same person was at the counter, twisted and turned, the story said, because I made a noise in the room. That is the reason why she stormed into my room.   When we checked out, he was charging us for 6 rooms, even though we only checked in for 5 rooms.

The staff was very very rude,...

Sea Side Lodge was terrific! Check in was a breeze, they send you an email with how to check in on your own, but do have staff available if you have questions. It had big kitchen to prepare food with a beautiful seating area that overlooked the Oceans and Mountains. The staff was very nice and informative. The location is perfect, its about 15-20 minutes walk (or 2-3 minutes drive) one way to the main town area where the restaurants and places like the Dolphin Encounters building (which is another experience I'd highly recommend). 15-20 minutes walk (or 2-3 minutes drive) the other direction you are at the seal colony! There is a TV room and a place for those traveling with kids. They had shared bathrooms, but did have an option for gender matching bathrooms on the 1st floor. They had items that could be rented out, unfortunately I did not have enough time there, so I could not take advantage of them. My only regret is that I didn't spend more time in this area.

Disliked · The only sight negative was that the hallway is a bit echoed. When you are trying to be quiet opening and closing doors, it is still...

Despite the hostel’s decent facilities and incredible views, our stay was marred by rude staff. After a reasonable request to keep it down following our first night, we made a genuine effort to speak softly and be respectful for the rest of our stay. Even so, we were kicked out of the common areas - first the kitchen, then the TV room - before 10pm, only for a staff member and her friend to remain and watch a movie. We also kept getting side-eyed and dismissive looks from the same staff member. When we returned from celebrating one of our birthdays off-site in our car to avoid disturbing anyone, a man we believe was the owner confronted us outside the entrance - before we had even gone inside - and rudely threatened to call the police if we made any noise whatsoever. We had not been loud since the initial reminder.

Don’t come here if you want to unwind and socialise quietly. You can expect a suffocating atmosphere and ro...