Rydges Rotorua

I spent a week at Rydges Rotorua and already want to return. The bar staff were fantastic, and Jamie, who manages the food, beverages, bar and buffet, was especially warm and helpful. The whole team was genuinely lovely and accommodating. Whenever I had a question or needed help, someone was there straight away. It made for such a positive, welcoming stay.

Breakfast was decent, and there was a refillable water dispenser in the lobby. I only stayed one night on the first floor, facing the carpark, so my view was just cars. The furniture was old school and had a smell, though I can’t blame the hotel for that when it’s in Rotorua.

The grounds were beautiful, the location was great, and the food at both breakfast and the dinner buffet was lovely. Staff were nice, too. But dinner felt overpriced for the four options available. The room stayed extremely hot throughout our stay, no matter how low we set the thermostat. We were four in the room, which was our choice, but the beds weren’t comfortable for two people at all. The bathroom was a mess. The shower was small and slippery, with black mold throughout the grout, and there was no shower curtain. All the shampoo, conditioner and body wash were empty before anyone had showered. I had to call reception several times for refills, since I didn’t realize they were all empty at once. When I asked if the shower was meant to have a curtain, I had to call down for one. The bathroom vent was extremely clogged, so everything stayed damp. I told the front desk about the mold and was told someone would clean it. I’m still waiting. The safe also couldn’t be used until someone came to unlock it, which held us up when we were trying to leave for the day. I later dropped my rating to two stars because our room wasn’t cleaned. We hadn’t left the sign out asking for it to be left uncleaned. When I called reception, the man was fairly rude and said they check the signs overnight. Taking the sign down at 6am before leaving for the whole day apparently wasn’t enough. Nobody had told us this or posted it anywhere. I’ve stayed in hundreds of hotels and never had this issue. It felt like an excuse for negligent cleaning, which seems to come up repeatedly in reviews. I’ve never had to call reception so much. I can’t reply to the hotel, but the reservation was under my same, uncommon last name, so I don’t understand why they couldn’t find it. We stayed in room 806. I doubt any of this will be fixed for future customers. I also wouldn’t rate this hotel above three stars.

We were comfortable during our stay, and the breakfast had an impressive range of choices. The buffet staff were kind and helpful. Thanks to manager Vivek Singh and the chef for their excellent service at breakfast.