Lakeview Colonial Motel — Hotel in South Island

Our family's stay at Lakeview Colonia Motel (Room 11) was unfortunately extremely poor.

Firstly, despite a 3:00 PM check-in, our room wasn't ready until 3:45 PM. It appeared the cleaning had only begun upon our arrival, which was particularly noticeable as our room was right outside reception.

Upon entering, we noticed several cleanliness issues: dusty skirting boards, dirty food left in the oven, and even lumpy, spoiled milk provided. Furthermore, the electric blanket in the main bedroom didn't seem to work, indicating another basic amenity failure. These issues immediately raised concerns about the standard of care and readiness of the room.

The most significant issue, however, was the noise. From 7:00 PM to 9:15 PM, the room directly above us had non-stop banging, heavy footsteps, items being dragged across the floor, and loud clattering of plates. This, combined with very bad and constant road noise (due to a lack of double glazing), made it utterly impossible for our young children to get any sleep.

Given the non-stop noise, we were forced to check out at 9:20 PM and drive 3.5 hours home that night.

This cut our trip short and also caused us to miss a pre-booked activity the following day.

We attempted to find reception staff before leaving, but no one was present.

The motel completely failed to provide a peaceful, clean, functional, or suitable environment for a family. We would not recommend it.

On the plus side, the location was good and the views were beautiful. Receptionist offered to carry our bags up and bathroom looks recently renovated.

Edit:

Our subsequent attempts to resolve this matter directly with the motel were met with insufficient response. A detailed complaint was sent on June 21st, to which the motel replied on June 23rd with a 30% discount offer. Our counter-proposal for a full refund, citing a breach of the Consumer Guarantees Act, was sent on June 24th, followed by a reminder on June 30th. The motel has failed to provide any further communication or resolution since June 23rd.

Escalation to Booking.com on July 3rd also proved inadequate. Despite their intervention, Booking.com confirmed on July 16th that they could not reach an agreement with the motel and processed only a $90 refund out of our $360...

Unsafe, disgusting and completely unacceptable for the price. This was for our wedding anniversary.

This was the worst experiences I’ve ever had anywhere, and I’ve never written a bad hotel review. We paid $367 NZD per night, and the conditions were absolutely appalling.

There was broken asbestos outside the room, mould all over the doors and the whole place smelt strongly damp and mouldy. There were live electrical cables with water leaking directly into them, and even blood on the chair inside the room. Completely unsafe and unhygienic. I’ve stayed at many hostels when I was younger and they have not been as bad as this place.

To make things worse, the motel gave our room to someone else, then placed us in a room on the lower level, right beside the main road, which reeked of mould, and the room was next to a cleaners room with a broken door with 2 mattresses infested with black mould. When we raised concerns, the manager said there were no other rooms available and that we needed to raise it with booking.com which we did. Only after Booking.com contacted him to try and arrange a refund did he suddenly offer a room “upstairs with a lake view.”

The man behind reception (manager) was rude, dismissive, and lied repeatedly. The sign outside was flashing ‘Vacancy’, but as soon as Booking.com got involved, it was changed to ‘No Vacancy.’ The entire situation felt dishonest and unprofessional.

For the price we paid, this motel is an absolute health and safety hazard. The property is in terrible condition, and the customer service was appalling and somehow rated as a 3 star Motel. The place is apparently for sale - our taxi driver said this when he picked us up and said other customers had told him the state it was in. I hope whoever buys this dump gets a full property inspection first

Anyone staying near rooms 1, 2, or 3 (or on the lower levels) should be seriously concerned about asbestos exposure and respiratory risks. Please do not stay here — it is unsafe, unsanitary, and not worth your health or your money.

I’ve attached photos so people can see the reality...

Unsafe, disgusting and completely unacceptable for the price. This was for our wedding anniversary.||This was the worst experiences I’ve ever had anywhere, and I’ve never written a bad hotel review. We paid $367 NZD per night, and the conditions were absolutely appalling.|There was broken asbestos outside the room, mould all over the doors and the whole place smelt strongly damp and mouldy. There were live electrical cables with water leaking directly into them, and even blood on the chair inside the room. Completely unsafe and unhygienic. I’ve stayed at many hostels when I was younger and they have not been as bad as this place.||To make things worse, the motel gave our room to someone else, then placed us in a room on the lower level, right beside the main road, which reeked of mould, and the room was next to a cleaners room with a broken door with 2 mattresses infested with black mould. When we raised concerns, the manager said there were no other rooms available and that we needed to raise it with booking.com which we did. Only after Booking.com contacted him to try and arrange a refund did he suddenly offer a room “upstairs with a lake view.”||The man behind reception (manager) was rude, dismissive, and lied repeatedly. The sign outside was flashing ‘Vacancy’, but as soon as Booking.com got involved, it was changed to ‘No Vacancy.’ The entire situation felt dishonest and unprofessional.|For the price we paid, this motel is an absolute health and safety hazard. The property is in terrible condition, and the customer service was appalling and somehow rated as a 3 star Motel. The place is apparently for sale - our taxi driver said this when he picked us up and said other customers had told him the state it was in. I hope whoever buys this dump gets a full property inspection first.||Anyone staying near rooms 1, 2, or 3 (or on the lower levels) should be seriously concerned about asbestos exposure and respiratory risks. Please do not stay here — it is unsafe, unsanitary, and not worth your health or your money.||I’ve attached photos so people can see the reality...