Tainui Historical Society Museum Tours and Activities

The hotel itself was nice, though not quite as new or pristine as the photos suggest, showing a fair amount of age and wear in places. While the decor was nice, our bathroom had broken tiles and a badly stained toilet. On the positive side, the receptionist kindly allowed us an 11:00 am check-out and upgraded us to a third-floor balcony room with a side view of the sea. The bed and pillows were luxurious and comfortable, the complimentary macaroons were a nice touch, and the room overall was very pleasant. Parking was convenient, and both check-in and check-out were quick and easy. A major disappointment was the accompanying Sails cafe, which was closed until 5:00 pm. This was a huge reason why I booked this specific hotel; I had envisioned having an afternoon coffee while watching the sea, particularly as it rained the whole time, and unfortunately, there wasn't another cafe nearby with a sea view. Furthermore, Sails was ridiculously expensive, even compared to Mission Bay in Auckland. As for the wider destination, New Plymouth was incredibly disappointing and felt like it lacked attractive design features and effort. Additionally, the surrounding area had a very noticeable presence of intimidating and visibly unstable transients. As a woman, I would not have felt safe walking on the seaside walkway by myself. Despite these external factors, this hotel still turned out to be the best-located option available, although one of the most expensive.