Reviews of Dusky Lodge
67 Beach road, 7300 Kaikoura, New Zealand

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Reviewed: 29 July 2025 · Stayed in June 2025
Verified reviewCosy communal area. Bathrooms were good and the room was sufficient for a short stay.
Thank you for your feedback! We're really happy to hear you felt comfortable during your stay and that everything met your needs. It’s lovely knowing the space worked well for you. Safe travels, and we hope to welcome you back sometime! - Team Dusky
Thank you for your feedback! We're really happy to hear you felt comfortable during your stay and that everything met your needs. It’s lovely knowing the space worked well for you. Safe travels, and we hope to welcome you back sometime!… Show more
Reviewed: 28 July 2025 · Stayed in July 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 26 July 2025 · Stayed in July 2025
Verified reviewThe spa and sauna view absolutely lovely. Voice of different kitchens to use whilst staying fantastic oven door in one kitchen did not want to close and hot plates on kitchen island did not heat up fast enough or at all. Lovely polite staff.
Stove top on kitchen island need replacing and oven door does not close. To be able to ring up for booking with Dusky lodge would be nice instead of booking.com.
Thank you for your lovely review! We're so pleased to hear you had a relaxing stay with us and made the most of our facilities. The spa and sauna really are a game changer on these chilly winter nights! We're sorry to hear about the issues with the oven door and stovetop. This has been passed on to our maintenance team to address as soon as possible. We really appreciate you bringing it to our attention. Thank you also for your comment about booking options. While many of our bookings come through platforms like Booking.com, you're absolutely welcome to contact us directly by phone or email. We are always happy to help. Thanks again for staying with us, and we hope to welcome you back to Dusky Lodge again soon! - Team Dusky
Thank you for your lovely review! We're so pleased to hear you had a relaxing stay with us and made the most of our facilities. The spa and sauna really are a game changer on these chilly winter nights! We're sorry to hear about the… Show more
Reviewed: 10 July 2025 · Stayed in July 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 10 July 2025 · Stayed in July 2025
Verified reviewSauna was nice but spa pool not not very hot. Clean rooms . Need to shut door when you shower or fire alarm goes off 😩
Thank you for your review! We're pleased to hear you enjoyed the sauna and found the rooms clean and comfortable. We appreciate the note about the spa temperature and will follow up with our team to ensure it's at its best. We hope to welcome you back to Kaikōura in the future! - Team Dusky
Thank you for your review! We're pleased to hear you enjoyed the sauna and found the rooms clean and comfortable. We appreciate the note about the spa temperature and will follow up with our team to ensure it's at its best. We hope … Show more
Reviewed: 5 July 2025 · Stayed in June 2025
Verified reviewThe spa was great
Spa was a little cold on Saturday night but still really good
Thank you for your lovely review! We’re absolutely thrilled to hear you had a great stay and that you especially loved the spa! It’s a guest favourite and the perfect place to relax on these chilly winter nights. We appreciate the heads-up about the spa temperature and will be sure to check it. We'd love to welcome you back again soon! - Team Dusky
Thank you for your lovely review! We’re absolutely thrilled to hear you had a great stay and that you especially loved the spa! It’s a guest favourite and the perfect place to relax on these chilly winter nights. We appreciate the heads-up … Show more
Reviewed: 20 June 2025 · Stayed in June 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 16 June 2025 · Stayed in May 2025
Verified reviewIt was okay for a two night stay, close to the Main Street, a night n day and the whale watching activity. The bed was comf & the room was clean. There is a sauna & a pool (pool is summer only though)
There are no lockers in the room, limited power outlets, no bedside lamp, no curtains around the bed (didn't matter too much for me, because I had the room to myself), bathrooms/showers less than average, kitchen needs a re-do.
