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Reviews of Criterion Art Deco Backpackers

2 out of 5
Criterion Art Deco Backpackers
48 Emerson St, Napier

Reviews

6.6
Rating 10 - Excellent. 10 out of 61 reviews" "
Rating 8 - Good. 17 out of 61 reviews" "
Rating 6 - Okay. 23 out of 61 reviews" "
Rating 4 - Poor. 6 out of 61 reviews" "
Rating 2 - Terrible. 5 out of 61 reviews" "

6.8/10

Cleanliness

7.8/10

Staff & service

6.4/10

Amenities

6.0/10

Property conditions & facilities

Reviews

6/10 Okay

Jamie, Christchurch

Travelled with group
Liked: Staff & service
Decor quite tired but room was fine, sheets and bedding nice and clean. No power points at the bed. Bathrooms close and clean enough. Nice lounge area with one small Tv and a ping pong table. One broken pool table. Nice big kitchen. Hard to find if using google maps but well sign posted once you find it.
Stayed 1 night in Nov 2020

6/10 Okay

Judith

Stayed 6 nights in Mar 2020

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
I was pleasantly surprised by my stay here. There were a few issues (like how most of the outlets I tried in the lounge area didn't work), but the staff were very friendly and accommodating.
Stayed 4 nights in Feb 2020

6/10 Okay

SuefromUK, Wellington

Travelled with group
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Bedding only suitable for duster ! Wobbly taps, water not running away properly in shower and the smallest sink imaginable in the room with private facilities. However, the location of this property is great and we enjoyed our stay. On a budget? You couldn’t fault it.
Stayed 2 nights in Feb 2020

10/10 Excellent

Alan

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Nice stay in an interesting town....
I had a nice stay and liked the simple accom central in Napier.
Stayed 2 nights in Feb 2020

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Travelled with group
Very nice for the price. The bunk bed was extremely wobbly and moved quite a bit when either some one in the top or bottom moved.
Stayed 1 night in Feb 2020

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Photos on the internet were misleading and gave the impression that the single rooms were more modern and hotel like.
Stayed 2 nights in Jan 2020

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness
Disliked: Amenities, property conditions & facilities
This property is in an awesome location and would be amazing if it was upgraded. Our room was adequate, but there were so many things 'not working' that it became a bit of a joke. Electrical outlets and light switches that didn't work, and a double kitchen sink in our room that had had the taps removed....??!! The whole property had a stale odour about it too. Having said that, we were perfectly comfortable for our one-night stay and you can't beat the location.
Stayed 1 night in Jan 2020

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Disliked: Property conditions & facilities
The building has all the character and charm of the period and is kept clean however repairs are needed to some facilities
Stayed 4 nights in Jan 2020

6/10 Okay

Jessica

Liked: Staff & service
Stayed 1 night in Jan 2020

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Location great. Lovely old deco exterior. My room was next to the shared bathroom (mens). Not soundproof. Receptionist patronising and rude. Towels and sheets had seen better days.
Stayed 1 night in Dec 2019

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Location, staff, clean. Comfortable. The best was the location
Stayed 1 night in Dec 2019

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Cleanliness
Stayed 1 night in Dec 2019

2/10 Terrible

Verified traveller

Travelled with family
Disliked: Cleanliness, amenities, property conditions & facilities
The hostel was dirty and smelly. It was also very run down.
Stayed 1 night in Dec 2019

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Good value for money but kinda dinghy. Facility is old and rundown. Not the best backpacker facility on the island but neither the worst.
Stayed 1 night in Nov 2019

4/10 Poor

Bryan

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities
Noisy, unhygienic and unacceptable
Pleasant morning staff (as opposed to the gruff afternoon one) will smile, check you out, hold your bags and then try to clean the public areas, but really this property is well past it and should be completely removed from this booking site. It is a rundown hostel that is simply not worthy of a listing here and does not give foreign tourists a very positive view of NZ accommodation standards. Visible areas of my room appeared ok at a cursory glance but, after examining the walls and carpet and moving the bed, I immediately regretted staying here - there is filth everywhere. Old facilities are perfectly acceptable, but poor maintenance and unhygienic floors, dirty fittings & fixtures are not. Bathrooms are functional but the owners are clearly not even interested in spending a few dollars to fix basic things like door locks, preferring instead to stick handwritten signs up telling you how to engineer your own way out of a cubicle. Lino floors were sticky, guest lounges looked unkempt, bedroom curtains hung adrift from their rails. To top it off, the noise until 2am (on a Tuesday night even) from the partying staff at the Market St Bar downstairs is totally unacceptable. It means an entire wing of the hotel is sleepless, banging around in rooms and hallways, and wasting many hours lying in wait in their beds contemplating what horrible germs and bugs might at that moment be descending upon them. Thoroughly unpleasant and a somewhat sour experience to have booked this sort
Bathroom cubicle locks cost $20 to fix
The “complimentary breakfast” consists of this
Year-old absolute filth on the floors at the head of the bed
Scunge and muck in every corner, nook and cranny
Stayed 1 night in Nov 2019

