Astray Motel & Backpackers

8/10

Excellent

24 Apr 2026

Heather

Very handy to eat street, lovely people

10/10

Exceptional

22 Mar 2026

Tracy

My parking space was small for the vehicle I rented, and neighboring parker was over the line on my side, but manager adapted so I could park right away.

Self

10/10

Exceptional

15 Mar 2026

Joseph

The Astray Motel is perfectly situated for a long, budget-friendly stay in Rotorua. Blocks from downtown and well appointed pair well with a very friendly staff to make for a memorable stay.

4/10

Poor

01 Mar 2026

Mark

The only window was facing the balcony in the bedroom, no security screen or fly screen. Room was extremely hot, fans did nothing. Did not want to open window for safety reasons.

10/10

Exceptional

25 Feb 2026

Andreas

Clean room

Self

10/10

Exceptional

22 Feb 2026

Jami

The staff was very personal and friendly. Had the time of our life . Thank you for the great stay

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

24 Jan 2026

Elijah

Owner is very kind. Overall a very pleasant stay, probably the friendliest owner I've met.

4/10

Poor

22 Jan 2026

Farnaz

Too old and not good quality

8/10

Excellent

15 Jan 2026

Satya

Quietness of the place

Leisure Family

6/10

Pleasant

09 Jan 2026

Rupesh

Good Location, but motel interior and exterior conditions are almost rundown and don’t match with the online booking images, a full professional renovation is required.

10/10

Exceptional

27 Dec 2025

Xiansheng

The lady at the front desk is very nice and helpful. Rooms are clean. No air conditioner, there is a fan in the room instead. Location is great.

Leisure Family

2/10

Poor

25 Dec 2025

dd

I could tolerate the small room and poor cleanliness, but the fact that there wasn’t even a hair dryer was unbelievable. Being unable to dry my hair after a shower was truly frustrating and made me feel helpless.

Leisure Partner

8/10

Excellent

30 Nov 2025

Thomas

Not enough packing.

Leisure Partner

8/10

Excellent

01 Oct 2025

Krystal

Was smaller than expected, T.V wasnt too good. Power points were in a weird place for bedside tables. However staff were friendly and welcoming and everything you need is at your fingertips ie.. shops etc. We really didenjoy our stay. Thankyou

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

28 Aug 2025

Martis

Service was really good

10/10

Exceptional

24 Aug 2025

Miriama

Definately recommend their hospitality and amazing customer service

Business_and_leisure Friends

8/10

Excellent

05 Jul 2025

Chloe

Astray Rotorua

My check in was smooth, staff friendly. I eventually managed to park in thier car park, very limited with spaces, other guests crossing into 2 spaces didnt help.
Connecting to the wifi was easy once you choose the right hub, this could have been better explained.
The room had everything i needed but was shabby, everything in the room needed updating. The taps and shower were both rusty, the entire floor area wasnt in the best condition along with the tiles on the bathroom floor. I stayed comfortably for 2 nights and managed to do all that I needed. A bedside lamp or small wall light would help make the room less bright for if you don't want the full ceiling lights on

Self

8/10

Excellent

17 Nov 2024

Sandra

Although the motel has aged, the room was very clean and tidy. The manager was very helpful and courteous. This accommodation would suit someone on a short stay and a budget.

Leisure

8/10

Excellent

09 Oct 2024

murray

was tidy and clean and right in the middle of town.

Leisure Family

6/10

Pleasant

31 May 2024

Dewi

Staff was kind and helpful. Fine for the price.

Business Self

4/10

Poor

20 Mar 2024

Craig

i got major allergies from dust in the room and couldn't get the tv to connect to the internet

Self

6/10

Pleasant

26 Sep 2023

Taya

Not the cleanest

Leisure Self

10/10

Exceptional

20 Jul 2023

Gino

Highly recommended for those travelling in short stay.

Leisure Friends

8/10

Excellent

24 Jun 2023

Hala

Welcoming and friendly staff

Leisure Partner

2/10

Poor

22 Jun 2021

Verified traveler

The entire place is absolutely disgusting. The communal kitchen was unusable, the toilet and showers were unclean and unusable.

Leisure Partner

6/10

Pleasant

19 May 2021

Verified traveler

There were holes in the walls. Other than this, the room was tidy, clean and the bathroom facilities were fine. I did not use the shared kitchen space during my stay so I have nothing to say about that

Leisure Partner

2/10

Poor

21 Feb 2021

Helen

There were facilities to prepare food but no where to eat your food. Backpackers appear to have been replaced with social housing occupants. Have stayed here a number of years and was very disappointed to see the property has not been maintained over the past year.

