We noticed that you're using an unsupported browser. The Tripadvisor website may not display properly.We support the following browsers:
Windows: Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome. Mac: Safari.
Contact accommodation for availability.
There are similar hotels available.
View all
rbthodge
Whitby, Canada

GOOD LOCATION, HELPFUL STAFF

4.0 of 5 bubblesReviewed 27 Mar 2023
Good/quiet location in south end of town. Short (2-3 minutes) drive to centre of town, or about 15 minute stroll. Rooms are located around a courtyard with outdoor cafe seating and table for each room. Small restaurant/bar in main building. Very helpful, pleasant staff - made arrangements for our very late arrival (after their closing), due to ferry crossing problems. Easy drive to seal colony beach hike. Would recommend staying here.
Date of stay: March 2023
Room Tip: Any/all of the rooms are quiet. Great layout around the courtyard.
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
4.0 of 5 bubblesValue
4.0 of 5 bubblesLocation
5.0 of 5 bubblesService
Problem with this review?
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 listings of booking offers for each property take into account the compensation paid to us by our partners. Prices shown may be for varying room types. Prices displayed are the lowest available, corresponding to the least expensive room type available, as provided from our partners as of the time of the user’s search.
Nearby Hotels
$281
  • Official Site
    $240
  • Priceline
    $281
  • eDreams
    $281
0.5 km from Kaikoura Boutique Hotel
Free Wifi
Free parking
$202
Fully refundable
  • Priceline
    $202
  • Hotels.com
    $202
  • Agoda.com
    $225
0.3 km from Kaikoura Boutique Hotel
Free Wifi
Free parking
$130
  • Agoda.com
    $114
  • Priceline
    $130
  • Hotels.com
    $117
2.1 km from Kaikoura Boutique Hotel
Free parking
Pool
$175
Fully refundable
No prepayment needed
  • Agoda.com
    $151
  • Priceline
    $164
  • Hotels.com
    $160
1.0 km from Kaikoura Boutique Hotel
Free Wifi
Free parking
$141
  • Agoda.com
    $125
  • Hotels.com
    $138
  • ZenHotels.com
    $140
1.8 km from Kaikoura Boutique Hotel
Free parking
Heated pool
$250
Fully refundable
  • Agoda.com
    $176
  • Priceline
    $189
  • Trip.com
    $225
3.5 km from Kaikoura Boutique Hotel
Free Wifi
Free parking
$160
  • Trip.com
    $160
  • Agoda.com
    $160
  • Hotels.com
    $160
0.2 km from Kaikoura Boutique Hotel
Free Wifi
Free parking
$188
  • Priceline
    $188
  • Hotels.com
    $220
  • StayForLong
2.9 km from Kaikoura Boutique Hotel
Free Wifi
Free parking
$128
Fully refundable
No prepayment needed
  • Priceline
    $120
  • Agoda.com
    $112
  • Trip.com
    $129
3.4 km from Kaikoura Boutique Hotel
Free Wifi
Free parking
$125
Fully refundable
No prepayment needed
  • Priceline
    $125
  • Vio.com
    $125
  • eDreams
    $125
5.8 km from Kaikoura Boutique Hotel
Free Wifi
Free parking
View more hotels in Kaikoura
Reviews (553)
Filter reviews
553 results
Traveller rating
309
153
52
19
20
Traveller type
Time of year
LanguageAll languages
More languages
Traveller rating
309
153
52
19
20
Show reviews that mention
All reviews courtyard room main building small hotel breakfast was excellent overlooking the sea bed was comfortable a lovely stay seal colony across the road jen town views esplanade platter nz host units
Selected filters
Filter
Updating list...
24 - 29 of 553 reviews
Reviewed 21 March 2023

We stayed at this hotel for one night on a recent trip to Kaikoura. The hotel is on the esplanade overlooking the Pacific Ocean so a beautiful setting. We stayed in one of the courtyard rooms. It was clean and the bed was very comfortable. The shower was very good. Breakfast is in the main hotel building. There is a small on-site car park. It’s a short walk to some restaurants etc.

You should be aware that the hotel is locked after 7pm and there are no staff on site. The travel agent hadn’t informed us of this nor given the hotel our contact details so we weren’t terribly popular when we arrived after 7pm following a long drive from Christchurch. Do make sure to contact the hotel if you are likely to arrive late and they will give you instructions as to how to access your room.

Date of stay: March 2023
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Thank seacucumber
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.
Reviewed 18 March 2023 via mobile

I stayed here for a couple of nights and because of issues with the ferry I arrived at 2:30am instead of 2:30pm. The hotel was very understanding and the after hours check in was straightforward. The room was comfortable size for one, but might be a bit compact for two. The view from the bar area were stunning and I did enjoy a few drinks there and I would note the bar closed at 7:30pm when I was there. It is about a 15 minute walk to the town centre.

