Azena Motels

The quality was terrible. There was black mould across the curtains and a live plug coming out of the wall beside the head of my bed. Our sheets and pillowcase were never changed during the stay. We got only one roll of toilet paper, the couch had white stains all over it, and every tea towel was stained. Dust and dirt covered the tables and mirror. I’d give it zero stars if I could.

For $200, this wasn’t acceptable quality. I’m giving two stars because we were allowed to check in early and the bed and toilet were clean. The kitchen was almost unused and clean too. Most of the rest needed a thorough scrub and updating. There were stains and holes in the walls and doors, dust layered on the bedroom mirror, and stains all over the bathroom mirror. The shower floor looked so unpleasant that I kept my slippers on. The only bin in the room was broken. The front door faces the cars. That would be fine if the back door were usable, but it opens toward all the rubbish bins, so that wasn’t a pleasant option either. We chose the place after reading reviews, with few places available in Christchurch that night.

The washing machine in the room was handy for catching up on laundry, and downtown was about a 20-minute walk away. There’s no air conditioning, though. Reception was open when we arrived but nobody was there, so we had to call and wait 10 minutes for someone to come in. That’s inconvenient if you don’t have a phone, and it also didn’t feel secure to leave check-in information sitting out in the open. Free internet is limited to 1Gb per day, then it costs $5 per GB.

The room was warm, the bed was comfortable, and the place was really quiet. There’s a great Irish bar across the road, and a washer and dryer in the room. The staff were friendly too. I’ll be back.