Opononi Resort

Once we arrived, it was easy to park the car and relax. The location is spot on, with a dairy on one side, takeaways on the other and the 4 share close by. Our room, number 17, had a perfect view of the wharf and pub, and was handy to the carpark for bringing in our bags. It had a good bed, was clean, and the bathroom was nice. The service was welcoming, and they gave us a tour. Breakfast each morning was great, with a good choice of cereal, yoghurt, fruit and toast. The bar staff were great too, and we loved our meals. My husband especially liked the seafood pizza and his surf n turf sizzling away. We spent two nights here. Thank you.

We arrived around 7.45 for Valentine's dinner, which cost $65 a head, and left after 9.30 with the dessert packed to take away. That was one meringue with another small item and two pieces of chocolate cake, but the meringue had been sitting under whipped cream and was soft and soggy. The waitress was lovely, though clearly busy. There were only eight people in the restaurant, plus a few people sitting outside, so they seemed short-staffed. The meal was disappointing overall. The entree was edible, but not very good. My chicken main was dry and I managed only a couple of bites, with fried potato and a pitiful coleslaw on the side. I couldn't eat much of it, and when I complained, I learned other people had complained too. My husband ordered pork belly, but the skin was soft instead of crispy crackle. This used to be one of our favourite places to go out this way. I wouldn't recommend it or return unless things changed.

The second night was rough: a very loud party went on all night, and we couldn't find anyone to help. We complained to Booking.com and the hotel, got a sincere apology, and were refunded for one night. Despite that, it's a great place for families, with plenty for kids to enjoy in summer. The staff are friendly and do their best, and I'd highly recommend stopping in for a drink or a meal. We had booked a “Deluxe Villa” for two nights through Booking.com. On arrival, we were a bit disappointed to find no oven or stovetop, just a two-element hotplate. There was no AC, only an HRV system and heater, which I had to run together to manage the temperature on a cold night. We also couldn't find an extra blanket. The rooms are spacious, but cleanliness was an issue: there were unknown black spots in the bed and spider webs behind doors reaching up to the ceiling. There was shampoo but no body wash. After we spoke to reception, they promptly changed the beds, supplied soap and replaced the hotplate, which hadn't been working well. Breakfast was included and was a simple continental spread. My son found an ant in his yogurt, and they replaced it straight away.

The pub is large, with nice seating both inside and out. I really wanted to enjoy the place, but the food let it down and was quite expensive. My steak was overcooked and underwhelming, and the salad had so much dressing that the flavour was overpowering. The pizza had loads of sauce, and I think the meatlovers one had hollandaise in it too, which tasted weird and was quite sickening.