Silver Fern Rotorua Suites & Spa — Hotel in North Island

DO NOT BOOK HERE. THE IMAGES IN THE LISTINGS ARE COMPLETELY MISLEADING, AND YOU WILL NOT RECEIVE A REFUND. AVOID THIS PLACE AT ALL COSTS.||KIA TUPATO!|Lapataʻiga!|Fakatokanga!|警告!|Waarschuwing!|Waarskuwing!|Avertissement!|Warnung!|Advertencia!||I booked this property based on the images and descriptions on Booking.com, expecting a ground-floor room, outdoor spa pools, and a spacious 36-square-meter room. I even paid an extra $60 for these advertised features, as my husband is tall and suffers from back issues, and I was happy to pay more for comfort.|What I got was a complete bait-and-switch. Upon arrival, I discovered that:|• Our room was upstairs, not on the ground floor as advertised.|• The spa pool was crammed next to the bed, not outside as shown in the pictures.|• The room was significantly smaller—30 square meters, not 36.||I called the owner immediately to express my dissatisfaction, and his responses were utterly appalling and unprofessional:|1. He admitted they don’t measure their rooms accurately and claimed the listings are not to be trusted. How are they justifying higher charges when the descriptions are blatantly false?|2. He said he gave all the ground-floor rooms to people who arrived a day earlier and booked two nights—effectively either double-booking me or prioritising others at my expense.|3. He excused the misleading listings by saying all the room pictures are lumped together, despite charging more for certain rooms. This is outright deceptive!|4. He offered to move me to a “small room” on the ground floor that was supposedly “cheaper”—insulting, considering I had paid extra for better features.|5. He blamed me for not explicitly requesting a ground-floor room in the booking |notes, despite his listings indicating this was included in the upgraded room price.||As if this wasn’t enough, the top floor room I was shoved in was disgusting. The furnishings were worn, the bathroom sink was covered in black grime, and it was literally falling apart. It was uninhabitable and far below any acceptable standard.|When I demanded a refund or to be moved to the room I had paid for, he refused outright and lied to Booking.com, spinning a story that he had done nothing wrong. Booking.com’s customer service was sympathetic but ultimately unable to help, only offering me $30 NZD credit as a token apology.||In the end, I was left $200 NZD out of pocket, with my birthday weekend ruined by this scammy, negligent business. The owner’s refusal to take responsibility for his blatant false advertising and abhorrent service was infuriating.||Avoid this place at all costs. The shady practices, filthy rooms, and refusal to honor bookings make this one of the worst accommodation experiences I have ever had. I’ll never book here again, and I will also think twice before using platforms that don’t provide adequate protection under New Zealand Consumer Rights laws.|Save yourself the headache and book elsewhere. ||This business deserves to be called out and...

