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Haka Lodge Taupō is an up-market backpacker's hostel located in central Taupō. Our ethos places the guest experience at the heart of everything we do. Come and stay in backpacker luxury with FREE unlimited Wi-Fi, hot-tub and stunning views of Lake Taupō! Haka Lodges are a modern New Zealand hostel network with fresh ideas, smart design and an eco outlook.
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
Budget
Modern
Languages Spoken
English, French, Spanish, German
Location
56 Kaimanawa Street, Taupo 3330 New Zealand
Haka Lodge Taupō
4.5 reviews
Getting there
Somewhat walkable
Places to stay are graded on a 0-100 scale. The higher the grade, the easier it is for travellers to find restaurants and things to do within walking distance.
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Excellent location (walking distance to the lake, cinema, bars, restaurants and supermarkets). Lots of parking. Well constructed wooded bunks in dorm room which don't shake when other people on bunk move, bunks also have privacy curtain, 2 power plugs and an individual light. Large lockable (bring own padlock) storage areas below bunks. Easy after hours check in process (they email you a code for the lockbox which has your room key). Great that it has quiet hours, so you get a good quiet night sleep. Good wifi.
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Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: January 2022
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 Kirsty Malone, Other at Haka Lodge Taupō
Responded 8 Jan 2022
Kia ora SuperTravelGirlNZ, Thank you for taking the time to share your review, It's a great location isn't it? We are glad you enjoyed your stay and we hope to welcome you again very soon. Nga mihi Timo and the Haka Lodge Taupo team.
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Lovely facilities, very clean. Great cooking area however no freezer. Plenty of fridge space and bench space. Bathrooms were always clean, good water pressure and temperature. Single room was the perfect size and the little heater meant it was very warm.
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Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: August 2022Trip 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.
Response from Kirsty Malone, Other at Haka Lodge Taupō
Responded 21 Aug 2022
Kia ora baileydobbs, Thank you for taking the time to share your lovely review with us, We are glad you enjoyed your stay and we hope to welcome you again soon. Nga mihi Haka Lodge Taupo
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Family of 20 (6 kids under 12yrs, 1 senior 80+ , angsty teens and parents in tow) from Auckland decided hey let's take the little ones to Whakapapa for a day in the snow...Taupo was the obvious choice to base ourselves for the weekend! Whilst looking for accommodation to suit all of us - Haka Lodge stood out in terms of affordability, availability and friendliness. Rooms adequate for our needs, kids loved bunking in one of the 3 large dorms we had booked and the small kitchen in our building was a good size. Family enjoyed it, was a great experience Thanks Haka Lodge
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Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: July 2021
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 Kirsty Malone, Other at Haka Lodge Taupō
Responded 22 Jul 2021
Kia ora Moye2SEVN4, Thank you for allowing us to be part of your wonderful adventure, we are ecstatic you enjoyed your stay and we hope to welcome you all back soon. Nga mihi, Timo and the Haka Lodge Taupo team
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Our twin room was small, but it was mostly functional with good WiFi and a TV. There was no air-conditioner or fan...reception said that fans were allocated on a first come first serve basis. Luckily, we didn't need them with our upper floor windows open. We definitely could've used some hanging hooks and an extra mirror in the room though. No coffee making facilities. Our ensuite bathroom was good, with a body wash dispenser.
The carpark didn't have enough spaces, but it was easy and free to park on the street. No elevators, so luggage had to be carried up a flight of stairs to reach the upper floor rooms.
Our biggest problem was noise. Our friend in a ground floor room had a poor night's sleep as he could hear people moving around above him, going up and down the wooden stairs right outside his room, people chatting in the communal area till maybe 1 am, and even his neighbour's loud snoring. In our upper floor room, it wasn't as bad, but we were unfortunately right next to one of the hostel's shared toilets. Whenever it was used, the loud bang from that door literally sounded like someone was charging at our own room door, which was highly startling until you get somewhat used to it after awhile. Luckily, this shared toilet wasn't used by anyone after midnight during our stay, and the noise didn't start till about 7am, so we did manage to get some sleep.
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Date of stay: February 2023Trip 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.
We were staying here as a Rugby League Team for the Nationals Youth for Girls League Tournament that was run in Taupo. The facilities were good, the care and service from the cleaners and workers were also good, but spoiled by the poor & "disgusting service and delivery" of the owner/manager towards my team. My girl's team were growled for singing at 9am in prep for a big game in the carpark & for using their cleaning equipment (vacuum) to clean their rooms. He said it was unreasonable & dis-respecful. 9am was not being unreasonable and helping keep their facilities clean was our way of respecting the facilities. I think he was the one being "DISRESPECTFUL". We always ensured our team followed the rules and regulations of this venue. The name of this Lodge is "HAKA" Lodge. "Haka Meaning" - this is performed in a group and represents a display of a tribe's pride, strength and unity. He is a foreigner confirmed by his accent, I suggest he takes the time to learn and understands our culture in New Zealand. We are very respectful people, till you dis-respect us.
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Date of stay: October 2022
Location
Service
Sleep Quality
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.
