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Prince's Gate Hotel is now proudly under new Management working with Capstone Hotel Management!The Prince's Gate Hotel, the ideal accommodation whilst staying in Rotorua. The most famous Hotel in Rotorua built in 1897. This timeless, beautiful hotel is privately owned and operated. Our hotel rooms offer style and sophistication that depict a bygone era. The Prince's Gate Hotel is not just a hotel but also an attraction. It has been masterfully restored through passionate attention to details. We look forward to having you stay with us in our beautiful & grand Prince's Gate Hotel.
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
HOTEL STYLE
Classic
Historic Hotel
Languages Spoken
English
Location
1057 Arawa Street, Rotorua 3010 New Zealand
Prince's Gate Hotel
1,322 reviews
Getting there
Great for walkers
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Prince's Gate Hotel's old-style charm and prime location near Government Gardens and local eateries are highly regarded by numerous guests. While the hotel's character and spacious rooms are appreciated, some guests feel the rooms need modern upgrades and point out issues with bathroom amenities.
The staff generally receives accolades for their friendliness, though there have been occasional service hiccups. Despite its welcoming atmosphere, opinions on value diverge, with some visitors questioning the cost in light of the hotel's dated decor and meal offerings.
Location
Convenient
Atmosphere
Charming
Rooms
Run-down
Value
Expensive
Service
Inconsistent
Amenities
Satisfactory
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Detailed Reviews
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Historic hotel in Rotorua, it is a must. It's a real return to the past, the building comes straight out of the Downtown Abbey series. The reception has been tastefully modernized, the main room very popular with tourists is well appointed with leather sofas and fireplace (appreciable when it is 15 degrees with wind!). Access to the rooms is either via the interior of the hotel or via balconies. The rooms are modest in size, comfortable bedding and functional bathroom (beware, the sink is not very high!). Decent breakfast.
Be careful, this establishment is an energy chasm, the air passed under my door (day about 2 cms), but the air conditioning is efficient. My room overlooked the balcony access to other rooms, difficult in these conditions not to have its curtains closed all the time. Too bad, I had a nice view...
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Date of stay: November 2024
Value
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Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Travelled solo
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
This hotel has always been our go to Hotel for a relaxing weekend to unwind and soak in the pools and it has always been worthy of the 4.5 star rating. Sadly it has changed ownership and we noticed quite a few changes. The hotel was mostly booked out the weekend we stayed. There was a 60th birthday in one of the function rooms, quite a few guests staying that were attending a Physiotherapist conference at the events centre, and some tourists as well as a few families on a weekend away. While quite a few people were sitting in the lounge relaxing and having an afternoon drink they shut the bar from 3 until 5 and they had run out of tap beer!!!! We went up town to have a drink and get something to eat as the restaurant would only be serving their dinner menu from 5. We didn't want anything so expensive, we only wanted burgers or something from the bar. We saw 3 of the other couples up town spending their money at other bars instead of your bar due to you closing the bar. One lady we spoke too said they had arrived late on the Friday evening around 7.30ish. After booking in and going to their rooms they went to the bar for a drink and to get some bar snacks for dinner they were told that bar snacks were not available and the kitchen was closed - at 8.30. They then had to go up town to get something to eat. Again spending their money elsewhere and not with you. Yes you may need to make some changes to help keep profits up but not at the expense of maintenance and the general upkeep of the property or by closing the bar on a busy Saturday afternoon. If you need to close the bar do it during the week when you aren't as busy. The pool needs a massive clean - someone has written "Clean Me!" in the grime around the top row of tiles in the big pool. The grounds need a big tidy up - spray the moss and pick up the fallen leaves around the place. Our room hadn't been cleaned to a great standard. To us this is no longer a 4.5 star Hotel but rather a 3.5 star and it is still up there price wise. Such a shame and a waste of a wonderful, beautiful Historic Rotorua icon. We probably won't be staying again as you can get a better deal at other nicer Hotels and at a cheaper rate. It has lost it's ambience sadly.
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Date of stay: September 2022
Value
Rooms
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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I travel for business with my husband. We stayed in a snug room (5 nights) which was quite small but adequate. It was clean and we had everything we needed including a desk and chair for me to work on when I got home from the office. We spent time at the pool which was just the right heat. It it split into 3 at varying temperatures. My favourite was the top one which was like a spa pool and a bit warmer. My husband liked the large pool which was slightly cooler. There were tables and chairs in the outdoor area with umbrellas which was nice on the sunny days. We were close to "Eat St" where there is different types of restaurants so there was plenty of choice. We did eat at The Duke which was great. We elected to have the breakfast deal and it was very generous with both continental and cooked part of the deal. Dinner was very nice and the staff were helpful and accommodated any changes we wanted to make with what we ordered. The coffee was excellent. We will definitely be back.
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Date of stay: September 2023
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Travelled on business
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
went there for me and my husband honeymoon was a average experience the rooms were beautiful tho so was the place the reception was so helpful and lovely beside from one of them he looked like the manger or reception he was very rude and couldn’t understand him at all and he starting raising his voice. we went for dinner there the food was so tasty and kinda pricey but i say worth it the young waitresses were so lovely. i felt bad for one as the boss likes to yell at there staff in-front of guests not sure who he was as he was also having dinner but not very professional of him felt so bad as they were so lovely. i went for high tea a few days latter and saw the same guy yell at one of his staff again?! not very nice they treat there staff here not good.
