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We flew back to Auckland for our last stop in New Zealand because it had the most flights each day to Australia and we didn't want to take a chance on getting stuck if there were flight cancellations. We chose the Avani Metropolis Hotel as our base, located very close to the central business district. Once again I couldn't find a hotel where we had points that had rooms with three beds. Avani is a hotel chain with a loyalty program, just not one I was familiar with. We charged this stay to my Barclays ArrivalPlus card and then used their own points to "erase" the charge.
The CBD is about a 30-minute drive from the airport during times of no traffic so it probably took us a little longer than that to reach it as our flight landed about 1:15 PM and by the time we got our bags and an Uber I think it was about 2:30 PM when we reached the check-in desk. We weren't surprised our room wasn't ready but we waited less than 30 minutes before they allowed us to check in. We were given two card keys and told that if we lost one there was an $80 charge to replace it. Wow. I'm not sure why this is so different from other hotels using card keys but I'm just glad that didn't become an issue!
Two Bedroom Unit
Our room was more like a small apartment than a typical hotel room. Two bedrooms and two baths, a kitchen and a living room, much like our lodging in Queenstown. Our unit was way up on the 29th floor but thankfully the elevators were very fast. Due to the hotel layout we weren't far from the elevator but since we were around a corner we didn't experience any noise associated with it at all.
For a hotel room, the entry hall was kind of long. A locked closet was on one side and a tiny bathroom on the other.
Walking straight in you'd run into the kitchen.
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| The kitchen had more than we needed |
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| Coffee and tea supplies |
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| The fridge and pantry area |
When standing at the kitchen sink your view was out into the living room, which also had the dining table. The sofa was not terribly comfortable. We stayed in one very windy night and tried to hook up the iPad to the TV to watch a movie but there was no way to wirelessly connect it.
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| The sofa was not as comfortable as it looks |
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| The TV would have been perfect if we could've hooked up the tablet to it! |
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| View from the 29th floor |
The view was decent though the windows were pretty dirty. However, there had recently been a huge fire just a few blocks away and that may have had something to do with it.
The master bedroom had been reconfigured to split the king bed into twins which we appreciated as it gave C and me a little more room to maneuver, although it would seem to me it'd be more appropriate to put one of the night stands between the beds instead of cramming it against the wall. But since there were no electrical outlets in the middle of the wall perhaps it was just as well.
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| King bed split into twins in the master bedroom |
At the foot of the beds were two large wardrobes with a shelf in between. It would seem that the shelf is an appropriate space for a small TV but it didn't really matter to us.
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| Wardrobes in the master bedroom |
One side of the wardrobe was for hanging clothing while the other had shelves and drawers, a smaller hanging area and the iron and board as well as the safe.
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| Wardrobe contents |
The master bath was fairly large with a shower stall and a separate soaking tub. There wasn't a whole lot of counter space but that one little ledge actually worked fairly well for some things.
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| Soaking tub in the master bath |
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| Shelving unit above the tub |
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| Sink and counter in master bath |
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| Toilet, with heated towel rack above, and the shower in the master bath |
Toiletries were by eco.logic.
The second bedroom had a queen bed and sliding glass doors to the outside although there was no balcony, only a rail.
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| Queen bed in the second bedroom |
The hall bath was tiny - as small as any cruise ship I've sailed. The toilet was on the left with storage shelves over it. The small sink - no counter - was directly across from the door and the shower stall was on the right.
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| The very tiny hall bath |
Other Amenities
The hotel has an indoor pool and I believe there were three hot tubs. One of the hot tubs is outdoors though under a roof. It was in use so I didn't try to get a photo. Another hot tub was in the far back right, out of sight in this photo. And a third, also in use was just off-camera to the right in this photo.
The gym was surprisingly large and had several people working out when I stopped by.
Restaurants
There are restaurants located on the lower floors of this building though they have external entrances and are not affiliated with the hotel. We ate at the tiny Italian place and there's a coffee shop as well.
Location
This portion of the CBD is very hilly and it was a steep walk down and a steep walk back up. If mobility is an issue for you, I'd keep this in mind and look for something in the marina area where it's much flatter.
Final Thoughts
Our main priority was a room with three beds in a decent location and that's what we found here. Our minimal interaction with the staff was all very friendly and I could see myself staying here again if we come back to Auckland.
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