Rotoroa Island Wildlife Sanctuary

We have visited Rotoroa Island before and absolutely love it, it's a special place and our group of 18 was excited to return for another long weekend together. Unfortunately, our booking was cancelled just two weeks before our arrival date due to an ongoing water supply issue on the island. While I understand that infrastructure problems happen, a cancellation of this magnitude, affecting 4 families who had been planning and preparing for months deserves more than a short notice window. From what I've heard, this water issue has been ongoing for some time, which raises questions about why communication to affected guests wasn't more proactive. All long weekends for the next 12 months are already booked, so rebooking our group simply isn't an option. We've lost what would have been a really special trip with no real path to reschedule. At the time of writing this, my refund still hasn't been processed. I also just received an automated email thanking me for my stay, which didn't happen. That prompted this review. Rotoroa is a beautiful place and I don't doubt the Trust is working to fix things. But clearer communication, more notice where possible, and timely refunds would go a long way toward retaining the goodwill of guests like us.

Such an idyllic place to spend a weekend. Just a short boat ride from Auckland but it feels like you are thousands of miles away. A great place to relax and experience the beauty of New Zealand.