Kingsgate Brydone Oamaru

We stayed here for one night as a stopover heading north up the coast. Reception staff were friendly and helpful. Our first floor room was clean, full of charm and character. It was well maintained for an old property. The hotel is in the centre of town with shops and restaurants nearby. At the rear is a car park. It is also the industrial area, quite different to the front. There was a lift to the first floor, however, there are still different levels, you may need to lift your cases up stairs.

The city has a port area that is really worth seeing. You can also get an evening tour of Blue penguins, very cute, and sea lions.The city has fingers park to walk in. The hotel is well cleaned down spacious rooms, but very responsive. The doors slam when they close and there can be a lot of slamming in doors when busloads of people arrive or groups have common dates. Breakfast is served as a buffet only for booked groups. Our breakfast was weird and everything cost extra - huge juice (would have handed down regular drinking glass), a whole big bowl of muesli to a tiny yoghurt, and a jug of milk even though the coffee was already made like a Flat White. We didn't really understand how the combination would be viewed.

The menu appears to have had some tweaks and the food has certainly improved. Best dish of the night was possibly the chicken breast. Could be a bit faster with the menus. Considering recent government action on card surcharges the 2.5% is quite steep.