Self

2/10

Poor

11 Jul 2020

Bernice

Very poor

If you want to sleep go elsewhere. Very noisy, door slamming yelling all hours of night. Poor security. Only thing positive was bed was comfortable

Self

2/10

Poor

18 Mar 2020

Verified traveler

The property is a ghetto. I was nervous even sleeping in the bed. The entire place is absolutely filthy, with little security to your room. Never again will I stay here. I wouldn't even recommend it to my enemies.

Leisure Self

2/10

Poor

12 Mar 2020

Gustav

Dirty, poorly maintained

Room was absolutely tiny first of all. Sheets were stained, towels had holes in them. The kitchen was very disappointing, some equipment didn't work at all, some was just extremely worn down. The street outside had some homeless people shouting all evening, and the parking lot had some non-guests occupy spaces.
Our key couldn't open the kitchen, so we had to ask the receptionist to open it for us, so we were pretty disappointed when the reception didnt open until 35 minutes after it was supposed to in the morning: it meant that we were locked out of the kitchen with no way of getting to our breakfast foods, which were laying in thr fridge in there.

Partner

6/10

Pleasant

22 Feb 2020

Kohappy

Bathroom and bedsheets were clean, but the carpet has seen better days. The location is close to the central business area, but for some reason there are a lot of loud homeless people across the street. You don’t really seem to see this in the rest of the area, just this particular block. Front desk personnel was very nice and easy late check-in and checkout.

Leisure Self

8/10

Excellent

12 Feb 2020

Verified traveler

Room was clean, fresh and tidy with a good bed and decent shower. Reception was friendly and straight forward. Downsides were that the WiFi barely worked in the room so we just used our mobile data. The shared kitchen was ok but did not have any clean towels to wash our items. The parking spaces were full so we had to park on the road. But overall for the price it was good value

Leisure Partner

2/10

Poor

10 Feb 2020

Verified traveler

We arrived at 8.30pm and despite there being a sign on the door saying reception was open until 9pm the office was locked up, lights out. Luckily there was an emergency number which we rang and the woman who answered directed us to a locked metal box on the ground outside. She gave us the combination and we were able to take out the key to our room. The exterior of the building was quite dilapidated as was the interior of our room. Patched holes in the wall, windows that only opened a few inches 'for security reasons' so the sign said. This was advertised as a 2 bedroom family unit with air conditioning. It was a hot night so we went to turn it on to find it didn't work. We called the woman again and she said that there was a notice on their website to that effect and that they had placed fans in the 'unit'. As it turned out only 2 of the 3 fans were working. We turned on the oven to preheat it to cook dinner and the room filled with acrid smoke and set off the fire alarm. As we couldn't open the windows any further we had to open the door and use one of the fans to blow the smoke out. Suitcases had to be stowed under the beds in the 'bedrooms' as there was no room for them anywhere else. The shower was mouldy and the towels were threadbare. Across the road homeless people were sleeping on the street so it wasn't the best part of town to begin with. Although we had booked and paid for two nights we packed up and moved to another motel the next morning. More like Hotel Ashtray

Leisure Family

8/10

Excellent

31 Jan 2020

Bernice

Great place for value

Best location clean comfortable bed
Great place for value

Self

8/10

Excellent

07 Jan 2020

Verified traveler

Property well located in downtown Rotorua and easy walk to Eat Streat and other dining options. Good parking that feels pretty secure. Rooms very basic and a little run down. If you're on a budget it's a fine place to sleep for a few nights, just have the right expectations before you arrive, photos are from a while ago I suspect.

Leisure Self

8/10

Excellent

04 Jan 2020

Verified traveler

It could do with an update but the staff were lovely. Some of my food in the shared fridge did go missing which was slightly annoying as I just bought them

Self

6/10

Pleasant

07 Dec 2019

SH

Bed is clean, towel is provided. Facilities are clean. Receptionist is friendly and helpful.

Leisure Friends

6/10

Pleasant

08 Oct 2019

Tak

Barebone backpacker single room. No place to unpack other than the bed. No chair, no table in room. good for the minimalist.

Self

4/10

Poor

29 Aug 2019

Verified traveler

to noisy kids playing in hallway doors slamming. no remote. glasses cups missing

6/10

Pleasant

18 Jul 2019

Verified traveler

It was clean and basic. The staff was helpful. It was a bit hard to find on a fair night.

