voco Auckland City Centre

What is your Priority Club status?
Diamond Ambassador

Were you (or for multi-stayers are you generally) happy with the hotel/stay?
Absolutely not.

Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive?
1 King Bed Standard Sky Tower View, received 1 King Bed Standard Sky Tower View (allocated on the highest floor)

How are the rooms?
Hard product is alright overall. Nice views, comfortable beds, fast internet, plenty of power points. I felt the space was poorly used, the entry space is too large and bare, could do with a table or some seating here to better utilise the space. Air conditioning went to auto-mode every time I left the room so needed to remember to switch it back on.

How is the exec. lounge?
N/A

What was good and what was bad?
Lol, shall we start with the bad?

• Arrived at 2am and greeted by friendly but inexperienced night staff - I asked about an upgrade as a Diamond member only to be told a King Bed was the largest bed they had! They also wrote the wrong room number on the key card folder, thankfully despite the late hour I was still paying attention and noticed the discrepancy between the number on the check-in form I had signed and the number they were telling me.
• Dire shortage of housekeeping staff led to them not servicing the room one day and only doing the absolute basics on the other days. Have seen recent reviews online indicating I'm not alone with this, one guest even checked into a room that had not been cleaned after its last occupant had checked out. Truly disgusting.
• Was told at check-in and on in-room TV that breakfast was served from 6:30-10:30. Arrived at 10:10 to be told they had closed at 10am, so didn't get to utilise my Diamond benefit that day. That said, breakfast was so bad I can't say I missed out on much. 3 of the 7 "hot plates" listed on the buffet menu were actually just sauces, not even dishes!
• Constant issues with the elevators, usually at least 1 of the 3 were out of service.
• Poor TV channel selection, no international channels or news channels. They're relying on guests bringing their own entertainment and using Chromecast.
• Phone calls to housekeeping and front desk went unanswered.
• Although not personally affected the hotel is not well-suited to those using a wheelchair. The entrance is not flat, there are stairs required to access sections of the breakfast buffet and walkways are narrow. Very disappointing considering it a new-build hotel in a country that generally does pretty well with disability access.
• Could go on but will leave it there!

The Good

• Nice view from the room
• Fast internet
• Central location

Value for $ or Priority Club Points? Would you return?
Paid NZD $307/night. After a complaint about the multiple service issues I did receive what I felt was reasonable compensation in the form of additional points.

I know there are hospitality staffing issues just about everywhere and the industry has had a tough two years, but we are back to paying normal prices and I am of the view that if a hotel decides to continue selling all the rooms without limiting capacity despite insufficient staff, then it's on them and they have to accept the consequences when it goes wrong as it has here. I'm sure they will get their act together eventually, but would recommend avoiding until they do.