Whanganui River TOP 10 Holiday Park — Hotel in North Island

Awesome place, excellent people and a nice way to spend some time away. We (2 adults - 3 children) stayed in the 2 bedroom park motel for two nights in early Jan 2013. We are Holiday Park people and always look for the whole of family experience, so for us the pool and playground etc are important to us. Best view in the place? The cabins facing the river just awesome, if basic. I'd also recommend asking about a package that suited you, knowing what we do now we would have thought about a combination package of two kitchen cabins. There are generally 3-4 pictures each type of accommodation ... and no schematics, these would have been helpful in making our decision. The common area is excellent with a great covered outside area to have dinner, only one BBQ in the immediate area though, great to meet people while you wait and watch the kids on the playground, tramps, biking/scootering around. The kitchen is large and they have an large lounge area. The pool as advertised is warm and the kids will love it, watch the last step down it's a doosey. The kids will love the bikes and good luck trying to get them to return them on time. If you are going to check out the prices on line I'd advise completing the "update prices and availability" section of the "book now" webpage so don't get a surprise when you ask how much it's going to cost. Yes, It is a little more pricey than you might find elsewhere however given the whole package it's still a good deal. I would note that the tent sites were a lot bigger than I'd seen else where and being able to get a couple of tents in, car and have some left over was the norm. As mentioned in some previous reviews it is a "short drive from the city centre", not important for us but if you want to go for a night out in the City consider saving some money for a taxi, walking will take a while. There is a 'shopping centre' a couple of kms towards the city with a Superette, Fish and Chip shop, Chemist to take care of those immediate requirements, some basics can be brought at the Office. We did the 5km Kayaking experience while we were there and the kids had a blast, I would recommend it dependant on your budget. We also went on the Waimarie Steam Boat on the Saturday, the one hour cruise is cheaper and probably enough if you have young ones. A must is the Saturday Wanganui Markets which is by the Waimarie Pier lots of different things to see and buy. If your family have a hankering for Strawberries and you have time check out the Windermere Strawberry Farm (6kms west of Wanganui), there's nothing fresher than picking it yourself. If its hot try one of their ice creams you won't regret it. On your way back you might like to have a warm swim at Kai Iwi Beach (also known as Mowhanau), patrolled during summer and has areas for the very young. The best place we found for a picnic? Virginia Lake Reserve, you'll have to carry it in to get to the best places though but worth it. Take some bread for the birds that live around the lake edge. I would seriously recommend becoming the Top 10 Holiday Park member with our discount on our accommodation and the Waimarie Steam Boat it paid for itself and then some and now we can get a 10% discount at any of their 52 other locations as well as discounts on other attractions (yep sorry sounds like a sell I know). You can become a member when you check in. To be honest we only went towards Wanganui because we couldn't get into the Hawkes Bay in our time frame, our good fortune. While it sounds like we did a lot in two days I get the feeling only scratched the surface, I didn't even take my fishing rods! Thanks Andre and Martie - just awesome, before we'd even left the kids were asking when we were coming back, see...

I would NOT recommend staying here!! The Manager was unfriendly and rude. The “spa” that they make you pay extra for was lukewarm and dirty. One of the young female staff pre-judged us when we explained to her that the some of the gaming machines were faulty as it was not giving my children their credit when inserting coins, after proving her wrong she kind of changed her attitude. The site we were given to park was muddy and wet but the others were fine, we were basically told because it was the last site left if we don’t like it go somewhere else by the Manager.

I have sent Whanganui top 10 this feedback in a survey and they did reply back to my survey however not everything they said was true and they started to twist things. I couldn’t reply back to that email so I have my reply below.

My reply: You are incorrect, I requested a booking for 2 adults and 2 children not realising you also charge $12 for 3yr old toddlers. Yes, we were offered a refund by the Manager at the time and were basically told if you don’t like it go somewhere else in a rude manner while the Manager was talking to someone else on site. We chose to stay because we were tired and didn’t know anywhere else to go. Again you are incorrect, I did not ask for a discounted price because my Husband works at Corrections, i asked if you offer any deals for Corrections staff as there are many Camps around NZ that do – DON’T get it twisted!!