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Business traveller
Disliked: Property conditions & facilities
The location was great. Facility is run down and tired.
Stayed 3 nights in Nov 2019

4/10 Poor

Verified traveller

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Amenities, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 1 night in Nov 2019

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 1 night in Nov 2019

6/10 Okay

C D

Disliked: Property conditions & facilities
Very Basic Backpackers
Basic backpackers in centre of town. It's cheap and you get what you pay for. We had a room with shower and w.c. It was just about ok for the money. Best thing about it is that it's bang in the centre of town. Biggest criticism - duvet covers appear not to get washed after each customer - a sheet is provided instead.
Stayed 1 night in Nov 2019

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Travelled with family, Business traveller
Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Property conditions & facilities
Location was very good, but property needs a renovation
Stayed 1 night in Oct 2019

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities
Only downside was the noise from the families staying in the room next door. Not that you can help that. But the staff service was fantastic!
Stayed 3 nights in Oct 2019

4/10 Poor

Verified traveller

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Wouldn't bother
We knew in advance this was a hostel, so weren’t expecting luxury, but I have stayed in much nicer and cheaper hostels. The bed was a mattress on the floor, the room wasn’t clean, the decor was extremely dated and the place didn’t feel particularly safe or friendly. Wouldn’t recommend
Stayed 1 night in Sep 2019

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Business traveller
Liked: Cleanliness
Location is great It needs to be upgraded up to today’s standards
Stayed 1 night in Sep 2019

2/10 Terrible

Verified traveller

Stayed 1 night in Aug 2019

10/10 Excellent

Celia

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great Hostel!
I stayed in an individual room. It was clean, I had clean sheets and towels. The service was great. I got all the right informations. It is very well located being close to the beach, shops, restaurants...
Stayed 2 nights in Aug 2019

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Business traveller
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Cool old building. Very basic rooms but good kitchen, lounge, pool table etc
Stayed 1 night in Jul 2019
Response from AMIT on 17 Jul 2019
Thanks for your feedback.

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Travelled with group
Liked: Staff & service, amenities
Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities
Right in the center of town so great for getting around. Could definitely do with a re-vamp and good clean, stains on pillow cases and furniture. kitchen a bit gross, but can’t expect too much from a backpackers I guess. Ok for a quick stopover if your going to be out most of the day. Staff were friendly
Stayed 1 night in Jun 2019

10/10 Excellent

Paulina

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Limpio y grande
El hostel muy limpio, ordenado, amplio. La habitación cómoda con aire y buenos colchones. El desayuno lo básico básico pero es el típico desayuno de hoste neozelandés por lo que he visto. Esta muy bien ubicado.
Stayed 4 nights in Jun 2019

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Travelled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
You get what you paid for, good place to stay overnight , central of many restaurants and bars, close to the beach. Off street parking is right outside the hotel and free on weekends so very handy!
Stayed 1 night in May 2019
Response from Garry on 6 Jun 2019
Thank You very much for your valuable review.

4/10 Poor

Verified traveller

Business traveller
Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Amenities, property conditions & facilities
The place is run down and in dire need of some basic maintenance and a sparky to look over all the electrics. - I got locked in the toilet within minutes of arriving with a dodgy door catch - The heater in my room was controlled by a timer switch in another guest's room that kept getting turned off!!!! Put a proper switch with a flap on it so it can't get inadvertently swtiched off!!!!! - The replacement heater provided stopped working. - Then the wall heater on the timer gave up the ghost even when the timer was on - the thermostat knob on it was somewhat melted on arrival. There were large, visible indentations in the mattress from where the springs had gone -The mattresses, pillows and bed linen are so old and nasty they need throwing out. - One of the female showers didn't drain properly. - The breakfast cereal was all crumbs and inedible and there were no staff on in the morning to request better food. - The walls are so thin I could actually hear the person in the room next door breathing in their sleep like they were in the same room!! + The staff were as helpful as they could be in the circumstances - they were the only good thing about my stay next to me leaving! + The retro glazing window was a good addition This is a beautiful old but terribly tired and unloved building in a great location. With a little care and attention it could be absolutely fabulous. As it was it was one of the most disappointing and overpriced backpackers I have ever stayed in.
Stayed 2 nights in May 2019

