Review: Eichardt’s Private Hotel

What we loved: This small boutique hotel located in a prime location in Queenstown embodies historical charm and elegant luxury, featuring spacious suites as its standard accommodation. A Parlour Room with complimentary liquors and a nightly happy hour are also a couple of standout features.

What we didn’t love: While breakfast is included with the hotel stay, the options were surprisingly modest considering the price of the accommodation and the upscale status of the property.

How to book on points: This hotel is a Small Luxury Hotels of the World (SLH) property that participates in the Hilton Honors program. Standard award redemptions start at 130,000 Hilton Honors points per night.

Eichardt’s Private Hotel – About the Property

Eichardt’s Private Hotel has a notable place in Queenstown, New Zealand’s history. Originally built as a woolshed in the early 1860s, it was one of the town’s first structures.

During the gold rush, it was converted into a hotel for miners and opportunists. In 1867, as the gold rush began to wane, Albert Eichardt acquired the property and redirected its focus toward tourism, ultimately elevating it to one of the world’s finest hotels.

The property itself is small, consisting of only seven luxury suites, a penthouse suite (stayed in by the likes of celebrities such as Matt Damon), four lake-side apartments, and a three-bedroom private residence.

The property participates in Small Luxury Hotels withIN, a preferred partner program that you can access through our in-house travel agency, Prince Collection.

By booking through us, you’ll pay exactly what you’d otherwise pay (and sometimes even less), plus you’ll get access to a handful of exclusive benefits, such as daily breakfast for two guests, a room upgrade (subject to availability at check-in), early check-in and late check-out (subject to availability), and a $100 (USD) food and beverage credit.

Since Small Luxury Hotels joined forces with Hilton earlier this year, the property has become a highly sought-after redemption option for Hilton Honors members, so be sure to book early to avoid disappointment.

Eichardt’s Private Hotel is a 20-minute drive from Queenstown International Airport. It is situated in the heart of Queenstown, right on Lake Wakatipu, surrounded by numerous shopping and dining options.

If you aren’t planning on renting a car for your visit, Uber is available to help you get around.

Local attractions such as Skyline Queenstown, where you can ride a gondola and race down a luge track, and Kiwi Park, home to the elusive kiwi bird, are just a 10-minute walk away.

Additionally, numerous tours depart from Queenstown, including trips to Milford Sound, glacier excursions, and ski and jet boat tours.

If you have a car, you can take day-trips to the nearby towns of Glenorchy, Arrowtown, Cardona, and Wanaka, all of which offer a variety of hiking trails.

I visited the hotel with my husband who was attending a conference, and although I had a sufficient balance of points to book our stay as a redemption, we opted to buy points instead as my husband could write off the purchase as a work expense.

Since Hilton Honors was running a promotion for a 100% bonus on points purchases at the time, the cost for the 260,000 Hilton Honors points needed to cover our two-night stay came to $1,300 (USD).

The nightly cash rate of a Heritage Suite was listed at $2,450 (NZD), or $1,544 (USD), for a total of $3,088 (USD) for our two nights, which means that we were saving $1,788 (USD) just by purchasing points to use for our stay!

If you already have a healthy stash of Hilton points, you’ll be getting outsized value for your points by redeeming them at this property. At $1,544 (USD) per night for 130,000 Hilton Honors points, you’d get 1.2 cents (USD) per point, which is more than double of our current valuation!

We did use our Hilton Honors American Express Business Credit Card for any incidental charges hoping to trigger the $60 (USD) quarterly credit on the card; however, despite having booked directly through Hilton.com, the charges did not post as a Hilton charge.

Eichardt’s Private Hotel – The Check-In Experience

As we entered Queenstown and drove down Rees Street, we saw the hotel at the end of the block, appearing as a grand, bright-white Victorian building.

We pulled up to the hotel entrance and as soon as I entered the building, a staff member quickly approached to help us with our luggage.