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Date of stay: October 2024
Value
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Location
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Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Room Tip:Â the food menu online is not what it is in the place very disappointing
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Checked into the hotel and got a room with broken air conditioning (specifically room 22). While the staff was helpful to help find an alternative room, since they overbooked, I was told I could stay in the alternative room (room 10) for only a night and then I’ll need to go back to the room with broken air conditioning. Furthermore, upon inspecting the new room 10 - the room smelled damp and moldy - my mother has asthma so we couldn’t stay in that room. As a result we left and found another hotel. The hotel has now refused to give me a refund even though I didn’t stay both nights. At a minimum should have offered me partial refund given they didn’t have a room with functioning air conditioning the second night that I’d be staying. Travelers be aware! Do not stay here. Spend your money elsewhere. While its location is great, there are many other nearby hotels with similar pricing. We ended up moving to the Novotel and it was perfect. Really regret not picking that spot originally. I had found the hotel exterior and photos to be charming and hence had booked this location. While charming in exterior this hotel is falling a part…and if you stay here you might get unlucky and get a bad room and not get your money back.
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Date of stay: February 2023
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
There is a great atmosphere in this old hotel and the staff were overall very friendly and helpful. The hotel is well situated. Walking distance to lots of stuff. Free car park behind the hotel. We were upgraded because our initial room was really dark. The new room was lovely. However, the rooms could use some soundproofing. The biggest disappointment was the breakfast, though: cheap white bread, flavorless scrambled eggs and overall bland and uninspired food.
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Date of stay: December 2023
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Travelled with family
Room Tip:Â There is no elevator. You need to carry your bags up the (long) stairs.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
The staff we met with should be commended. Our room #45 was tired but clean. A wee bit of love in the rooms and the outside settings would lift this hotel from being a ho hum visit to being a visit you talked to others about. An absolutely beautiful building that deserves some love
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Date of stay: January 2023Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Beautiful customer service and atmosphere. Love the princess gate hotel. Went to celebrate Mothers day, Tea was average, food quality was not worth the amount we paid. Sausage rolls were cold, so was the tea and coffee. Sammie were a disappointment could only taste Cucumber no salmon spread.
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Date of stay: May 2024Trip type: Travelled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Customer service appalling, my partner requested a bottle of champagne on arrival as it was mentioned on their website and in the reservation confirmation as an added extra. We never received it despite asking multiple times. Our room was advertised as a 1 bedroom suite but would describe it as a rundown motel unit from the 70s. Paint peeling off ceiling, broken blinds, no curtains in bedroom, rotting cupboard doors. The light in the bathroom flickered but didn't work and it took them 3 days to rectify this. General maintenance and upkeep is seriously lacking. We asked to change rooms to a room in the original hotel as we were staying for 6 nights. Again we were promised something they did not deliver, the staff were friendly but clearly had no idea of customer service. They said they would shuffle thi gs around and get a decent room for us but each day we got the same response, oh "the previous person" has not left a note so we don't k ow what is happening. Room servicing was haphazard and one afternoon we had to ask for our room to be serviced as they had missed it. Bed was 2 singles pushed together with a massive ridge down the middle and very uncomfortable. Dinner in the restaurant was delicious and Michelle our wait person was lovely. The manager, on checkout, refused to give me an itemised list of incidental charges until I had paid for them and offered no apology for the poor service we had received. He just said "thanks". I would recommend going there for dinner, but would not recommend staying. Such a disappointment for my 50th birthday as the hotel itself has wonderful old world charm. Let down by terrible customer service and appalling lack of responsibility or genuine interest in righting the wrongs.
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Date of stay: March 2023
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Room Tip:Â Dinner great DO NOT stay here, rooms are substandard and not as seen on website. Staff Incompetent
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Extremely disappointed with this hotel. I absolutely do not recommend it for solo travellers. I was super excited for this stay during my once in a lifetime adventure. But was horrified once shown to my room. My room is disgustingly dirty and run down. I don’t know if the carpet has ever been cleaned. It is crusty and very obviously dirty. There are cobwebs and mountains of dust in the corners and I would definitely recommend not stepping barefoot in the bathroom. The tile grout is disgusting and there were pubes and strands of hair on the floor. The website states premium bedding. It maybe was premium in the 80’s but definitely is not now. There is no privacy what so ever and you can hear people clearly from the rooms beside me. It is basically an extremely expensive seedy motel. I’ve contacted the travel agency to ask them to please not book this awful place for solo travellers. They are taking advantage of people who can only rely on pictures to help decide if the hotel is right for them or not.
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Date of stay: November 2024
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Travelled solo
Room Tip:Â Be very wary of this place if you are a solo traveller
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from General Manager, General Manager at Prince's Gate Hotel
Responded 3 weeks ago
Dear, Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback. Your concerns about cleanliness, room condition, and overall expectations are truly concerning to us, and I want to assure you this is not the standard we strive to uphold. Regarding the noise and privacy concerns, we regret that your stay did not provide the comfort and relaxation we aim to deliver. We look forward to seeing you again. Sincerely, Hotel Team
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Report response as inappropriate
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Hi Cheerrieo
Normal checkout time is 10am, but you can arrange a later checkout to a time that suits you with our reservations team (with prior arrangement).
Kind regards
Angela Stuart
Marketing Manager
There are more places to choose from in the Rotorua area.
PRICE RANGE
$258 - $375 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
ALSO KNOWN AS
princes gate rotorua, hotel princes gate
LOCATION
New ZealandNorth IslandBay of Plenty RegionRotorua DistrictRotorua
NUMBER OF ROOMS
50
Prices are provided by our partners, and reflect total costs of the stay, including all taxes and fees known to our partners. Please see our partners for more details.
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