Maruia Hot Springs — Hotel in South Island

Maruia Hot Springs is not as advertised. I will preface this by saying that I am an avid traveler (and a low-maintenance one at that) who has stayed in countless hostels, bunk houses and tents, as well as the occasional four or five star hotel across the globe. Throughout all of my travels, this is only the second time I’ve had such a poor experience that I felt compelled to write a review. No matter what the positive reviews may say, this is not the 4 star hotel the owners proclaim it to be. The cost of accommodation was quite high for very low quality service and the experience did not align with the costs whatsoever. While the pictures on the website make Maruia look like a luxury wellness retreat, the reality is quite a different story. The natural landscape is beautiful, but that’s where it ends. The 4 star experience is a total facade. The whole place gives the impression that the owners are cheap and it feels like they are cutting corners every step of the way. Above all, the staff were terrible - especially reception.||With high hopes, we arrived at Maruia about an hour before check in, and our rooms were not yet ready. The receptionist told us we could go to the pools until the room was ready, which we were happy to do. We asked for some towels and robes, and he reluctantly went in a back closet and pulled a few robes and towels out of a heap in a laundry bin and gave them to us, to the point we questioned whether they were even clean - not exactly the presentation you would expect at a 4 star resort. After an hour or so of getting attacked by sandflies at the pools, we searched for a place to go inside to read a book and relax while we waited for our room. Unfortunately no such room exists except for the lounge area next to the kitchen and reception which was loud and absolutely filthy with discarded plates and dishes from other guests who had long since left the room. Staff was nearby at reception, but couldn’t be bothered to deal with the mess. Upon finally checking in we were assigned our rooms and given directions to get to them. I was traveling with my elderly parents who had booked a mountain view room while I had booked a separate glamping pod for myself in the camping area. The receptionist explained where the bathrooms and showers were for the glamping pods, revealing that they were far from the camping area. I was surprised by this, but even more stunned by the comment that followed, which was their suggestion that I should just use the shower/toilets in my parents room instead of the camping facilities. This was shocking, and quite presumptive as I had paid for my own room and expected I would have access to sufficient facilities, rather than being told to use the facilities in my parents’ room.||Other cost cutting measures and poor service include the lack of free wifi (supposedly this is to make it more zen, but in reality they don’t want to pay the extras costs for guests to use wifi), poor quality towels and robes, and no assistance bringing luggage to rooms which were far from reception, and required traversing unstable terrain.||The next big issue was the lack of cleanliness throughout the resort. The entire place is unclean and feels extremely old and dated. The common room in the main building was filthy - dirty dishes left everywhere from other guests, and no staff concerned about clearing them away. The receptionists doubled as housekeeping and service staff, and did not seem bothered about keeping anything tidy. The changing room by the pools only had one toilet and smelled like a high school locker room - dirty, smelly, and not at all what you have in mind when you imagine a wellness resort. The additional outbuilding with infrared sauna was completely abandoned and had a couple of massage beds with dirty blankets on them. A very strange and unsettling place that didn’t even feel like it was part of the resort. Again, it didn’t appear anybody ever tidied these common areas or gave any thought to their cleanliness or upkeep throughout the day. Lastly, there is such a bad problem with sandflies, and nowhere suitable to go indoors to go if you need to take a break from the pools, or simply want to relax inside and read a book. The sandfiles are unbearable and you cannot sit outside or be comfortable in the thermal pools due to the sandfly problem. I understand that this is nature and somewhat out of their control, however staff do nothing to remedy the situation and have no suitable indoor spaces to relax in if you want to avoid getting bitten.||The lack of safety practices was another massive concern. No safety protocols exist in the presence of geothermal pools. There is no signage or warnings about submerging, or the potential presence of bacteria within the pools. The stairs leading into the pools are also very unstable and had poor handrails that were ineffective. In addition to the pools, the pathways throughout the resort connecting buildings are extremely unstable and dangerous - especially at night.||Another huge disappointment at Maruia was the food. The dinner was terrible. Again, I will preface this by saying that I have traveled all over the world, and usually am easily pleased with food. I try everything, and seldom complain about anything. The “gourmet” dinner at Maruia included highly processed fried salmon and a completely inedible dessert. On top of that, they offered bread for an extra $5 which included 2 pieces of bland white bread that came straight out of a package from the supermarket. Breakfast was included and we skipped it because the dinner the night before was so bad. We preferred to go hungry and hit the road the next morning rather than sticking around and attempting to eat breakfast.||Last but certainly not least was the staff and service provided. It was shocking how rude and unhelpful the staff at Maruia were. It seemed like they were being inconvenienced anytime myself or any other guests went to the reception to ask a question. Each time I ventured to reception during my brief stay, I would wait for long periods of time before even being acknowledged by anyone, let alone helped. The female receptionist actively avoided me on the day of my checkout. Although nobody was at the desk after 8am (when they opened) I could see the female receptionist standing and partially hiding herself in the adjacent closet while trying to avoid eye contact so she wouldn’t have to help me. After several minutes she eventually marched out of the closet and breezed past me mumbling that she would get someone to come help. No “can i help you” or “good morning” or anything else. Just more avoidance and trying to pass on the work to someone else. Disastrous customer service.||Overall Maruia was a massive disappointment. This was a highly anticipated stop on our journey across the South Island, and we left feeling completely ripped off and deceived. It especially stood in stark contrast to the wonderful experiences we had encountered during our previous 6 weeks of exploring New Zealand where we experienced nothing but wonderful hospitality, friendly kiwis, and fresh, high-quality food everywhere we went. It would have been more palatable if Maruia was marketed as the 2 or 3 star hotel that it really is - but portraying it as a 4 star hotel is just deceptive and dishonest. Maruia has a lot of potential to be a wonderful place, but until the ownership changes, don’t waste your time or your money. What went from excitement and anticipation turned into a brief stop at a place that we couldn’t leave...

