Akaroa Criterion Motel

9.4

Exceptional

550 Guest reviews

9.4

Exceptional

550 Verified Reviews

Read all reviews

Cleanliness9.6/10

Service9.6/10

Comfort9.4/10

Condition9.2/10

location9.4/10

Neighborhood9.6/10

Value8.6/10

Amenities9.4/10

Great location. Friendly staff.

Perfect for us on a week long trip and a quick stop into akaroa The staff are so lovely and the rooms were the best on our trip We loved the deck chairs and tables too as we like to play cards ( not very rock n roll is it!) and a short walk to Everything.

Lovely property in an excellent location.

This is a fabulous place to stay. The location is perfect. Park your car because you can walk everywhere in the village from here. It is steps from the water. Try for a sea view on the 2nd or 3rd floor.

Clean rooms, friendly staff, convenient location. Couldn't ask for more. Will highly recommend any time.

Best location in Akaroa

We loved our 2 nights stay at the Criterion Motel. The room was spacious and nice with sofa and armchair. The bed was very big and had lovely linen and pillows. Close everything in this cute little town.

Excellent studio with beautiful views of Akaroa

We stayed 3 nights in a top floor studio with a gorgeous view of beautiful Akaroa harbour from the balcony. The studio was spacious and well equipped with a microwave, toaster and all the crockery and cutlery we needed. The shower was good and the bed comfortable. Very good value for a premium spot. Helpful staff.

Location to town

Everything was super and we could walk around

Wonderful room that was thoroughly cleaned and all rooms had a beautiful view. The owners were very friendly too. This will be our new go to place when visiting Akaroa.

Very nice spacious rooms with a view of the lake. Easy to walk to restaurants and shopping. Yummy French bakery next door. Easy access to some hiking trails and tour companies. Very friendly and helpful staff on site. I would return.

Great central spot, very spacious. Third floor has great view over the harbour

Very friendly would stay again.

Everything was just within reach and central town

Lovely, helpful, friendly staff. Beautiful view. Lovely large room. Great bed. Close to restaurants, cafes and supermarket. overall excellent stay

Really nice Motel.Large room comfortable and clean.Friendly and helpful staff.

Great location. Lovely view from our balcony (top floor). East parking. Comfortable room. No kitchen but we knew that and it wasn't a problem for us. Very happy stay.

Lovely motel - great location, views of the waterfront with restaurants and shops on the doorstep. Very well maintained and clean property as well.

I always love staying at Criterian Motel, Akaroa. Always a great welcome. Staff are friendly and accommdating. Beds are so comfortable. Amenities are clean. Akaroa is a wonderful place to spend a few days relaxing or enjoying the many activities on offer. Highly recommend.

This accommodation was beautiful with lovely views and very quiet. Very spacious and relaxing. Everything you could need.

Good

Good large room central location

Stunning View

Wow! The hotel exceeded my expectations. Excellent location, gorgeous harbour view, very clean. Our room was spacious, well furnished and quality toiletries provided. I was glad to have booked the 3rd floor sea view, the double doors opened up to a fabulous balcony overlooking the Lyttelton harbour. Absolutely stunning.

We had a top floor room and hence a great view of the water. Note there are no lifts so need to be able to carry your luggage up the stairs. Parking was very easy and central location to everything in the town. Room was large, well equipped and very clean. A very comfortable bed!

The property was walkable distance to the shopping area & Restaurants etc. Fantastic views. Good off road parking. Very clean &, compfy bed.

Overnight stay

Short overnight stay. Lovely area. Great choice of restaurants nearby.

The criterion motel is perfectly located adjacent to restaurants supermarket and the bay The rooms are large comfortable with large bathrooms. Best friends are on the top floor with the Seaview cross the bay into the mountains There is no lift but Felicity the only organise to have your bags taken up and down for you. In fact the staff part of the attraction of this hotel always willing and anxious to be assistance.

Quiet and comfortable

Quiet setting with cafés and grocery shop close by. Easy walk to the main area of Akaroa. Nice view of the sea from our room. Large, comfortable room with everything we needed for our stay. Will stay there again.

