SkyCity Hotel Auckland — Hotel in Waitematā

My first trip ever to Auckland, New Zealand, was truly a memorable experience. I chose the SkyCity Hotel Auckland for its fantastic location, right in the heart of the city and just moments away from the Sky Tower. It was also super convenient, only a two-minute walk from the Sky Drive, which made accessing the Airport Express bus a breeze. The hotel really does serve as a focal point for everything happening downtown.

As I walked into the hotel, I was pleasantly surprised to find a casino attached. Even though I'm not a gambler, it added a lively energy to the atmosphere that made my stay feel even more exciting.

Check-in was straightforward, with the option to go through a self-service kiosk or with a friendly staff member. I did encounter a small hiccup with my room key, but a gentleman named ‘Santho’ came to my assistance. He was incredibly kind and took a moment to ask about my flight home which is a late afternoon. To my surprise, he offered me a late check-out at noon instead of the usual 11 AM, which was incredibly thoughtful. Santho even handed me a welcoming letter filled with useful hotel information and brought me two bottles of water, which was such a nice touch.

I stayed on the second floor, where the elevators require a key card for access. My king-size standard room was spotless, and I was greeted by a lovely message on the TV that welcomed me to SkyCity. It was great to have hotel information readily available through the TV or by scanning a QR code with my phone. Channels are limited. I did not see the option of Netflix.

The bathroom met my expectations for cleanliness, although there was no coffee machine—just an electric kettle for boiling water. They provided instant coffee and tea bags, which was nice enough.

So if the "do not disturb" sign wasn’t on the door, housekeeping would clean daily. I left tips on the bed each day, only to find them returned to the bedside table! I eventually caught one of the sweet ladies cleaning my room, and to my surprise, she thought the tips were left there by mistake. How honest and dedicated is that?

The area surrounding the hotel is bustling with numerous restaurants and convenience stores, all so close by. I truly felt welcomed during my stay, and I would absolutely love to return to this wonderful place if I ever find myself in Auckland...

We chose this hotel because it was in the CBD and had numerous restaurants within the complex. The good things about it stops right there though. This hotel is a total disappointment. We have been traveling for decades and have been to almost every part of the world and sad to say this hotel is not worthy of its official 4 + star rating. We literally had to beg for our room to be serviced/cleaned. This went on everyday for the 3 next days we stayed with them. Apparently, they have this policy of only servicing the rooms every 3 days! I wish they wrote that in their hotel's description. We also had to call for the simplest thing as toilet paper as they left half a roll for the 3 of us to consume on our first day. The front desk and housekeeping personnel all claimed that they lack staff to do those things. My point is – why do they bother to have the hotel open and on offer when they don’t have sufficient staff to address their issues. Some of them even told us that they were pulled out from hotels nearby to service the hotel. People bringing room service orders looked like trainees. A couple of them admitted that they just started working in the hotel a couple of days ago. On check-out, we raised these issues and the front desk people seemed like they couldn’t care less what these issues were. The hotel is being run by part timers. So much for one’s security and privacy. The rate of AU$ 300 plus a night is not exactly the going rate for a room at a rundown motel. The room we got was a Premium Twin Suite. The suite was poorly lit. We had to request for an extra lampshade because we felt like we were in a cave . The lining of the chairs were ripped/worn out. Again, I don’t understand why they offer these rooms when they are in this state. I am actually disappointed that Qantas even offers this hotel in its listing. A lot of Australians depend on their recommendation. This hotel is enough reason for us to avoid going back to New Zealand for...

For a 4 star hotel, it's somewhat lacking in room amenities.

The whole complex lives by the hashtag #EatStayPlay and therein lies the problem. The hotel is totally geared toward wanting you to dine in one of the several restaurants. These range in price from reasonable to exorbitant.

As such, the rooms DO NOT provide amenities such as plates and cutlery, nor a microwave or even a toaster. The in room dining prices are $$$ expensive. So if buying takeaway (which I mainly did) you have NOTHING to eat with or on.I had to buy a plate and cutlery from local shops so I could enjoy my own bought meals, and sadly couldn't reheat leftovers as there were no facilities provided.

I've stayed in far cheaper, though less luxurious hotels, where at least these basic amenities were available in room.

Okay, so a response from the hotel is that basic amenities can be provided on request. Firstly, when is crockery and cutlery considered "basic" amenities? As a 4 star hotel, should these not be "basic" inclusions in EVERY room?

Secondly, microwaves CAN be provided. Again, I would consider these to be basic to any high class hotel. At the very least, there should be communal kitchenettes that could be accessed by all guests.

Another thing I was NOT impressed with was that the in room, dining is VERY expensive. Would it not serve you better to offer competitive prices, when there are several outlets outside the hotel open late, and offering much cheaper options?

Coupled with that, could you not reduce the price of the various dining options within the hotel to encourage local dining?

Lastly, it seems a policy of your hotel that all vacant rooms have every light on. Why? Surely it would be more prudent to leave rooms in darkness, except for those that are due to be relet? The savings in power alone, could offset the cost of in...