Skotel Alpine Resort

We loved it here!!!|The view from the Ngauruhoe Room (Mt Doom) is incredible to wake up to.|The sun does come up in your window though, so close your curtains when you go to bed. We stayed here 2 nights and explored the area, did a walk to Meads Wall (as LOTR fans, this place is proper Middle Earth)|Bed was comfortable, shower was also great!|Food servings were huge, great after a day of skiing/ hiking, we ended up sharing - but everything was well priced and good quality. Highly recommend stopping here to break up the journey between Wellington and Rotorua.

We’ll definitely be staying at this resort again — it has the best location with stunning views. Tyson truly went the extra mile by helping us secure a better room and arranging an early check-in. We were amazed to see the Milky Way galaxy visible right from around the hotel! There’s also a lovely kids’ area filled with toys, a nice restaurant, and plenty of seating.

This was our base for the Tongariro Alpine Trail and I'm glad because the drive from here to the trail head carpark was easier than from Turangi (particularly appreciated during the dark predawn hours). The accommodation also offers a shuttle service at certain timings if you prefer that. The hostel kitchen was also available for hotel guests' use, which was lovely. I think laundry is also available in the basement, for a fee. Room light switches were tricky to locate (hidden by the side tables) but the staff at reception was happy to help. View from the room, as others have mentioned, was a highlight.

The area has great views and lots of nature walks around, but small outdated rooms with beds that have little to no support, waking up with a sore back and a bad night's sleep. Staff were lovely though many of them seemed a bit lost and unsure of procedures. Food is quite expensive, the $16 fries contained about 16 fries in total, though the pizza was quite nice. There is a guest kitchen with plenty of cookware and appliances to sort your own food out.

Honestly a lovely place to stay! I've stayed here twice and will definitely return, I've stayed in both the backpackers rooms and the queen/superior queen rooms and they are all great. Comfortable and clean, I was very happy. The backpackers communal kitchen is very well appointed for cooking and enjoying your food. But the restaurant and bar are fantastic too, I enjoyed some beautiful meals, and the breakfast buffet didn't disappoint either. |Great service, knowledgeable staff.|The most breathtaking views, and you can walk so many amazing tracks from right out the front from the carpark.

This is a rather large property with a range of accommodation options, so be careful what you book! We stayed in one of the rooms in the outside row with a porch and mountain view, which was totally worth the somewhat higher price. ||Rooms aren't new or fancy, but clean and functional.||It has a bit of a youth hostel feel, with very young international staff who were all super nice.||Reception booked us on the shuttle for the Tongariro Crossing (which picks you up/drops you off right at the front door) and competently answered all questions about other hikes and things to do (Tama Lakes / Taranaki Falls trail starts just behind the property).||The only thing we found a bit difficult was that the restaurant and bar area seemed too small for the size of the property. It was hard to find space in the bar, and reservations for the restaurant had to be made early to get in at the time we wanted. Which might have been because it had just cleared up after several days of rain, so it was quite full despite it being shoulder season.||We were there because we wanted to do some|hiking, and it was perfect for that as hikers (and skiers in winter) are clearly their target audience, so they are very knowledgeable and helpful and focused on enabling you to make the most of it.||Oh, and I want to mention the booking process, during which I had various questions, which they were extremely friendly, thorough and quick replying to.||Throughout, the young staff were absolutely stellar.

Beautiful views with plenty of amazing walks and hikes nearby. However the inside of the building doesn't look like it's been touched since the 80s. Beds were super uncomfortable, the in-room kettle was perishing, and the restaurant was quite expensive. Thankfully there was a shared kitchen with everything you could need.

Absolutely wonderful place to stay. I can't express enough how kind and lovely all the staff were. Very relaxed, friendly environment and the best service imaginable. The young man who served us at the restaurant tonight was very easy-going and did a wonderful job. Thank you so much Skotel for this amazing experience. My husband and I are thoroughly enjoying our stay here :)