Excellent

Well maintained spotless unit with quality personal care products

nice location friendly team

Highly recommend

Great motel, perfect location, wonderful view. Highly recommend. My room had heated bathroom tiles and I loved the layout with the bed facing the window, waking up to beautiful views of the water and mountains. Delicious plunger coffee included was a very nice touch.

Room with a spectacular view

Loved being on the harbour with beautiful views of boats, snow capped mountains and life on the water.

Magnificent view of the water.

We really enjoyed our stay. Staff were really friendly and gave us great information on where to dine and other options on walks, Great view from our really comfortable room,

Clean and modern rooms all facing the water. Seemed a good amount of parking. Check in was quick and friendly. Akaroa is small, so everything is walkable, but this motel was particularly well placed for the restaurants at the northern end of the town.

Excellent location, clean, excellent view and friendly happy management

Great motel, with nice friendly owners and nice clean room with excellent views.

Well located great views good access to sea front walkways

We were warmly welcomed by the owner. The beds were so comfortable and rooms were super roomy. Good facilities in room - we wanted for nothing. Great value for money. Highly recommended.

Fabulous view of Akaroa harbour. Great restaurant next door

Super clean, friendly staff, would happily stay again and good value.

Great location.

Room was large

Spacious and Clean

Nicely presented and clean accommodation. Very spacious with beautifully made up bed with lovely linen (very nice touch). The big pump bottles of high quality soap, shampoo/conditioner and moisturiser is an excellent idea and I wish more accommodation did the same to be eco friendly. Very good Heatpump and Heated bathroom floor a great extra for these chilly winter days. Having the Heatpump on before guest arrival would have been a good idea as easier to keep room warm than have to heat from cold at night. A light outside the door would have been good as so dark wasn’t able to easily put key in the lock. Very minor things so overall a very nice place to stay with easy walk to fabulous restaurants and shopping.

Good size room, comfortable and clean. Really nice bathroom supplies (Ashley and Co). Reception staff friendly and location easy walk to very nice restaurants and cafe

Comfortable room overlooking the harbour with great facilities, with the added luxury of a heated blanket - exactly what I needed. The lovely lady at the office (sorry not to have caught her name) was super helpful and kind, giving me a free upgrade and letting me check in early and then leave my bags for a few hours after checkout the next day. Would highly recommend. Thank you!

The king bed had beautiful pillows and comforter super comptable. The view was spectacular minus the houses directly in front but you could see the harbour and boats. Loved the location. Best place we’ve started at so far. Definitely would come back

Great location. Exceptionally clean and well kitted out. Would stay again.

Great stay!!

This is a great spot minutes from everything and a great view from balcony,loved it.

Great place to stay

Great location with views of water as promised. Clean, large and comfortable. A small problem with shower but it was seen too immediately. Comfy bed.

Great view of the sea. Very relaxing

Nice motel in central Akaroa. Friendly staff. Walkable to virtually everything. Especially excellent bakery adjacent.

Will be staying again

view of harbour, close to center of town

Beautiful view of the bay, next to shopping, large studio room with great furnishing!

Room was huge with sofa seating to watch tv or seaviews. Bed was extremely comfy and cannot fault any aspect of the room and motel in general

Great position, view and large room

We had a fantastic night - room was great, amazing view and the staff were so friendly and helpful. Highly recommend!

Excellent hotel, beautiful views and friendly staff

Stay here!

Outstanding view overlooking the bay from our third floor balcony. Beautiful modern room right next to beach, several great restaurants next door. Friendly check-in. Could not ask for a better place. Exceptional value!

Wonderful motel, lovely rooms. Great views across to wharf & bay. Walkable distance to cafe's & restaurant. Welcoming staff.

Beautiful situation in the township of Akaroa. Lovely view of the bay and pier, sunset was amazing! The room is modern, well furnished and I loved the little balcony. Helpful and accomodating staff. Loved out stay and would definitely return.

Very helpful staff, fantastic view from the apartment. Very clean, lots space and everything you need for a few nights stay. Would highly recommend to others

Fabulous place to stay. Convenient to everything. Amazing hosts. Great rooms. Love staying here.

Very kind staff.

lovely view from our 2nd floor studio unit, very handy to all the activities and dining.

