Novotel Queenstown Lakeside — Hotel in South Island

I acknowledge that this was an impromptu stay, and that we arrived at almost midnight. However I expect the service level to be high for a four star hotel, regardless of the timing.

I made an impromptu booking at approx 10pm via phone. The lady who took the booking was very good, very helpful , and very professional.

When I arrived at the hotel the check in was average, and the guy behind the counter offered me Valet parking. Which I agreed to and Paid for my stay along with the valet parking.

The accommodation was average at best. certainly not of four star quality.

The following morning I got up to go for a walk along the lakefront. As I exited the hotel I noted that my vehicle had not been moved and was still sitting out the front unlocked. A bus was trying to get in so one of your staff was exiting just behind me with my keys to move my vehicle for the bus.

I immediately raised my concern at reception. The guy on reception was very defensive and tried to tell me that the valet parking had been full. when I asked for a refund for the parking, he got very defensive and told me that the curbside parking on the road would have cost me $6 per hour (which is false). he kept arguing with me and did not want to admit that you guys got it wrong. I insisted that they refund me the parking, he finally said he would go and speak to the manager. Which he did. After speaking to the manager, he came out and told me that the manager said that due to the mistake made by the hotel that they would refund me for my entire stay. I reconfirmed this with him, and he confirmed it. So I was very happy with that decision and was already thinking of planning to come back and staying a bit longer next time. Because that would have been excellent customer service.

However, when I cam back later to check out and sort this out, i was told that that they were only refunding my parking; not the entire stay as per what he had told me earlier. And when I questioned him as to why the change, he got all defensive again, and insisted that he had only agreed to refund the parking. This took me from being extremely pleased with the customer service to being extremely disappointed.

The fact is that they left my vehicle sitting out near the roadside, unlocked all night, and showed very little concern for this. While I am glad that they did refund my parking, I feel that their lack of concern and lack of willingness to take ownership of this mistake, as well as mixed messaging regarding the refunding of my stay, is extremely poor customer service; and certainly not at the level of a four star hotel such as Novatel.

If they refunded my stay, I was going to book ahead for another stay. this would have gained some customer loyalty. I can accept that mistakes are made, when people take ownership and make amends. but there was no ownership taken, I was but fobbed off and only got my parking refunded to stop my...

I highly recommend this hotel – 200%! Our stay at Novotel Queenstown Lakeside was absolutely amazing. I didn’t expect to be so close to the lake or have such great services (the hotel’s design is straightforward, and the bathrooms aren’t particularly fancy). But, when you have a stunning view, exceptional service, wonderful staff, and a delicious breakfast, all the little details fade away.

Room: We booked a twin bed lakeside view room on the first floor, with a direct view of Lake Wakatipu. The room had a balcony and a small window, offering a breathtaking view to wake up to every morning and enjoy all day long. The room was spacious, and our 3-year-old had plenty of space to play without any issues. I highly recommend the twin bed setup if you're traveling with a child. 10/10.

The View and Location: The lake was literally just 10 steps from the hotel – how great is that? The city center was also very close, with plenty of dining options nearby. In a word, perfect!

Room Service: Every afternoon, we returned to a clean and fresh room. Special thanks to Susheel, who even left extra towels for us. They also provided us a small stool upon request. 10/10.

Breakfast: We opted for the breakfast-included package, and it was well worth it. The variety was impressive: bread, butter, jam, in-house baked croissants, muffins, apple pies, cereals, seasonal fruits, boiled vegetables, grilled mushrooms, veg omelets, scrambled eggs, baked beans, roasted tomatoes, sausages (both chicken and beef), and even some Indian dishes like Sabudana Khichdi (Tapioca) and noodles. They also offered a selection of juices like orange, pineapple, and mixed vegetable juice, along with tea, coffee, and milk. A special shout-out to Chef Dong for making the most amazing soft, juicy veg omelets with tomato, capsicum, mushrooms, onions, and cheese. Despite being busy at times, he was always accommodating when we asked for boiled eggs. Thank you, Chef Dong, for your outstanding hospitality.

Staff: The staff deserves special recognition. Everyone was incredibly helpful, from the kitchen and food court staff to those at the semi-reception. They were all fantastic!

Play Area: The small play area next to the entrance was a hit with my 3-year-old. She loved it so much that she didn’t want to leave the hotel at times. Thank you for creating such a lovely space.

Improvement: A minor point for improvement – No offense, Nick, but perhaps a smile and a more positive attitude would make guests feel more at ease at the main reception.

Overall, an...

We stayed at the Novotel Queenstown Lakeside and from start to end we had a faultless, wonderful experience in terms of customer service and accommodation. As we pulled our car up to the hotel lobby after a drive from Lake Tekapo we were greeted by the valet and concierge. As I checked in at reception, the valet and concierge helped to unload the considerable amount of luggage (7 bags of various sizes) while it was raining heavily raining outside and got our luggage securely into the hotel nice and dry.

We were greeted at the hotel reception by Shannon and Lucy who looked after our early check in and made the whole process fast, smooth and easy. They arranged the valet parking, movement of luggage to the room, upgraded our room to a better lake view room and provided us with our drink vouchers. They also provided an umbrella so that we could walk into town. Equally at checkout their customer service was once again impeccable and smooth.

During the evening, we went back to reception where Lucie also provided us with wonderful customer service and helped us to arrange a late checkout so that we could have adequate time to do the Skyline Gondola in the morning and still have plenty of time to get back to the hotel to check out with no stress.

The room itself was so spotlessly clean and comfortable and the hotel made us feel extra special with the bottle of local wine and chocolates. My wife particularly loved the view from the accessible balcony that looked out over the water and mountains. The bed was one of the most comfortable beds we had ever slept in and we had the best night sleep. There were plenty of powerpoints available to charge our devices and the bathroom amenities were nice.

The Elements Bar was very comfortable and we enjoyed having drinks in front of the fireplace which was very relaxing.

Location-wise, the hotel is perfectly placed by the water in Queenstown central and literally a 30 second walk into town, 8 minute walk to Fergberger, 9 minute walk to Steamer Wharf and 14 minute walk to the Skyline Gondola. So basically really close to everything.

Thank you to Shannon, Lucy, Lucie and the rest of the Novotel team for making our stay so wonderful. We'll see...