Crowne Plaza Auckland City Centre

What is your IHG One Rewards status?
Diamond Ambassador

Were you (or for multi-stayers are you generally) happy with the hotel/stay
Yes, although some post-checkout shenanigans cooled things slightly.

Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive?
Booked King Standard, received King Standard City View Higher Floor.

How are the rooms?
The standard room was dated in look and a little worn, but was perfectly adequate for my needs. The bed had a topper added and was comfortable. Bathrooms had a less than ideal combined shower/bath and a lack of places to hang towels.

How is the exec. lounge?
A small but pleasant and sociable space on the Top (28th Floor) of the hotel, recently refurbished and open 0630-2130 for drinks and snacks, including wine and NZ bottled beers. Evening drinks and simple canapes (table service for drinks, and a self-service buffet of arancini, cheese & crackers etc) were available 1730-1930. It doesn't serve breakfast (the Executive Lounge sign explicitly states breakfast is served on the 4th floor in the Aria restaurant).

What was good and- what was bad?

GOOD
Friendly staff and a good central location just off Queen Street. Fast, secure lifts which are keycard controlled via touchscreens (you select your floor and are directed to a lift). A personalised welcome card (replete with a humorous and slightly self-deprecating message!) for a special occasion was waiting in the room along with a bottle of sparkling wine. Good (if slightly haphazard) loyalty recognition made it decent value versus other IHG options for my dates.

BAD
A few minor inconsistencies and some hassle with the bill. My Diamond status was acknowledged at check-in but I wasn't explicitly offered a choice of welcome amenity (although arriving at 0600, I was invited to join breakfast when it opened at 0630). The points turned up later. It was mentioned to me that I had access to the Lounge (presumably via the Annual Lounge Pass I had) but on attempting to visit it, the floor on which the Lounge was situated hadn't been added to my keycard, and so a trip down to reception was required. When I did get up there, my name/room was checked against a list and I was ushered in.

Most annoyingly, I had emailed the hotel in advance that I would be arriving late on the first night (6am the following morning) to ensure I was not treated as a no-stay, and had received assurances to that end. However, on check out, the first night had been coded as a no-stay, despite their assurances, which meant the first night's points (including bonus points package) did not post. IHG managed to sort this with them after initially telling me tough luck in the first instance.

Value for $ or IHG One Rewards Club? Would you return?
Paid NZD$795 (£380) for three nights on a 5000 point/night bonus rate. Valuing the points at the standard valuation of 0.4p (although they are worth more to me than that, as they are elite-qualifying and I tend to requalify on points) put the rate at a little more than £100/night, which was decent value.