Had a 2 night stay here in January on points, and was upgraded to a lake-view one bedroom apartment in the new section, which was huge! Since we were in the middle of a 3 week trip my wife especially appreciated having a washer and dryer right in the apt.(smaller, stackable machines but got the job done). One night we went down to the supermarket and bought a bunch of mussels (very cheap) and lamb (not as cheap as it used to be) for grilling but ended up broiling in the oven as no grill was available which kind of surprised me given the overall feel of the property.
As mentioned previously the bathroom was very spacious and the heated floor was was a nice touch.
We thoroughly enjoyed the complementary breakfast and didn't think the upcharge for the full buffet was worth it- what they offered for the $12 extra fit in 2 chafing dishes and I don't like eggs.
You can pay extra for covered parking, in the basement of the new wing, or self park in front of the hotel where spaces are limited. There is a gravel overflow parking lot down the hill and a set of wooden stairs provided to access it. Parking there is a little inconvenient but no big deal unless it's raining or snowing.
We spent some time in the Taupo area but mainly used this hotel as a base to visit the Rotorua area since there are no Hilton properties there.
Overall we were very happy with our stay.