Distinction Whangarei Hotel & Conference Centre

Room: The sound insulation is extremely poor. We stayed on the ground floor and could clearly hear footsteps from the room above throughout the night. While the room itself was reasonably clean and the basic amenities were acceptable, the lack of soundproofing significantly affected our sleep. Location: The hotel is centrally located, which makes it convenient for transportation and accessing nearby areas. This is one of the few positive aspects of the stay. Service – Completely Unacceptable: Our stay was from the afternoon of January 7th to midday on January 10th. We had no issues and almost no interaction with staff until checkout — which is when the real problem occurred. We had only booked breakfast for the morning of January 8th. However, at checkout, the receptionist insisted on charging us for breakfast on both January 7th and 8th. This makes absolutely no sense. We checked in in the afternoon of January 7th, so it is physically impossible for us to have had breakfast at the hotel earlier that day. Despite this clear and obvious fact, the receptionist (a woman in her 40s) continued to argue. Another staff member standing beside her clearly recognized the mistake and repeatedly tried to correct her, yet she ignored those reminders and persisted with her incorrect claim. This lack of basic reasoning and attention to facts was astonishing. As a result, nearly 15 minutes of our checkout time were wasted over an error that should have been immediately acknowledged and corrected. Even worse, there was no apology whatsoever during or after the incident. The interaction ended with her dismissively saying, “Fine, fine, just go,” which was rude, unprofessional, and deeply disrespectful. This was not just a billing mistake — it was a clear failure of staff training, service attitude, and basic professionalism. The experience left us frustrated and upset, and it seriously damaged our overall impression of both the hotel and Whangārei. What should have been a pleasant stay ended on a very sour note.

So disappointed when we left. The receptionist asked us pay the breakfast which we already paid before and she didn't say sorry. Really ruined my day!

After reading several negative reviews of this place, we were quite surprised with the quality of the accommodation and very happy with the food we had at dinner and breakfast. For the people with large breakfast appetites, this was the place with a breakfast buffet. The walk from the hotel to the town preccinct is easy and scenic. We would stay here again.