8/10 Good

Steven

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Except for the stairs and the lack of parking for our rental car, the hotel was convenient an fairly comfortable and the staff was very helpful.
Stayed 3 nights in Apr 2019

8/10 Good

MrDavid

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
A good budget hotel great staff good location basic breakfast free
Stayed 3 nights in Mar 2019

2/10 Terrible

Patricia

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Do not stay here!
The in-house manager was helpful. The place is in a state of filth and disrepair. The property we were told had changed ownership 1 week previous to our stay and it is to be demolished in June and turned into a 4 star hotel. It is obvious they are not cleaning or fixing anything. This place should be avoided! It was the worst, WiFi was terrible!
Stayed 1 night in Mar 2019

6/10 Okay

John

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Single room very small with just a bed. Not even a reading lamp. Bathrooms were unisex (multiple stalls, but not complete privacy) on the wing of the hotel where I stayed.
Stayed 1 night in Feb 2019

2/10 Terrible

Verified traveller

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Some of the original features were kept which was great but simple things like no lightbulbs in fittings all over the hostel, made it very dark and uninviting, no information given at check in such as what time the building is locked and then the code needed to get in. Unlike stated on the website parking was not available even at a surcharge. It was simply trying to find in street parking. The continental breakfast was cereal and toast with tea and coffee. Wi-fi was non existent in the room, which wouldn’t have been a problem if stated. Finally the room was dirty and there were stains on the pillows and sheets. A little bit of tlc and maintenance would do the building a world of good
Stayed 1 night in Mar 2019

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Disliked: Cleanliness, amenities
The bathrooms were in terrible condition. There were hairs in the shower, the ceiling was full of stains from humidity and also the vent was covered fungus. There was still the masking tape at the top of the ceiling, partially coming loose, the dishcloths in the kitchen were dirty, the curtains in the bedrooms were partially ripped off the hooks. I have also taken photos of these things I was talking about.
Stayed 4 nights in Feb 2019

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Stayed 1 night in Feb 2019

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
I really enjoyed this hostel. It clean and quiet and attracted a broad range of travelers, both geographically and by age. The kitchen was huge compared to other hostels, so it was less crowded. I had my own room with bath that reminded me of period studios in San Francisco. The staff was very warm, friendly, helpful and went out of their way to make sure I enjoyed my stay.
Stayed 1 night in Jan 2019

8/10 Good

Kat

Liked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Easy access to everything, staff are very kind and hospitable. Enjoyed the Christmas dinner with strangers.
Stayed 1 night in Dec 2018

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Budget stay at good value-for-money
We took 3 ensuite rooms. Clean with basic amenities. Decent breakfast and right in the town (convenient yet not noisy at all). The stay can be improved with some spruce up and more space for toiletries, especially around the washbasin area.
Stayed 1 night in Nov 2018

4/10 Poor

Verified traveller

Stayed 1 night in Oct 2018

8/10 Good

Jo, UK

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
The Criterion Hostel is very spacious, with good facilities, and amenities on the doorstep. The decor is typical of Art Decor and that in itself made the stay worthwhile. I really enjoyed the stay here...superb!
Stayed 3 nights in Oct 2018

10/10 Excellent

Jacky

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Recommended
It is clean. The host is good. Service is good. Can be better if the 3 person room using a bunk. 1 queen bed and 1 king single bed is bit tight on space. More shelf space would be good to given the build's high ceiling.
Stayed 3 nights in Oct 2018

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Disliked: Property conditions & facilities
Central, cheap, but you get what you pay for. Shower was in dire need of attention. The bracket to hold the shower head was loose and wouldn't hold the head in place. The handle for the water flow fell off.
Stayed 1 night in Oct 2018

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Good stay
Great. Well priced. Practical and sufficiently private for a couple.
Stayed 1 night in Sep 2018

8/10 Good

Niels

Very central
It was very central and has old charm. However, it's misleading to show a picture of a different building on the hotels.com ad.
Stayed 1 night in Sep 2018

8/10 Good

Darren&Maree, Tauranga N.Z

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities
Homely Feeling
Fantastic old building with a warm homely feel to it. Middle of town yet quiet with a neat street view from which to people watch. A shame that the bathrooms were so audible to the bedrooms nearby however. Lovely to have breakfast available the next morning and no pressure to exit room.
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2018

10/10 Excellent

Jeanne

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 1 night in May 2020

6/10 Okay

Lena

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 3 nights in Mar 2020