Name: Waitomo Caves Hotel
Address: Hotel Access Road, Waitomo Caves, Waitomo Caves, Waitomo Caves, 3977, New Zealand
Rating: 6

Smoke-free property

Heating

All Spaces Non-Smoking (public and private)

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Non-smoking rooms

Hairdryer

Shower/Bathtub

Shower

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Rooms

Luggage storage

Services and amenities

Restaurant

Kettle

Meals

Free Wi-Fi

Internet

Free parking

Parking

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Pets Not Allowed

Pets

Location

At the hotel

Room amenities

Hamilton International Airport

Waitomo Caves Hotel

If you want your hotel to be spick and span, everything new and spotless then don't stay here If you want a bit of history to read up about and think how splendid it was in years gone by and wonder if it really is haunted then this is the place for you. Yes, it is a bit drab inside and you could trip on the carpet in the restaurant and it could do with a major uplift but it could then lose much of it's character.
I had a single room with a double bed, chair, TV and large bathroom for not a lot of money. Family staying nearby in their motorhome joined me for dinner for which there was a good choice including childrens meals and a decent choice of wines all at reasonable prices.

If seeing the words 'faded glory' in a hotel review makes your heart start beating just a little bit faster then you'll adore the Waitomo Caves Hotel.
Reading  Daisann McLane's New York Times story about 'Magnificent Piles' (see below) set me off on a new travel direction.
"The Cathay Hotel in Penang, Malaysia, The Olaffson Hotel in Port au Prince, Haiti. The Broadlands Hotel, in Chennai, the Z Hotel in Puri, India. The Royal Hotel in Levuka, Fiji. Hotels that were once the homes of maharajas, wealthy opium traders, Presidents-for-life. And that now slumber in quirky decline. They’re an endangered species, and you’re lucky when you find one before it’s torn down to make room for a shopping mall, or “restored” into boutique-y perfection."
Having visited the Cathay and Royal Hotels, I think I can safely add Bao Dai's Villas (Nha Trang, Vietnam, the ex-summer residence of the last emperor of Vietnam); The Tavua Hotel (Tavua, Fiji, built to cater for the gold rush in the 1930s); The Fishguard Bay Hotel (Fishguard, Wales, built the late 1800s but substantially renovated around 1910 to offer accommodation for travellers on the newly built railway) and the Waitomo Caves Hotel (built in 1909 and visited by Queen Elizabeth II in 1954) to the list.
Yes, the carpet is threadbare in places; yes, the shower-over-bath is dated; yes, the exterior could do with a clean - but that's not the point. 
What Daisann says of the Cathay: "You could say that the Cathay Hotel comes up short in just about every category. Except for that most elusive, yet most important measure of a hotel’s allure: character. There, the Cathay Hotel gets six stars." is exactly what you can expect if you visit the WCH.

We stayed one night in this delightful hotel. I am sure that the staff that welcomed us and served us dinner and breakfast were the most friendly in New Zealand. Yes it is a little old and run down but it is clean and extremely functional. The restaurant is great and sensational value. I travel a lot and I really enjoyed staying in this venue - it has real character and the best staff.

We had a great stay at the Waitomo Caves hotel, on a spontaneous road trip we booked only an hour before our late night arrival and the staff were very accommodating - even keeping the spa pool open a little later so we could squeeze a dip in before bed. 

Free onsite parking and wifi which was great as we left early so it was super easy getting in and out. 

Food at the restaurant far exceeded our expectations, we almost stopped for take out but glad we didn’t. Don’t miss out on a meal during your stay! 

Unique and full of character, close proximity to information centre and the caves.

Waitomo caves was a must see on this trip incorporating and overnight stay.
What an amazing find is this Grand hotel, perched on the hill overlooking town and the caves.
This wonderful hotel is over 100 years old and has hosted the Queen. Very friendly and accommodating staff very happy to share their local and historical knowledge about the hotel and the area.
Our room was clean with a modern bathroom and comfortable bed. Our rate including a continental breakfast that was also very nice.
We have decided to return to this hotel on our next trip to further explore the other experiences that Waitomo has to offer.