Leisure Family_with_children

6/10

Pleasant

28 Jun 2019

Anonymous

Location is good, very close to town and receptionist was very helpful and accommodating. But the room was very small and basic. Tv remote was not working. No dishwashing liquid, blinds was not closing properly so people from outside can see you coz the bed is directly by the window. Needs fixing and updating.

Business Partner

8/10

Excellent

29 May 2019

Muriel

Very convenient

A good place to stay in Rotorua, because it is well situated. Friendly welcome and quite big room. I should have liked a chair in the room, but it's a detail. My stay at Astray Motel was pleasant.

6/10

Pleasant

07 Apr 2019

Verified traveler

Very small rooms. TV's that we couldn't make happen, but lovely people.

Leisure Friends

10/10

Exceptional

06 Apr 2019

Verified traveler

Good location

Convenient and next to i Site. Friendly staff.

Friends

6/10

Pleasant

02 Apr 2019

Verified traveler

The staff service very good.
But the hotel too old, and i can hear next rooms talking.

Business Self

4/10

Poor

31 Mar 2019

Verified traveler

Location +, uncomfortable beds. Charged extra

Had motel facilities, mircowave, fridge and kettle in the room, although was a bit of a tight squeeze in the cupboard it was in. Could of done with a table in the room to help. Was clean. Twin room beds quite uncomfortable as mattress bigger than the plank of wood that was below it. Should say limited free parking, as we had to park on the street one night. Also be careful when paying as charged 2.5% for credit card even though I paid with a debit card, when I questioned this the lady was unapologetic and sarcastically smiling like she didn't understand, she did. No refund given for this. Didn't use kitchen as needed a good clean.

Partner

6/10

Pleasant

28 Mar 2019

Peggy

Small room

Service was good but room too small

Friends

10/10

Exceptional

17 Mar 2019

Robert

Excellent experience

Excellent room, very comfortable and awarm friendly welcome.
Location is great within easy walking distance for cafes, bars and the beach.

Family

8/10

Excellent

27 Feb 2019

Verified traveler

The room was clean the bed was comfy the staff outstanding ... The room was tiny, couldn’t swing a cat in there

Leisure Partner

6/10

Pleasant

17 Feb 2019

Verified traveler

The studio apartment was very very small for two people and only a very small window it was like being in a cell . It was great to have an ensuite and a fan .

Business Friends

8/10

Excellent

02 Feb 2019

Verified traveler

Kitchen was clean and the towel service was daily allowed storage of luggage after checkout

4/10

Poor

16 Jan 2019

Verified traveler

Location good out of the CBD but requires a make over and good coat of paint. Family room was cramped, 1 room had no window so extremely hot. Had to request a standing fan.

8/10

Excellent

13 Jan 2019

Gil

Tiny room with tiny window, would’ve had more space in a dorm. Walls and door were thin so could hear other people easily as if they were in the same room.

8/10

Excellent

05 Jan 2019

Carl

Great staff who were kind and helpful. Very central location, a short walk to the i-site, the \"night\" market and eat street, but apparently New Zealand now has beggars. The door lock looked like it wouldn't stop a baddie if they so much as leaned on the door. The noisy fridge heated up the room, but a fan was provided if you felt like keeping the windows shut.

2/10

Poor

22 Dec 2018

Verified traveler

The worst communication experience in the NZ what I have met.

6/10

Pleasant

19 Dec 2018

Verified traveler

Would not go again

We had a room with a bunk bed and shared bathroom on the upper floor. The room itself was tiny and the matress really uncomfortable, the bed just a wooden board. There were two toilet cabins and two shower cabins to share between five rooms, the sink and mirrors were in the hallway. The shower looked dirty and we tried to not use it too much. While in the room with the door closed, we could hear other people pee. The kitchen is very basic, only enough space for one person/couple to cook, dirty pans and plates.
The girl at the reception was helpful and provided us with information about activities, but didn't understand that much English.

Friends

10/10

Exceptional

18 Dec 2018

Verified traveler

Good hotel with facilites and very well ubication,
Easy and good acomodación and services

6/10

Pleasant

10 Dec 2018

Rebecca

Good location, but know what you are getting - for the price, the room makes a lot of sense. The single room had a twin bed, and very little space for movement. The same went for the shower - it was nearly impossible to open the door to the shower stall and navigate yourself into the shower without holding your breath. I'm fairly small, and I couldn't imagine getting into the shower if I was a bit bigger. Overall, it was a cheap place and was a place to sleep at night.

