So with the borders closed, I thought I would read hotel reviews on TripAdvisor and Google on new hotels to keep myself sane
I started with Pullman Rotorua which opened a year ago at one of my favourite countries, New Zealand, because it's so casual and laid back that I could go barefoot at many places without problems. As I was reading the reviews and taking into account my experiences with kiwi hospitality during my trips across the Tasman, I am coming to some conclusions:
1. NZ seem to lack highly trained hospitality workers. Even when I stayed at Hilton Auckland, the service was very good relative to other NZ hotels, but not as polished as the ones in Asia.
2. Kiwis don't seem to ask for a lot from a 5 star hotel and are easily pleased? Maybe they haven't experienced really good service elsewhere?
3. Is the casual and laid back culture contributing to the average service? Some of the faults mentioned shouldn't really happen a year after a hotel's opening.
4. Management only seems to reply to good feedback and doesn't address the one star ratings. Kind of like an echo chamber?
What are people's experiences like in the land of the long white cloud? When I hear from people, it's usually at two extremes - some say kiwis are friendly and down to earth while others say they are rude and arrogant and nothing in between.
I started with Pullman Rotorua which opened a year ago at one of my favourite countries, New Zealand, because it's so casual and laid back that I could go barefoot at many places without problems. As I was reading the reviews and taking into account my experiences with kiwi hospitality during my trips across the Tasman, I am coming to some conclusions:
1. NZ seem to lack highly trained hospitality workers. Even when I stayed at Hilton Auckland, the service was very good relative to other NZ hotels, but not as polished as the ones in Asia.
2. Kiwis don't seem to ask for a lot from a 5 star hotel and are easily pleased? Maybe they haven't experienced really good service elsewhere?
3. Is the casual and laid back culture contributing to the average service? Some of the faults mentioned shouldn't really happen a year after a hotel's opening.
4. Management only seems to reply to good feedback and doesn't address the one star ratings. Kind of like an echo chamber?
What are people's experiences like in the land of the long white cloud? When I hear from people, it's usually at two extremes - some say kiwis are friendly and down to earth while others say they are rude and arrogant and nothing in between.
