Tasman Holiday Parks - Papamoa Beach — Local services in North Island

Apart from huge price hike since last visit, customer service was non existent. Young staff behind the counter showed no customer service training must have ever been provided. Last time check in 2 pm, website not clear it is now 3 pm, arrived early and room not ready, said would flick text when ready, kept driving around after 3 pm no text came so drove back and room was actually ready, no apology. Got x1 room key and gate code, went to villa. Condition okay, could do with a bit of a fresh up but clean enough. Went out next morning and had missed call, when I got back to them they asked why we had checked out as our room key had been returned. I said we did not check out, we got given 1 key and were in Tauranga and to please go and check our belongings were still in room. I asked that I be phoned urgently and before 12 noon as was going in to a movie. No one phoned me and I got a text at 1.22 saying our belongings were there. We returned to park and by someone else randomly returning key made our gate code not work. So had to go get another one. No apology for either these 2 events. Went back to villa. TV been working intermittently, thought must need new battery in remotes, went to office at 5.20 pm but it was locked up and closed. Signage indicated multiple office hours, 8-8, 8-7, 8-6 so thought at least would be open till 6 pm. Tried to ring after hours bell, no reply. Phoned the urgent number on the window, straight to answerphone, so I left message could someone please just drop us some batteries so hubby could watch the rugby. No response. So I emailed them and asked the same thing. No response. Phoned the urgent number 3 more times, could only leave message. In the end walked to the shops across the road and bought new remote batteries, and TV now worked okay. On departure I said I was very disappointed with customer service, or lack thereof, and young girl on counter who I won't name here just smiled at me as I was letting off a small amount of steam and customer service advice, so I just left and was really just left with feeling of not great experience customer service wise and won't be going back, should have spent $279 a night in a motel. All may seem like small things but don't feel they were hard things...

JUST AWFUL - DON'T STAY HERE!

Accepted a phone reservation when we made it clear we wanted to pay on arrival.

Next thing they sent me an email asking me to either pay a deposit or pay in full - a month before our scheduled arrival.

So we paid a 50% deposit by online banking, even though we had made it clear we would pay on arrival when they accepted our phone reservation.

Then they sent another email demanding full payment or they would cancel our booking.

When I called them to complain the girl smirked at me on the phone because she thought me being annoyed about all this was funny.

So I demanded a refund and made it clear I was going to give them an awful review and will be sharing this experience via social media.

I also informed them I am referring this matter to the Commerce Commission.

Asking people for a deposit when what their policy is "full payment or cancellation" is both deceptive and misleading, and also wastes the customers time.

Next thing the manager calls me (on a Sunday morning) and clearly wanted a confrontation.

Without being willing to even listen to me, she proceeded to spell out their payment policy without showing a shred of interest in my point of view or experience of the situation, and when I tried to interject she demanded that I just stop talking and just listen.

Her arrogance was simply stunning.

Then she accused me of "abusing" her staff (oldest trick in the book when they don't want to accept any responsibility for their own conduct).

Honestly these people are just precious and greedy, and allergic to any form of criticism.

They use deceptive and misleading practices to secure payment in advance so they can benefit from your money for as long as possible while you get no benefit from it until you turn up.

They could have just taken our credit card details to secure the booking without charging us until we arrived, like every other normal accommodation business in the known universe, but nooooo, not Papamoa Beach Resort, they like to spend your money before you even arrive there.

My advice is don't waste your money by giving it to these reptiles, spend it somewhere where they are not so arrogant,...

My partner and I stayed at Tasman Holiday Park in Papamoa, booking a cabin. The amenities were as advertised on the booking website, and overall, the facilities were good. However, the check-in experience with Deb left much to be desired. We arrived at 6:30 pm, and Deb seemed flustered and dismissive, making it feel as though checking in was an inconvenience, even though the website clearly states that reception is open until 8 pm.

We were given the key to cabin 32, but our information sheet indicated we were supposed to be in cabin 31. Since both cabins were identical and unoccupied, we brought our belongings into cabin 32. I immediately tried calling reception to inform Deb of the mix-up and to let her know we had no issue with staying in cabin 32, but received no answer. So, I went back to reception to explain the situation in person, placing no blame on her.

To my surprise, instead of acknowledging her mistake, Deb reprimanded me, insisting that I should have returned the key immediately (which I was in the process of doing). She repeatedly said, “That’s just not allowed, darling,” in a loud voice, as if to shift blame onto me in front of other guests at reception. It was absolutely ridiculous. Despite the error being hers, she made me feel as though I was at fault for taking the key she handed to me. Not once did she apologize for the confusion. To make matters worse, I overheard her telling another guest in front, "Why are people checking in so late?"—an odd comment given that all guests arrival time was well within reception hours.

The entire experience was unpleasant and unnecessary. As someone in a front-facing role, Deb’s attitude was unprofessional and disappointing. I couldn’t wait to leave the park the next morning. Overall, this negative encounter unfortunately overshadowed and tainted what could have been an...