Lake Hawea Hostel

We appreciated having an affordable place in this area, and the room was clean, warm, and comfortable, though pokey. Having a sink in the room helped since the toilets and showers were outside. We were in room 22, right beside the door to those facilities and the lounge/kitchen. People going in and out kept shaking the room and waking us up. We’ve found better places around the country for the same price, but this was the cheapest option we could find nearby, and we’re grateful for that.

The restaurant is fantastic. You can enjoy the view while you eat, and the food is great too. As a chef, I can tell the aioli I’ve had here over the years is handmade, and it’s amazing. The staff are super friendly as well. This hotel is underrated, with a large, quiet setting, good facilities, and a good dining room. The price is unbelievably affordable. Whenever I visit Wānaka, this is the first place I think of, and I choose to stay here most of the time. It may not be a luxury or modern hotel, but it’s clean, comfortable, and above standard.

Worst hostel I’ve stayed in. We booked a double room and found camping-style facilities, with toilets and showers outside, plus a really smelly kitchen. I’ve stayed in about 15 hostels in nz for the same price and the others were all much nicer. We decided to switch to an Airbnb. If you don’t camp, go elsewhere, and maybe camp elsewhere too.

We stayed with our family of five from 15 Aug to 17 Aug 2021, in room 6, and the power supply was a huge disappointment. Using the kettle or hair dryer would cut power to half the room, including the TV, shower room, power plug, and heater. We asked staff to fix it, but it kept happening throughout our two days there. There was nobody on duty at 9:30pm, which was another unexpected problem during our trip. In winter, it was frustrating not to have warmth in the room or hot water to drink, and we had to wait until staff came on duty at 7:30am. To be fair, the reception staff’s attitude was okay, but it wasn’t enough.