The Sands Hotel Hokianga

The views, location, layout were all great. The pool was nice, staff were mostly great.

Incomplete, it felt like they had run out of time to complete our room before we got there. Wifi didn’t work in the room which was initially made out to be a temporary issue but it became apparent it was an ongoing thing so we had to use our own data. The room key didn’t work when we checked in and whilst the woman on the front desk was helpful it resulted in me walking back and forth from the room to reception in the rain 4 times to resolve. In the end I was given a different key and told not to lose it but that felt like potentially a security issue? When we arrived well after check in time, a broom had been left on our balcony and there was an ironing board by the front door - these felt like they weren’t supposed to be there and were forgotten about. Our room was cleaned once during our stay - clean towels were just sort of chucked on the bed, I wasn’t even confident they were clean and the door wasn’t closed properly when they left so our room was left unlocked. The room didn’t have anywhere to sit except the bed and the desk (but only for 1). The bed rolled away from the wall when sitting up in bed. A cockroach crawled past me in the night The bathroom doesn’t have much privacy and seems to have a lot of wasted space. There was no menu for the restaurant or any other information in the room including about breakfast so we had no idea they even served breakfast or what time it was so went elsewhere. There didn’t seem to be any soundproofing between rooms. Our neighbour played loud music for hours which sounded like it was in our room. Room felt quite clinical and empty Mirrors in the room felt cheap and distorted The restaurant is quite expensive which I assumed was due to the remoteness to get fresh ingredients however one of the sauces that came with my meal tasted like it came from a packet and the even the mojito I ordered had dried mint and lime not fresh which was bizarre.

Location excellent. Room lovely, quiet, great needed air con.

Restaurant was extremely expensive, small portions, soggy chips & half cold food. No ingredients listed, so much food wasted as we couldn’t eat it. No lights over our table, to see our food. On the positive, wait staff were attentive, helpful & friendly.

Superb stay in a fantastic location

Nothing!

Great location, very comfortable large room with a lovely view. Excellent shower. Pool was warm, and enjoyable, but very busy on Sunday, much quieter on Monday. Lots of staff.

Breakfast was not great, although better on the second day.

Amazing! The villas are perfect and private

The rooms were comfortable, but it's the views from the terrace, restaurant, and pool area that make this place special. The Hokianga Harbour is magnificent. A 30-minute walk up to the scenic lookout was an effort well spent. The restaurant provides quality meals, and the servers are friendly and helpful. It's not a big hotel, which, in my opinion, makes the place even nicer. Driving up through Waipoua forest made the journey worthwhile, with the obligatory stop to see Tane Mahuta being a special treat.

N/A

Lovely rooms, had a great time and staff were amazing, friendly and helpful.

The restaurant food and staff were great. The lookout was lovely.

The room was nothing like the photo. Was expecting a comfortable luxury feel, but it was dark, sparse and lacking in comfort. No indoor furniture to watch the TV from, no rugs, mirrors and only one small picture as any form of decoration. No spare blankets or pillows. It's like they put the bed in the room and forgot to finish dressing the room. Our deck was very sad, broken, mouldy tiles, cheap outdoor wooden furniture -:not the lovely wicker, cushion clad numbers shown in the advertisement. Our room was a Beachfront superior. There was nothing superior about it, except a nice view over the bay. We also had to wait till 3.30pm before we could check in. The next day the next door apartment guest had to wait till 4pm for the cleaners to get their room ready. They do appear to be doing a lot of refurbishment around the place, unfortunately this hasn't reached the Beachfront superior rooms yet. At $315 a night, you're paying for a 4 star experience but struggling to receive maybe a 3 star. They definitely need to remove the photos they are advertising as it is false advertising. There is also lack of professionalism on the front counter. Lovely ladies, just not that organized. And they obviously need more cleaning staff. Have you ever been to a 4 star hotel before and had to wait 2 hours for your room key?

The view from the room was lovely and the bed was very comfortable. The staff were friendly. We ate in the restaurant and the main meal was delicious. Unfortunately the dessert, coffee, and tired surrounds undermined the dining experience.

There were holes in the ceiling (unfinished renovation). The bedside light wasn't working. The bed kept moving around. The free wifi wasn't working and we couldn't hook up to our TV streaming services. We had no hot water until the morning of check out. The shower rack and clothes rack were unstable.

Our room was a picture perfect view of the dunes and Hokianga harbour. The property is undergoing an upgrade to all the rooms. They are looking great.

