Having flown 12 hours from Hong Kong to Sydney in business class with Cathay Pacific, we arrived at Sydney airport for an unavoidable 8 hour layover before flying to Christchurch. Unfortunately our flight was delayed by about 90 minutes and we didn’t arrive in Christchurch until about 11:50pm.
Our hotel for the stay in Christchurch was the Novotel Christchurch Cathedral Square. Having already stayed in the Novotel Century Hong Kong we knew Novotel had a good reputation. We eventually got a taxi from the airport and managed to get checked in about 12:40pm.
The Room
We had a very quick checkin and got a nice room on 10th floor of the hotel with a nice view of the city suburbs. The room was very nice with a comfortable bed and a nice bathroom (however the bathroom was a little strange in that the washhand basin was outside the toilet and it doubles up as a sink for tea and coffee preparation. I would prefer that such a sink be located in the bathroom).
The sleep quality is very good and Novotel must invest in quality beds as our Hong Kong experience was also very good. The rooms are quiet and also have good entertainment options with cable tv and large flat screen TVs.
Location & Sightseeing
The hotel is very central in the city and is very near to a lovely shopping mall which houses the ticket centre for the tourist tram. The tram itself is very much worth going on.
The city was very badly damaged in the earthquakes which hit the city and many areas are still blocked off with much of the citys buildings having been demolished or in repair. You might ask, why visit? – In one answer “Because it we met THE nicest people in Christchurch and it has a wonderful atmosphere amongst the rebuilding”. The people of Christchurch were warm, chatty and welcoming. We went to one convenience store near the bus station and there was a girl serving – we ended up chatting there fore 45 minutes. Next evening we met people very near this location and chatted to them for nearly 30 minutes.
Christchurch is just a wonderful location and I look forward to revisiting again in the future.
I am going to have a follow up post to this which will focus on ‘Things to do in Christchurch, New Zealand‘.
Novotel Christchurch Cathedral Square – Conclusion
Overall a lovely the Novotel Christchurch Cathedral Square is a very nice hotel.
Plus points : Great Staff, Lovely Room, Laundry on-site is very good and great value
Negative Points : No Free WiFi – I had to sign up to the Novotel loyalty club just to get a very limited free WiFi access. (I try to restrict my booking of these types of hotels as I do like free WiFi)
Recommended : Yes
Hotel Location :
Novotel Christchurch Cathedral Square , 52 Cathedral Square, Central City, Christchurch 8140, New Zealand