2/10

Poor

05 Dec 2018

Priscilla

Shady Motel and associates

I would not recommend this motel at all. They are so shady. We booked for 4 rooms and they didn't have enough rooms. We had to split our group to a different hotel. We only took 2 rooms and didn't take the 3rd one. Two of their associates said they won't charge us for the other two rooms and will contact hotels.com/Expedia directly and of course they didn't. I called myself to check with hotels.com to follow up. Hotels.com associate called the hotel and found out that the hotel manager would only refund 1 room and would still charge 3 rooms even though we only use 2 rooms. They can't just lie and said they would only charge for 2 rooms. We also asked for a receipt and they gave us 2 receipts for the 2 rooms we used. I didn't get the third receipt and now they said they would still charge us. So shady. Be careful.

Family

6/10

Pleasant

28 Nov 2018

T

You get what you pay for. Looks like the place has upgraded its fire alarm but reminance of the old system remains. In my room, a hole where the old siren was situated was evident and it had wires hanging out. Very likely not connected to anything but you never know. Looked a bit unsightly.

6/10

Pleasant

15 Nov 2018

Elizabeth

Great location and clean rooms but poor WiFi in the room and there were thin walls between the rooms.

Family

2/10

Poor

15 Nov 2018

Verified traveler

The motel is well located in Rotorua and the staff are polite; and motel is general clean. However, the walls are paper thin - you hear everything! There was also graffiti in my room on the bed frame - some dates back over 8 years ago! Also there is a free wi fi limit over which you have to pay for more.

4/10

Poor

22 Oct 2018

nick

the place was a little ghetto. lost of unsavory characters having around the motel being loud

8/10

Excellent

10 Sep 2018

Verified traveler

Beyond the price

The single room without a bath room was where I stayed for 3 notes and the room was quite small but clean and they do room make and change your bath towel everyday.

4/10

Poor

25 Aug 2018

Bernice

Steam clean your bedding

Everything was great until last morning (of 2) woke up covered in bites.

8/10

Excellent

10 Aug 2018

Cathryn

R n R in Rotavegas

Fantastic location central to the city. Warm and friendly host. Everything we needed catered.

Friends

8/10

Excellent

09 Jul 2018

Verified traveler

\"OK\" Cheap stay at Rotorua

Price of double room at Astray is similar as Rock Solid Backpackers, but the room condition of the latter is much better.Location is still convenient as it is located at the main streets of Rotorua.Room is small and the hygenic condition seems not that ideal, but what can you expect from this price?

6/10

Pleasant

17 Jun 2018

van

The location was good.

The shower door would not close and leak water all over the floor.

4/10

Poor

13 Jun 2018

Armina

Too tinny

The room was too small,the images are deceiving from the website.

8/10

Excellent

22 May 2018

Verified traveler

Room was small with the bed taking most of the space. Showers were even smaller. But price was great and location was near I-Site office, \"Eat Street\", and Rotorua Town. Would book here again.

6/10

Pleasant

18 May 2018

No

Great Facility’s, not so great guests

Couldn’t have been happier with the room and staff, sucked that I didn’t get any sleep as the girl in the next room had a constant stream of guys from 11pm until 6am in and out of her room.

6/10

Pleasant

25 Apr 2018

Verified traveler

Overnight stay in Rotorua

The room was great, it had everything we needed. The staff were friendly and helpful. The location was great, central to the city. The beds were uncomfortable. The mattresses are foam, not inner-sprung mattresses. We were uncomfortable and didn't sleep well.

Family

10/10

Exceptional

23 Apr 2018

ZHi

Great service

The manager was Lovely and help me out when I lock myself out. Thank you :)

6/10

Pleasant

19 Apr 2018

Verified traveler

Good value, good location!

Had a great stay. Staff was very friendly and helpful. No extra, just what you need, and very good price. Perfect for a quick stay in Rotorua.

8/10

Excellent

14 Apr 2018

Karen

good place for a good nights sleep

perfect place if you need a bed to sleep in and not much more

6/10

Pleasant

04 Apr 2018

Verified traveler

Alright place for short stay

Room was clean enough. But bed was small and cramed into a corner and the shower wasnt very good. Was alright for a very short stay but would not stay for a long period of time.

4/10

Poor

25 Mar 2018

Bat MAn

never had a smaller accomodation

We are a family of four. Two adults and two children. This was by far the smallest apartment I have ever seen in my life. We barely had any room to move around.

10/10

Exceptional

28 Feb 2018

Naïma

Loved it!

