Castles Motel and Driftwood Motel

A nice surprise after a few bad stays at similar prices. During our road trip around NZ, this was one of the nicer motels we stayed in. The rooms were clean, spacious and well equipped, with plenty of appliances to make the stay comfortable. Good value, and I’d recommend it to young travellers like us looking for an affordable place that’s still comfortable.

We booked two rooms, both very clean and with full kitchen facilities, which is unusual at such affordable prices. The woman who checked us in was lovely and very helpful. It’s a handy little hotel close to the airport, and we’d definitely stay again.

There was a man sitting in a chair drinking alcohol in the car park outside my room when I arrived. He threatened to kill me and destroy my motorcycle, so I felt unsafe and didn’t stay. I contacted the duty manager and asked for a full refund. Three days later, there was still no refund, and Expedia, who I booked through, hadn’t replied either. I later found out the motel is used as 'Emergency Housing' for homeless people. Update: after many emails to Expedia and many texts to Castles Motel, the refund was finally accepted. Never again.

The grounds outside were unkempt, and the unit wasn’t very clean. There were no microwave-safe dishes, so I couldn’t use the microwave. The shower fitting leaked and fell off while I was using it, and the kitchen sink had no plug. The table looked like it had been sourced from the local recycling centre. Definitely not a four-star motel.