HERMITAGE

Stunning location. The atmosphere was great as everybody was very friendly. We had a room facing Aoraki/Mt Cook. You cannot beat that view…priceless. It was a present from our daughter, Ines, for my 70th B-day. My husband and I enjoyed every minute of our stay. We will never forget what a special gift this was. Highly recommended. A must in anybody’s bucket list!

We had a great stay at the Motel unit (Mt cook motels). The unit was spacious, had a full oven and a medium size fridge. 2 single beds and a Queen bed. Good views of the mountains. Perfect for our family. The museum was very good---Mt cook movie as well as Sir Hilary movie were very good. The hiking tracks were excellent. DOC centre was excellent. Not a lot to do if bad weather. Would be great to have a swimming pool or spa that you even pay additional fees for. Could be in the hotel building or separate. A pool table somewhere isn't expensive and do entertain people. Might be good. What I didn't like: Lack of a la carte restaurant. Only restaurant they say is open for tea is their buffet restaurant, which I assume was going to be great but it was very average food, nothing did stand out as great except maybe the white fish (I don't eat fish normally, and did enjoy the small white bite fish next to the ribs...). But ribs aren't great....desert was good. Not worth going there more then 1 evening during your say. (Twizel has better food and not too far "65 & dine pub" was very good. Ribs were falling off the bones, burger was one of the best I ate. Owner came and talk to us, said he employed new cooks.......worth a visit---but not a fancy restaurant. For fancier restaurant in Twizel go and try Poppies). Breakfast buffet was better but again not the best...could have a cook for the eggs to have omelette.... but it's not too bad and price is almost right. All the Staff were great, polite and wanting to help. The heritage hotel is really nice and fancy.

Despite reading many reviews warning us this was a very basic hotel. we decided to stay here one night for the convenience of accessing trails early in the morning. If you stay here, definitely book an updated room which is costly but a better experience (our daughter booked the upgrade). Furnishings were very worn and outdated. Bathroom was tiny and shower was so small we chose to skip it and take one at our next hotel. Be aware, many many tour buses stop at this hotel for day trips. Common areas are crazy crowded including restaurants, shops and restrooms. It is a very unenjoyable environment from 8AM - 6PM (in April). Only coffee available in the morning is at the overpriced buffet breakfast. The cafe (self serve) is only open when restaurants are closed, and closes as soon as the main restaurant opens. This is a very isolated location (it is a National Park!) with NO nearby options for food and coffee. Skip this hotel and do a daytrip instead. Not worth the cost and aggravation.