Halswell Lodge

"Appears the motel is being used as some form of emergency/budget housing. Upon arrival, the reception was closed but check in was made easy with a quick phone call and access to a lockbox. But then as I proceeded to walk down the corridor to locate my room, I was greeted by thick, pungent smoke from what was assumed to be someone cooking in their room. The smoke alarm activated shortly after, I was expecting an evacuation, but to my surprise the alarm was silenced and no presence of any fire service or motel staff. Noting there wasn’t any form of kitchen/cooking facilities or ventilation in the room I had so it appears the long term guests had improvised their own facilities to accommodate their needs. As soon as I opened my room door, it banged halfway open on the bedside table. The room had an odour and the only window for natural daylight was boarded up and appeared to have been so for quite some time. There were signs of a leak coming from the shower which had damaged the bedroom flooring, wall and furniture. The bathroom vanity was also loose on the wall. Sleep wasn’t great, the beds headboard was dirty/stained, and only 2 very thin pillows on the bed made an uncomfortable sleep, accompanied by other noisy motel guests throughout the whole night/morning. I’ve seen other reviews mentioning bed bug bites but I can confirm I have not (yet) noticed any signs of that on myself. Reception was closed again upon checkout so could not inform them of the issues encountered, but was made easy with a key dropbox. But concerning that no checkup was made/follow up via a phone call to ensure I departed their care safely & satisfied. 10/10 would not stay again - I paid $98 which could have been better invested in a taxi ..or anything else but staying here."

"1st living in such bad and dirty accommodation over passed more than 40 yds travel around world. After 1st night staying there We, a group of 10, the face, eyes and body of 4/10 people were bitten by bed bugs and had to be sent to hospital emergency room. All of arranged for tourism project in Wellington were in a state of confusion. Very small rooms( 7 or 8 sm3 Inc. Bath and toilet room),Heard people walking on the ceiling and caused noise always, Carpet very dirty, Bedside falling down to the ground. Too many abnormal thing in this hotel. leave us a very bad impression in Wellington accommodation."

"DO NOT STAY HERE. You are greeted on arrival with a closed reception and a damp musty smell from the carpet. The Mattresses are so worn you drop through them or get stabbed by the broken springs. Pillows are extremely thin and asking for a 2nd one is ignored by the manager. Bed bugs infested the mattereses in 3 of our rooms, one was so bad medical treatment was required at the local emergency room. Hotel management refused to accept any responsibility stating they were not responsible for allergic reactions to the chemicals they wash linen with. The Dr at the emergency room disagreed and confirmed cause was insect bites. Walls are patchwork of bad repairs. Fitted heaters are broken and cheap noisy blow heaters supplied. Rear access door is not able to be shut or locked constantly slamming in the wind all day and night. Hot water runs out very quickly. The kitchen very is unclean, poorly lite and very small. There is no fridge just an old electric stove barely working. Worst travel experience we have ever had."

"Location is great and I was allowed to check in early. Upon arrival no one to greet you at the desk and you have to phone the manager who contacts her house keeping staff through Facebook messenger. Booked a room with spa only to get told the booking they received was for a double room for one person and no help with correcting the problem. Light switches are connected to all the lights so you can’t have just one light on. Mirror needs cleaning, and light fixtures are starting to fall from the ceiling. No bin or even rubbish bag was provided for the room. The fridge leaks water on the floor and a massive hole in the wall behind the fridge. The sheets were clean but very cold in the night. Heater (which says do not cover) is located right underneath the curtains, which is a health and safety hazard. I don’t take long showers but the hot water in the shower lasted about 4 minutes before turning cold. The hair dryer was filled with fluff and rust and didn’t even turn on at the wall."

"The location of the motel is good, everything is nearby, but the motel rooms are dirty and cold. Our first room had bugs and damp air. We don't want to stay there, so we go to the reception to explain the situation, but around 17:00 there was no one there anymore. There was a number to call, no one picked up for a long time, but finally the woman answered and gave us another room, which was a little better. This motel should think further about cleanliness and warmth."