Thank you for your review! We’re really happy to hear you enjoyed the comfy bed, clean room, and our handy location—being so close to town and whale watching is definitely a plus. We really appreciate your honest feedback about the shared facilities. While some areas are a bit more lived-in, we’re always working behind the scenes to improve the space and make it more comfortable for our guests. It’s lovely to know you still had a good short stay with us, and we’d love to welcome you back next time you’re in Kaikōura. Safe travels! - Team Dusky
Thank you for your review! We’re really happy to hear you enjoyed the comfy bed, clean room, and our handy location—being so close to town and whale watching is definitely a plus. We really appreciate your honest feedback about the shared f… Show more
Reviewed: 12 June 2025 · Stayed in June 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 25 May 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewVery handy location- pop up a side footpath and you're there Friendly lady checked me in and showed me around and gave great advice re the hostel She was friendly nd kind with everyone in the hostel Fire going which kept us warm Absolutely beautiful spot with the mountains in the background, perfect location
Thank you for your lovely review! We're stoked you enjoyed our location and that the warmth of the fire—and our team—made you feel right at home. The mountain backdrop really is something special—Kaikōura sure knows how to put on a show. We hope to welcome you back soon! - Team Dusky
Thank you for your lovely review! We're stoked you enjoyed our location and that the warmth of the fire—and our team—made you feel right at home. The mountain backdrop really is something special—Kaikōura sure knows how to put on a show… Show more
Reviewed: 22 May 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewloved the hot tub and pool
facilities were a little dirty
Thanks for your feedback! We're stoked you enjoyed the location, our awesome team, and had a great time—plus the hot tub and pool are definitely guest favourites. We appreciate you mentioning the cleanliness of the facilities and have passed this on to our team to ensure improvements are made. We’d love to welcome you back to Kaikōura soon! - Team Dusky
Thanks for your feedback! We're stoked you enjoyed the location, our awesome team, and had a great time—plus the hot tub and pool are definitely guest favourites. We appreciate you mentioning the cleanliness of the facilities and have p… Show more
Reviewed: 20 May 2025 · Stayed in May 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 1 May 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 26 April 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewThank you for the lovely review! We’re so happy you had a great stay and can’t wait to welcome you back again soon! - Team Dusky
Reviewed: 26 April 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 24 April 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 21 April 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 21 April 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 20 April 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewView
Thank you for your kind review! We’re so glad you chose to stay in Kaikōura and that you enjoyed the beautiful scenery—it's one of the things that makes this place so special. Safe travels, and we’d love to welcome you back to our hostel again soon. - Team Dusky
Thank you for your kind review! We’re so glad you chose to stay in Kaikōura and that you enjoyed the beautiful scenery—it's one of the things that makes this place so special. Safe travels, and we’d love to welcome you back to our hoste… Show more
Reviewed: 19 April 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 18 April 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewroom was spotless and comfy
Thank you for your lovely feedback! We're so pleased to hear you had a great night’s stay and that the room met your expectations for cleanliness and comfort. Our team works hard to keep everything to a high standard, so it’s lovely to know it made a difference to your experience. Thanks for choosing to stay with us – we’d love to welcome you back to Kaikōura again soon! - Team Dusky
Thank you for your lovely feedback! We're so pleased to hear you had a great night’s stay and that the room met your expectations for cleanliness and comfort. Our team works hard to keep everything to a high standard, so it’s lovely to … Show more
Reviewed: 17 April 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 17 April 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewThank you for your lovely review! We're glad to hear you enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere and found your stay to be good value. We hope to welcome you back to Kaikōura in the future. - Team Dusky
Reviewed: 13 April 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewVery friendly and kind staff! The cleaness of the bathroom was decent.
The plugs were not close to the bed, the internet when the accommodation was crowded it did not work, the bedsheets were smelling weird.
Thank you for your feedback! We're thrilled to hear you found our staff friendly and kind – we truly love making our guests feel welcome. We really appreciate you letting us know about the areas that could use improvement. We're sorry to hear the Wi-Fi and plug placement weren't ideal, and that your bedsheets didn’t meet expectations – that’s definitely not the experience we aim to provide. We’ll follow up with our team to make sure everything’s fresh and functioning better moving forward. Thanks again for staying with us in Kaikōura – we’d love to welcome you back in the future for an even more comfortable stay! - Team Dusky
Thank you for your feedback! We're thrilled to hear you found our staff friendly and kind – we truly love making our guests feel welcome. We really appreciate you letting us know about the areas that could use improvement. We're sor… Show more
Reviewed: 13 April 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewPrior to coming Tried multiple times to talk to staff to discuss our booking for family of 5. Unfortunately could not get anyone to answer phone. Finally when we did they were very unhelpful and unwilling. When we arrived after hours (as informed ) poorly lit and hard to find our way around. Rubbish still under beds from last guests. Not clean at all … seriously unimpressed would not recommend.
Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback. We’re genuinely sorry to hear that your experience didn’t meet expectations. We understand how frustrating it must have been not to reach us initially, and we truly appreciate your persistence in getting through. This feedback will be relayed to the team to help improve our communication moving forward. Regarding your request to place a mattress on the floor, we must adhere to strict fire safety regulations and room capacity limits, which unfortunately prevent us from accommodating this. We fully understand that travelling as a family can be challenging, and we always strive to assist families within the limits of our health and safety obligations. However, we were fully booked during your stay, so we were unable to offer an additional room. We encourage all guests to speak with our reception team if they have any concerns during their stay, as we are always happy to assist and ensure a comfortable experience. During your stay, we were not made aware of any issues, but we would have done our best to help had we been informed. We also sincerely apologise for the cleanliness issues and the difficulty you had navigating the property. This is not the standard we aim to provide, and we have already followed up with our housekeeping team to address these concerns. Thank you again for your valuable feedback. We wish you all the best with your future travels. - Team Dusky
Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback. We’re genuinely sorry to hear that your experience didn’t meet expectations. We understand how frustrating it must have been not to reach us initially, and we truly appreciate your persi… Show more