Fable Auckland, MGallery 5 stars

Some of my work colleagues who have stayed at the Fable in Auckland have had differing experiences upon check in and during their stay but Whisley and the team have always been extremely responsive when I’ve asked for issues to be rectified and I am hopeful that this situation remains.

The staff are very friendly and helpful. The room is alright. Some noises as Queen Street is the main shopping place. Getting around to places- shopping , food and Viaduct or weta caves are very near. Very convenient place. Hot tub - so so as it is only hot tub. Breakfast gets boring as my biz trip is 7 days . Wish they have new things for people like me

What a terrible experience! I have stayed at the Fable in Dunedin, which was impeccable. Fable in Auckland is definitely not. I am travelling for business and the booking was made by my company, including all charges. Despite this, the check in staff insisted I pay a $300 “bond” before I could check in. I travel frequently and have never been asked to do this. I felt like I was being treated like a scumbag or criminal. It is certainly a hostile way to treat a guest on their arrival. The check in staff were adamant - to the point of rudeness - that I had to pay them this deposit and would not discuss or explain it to me. So we were off to a bad start. They gave me my room key. I asked if my room was near a lift (notoriously noisy in hotels) and was told it wasn’t - but it was the nearest room to the lift. Why fib to your guest? I couldn’t get the lift to work with my key card and I couldn’t attract the attention of the concierge so I trudged up the stairs to the fifth floor. After a long day of travelling and working and a lot of stress, I was pretty fed up and burst into tears before I even set foot in my room. A pretty awful way for a guest to feel on arrival. My “superior Queen” room is small. One of the standard lamps doesn’t work. It flickered for a while before conking out completely. There is no point trying to let a staff member know. I’m not looking forward to the rest of my 4 day stay.

The staff are doing their best, but something is clearly not working behind the scenes at Fable. Three main problems; 1. Housekeeping are clearly overworked and underresourced. My room wasn't ready to check in until nearly 6pm. The corridor from the lift to my room looked like the scene of a toddler's birthday party - it was coverd in crumbs. I know how hard housekeeping staff work, this screams of not enough people doing the work. Please help them out. 2. My room smelled so bad I nearly checked out. To start with it smelled of air freshener, then when that worse off it smelled of damp. I checked two other rooms, they were the same. There is something very wrong with this building that the smell of damp could persist over three days. I opened the windows when I could, but every time I returned to my room I almost felt sick with the smell. This cannot be healthy. 3. There are not enough reception staff. On checkout I eventually had to abandon my room card to the concierge and walk out. You have my credit card so I'm sure you'll charge me for everything. One person on reception and a long queue of people waiting is just not ok. The fit out is lovely, the food is great, and I was far enough away from the nightclub not to hear it. But the management of this hotel are letting their staff and guests down by not getting the basics right. I won't stay again.

The Fable is so beautifully restored and has so much promise but unfortunately that’s where it ends. I wish I’d read the reviews before we booked but like many other travellers experienced , the noise from the nightclub below is just unbearable and until 4am is pretty unacceptable right next to a hotel. The service is also far below average and the facilities such as the hot tub and sauna that need to be pre-booked are underwhelming. Spa has so many broken tiles, some of which are just all lying broken at the bottom. On the plus side, the room service meals were amazing. But if you are after a peaceful stay and good night sleep, sadly this isn’t the place for you.