Stratford Mountain House — Local services in North Island

My stay at The Mountain House was nothing short of SUPERB! 👌 The staff are all wonderful; their service great, and the Chefs create amazing food options. My two nights accommodation were fabulous, very comfortable, and very relaxing. I loved my roomy studio accommodation with tea and coffee making facilities, a small fridge; a wonderful bathroom, and a beautiful outlook onto the surrounding bush. I felt very comfortable and safe. I had a wonderful time walking and exploring, and also relaxing quietly in a sunshine filled nature garden, listening to beautiful surrounding bird-song. My stay was mid- week (not the weekend, which I believe was booked out for some time ahead). It was very fortunate that my days here were filled with sunshine, and from tge plateau carport further up the mountain, the views were breath-taking and out-of-this-world, being able to see Mt Ruapheu and Mt Ngauruhoe clearly in the distant cental North Island. It also gave occasion to walk further up the mountain, closer to where the snow level reached, at that time. I immensely enjoyed every moment of my stay and hope it will be possible to visit and be able to stay again. On the day of departure, the weather had changed significantly, but despite there being low-lying mist and some rain, The Mountain House had a great breakfast menu selection, a warm fireplace, and a wonderful atmosphere. Simply, the place is a "magical" place, no matter how the...

Stayed at the mountain hotel for two nights. Watch the sunrise in the morning, watch the sunset at night . I watched it over and over again, and the snow mountain was different every time, and I felt a feeling of "reading you" a thousand times and never getting tired of it.

It is a 5-minute drive from the Mount Egmont viewing platform. Surprisingly fair prices for a mountainside hotel. Very neat and clean. The bedding is very comfortable. No noise from the small freezer. The water pressure was great and it was hot. There are bathroom heaters and heaters in the room. It feels warm and dry in the zero-degree mountains. It doesn't have the musty smell of most mountain hotels.

Hotel staff are very friendly. In the morning, the barista asks the kitchen what coffee they wants. Then seriously give each chef a coffee. There was a lady who came back to work on her first day of vacation and was greeted warmly by everyone. The sun shone into the restaurant this day, and the whole feeling was very bright and warm. Gives people a feeling of healing TV drama.

The kitchen team is Indian, so there are some unique Indian dishes worth trying. The entry shrimp and steak is delicious, I think it is...

My partner and I visited a few weeks ago but were disappointed with our overall experience. Upon arriving, we were asked if we would be dining at the restaurant that night as they needed to book us in. I said I would need to check with my partner (we are both vegetarians so our food choices are limited). But the response we received was, "Well we need to know so we can book you in." When we asked if there were any other vegetarian options on the menu, we were told there are menus in the room we could look at. The service didn't feel overly welcoming or accommodating, but instead impatient and pressuring. After a wet morning hike, we were excited about using the sauna in the afternoon (one of the selling points for us staying there), to which we found out wasn't operational upon arrival. We also really struggled to dry our clothes because of the lack of efficient and modern heating in the room. Evidently the selling point of this accommodation is the view - which was incredible, and we can't comment on the food as we ended up dining elsewhere. A heads up about the sauna would have been nice, but I also acknowledge that might not be possible...