DO NOT BOOK HERE. THE IMAGES IN THE LISTINGS ARE COMPLETELY MISLEADING, AND YOU WILL NOT RECEIVE A REFUND. AVOID THIS PLACE AT ALL COSTS.||KIA TUPATO!|Lapataʻiga!|Fakatokanga!|警告!|Waarschuwing!|Waarskuwing!|Avertissement!|Warnung!|Advertencia!||I booked this property based on the images and descriptions on Booking.com, expecting a ground-floor room, outdoor spa pools, and a spacious 36-square-meter room. I even paid an extra $60 for these advertised features, as my husband is tall and suffers from back issues, and I was happy to pay more for comfort.|What I got was a complete bait-and-switch. Upon arrival, I discovered that:|• Our room was upstairs, not on the ground floor as advertised.|• The spa pool was crammed next to the bed, not outside as shown in the pictures.|• The room was significantly smaller—30 square meters, not 36.||I called the owner immediately to express my dissatisfaction, and his responses were utterly appalling and unprofessional:|1. He admitted they don’t measure their rooms accurately and claimed the listings are not to be trusted. How are they justifying higher charges when the descriptions are blatantly false?|2. He said he gave all the ground-floor rooms to people who arrived a day earlier and booked two nights—effectively either double-booking me or prioritising others at my expense.|3. He excused the misleading listings by saying all the room pictures are lumped together, despite charging more for certain rooms. This is outright deceptive!|4. He offered to move me to a “small room” on the ground floor that was supposedly “cheaper”—insulting, considering I had paid extra for better features.|5. He blamed me for not explicitly requesting a ground-floor room in the booking |notes, despite his listings indicating this was included in the upgraded room price.||As if this wasn’t enough, the top floor room I was shoved in was disgusting. The furnishings were worn, the bathroom sink was covered in black grime, and it was literally falling apart. It was uninhabitable and far below any acceptable standard.|When I demanded a refund or to be moved to the room I had paid for, he refused outright and lied to Booking.com, spinning a story that he had done nothing wrong. Booking.com’s customer service was sympathetic but ultimately unable to help, only offering me $30 NZD credit as a token apology.||In the end, I was left $200 NZD out of pocket, with my birthday weekend ruined by this scammy, negligent business. The owner’s refusal to take responsibility for his blatant false advertising and abhorrent service was infuriating.||Avoid this place at all costs. The shady practices, filthy rooms, and refusal to honor bookings make this one of the worst accommodation experiences I have ever had. I’ll never book here again, and I will also think twice before using platforms that don’t provide adequate protection under New Zealand Consumer Rights laws.|Save yourself the headache and book elsewhere. ||This business deserves to be called out and...

DO NOT BOOK HERE. THE IMAGES IN THE LISTINGS ARE COMPLETELY MISLEADING, AND YOU WILL NOT RECEIVE A REFUND. AVOID THIS PLACE AT ALL COSTS. KIA TUPATO! Lapataʻiga! Fakatokanga! 警告! Waarschuwing! Waarskuwing! Avertissement! Warnung! Advertencia!

I booked this property based on the images and descriptions on Booking.com, expecting a ground-floor room, outdoor spa pools, and a spacious 36-square-meter room. I even paid an extra $60 for these advertised features, as my husband is tall and suffers from back issues, and I was happy to pay more for comfort.

What I got was a complete bait-and-switch. Upon arrival, I discovered that: • Our room was upstairs, not on the ground floor as advertised. • The spa pool was crammed next to the bed, not outside as shown in the pictures. • The room was significantly smaller—30 square meters, not 36.

I called the owner immediately to express my dissatisfaction, and his responses were utterly appalling and unprofessional: He admitted they don’t measure their rooms accurately and claimed the listings are not to be trusted. How are they justifying higher charges when the descriptions are blatantly false? He said he gave all the ground-floor rooms to people who arrived a day earlier and booked two nights—effectively either double-booking me or prioritising others at my expense. He excused the misleading listings by saying all the room pictures are lumped together, despite charging more for certain rooms. This is outright deceptive! He offered to move me to a “small room” on the ground floor that was supposedly “cheaper”—insulting, considering I had paid extra for better features. He blamed me for not explicitly requesting a ground-floor room in the booking notes, despite his listings indicating this was included in the upgraded room price.

As if this wasn’t enough, the top floor room I was shoved in was disgusting. The furnishings were worn, the bathroom sink was covered in black grime, and it was literally falling apart. It was uninhabitable and far below any acceptable standard.

When I demanded a refund or to be moved to the room I had paid for, he refused outright and lied to Booking.com, spinning a story that he had done nothing wrong. Booking.com’s customer service was sympathetic but ultimately unable to help, only offering me $30 NZD credit as a token apology.

In the end, I was left $200 NZD out of pocket, with my birthday weekend ruined by this scammy, negligent business. The owner’s refusal to take responsibility for his blatant false advertising and abhorrent service was infuriating.

Avoid this place at all costs. The shady practices, filthy rooms, and refusal to honor bookings make this one of the worst accommodation experiences I have ever had. I’ll never book here again, and I will also think twice before using platforms that don’t provide adequate protection under New Zealand Consumer Rights laws.

Save yourself the headache and book elsewhere. This business deserves to be called out and...