I loved staying there. The location is unbeatable. The lady at the reception was very nice and everything was very clean! I didn't know that you would get a free towel and that they cleaned your room everyday, which made my stay even better. The only thing which I wasn't 100% happy with was the size of my single room and the shower room. It's just about big enough but you can hardly move around in there.

8/10

Excellent

28 Jan 2018

mia

Very good location, close to the isite.

The rooms are very tight. Theres barely sny room to walk in them so it makes it harder to walk with ohr luggages all around.

8/10

Excellent

03 Dec 2017

Erika

Very Good Value on a Budget

Central location within easy walking distance of Rotorua's city attractions and information center, yet away from main traffic route. Very friendly and helpful reception. I had small twin room with ensuite; perfect for one bur personally would have found it too \"close\" for two. Tea/coffee making, microwave and fridge in room. All very clean. Would definitely book again if travelling solo to Rotorua.

8/10

Excellent

29 Nov 2017

Verified traveler

2 days in Astray

Nil

Family

8/10

Excellent

15 Nov 2017

zhihui

The place is really small. But with the price and

Partner

6/10

Pleasant

08 Nov 2017

Verified traveler

Very small room but good location and easy access. Good value

8/10

Excellent

24 Oct 2017

Jamie

The motel was close to everything that you need. If you want a park inside make sure your there at least by 4pm or you will have to park in the street parking, which is free from 5pm til 10am.

8/10

Excellent

08 Oct 2017

Gordon

Great Central location

Great accommodation in a beautiful city. A great Base to do so many activities. Room was clean , compact and with plenty of utilities to make for a comfortable stay.

8/10

Excellent

02 Oct 2017

Verified traveler

nice tidy and clean close to city,nice for small family

10/10

Exceptional

01 Oct 2017

Zara

Central and sufficient

We had a single room with our own bathroom. Super central location, close to everything. Parking was very convenient although limited spaces and they filled up by about 9pm. Room was small but comfortable, bathroom was a decent size. Equiped with a tiny kitchenette and utensils which were very handy. Overall a really enjoyable stay at a great price. Would stay again.

10/10

Exceptional

09 Aug 2017

Simon

Gets better all the time!

I have stayed at Astray once a year for about ten years. Nice to see Smart Tv's in the rooms now. New owners since my last visit. I grabbed myself a budget room, although small, was very clean and warm.

6/10

Pleasant

30 Jul 2017

Verified traveler

Ok for the price.

Place is good enough for a short stay. Location vice convenient.

10/10

Exceptional

19 May 2017

Verified traveler

very close to everything

good price, was cleaned every day. staff was always helpful. cheap washing and drying as well. Walking distance to the center, like eat street, spa, lake,...

8/10

Excellent

16 May 2017

Nishant

Nice Place But Rooms Very Compact

The Location was fine as it is in the middle of the city the Local Market of Wednesday Or Thursday gave us a good experience of the Street food of that area but the room size were very small and every thing was compact and the Owner of the Place was very Cooperative

Family

8/10

Excellent

14 May 2017

ck

resonable for the price

we got the double room shared bathroom. room was a.little small but clean. showers and toilets were keep clean and the owners were very nice. free fast wifi also.
we went in late May so there were not many staying there.

8/10

Excellent

13 May 2017

Verified traveler

Nice big apartment. Clean. Helpful staff memebers.

8/10

Excellent

12 May 2017

ck

happily stay again

was fine for what we paid. clean and tidy, helpful and friendly service. room.was tiny but it is on of the cheapest in town.

8/10

Excellent

09 May 2017

Verified traveler

Compact but everything worked. Good if spending the majority of your time outdoors. Reasonably quiet for near centre of town.

10/10

Exceptional

24 Apr 2017

Catherine

Helpful friendly staff ,clean, tidy, and close to city centre, off street parking
what more could you ask for

Family

10/10

Exceptional

21 Apr 2017

Verified traveler

Nice hotel , close to shops and main road

Friendly staffs and 5* room and service ,, recommended

8/10

Excellent

19 Apr 2017

Tracy

Good stay

Great one night stay just that the room can be abit small for my liking but other than that I would recommend this place.

8/10

Excellent

19 Apr 2017

Sharon

Nice place

We booked this not knowing where it is and we were really pleased it was situated in the middle of the city. Once we checked in and the staff offered us discounts for activities around Rotorua we set off to walk around the city. It was walking distance to eateries and to Rotorua lake. It was a comfortable night a little bit noisy. Overall a great place and would highly recommend.

10/10

Exceptional

16 Apr 2017

Michael

Very nice place to stay

Great stay, clean room and communal areas, very welcoming staff

Partner