Good to know the issues with your gaming machines have been fixed. Have you have spoken to some of the staff re: pre-judging customers/people?

Yes, washing powder is available all the way across the site to purchase in store however a few of us at the site were discussing how it would be much more convenient to have this closer to the laundry room.

You may also want to look at cleaning your spa daily and ensuring it is at a good temperature before charging customers extra to use it (not good)!

After covid 19 my Family and I were seeking a well needed break after a stressful time. We are not from around Whanganui so coming here was an eye opener for us. We couldn’t help but think is it because of our colour why we were being treated differently....we are proud to be Maori! We noticed there were a variety of other nationalities at the site and the Manager seemed nice and chatty towards them...this only stood out to us because he wasn’t like this towards us.

Overall bad experience and I feel other customers/visitors need to know and that’s why I’ve posted this.

Response to your reply below: I can assure you that some of your Staff judged us when we advised her of the issues with your broken machines and it wasn’t until she was proven wrong that she changed her whole attitude.

I am also certain that the Manager was not friendly towards us from the start....If Children as young as 10yrs old picked up on his mannerisms and some of the rude staff we definitely did that’s for sure.

You keep mentioning that we asked for discounts, this is something that happens a lot in the World so I don’t know why it’s so foreign to you... maybe it’s because you don’t offer discounts where as a lot of other camp sites do.

The spa that we paid extra for didn’t look like it had been cleaned for quite sometime or temperature checked because it was like I mentioned luke warm. This is something that is important to keep on top of if you are going to charge customers for a service.

Ok, so you charge for 2 and over.

I have spoken to other customers who have visited this Holiday camp site and they have had similar experiences. I have advised them to complete a survey or place a review as it’s important to voice these concerns. I hope they do and I...

Disappointing Experience for Te Araroa Walkers

Thank you for taking the time to respond, though I feel some points need to be clarified.

Firstly, I fully understand that arriving during the holiday season and after Christmas is challenging for any accommodation provider. However, this does not excuse the lack of basic amenities and the unwelcoming attitude we experienced. Many of us are Te Araroa Walkers who rely on facilities like yours after days on the trail. For instance, I needed to rent a towel so I could wash all my clothes, including my own towel, but this was not possible. A facility of this kind should anticipate and accommodate the needs of walkers, especially given how many of us pass through Whanganui.

Secondly, the price was excessively high. I paid $37 for one night in my tent, which is far above the usual rates of $20-30 maximum. While I appreciate the range of facilities your park offers, many of them (such as the heated pool and spa) are not priorities for walkers who simply need a place to rest, do laundry, and recover. We were genuinely surprised by the price, which was significantly above what we had encountered elsewhere. This led us to sit outside the reception to search for other options because it felt too expensive for us. Had the price been more reasonable, we would have paid immediately, and the situation would have been resolved much more easily.

On the issue of group behavior: it’s unfortunate that previous interactions with other walkers have shaped your perception. However, it is unfair to generalize this frustration to our group, especially when many of us are respectful and appreciative of the spaces we use. While some individuals may not have followed your rules, this doesn’t justify the unprofessionalism we faced. After spending five days canoeing the Whanganui River, we hoped for at least a friendly reception. Instead, one of my friends, who needed to use the bathroom before we booked our tents, was stopped by another staff member after Jeannie, the receptionist, used a walkie-talkie to prevent her access because we hadn’t paid yet. This was both unnecessary and humiliating.

Lastly, I take note of your mention of past discounts and services offered to Te Araroa Walkers. While I understand why these practices were discontinued, I urge you to consider how important your facility is to the many hikers who pass through Whanganui. Instead of focusing on past grievances, perhaps a more balanced approach could be found to ensure both parties benefit.

Overall, nothing about this facility is adapted to the needs of the many Te Araroa Walkers who pass through this area. This is particularly disappointing given the significance of Whanganui on the trail. I hope you take this feedback as an opportunity to improve the experience for future visitors.

Best...