The bed was very comfortable, the location was great, the wifi was slow but bearable, and the building itself...beautiful! We picked this hotel because we’d heard it was ‘haunted’...nothing of the sort for us! I’d also read in other reviews people complaining of the hotel being ‘outdated’ which is ridiculous! Lovely historic place to stay :) 

Waitomo Caves

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6 bedrooms

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smoking

sauna

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safe

mini-bar

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breakfast-for-2

pets-allowed

wi-fi

park access

A classical bit of history (including the carpets)

Another 'Magnificent Pile'

Best service in NZ!

Stunning building! 

Perfect Roadie Stay!

A wonderful experience

On our NZ drive trip we wanted to incorporate a caves tour which meant we had to book one nights accommodation in Waitomo. Not much to choose from unfortunately and if Waitomo didn’t have any caves you wouldn’t even visit the place. Anyway, we arrived at this grand run down historic hotel and it was with some trepidation that we unpacked the car and entered the front doors. As soon as we set foot inside I was expecting Basil Fawlty or Manuel to appear from behind the reception counter. You would swear this was straight out of the set of Fawlty Towers. Sadly, no John Cleese to greet us and definitely no Manuel to take our bags. Once checked in by our manager/receptionist/ bargirl/laundry/cleaner (yes, there only seemed to be two staff members in the whole hotel doing everything) we were given our key and had to lug all our bags and suitcases upstairs and to our room. After trying to roll our suitcases over what looks like the original threadbare carpet we entered our room. We stood and paused for a minute as the room seemed to have the original floral carpet, wallpaper and the original bathroom from 1908 which had a string chord to turn on the light. Surprisingly, the king sized bed wasn’t from that era and was extremely comfortable apart from the old timber bedhead banging against the wall every time I rolled over or moved. Nothing a little face towel couldn’t fix. I was later advised by the hotel manager that the Queen and Duke had stayed in our room when they visited the hotel. That made us feel much better but that’s probably what she tells everyone???
After we got acclimatised to the whole scene, we decided to freshen up and take a shower in the original bath with the original plumbing. This is where I was waiting for Norman Bates to pull back the shower curtain and reveal his big kitchen knife. Quite surreal really as the hotel also reminded me of the Alfred Hitchcock classic Psycho. 
After all that we thought we had to experience dining in the grand restaurant. Sadly, it was only the two of us for most of the night but we were both pleasantly surprised by the homely and tasty meal that was served. Simple food cooked well and not overpriced.
All in all our stay was more an experience. Should the owners have a spare $10million they could really do something with what they have and make it an iconic accommodation spot in the area. Doesn’t look like they will so what should you expect for $135/night. In the end we left with a smile and a laugh and a story to tell.


Fawlty Towers meets Bates Motel

I came here 10 years ago and described it as being like 'Faulty Towers'. I wanted to stay again and relive the hilarious night I had there. A bit of work has been done to modernise it but it still has that OLD charm. Slighty worn carport, creaky halls and antique furniture make this a lovely place to stay. Magnificent views on top of the hill. Take a step back in time you will enjoy it 😁

Didn't disappoint

This looked a fantastic historic hotel when we booked it.
However, the photos on their webpage are so misleading, the hotel in no way resembles their image. It is very faded grandeur and is in need of a major refurb! The spa centre was out of order too..
We visited Dec 2019 and thought we had booked a room with balcony...but no, they showed us to a room in the attic with small window, it wasn't good. Upon request, they did move us to a very nice, large room so no complaints with the new room, although the receptionist bubbly chirpy attitude did cool at this point.
The hotel is in a beautiful location, evening meal and breakfast both very good.

Misleading information!

We were expecting an older hotel with some character, not something that came from the Addams Family !  Apparently we were in their best room room when we queried it with the receptionist, who memorably said that Deluxe it isn't and that she and the management team were well aware of the problems which are also quoted in many of the other reviews.  The bed was clean and comfortable and the breakfast was good.  The photographs on the website are very misleading.  Our guided trip around Ruakuri Cave which is only a short drive away, was excellent.

Waitomo Caves Hotel

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