Date of stay: March 2023
Trip type: Travelled solo
Thank Irish_Kiwi77
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.
Jen Barnes, Owner at Kaikoura Boutique Hotel, responded to this reviewResponded 12 August 2023

Thanks for your kind words. Yes, we are unashamedly accommodation first, meaning our bar does not stay open later than 8pm....
Can't have our guests kept awake with frivolity now, can we,,!?

Report response as inappropriate
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Reviewed 5 March 2023 via mobile

I wish I could've given this hotel better marks. It was adorable- the courtyard was absolutely stunning - the succulents, trees, & flowers were just inviting and lovely. Erin was a phenomenal host/manager. She was very helpful and engaging. The hotel was directly across the street from the water. The front room had small plates and cocktails available too.
Our room was cutely decorated. Unfortunately the carpeting needs to be cleaned or yet replaced. It wad a rainy day so the dampness was apparent and without any windows, the room wad rather stifling. In light of that, I'd recommend new flooring and it would've been a lovely stay.

Room tip: Rm 7 had its own private courtyard seating. The threshold is lower than the decking which allowed water to get inside the room. New vinyl plank flooring might be better
Date of stay: March 2023
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Thank kewpie1
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.
Jen Barnes, Owner at Kaikoura Boutique Hotel, responded to this reviewResponded 12 August 2023

Our courtyard room carpets replaced in every room every 18 months... plus professional carpet cleaning every 6 months.

In between this rotation, we handle daily and spot cleaning ourselves. Not matter what, some staining just doesnt shift, which is annoying/embarassing ... especially when we are back to back full.

I suspect the damp smell may have been freshly cleaned carpet.... either that or a by-product of the prolific rain we got all summer! We've never seen such rain!

Sad it impacted your otherwise nice stay.

Report response as inappropriate
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Reviewed 5 March 2023

We had 2 rooms, a hotel room with balcony and a courtyard room. The courtyard room was very small and had no soundproofing. The hotel room had side balcony with sea view, bigger than the other room but still quite small. Both were very clean. Shower room adequate and lovely toiletries but small scratchy towels. Tv was supposed to have Netflix and be able to cast but neither worked, luckily we had great weather so weren't in the room for long periods of time. The hotel is in a lovely location, can't fault the view - stunning- and is within easy walking distance of restaurants and shops. I wouldn't recommend the courtyard rooms.

Date of stay: March 2023
    • Value
    • Location
    • Service
Thank L2708WLlindad
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.
Reviewed 4 March 2023 via mobile

On our arrival at the hotel, just after 3pm, we had at least a half hour wait to be checked in. The receptionist was in another part of the hotel and poked her head in to the reception area just to say that she was busy doing something else but would he with us as soon as she could. We were one of 3 groups waiting to be checked in. I sensed some under staffing issues!

In terms of the room at this hotel, I would say it was just ‘ok’. We were in a room at the back of the hotel, in a detached set of rooms (ie not in main building). Not particularly spacious and a tiny toilet/shower room. Shower was pretty good though. The room was basic & had basic facilities. Double bed was small but comfortable. Single glazing meant we woke up each morning to condensation soaked windows and had to open them up to dry them out. That wasn’t particularly nice! So in terms of the room, it was just ok!

I think my biggest gripe about the hotel was the price of the drinks! We’d been to a pub just up the road where the cost of a pint of beer was about NZD 11 (fair enough) . We returned to the hotel for a drink a short while later and I ordered 2 drinks, one of which was a beer (ale). It was advertised as the same price as the pub so I thought that was ok. I was shocked when I was then presented with a small ‘wine glass’ with beer in it, which amounted to about third of a pint maximum. I was a little too shocked to say anything and thought that the lady serving must have given me the wrong type of glass, surely?!!! Needless to say it was the only drink we bought there during our stay.

On a more positive note, I would like to mention Tyler who was on duty on the morning of our departure. We became aware of a problem we would likely face further on our onward journey. Tyler was really helpful with suggestions to help us resolve the matter and allowed use the hotel phone for a good hour or so (albeit on a freephone number). Her friendliness and understanding about our predicament pushed our score to 3/5. We appreciated what she did even though we’d virtually checked out of the hotel!

Room tip: We found a good cafe next to a laundromat to wash clothes whilst eating breakfast. It's called Beach House Cafe on Beach Rd. Great breakfast
Date of stay: March 2023
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
1  Thank DavidM096
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.
Jen Barnes, Owner at Kaikoura Boutique Hotel, responded to this reviewResponded 12 August 2023

You sensed correctly, staffing stress is real and we feel it too from time to time. Thought the entire world had at least an understanding about this by now?

Our tap beers are served in 400ml glasses - don't be fooled because its stemmed.

Wine glass serves are 150ml, fyi.

Readers... we have had air conditioning installed in all rooms, this mitigates condensatiin issues. Use the plain airflow function if you don't want to sleep with aircon or want to avoid condensation.

All rooms we fitted with this functionality in Febrary 2023... you stayed in March by the looks?

Don't know what to say.....

Report response as inappropriate
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC
View more reviews