I stayed a couple of days at the Holiday Inn. It is away from the main town, it would be a hike to walk into the city center. It is next door to the geysers and Maori Village. The hotel is nice and clean and staff are friendly. I had the $40 dinner buffet one night, but never ate breakfast. Dinner was nice but on the expensive side.

The staff were really friendly and helpful to me when I was booking from Australia and my experience of them on the ground was equally positive. I rang them on the morning of my arrival to ask about parking (there is heaps of free parking) and they said that my room was going to be ready early so I could check in at 1pm which meant I could organise myself and do some activities in the afternoon. Great start!

Room 812 was exactly as advertised: it looks out over the geothermal pool and the forest. The view is hypnotic – there are comfy armchairs by the window and I just sat and watched the steam rise. I was very happy. There are not only big water glasses, there is also decaf, chocolate for hot chocolate, and chamomile. Everything I ask for in accommodation. Two queen beds, choice of pillows, lovely adjustable air conditioning and a nice relaxing colour scheme. No balcony, I don’t think there are any balconies in the hotel, but Rotorua is not really a balcony kind of town in my view and certainly not this close to the geysers.

For this same view you would want room numbers 812, 814, 816, 818, 820, 822 or 824 – not the odd numbers because they look out the other side of the building at the car park and not lower than 812 because they would look out over the pool. I would particularly avoid the odd-numbered rooms on the ground floor of this wing – you would have cars parked only a couple of metres from your window.

In this room you do get the sound of kids in the pool but it’s bearable. For me, after a holiday full of apartments and motels generally run by married couples, it’s just nice to be somewhere where they are all trained, everything is predictable and there’s a lot less quirk. Quirky is great but sometimes routine is even better. I will definitely return.

The rooms are big with two queen beds. The view is really beautiful. Ours faced the thermal park. Location is away from the town centre but with a car, one can get anywhere relatively easily.

Breakfast was awful. I cannot think of another word. In fact, we skipped it and drove to McDonald's for breakfast. That was how bad it was for us.

The service was excellent. The staff were friendly and helpful. They went out of their way to assist us and we very much appreciated that.