Thank you for your amazing hospitality!

The best hotel experience in NZ so far! Very clean, super friendly and helpful, amazing view, big room...

This was just perfect. Clean, friendly professional staff, great location. It ticked every box. Would definitely recommend and we would definitely come back. Brilliant.

Beautiful View

Lovely spacious room with a beautiful view of the bay. Check-in was a delight with the super friendly and helpful lady. The hotel was quiet and very walk able to all activities and dining in the area.

Beautiful view from balcony.

Very nice stay

Really lovely Motel close to the water owner with on site. Really find your cardio and get going get on.

Lovely

Large room on the bottom floor with an open plan bed room, kitchen lounge. Large bathroom off to the side and a seating room area outside overlooking the sea. Outside chairs and towels were provided. Lovely coffee shop just around the corner with a restaurant across the road. What more could you ask for, really. Lovely to relax and take NZ all in, or a break away from the city for a bit.

Location is perfect, room had everything we needed and we would be very happy to come back and stay here again.

Fantastic! Lovely room, clean and well equipped. Staff friendly & very helpful. Topped off with beautiful view

Great location. Perfect bed mattress firm but soft. Great sleep.

Lovely, clean, comfortable. Would recommend.

Fantastic value

This was by far one of the best places we have stayed at. Sunny room, great view of water, spotlessly clean, fantastic toiletries, wonderful coffee for plunger, comfortable beds and a huge room with a balcony. Wonderful friendly staff at checkin and great location to walk to cafes and restaurants and supermarket. Also was a very quiet location. Not to mention how quiet the entire neighbourhood was. This was the perfect place to end our 3 week vacation in NZ

A fabulous outlook from our top floor room.

Despite a hiccup at check in, it was handled very efficiently and sorted instantly and fortunately for us a room was available. Manager very friendly and helped with directions and suggesting things to do while visiting. Top floor spacious studio room had a great 180 degree view over the harbour and surrounding hillsides. Comfy bed and lounges.

High standard property with friendly staff, in a central location.

A nice room, very convenient to shops and a lovely welcome from the staff.

friendly reception

Can't fault this property - It was an absolutely fantastic place to stay on our holiday! First time we had been to Akaroa, without a doubt will definately stay here again, it ticked all boxes. The rooms are brilliant - very modern and large/roomy, very high quality furnishings, toiletries, and coffee/tea/biscuit selection. (I know because I bought some of the beautiful handwash in the room from the airport on the way home - it is definately not cheap and nasty) Everything was spotless. The hosts/staff were super friendly, nothing was too much trouble, and the location was perfect being right on the lake and close to dining/shopping/areas of interest. We were pleasantly surprised - A must to stay at if you're in this area.

Loved everything no dislikes

Lovely spacious room with the most comfortable bed!! Staff were nice and friendly, would highly recommend to stay here🙂

Nice motel for a night in Akaroa. Good value.

Very nice - thanks to the owner

Very comfortable - the bed would have to be the most comfortable we have ever slept in. Lovely outlook of the harbour. Everything within easy walking distance.

My room was clean, well-decorated, and had a view of Akaroa Harbor. The staff was extremely hospitable and informative. I really enjoyed my stay.

Nice stay!

Very nice hotel in Akaroa - check in was simple and straightforward and our room was clean and tidy

Nice place to stay, center of the town, walking to boat tours, restaurants, grocery.

This is the best place I’ve stayed in New Zealand! The owners and staff are over the top friendly, and the rooms are very tasteful with beautiful views from the balcony.

All good

Spacious and clean with a wonderful view of the harbour. Friendly, helpful staff. Close to most things. Only small problem was lack of room service due to staffing problems but we still had rubbish removed and fresh towels and tea/coffee/milk provided daily.

Smart motel with waterside views

This is a very comfortable and well maintained motel. We had an upstairs room with a balcony and waterside views. Well equipped and clean. Our hosts were friendly and helpful. Parking is easy.

Nice staff. Good location and views

Very spacious units, great Details like deck chairs and beach towels. Extremely Friendly And helpful staff.

Great location. Extra spacious room. Friendly and efficient staff.

Great motel and service. Room was excellent and had the most fantastic view of the harbour.