Te Wanaka Lodge

“Terribly disappointed- nothing like expected!”

Definitely not the five star rating they give themselves, and certainly not as it appears on their website. Generally run down and in need of, if nothing else, a deep cleaning and refresh if not a total overhaul. The outdoor carpet on the walkways, presumably to prevent tripping on the wooden board… more

Definitely not the five star rating they give themselves, and certainly not as it appears on their website. Generally run down and in need of, if nothing else, a deep cleaning and refresh if not a total overhaul. The outdoor carpet on the walkways, presumably to prevent tripping on the wooden boards is itself a tripping hazard it is so worn on the edges. It is a rabbit warren of rooms in various locations with no sense of logic. The rooms are tiny, with barely enough room for two people, let alone luggage and all the rest of the stuff we bring along with us. There are no chairs to sit on in the rooms but there are two chairs out on the balcony. The view from the balcony is of a neighbour’s industrial yard with old cars and boats and junk. There are no refrigerators in the rooms, and although I explained we had medication that needed to be refrigerated, the only option was a communal fridge in the unlocked laundry room. Fortunately it was cool enough outside overnight we made do by putting our cooler bag out on the balcony for the night. Parking is atrocious. There is space for five small cars for however many rooms they have - 12 perhaps. Everyone else has to park in the municipal car park around the corner. Breakfast was, hmm, sufficient but no more than. A few slices of bread to make your own toast, but the jars of jams on the tables sit out all the time rather than being refrigerated, and are sticky on the outside with some of the contents either crystallizing or separating. Canned fruits, one kind of cereal, small plate of cold meat and another of cheese, and apparently yogurt, although I couldn’t see it. They do offer a cooked breakfast with one choice, this morning being corn fritters. They were okay, but no more than, with a huge dollop of sour cream on top, and the bacon crisp on one end and barely cooked on the other. Hardly what you would expect from any bed BnB. There are a few positives - the bed was reasonably comfortable, and there was a fairly nice lounge with couches and chairs, which was where we spent our evening. Unfortunately, when we went to leave to go back to our room, we found we had been locked in and had to hunt around to find an unlocked exit to escape back to our room. Overpriced, over valued and certainly not worth the price. Definitely would suggest you look elsewhere if you’re seeking accommodation in Te Anau.

less

“not 5 star but really nice people and location for franz Josef”

people were very nice there, but hotel is dated and not a 5 star as advertised. fire broke out in chimney because it had not been maintained and we had to stay outside for 3 hours in the middle of the night and no one was refunded. spa is just a regular room with 2 tables in it. not 5 star. foo… more

people were very nice there, but hotel is dated and not a 5 star as advertised. fire broke out in chimney because it had not been maintained and we had to stay outside for 3 hours in the middle of the night and no one was refunded. spa is just a regular room with 2 tables in it. not 5 star. food was delicious though and wait staff was great! rooms are dark and dated, but good shower.

less

“Te Wanaka Lodge”

We stayed 3 nights in the Te Wanka Cottage. It was a stand along building that had a very nice outdoor seating area for all quests just outside. The unit had a queen or king size bed and a single bed. It was clean but a bit dated (definitely has potential if they spent some time /$ on it). No ex… more

We stayed 3 nights in the Te Wanka Cottage. It was a stand along building that had a very nice outdoor seating area for all quests just outside. The unit had a queen or king size bed and a single bed. It was clean but a bit dated (definitely has potential if they spent some time /$ on it). No extra pillows were available. It did have a frig and microwave so that was really nice. The only place to sit other than the beds was a tiny table with 2 chairs so not very comfortable to relax in after a long day sightseeing. The hotel rooms shown in the pictures look nicer, but we did not see those in person. They had a washer and dryer that was available for guests to use for a $10 fee per load. That was very nice, however, you had to catch the washer/dryer while it was open/available. The "warm breakfast" was scrambled eggs a nice lady would make in the microwave even though a stove was under the microwave. We asked if we could cook our own eggs on the stove but that was not an option :( Besides the microwaved eggs, there was bread for toast, some peaches, and some type of cereal. The breakfast was sustenance, nothing more. One of the days the nice lady made "pancakes" it was not what we were anticipating as "pancakes" but it was ok. Overall, it was an ok place to stay but we would stay somewhere else on our next trip.

less

“Miserable manageress!”

Te Wānaka Lodge was one of many places we stayed in during our six week tour of New Zealand and we can honestly say the welcome we had from the manageress was by far the worst we received on our tour, we literally felt we were an inconvenience. Fortunately the rest of the staff were friendly and h… more

Te Wānaka Lodge was one of many places we stayed in during our six week tour of New Zealand and we can honestly say the welcome we had from the manageress was by far the worst we received on our tour, we literally felt we were an inconvenience. Fortunately the rest of the staff were friendly and helpful and provided a tasty breakfast. The Lodge is comfortable and well positioned on the edge of Wanaka centre, however has no views and the buildings are a little tired and in need of maintenance, some of the electrical fixtures too are very dubious and potentially dangerous if children are present.

less