Maruia Hot Springs - MHS.

MHS is a health spa based on geothermal rock pools - three of them - each with its own temperature. As expected, there is a mild sulphuric odour, but the steaming warm water - about 38 degrees C in the warmest - is very pleasant to relax in. There is also a sauna with a fantastic view over the valley and a steam room with the same view. The sauna was a proper one with hot rocks and water to pour over them if desired. There was also an infrared sauna, which I did not use. The largest pool was reasonably spacious. The other two were much smaller.

I offer a mixed review highlighting the good, the bad and the ugly.

Let's deal with the ugly first, which, in fairness, is beyond the control of MHS. Sandflies. Lots of them. A plague of them! If you are someone who always gets bitten by annoying little critters and your bites irritate or get infected easily, you might want to give MHS a wide berth. I am normally NOT bitten but three days on, and I'm still itching. My wife is a lot worse. Sandfly repellant is provided but, like most such potions, is of limited value.

Helpful advice is also offered in that there are fewer flies from late afternoon onwards, but fewer is not none. The pools are open 24/7 (not the sauna and steam room), so a late evening dip was great fun with far fewer flies and some star gazing to be had on a clear night.

The good. The site is set in a valley with beautiful views all around and some great walks ranging from a 40 min stroll to more major hikes.

Some aspects of the room were good. The 6'' bed was very comfortable, and I loved the bespoke reading lights. The bug screen (see above re plague of flies! ) had no holes in it, which was good to see. Many others I've seen over the years do have holes somewhat defeating their purpose. The room was rather small with barely any space for clothes and just about everything else in it seemed tired and due a refurbishment.

There was a fair printed warning that the power to the site is limited and electricity is shared. Therefore, the request was not to have long showers and use hair driers for long periods as this might result in someone else having a cold shower. Not the advice I'd expect from a higher end Spa resort. There was no air con but a ceiling fan that ran in near silent mode which did have a cooling effect. Also welcome was a Nespresso type coffee machine at no extra cost ( more about coffee soon) with a good supply of the requisite pods. The towels were just odd. They felt like microfiber travel towels. Again, it's not what I'd expect in a spa with aspiration for luxury.

The food was generally good to very good. My main gripe was that coffee was not included in the breakfast menu. I've been lucky / privileged to have stayed in many hotels, spas, and other establishments offering breakfast over four decades or more, and I think this is the first time coffee was not included with breakfast. It seemed at variance with the included coffee in the room.

The staff were friendly and helpful. They answered all our queries and the lady who serviced the room was especially friendly and helpful.

On the flip side of this sort of review is the management of the customer's expectations. In my mind I was going to a 4 star (at least) spa resort and I'm afraid that simply was not the case. I still enjoyed the stay, and I would recommend a visit, but I would suggest lowering your expectations somewhat to avoid being disappointed.

Some reading this review will be thinking,'another soft townie not able to deal with lack of a few creature comforts and a few flies'. Guilty as charged! That is why it's all about expectations, which is why people read (honest and, hopefully, fair) reviews. Enjoy!

Edit. Days later and sandfly bites still a problem....

I don’t often leave reviews but I wanted to share our recent experience at Maruia which we felt was disappointing and very overpriced.

We were gifted a $400 voucher for an all-inclusive overnight stay in the glamping pods. When we booked we were told we would need to pay an additional $32 as it was ‘peak season’ and the voucher did not cover this.

On arrival we were greeted by a young man at the counter who seemed bored, and a little irritated, to be assisting us (i.e., no eye contact or smiling, monotone voice, and he said the exact same ‘pitch’ to the couple in line before us). Glancing at previous reviews, it seems others have had a similar checkin experience.

We stayed in a small pod near the river which contained a queen bed, small desk with two chairs and a heat pump. Unfortunately, there was no toilet, running water or shower in our pod so we had to walk 50-100m every time we needed to use the bathroom, fill up our water bottles or simply wash our hands. In addition, the shared bathrooms had signs instructing users to limit showers to 2-5 minutes to save electricity and water. We found all of this to be a little ridiculous considering the $430+/night price tag.

The room came with a single bath towel per person, which became wet after the first use of the hot pools. When we asked for an additional towel at the service desk the lady seemed confused and suggested we dry the towels on the towel rack in our unit. We did so overnight; however, in the morning when we went for a second dip we found that the towels were still wet.

Our stay came with dinner and breakfast, which was ordered from a short menu. The food was nice and served relatively quickly, although portions tended to be a bit small. We noticed that the bacon on our breakfast was soggy/undercooked, one of the poached eggs was hard-boiled, and there was no ‘lava’ inside the chocolate fondant dessert. Complimentary tea/coffee was entirely absent, so we were forced to pay $7 each for a large flat white with breakfast.

Details are incredibly important when charging for a premium service. Our suggestions:

Units (yes, the ones you are charging $400+/night for) should contain: private toilet/bathroom, water station, kettle, complimentary teas/coffees, wine glasses, small fridge, face cloths, additional bath towel, and toiletries (e.g., moisturiser, shampoo) - even cheap hotels provide these free of charge. Increased care and attention to ensure that food service is held to a high standard. Retraining staff in basic customer service skills (e.g., eye contact, smiling, not making a fuss and going 'over and beyond' to help). Simple and inexpensive additions to reflect the premium price - complimentary face masks (