NA

Having arrived from England on the day my son was moving home we decided to tour Northland for a week so only stayed one night but next morning I really didn't want to hand the key back. We were given a free upgrade to a villa complete with hot tub. The food in the restaurant was lovely and after a day of driving it could not have been a more relaxing stay. My only complaint was the weather but don't think they could have done anything about that.

There was nothing not to like.

Beautiful location beautiful meal in evening

Booked three rooms. Didn’t get what we booked ie a sea view. Website didn’t show that our rooms weren’t available. Renovating happening. Bathroom not clean. Breakfast very basic. Not good value for money.

Thank you all so much — we thoroughly enjoyed our stay. The villa was spotless, the bed was incredibly comfortable, and it felt very private. Everything we needed was provided. Dinner was amazing; the steak was cooked perfectly, and the chimichurri sauce was the perfect match. Breakfast was delicious, enjoyed with a stunning view. We will definitely be back. Very friendly staff and community. After a hard year of work, we really needed time to rest, and this was the perfect place to do exactly that.

Great location on the beach front. Facilities were also good. Staff were friendly and helpful.

Under renovation but I believe that will be finished this week.

Renovated bathroom was well appointed. The bed was very comfortable

The air conditioning did not work despite many resets by the onsite manager and ourselves. It is summer and we faced sunset so the room was sweltering. The curtains did not cover windows completely and what coverage there was hung all over the floor. The toilet in the renovated bathroom was not fixed to the wall securely and teetered when you sat down.

Changed hands from the last visit and it showed

Expensive, no water in the suites and charged us 13.70 a bottle of water

The location was excellent and we got upgraded to a villa due to renovations occurring. The villa was pure luxury. From the time we arrived staff were very inviting and we received great hospitality Mike was especially helpful and very engaging.

Can’t say there was anything we did not like.

On.arrival.our room.was notbready.we were up graded to.a lovely villa free drinks.but no plates no utensils etc in the villa.akso couldn't find the check out time..

Some kitchen .plates

The villa was great, good space. Loved the spa and looking out to the stars, the bathroom was great. Staff were great.

A beautiful location, and a lovely room overlooking the harbour. Will be great once the renovation work is done!

Reno's going on right outside made it difficult to park.

Location - right on the beach in a location that is just magic. Some staff (our waiter - American accent) was great. The common areas including gardens very nice. Clean and really comfortable bed. Good value for money for what we paid.

Felt like the place is a work in progress - facilities and staff. Some bits done (eg bathroom, painted out room) but other aspects needing to be finished (eg faceplate on light switch missing). Agree with other comments about it being a bit like a building site - luckily we were there on a weekend. Some aspects just odd (eg glass entry door letting in light from cars coming and going). Has enormous potential and wish the owners/operators all the best with what they are looking to achieve.

Fabulous view across Hokianga harbour

Nothing

Beautifully appointed villa with stunning bathroom , private deck with spa pool, fireplace

Leaving

The view from our room was gorgeous - an uninterrupted sea view

The rooms are spacious but poorly appointed. The furnishings and sanitary ware are poor quality but everything worked. We had a table and two hard chairs to sit on our balcony.

As the hotel complex was being renovated, the site wasn't quite the same as our first visit a few months ago. The room was within easy walking distance of the beach, the bar and the restaurant, as well as the local shops.

We thought that the shower wasn't safe, as the bathroom floor was more than 75% (floor area) wet after having a shower. Being elderly we thought that this was unsafe.

Very nice location, beach front. The staff were very helpful. I got a heads up about the construction happening on-site.

Soap from previous stayer were left in thr shower, the bed was good but the pillows made the sleep uncomfortable, but this is a personal preference.

There was a nice view from the restaurant.

Room was dirty. Huge space with nothing in it. Very noisy so had limited sleep.

Hotel is in a superb location on the waterfront at Omapere, and unit (No 30) was large and comfortable; with access straight onto the beachfront. There was a nice cafe within 100 metres, and a small grocery store within 200 metres. Staff was very helpful, food on first night was excellent. We were warned in advance that the hotel was undergoing renovations.

Renovations at the hotel meant that the unit was in part original condition, part renovated; it was dusty, and did not offer adequate privacy from the waterfront. Because of renovations, the kitchen and food options were limited, and the quality variable.

Location on water. Clean room.

Plain room, poor lighting in room, no comfortable chairs. Shower not up to par. Food very disappointing. Menu boring.

Location and sense of history

No Pool and some issue with air conditioner meant very noisy unless disconnecting power key card — little inconvenient if trying to watch tv or use fridge