Response from Kirsty Malone, Other at Haka Lodge Taupō
Responded 9 Oct 2022
Kia ora bettyIG312FV, Thank you for taking the time to share your review, We are glad you enjoyed the facilities and the cleanliness. Sadly, we have received multiple complaints regarding your group and the level of noise, including from outside of the lodge from our neighbours. The manager of our property is a New Zealand citizen and aside from that, we do not tolerate any kind of discrimination of any nationality at our properties. If you would like to discuss in more detail please contact us Nga mihi Kirsty
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Great location, close to town and restaurants/bars. Good facilities, kitchen well stocked and nice comfy lounge. Communal bathrooms nice and clean Like others have said the walls are paper thin and you can hear everything next door. We were above the apartment next to reception and could hear everything in the apartment and cooking smells coming in through the locked door (assume this is a staircase to the apartment). Shame the spa pool wasn't working, would have loved to have a spa as the temperature is starting to cool down now.
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Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: April 2022Trip type: Travelled with family
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 Kirsty Malone, Other at Haka Lodge Taupō
Responded 1 May 2022
Kia ora MichJWarren5, Thank you for taking the time to share your review with us, We are glad for the most part you enjoyed your stay, we are aware of the thin walls and are working on what could potentially be done to mitigate this in the future. Sadly our spa has a leak so we are spa less. Hopefully, we will resolve the leak and it will return soon. We hope to welcome you again soon Nga mihi Haka Lodge Taupo
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The hostel is close to town, so it's in a great location. We stayed in a private room with shared bathrooms and the bathrooms were very dirty and filled with bugs. They refreshed and cleaned the bathrooms multiple times but in general I felt they were gross. Our room was absolutely tiny with no air and no screens on the windows - when we left them open at night we were inundated with bugs and moths. Lastly, the laundry was out of order when we were there. We booked here specifically because it said laundry was available and we were doing the Tongariro Alpine Crossing (I knew we'd have sweaty/dirty clothes to wash!). Some of the other rooms might have been better than ours, so please keep that in mind! However, I would not stay here again.
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Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: January 2020
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 ColetteLeonardAKL, Manager at Haka Lodge Taupō
Responded 30 Jan 2020
Dear Honeymooners519, Thank you for taking the time to review your stay with us at Haka Lodge Taupo. The team and I were disappointed to read your comments about the cleanliness of the bathrooms - we have addressed this as a team and have completed re-training. we do apologise about the laundry issue - we were having issues, and we were waiting on replacement parts for the units so that they could be repaired. Thanks again for your feedback and we do hope we have the chance to welcome you back again at some stage, to show you our true kiwi hospitality! Nga mihi, Colette
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Nice room, balcony had a lovely view. Beds were super comfy and private bathroom was all good. The lodge location was very central and the staff was helpful and very nice, we arrived late at night and keys were left for us as arranged.
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Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: February 2022Trip 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.
Response from Kirsty Malone, Other at Haka Lodge Taupō
Responded 6 Mar 2022
Kia ora Gianinavinoly, Thank you for taking the time to share your wonderful review with us, It's a great location isn't it, we are thrilled to hear you enjoyed your stay and we hope to welcome you again next time you are in Taupo. Be sure to check out our other locations. Nga mihi Kirsty
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Fine for our requirements but surprised not to find towels supplied. This could have been an oversight on my behalf when booking for our group but do expect towels at most levels of accommodation these days or the option to hire at least. Otherwise clean and tidy with the heaters on which was appreciated
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Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: July 2022Trip 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.
Response from Kirsty Malone, Other at Haka Lodge Taupō
Responded 6 Jul 2022
Kia ora Tunleypn, Thank you for your review, Towels are provided in our private rooms and available to hire for all our dorm rooms - we will make sure that information is made a little bit clearer when booking. Nga mihi Haka Lodge Taupo
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needed a place to stay on a whim. Very basic but friendly staff and tidy rooms. Handy to most things Rooms were small and some revamping would need to take place soon to keep folk coming back to stay.
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Date of stay: October 2022
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.
Hi,
Haka Lodge does not opperate its own shuttle service to the Tongariro Cossing, however, we are more than happy to book it for you with a company call Tongariro Expeditions.
The shuttles leave Taupo at 5.30am ($65) or at 6.20am ($60) and then drive you back at the end of the day.
Alternatively, if you have your own car, you can choose to drive to Ketetahi (the end of the Tongariro Crossing), and then book a shuttle for $30 per person to take you to the start of the crossing. Tongariro Expeditions is always the only company that offer car park security in Ketetahi while you do the crossing
However, as this is an activity that is dependent on the weather, we do not book shuttles for our guests more than 24hrs in advance.
Therefore, when you check-in, please remind us that you would wish to do the crossing and we will help you book the shuttle. And do not worry, they never run out of space so you will not miss out.
Hopefully this information will help and feel free to contact us again if you have anymore questions.
There are more places to choose from in the Taupo area.
PRICE RANGE
$80 - $151 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
LOCATION
New ZealandNorth IslandWaikato RegionTaupo DistrictTaupo
NUMBER OF ROOMS
29
Prices are provided by our partners for one room, with variable occupancy rules as provided by the property, 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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