A glass door entrance opens up into a foyer where the check-in desk, and I literally mean desk, was.

The restaurant and bar were on either side of the foyer, and right in the middle was a large carpeted staircase that led up to the accommodations. It truly felt like I was walking into a grand, Victorian manor bed and breakfast rather than a hotel.

During our stay, the hotel staff were great. They were professional, helpful, and sociable.

At check-in, they thanked us for being Hilton Honors members, gave us an overview of the hotel amenities, and promptly helped us to our room. They offered to give us a tour of the facilities and soon after, valeted our car for us (complimentary).

The hotel has its own set of amenities that it offers all guests, and some of these were better than the elite benefits offered through the Hilton Honors program.

For example, my Hilton Honors Diamond status entitles me to a complimentary continental breakfast, but all Eichardt hotel guests already get this plus a main course dish and non-alcoholic beverage.

In addition, each guest receives a $50 (NZD) dining credit for the stay!

To my surprise, my suite had already been proactively upgraded to a Lakeview Suite prior to check-in. For our day of departure, we needed to leave early in the day, so we didn’t inquire about a late check-out.

Eichardt’s Private Hotel – Rooms and Suites

As you walk upstairs to the rooms (there is an elevator for those who require it) and stroll through the hallways, you’ll find them tastefully adorned with wooden antique furnishings and cozy décor that evokes the charm of a high-end bed and breakfast.

Interestingly, none of the rooms are numbered, so you do have to remember the location of your room to avoid any awkward encounters. Additionally, rather than use electric or digital room keys, the hotel uses traditional keys to unlock room doors.

Our Lakeview Suite was spacious and bright, featuring two large windows overlooking the harbour – perfect for enjoying the sunrise each morning.

The furnishings combined antique and contemporary elements, creating a warm elegance that reflects the hotel’s rich heritage.

The suite featured a desk wall unit which had our welcome letter on top, elegantly sealed with a wax stamp.

A cozy living room setup, complete with upholstered seating around a fireplace, provided the perfect spot to enjoy a good book.

The bedroom area was raised on a platform and included curtains that could be drawn to create a private separation from the living room. The king bed was exceptionally comfortable, topped with a thick, plush comforter.

The minibar was a delightful treat, offering complimentary snacks and non-alcoholic beverages that were replenished daily. I particularly enjoyed indulging in several bags of root vegetable chips and a few cookies during my stay.

The bathroom was spacious and bright, featuring both a separate soaker tub and shower stall. While the dark-brown wooden walls are an unconventional choice for a bathroom, they complemented the marble and silver hardware nicely.

Unique and thoughtful features included heated towel racks, a bathtub with handlebars, a skylight, and floor lights that illuminated the path to the bathroom.

Two plush bathrobes were provided and were very comfy to lounge in. Also, if you tend to overpack, like I do, you’ll be happy to know that there is plenty of closet space in the suites.

Eichardt’s Private Hotel – Food and Drink

The hotel features two restaurants. The Grille is their main restaurant that serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Tamarind by No5, a South African and Indian cuisine that recently opened, is located a two-minute walk offsite.

Breakfast is served at The Grille, and when you visit, I recommend trying to grab a table by the window so that you can look over the waterfront while you eat.

Any guest staying at the hotel, regardless of their Hilton Honors status, receives complimentary breakfast. This included a small continental buffet table with croissants, muesli, yogurt, juices, and a small selection of exotic fruit, plus a beverage and one selection off the restaurant’s á-la-carte menu.

The continental buffet felt underwhelming considering the hotel’s upscale status, and the made-to-order dishes were simple but enjoyable.

During our stay, we also had dinner at The Grille on one of the nights.

The dinner menu features casual, home-style fare, which suits the restaurant atmosphere. We tried the roasted lamb shoulder, which was delightful but such a massive portion that we actually couldn’t finish it in one meal.

The hotel also features its own bar, Eichardt’s Bar, which holds the distinction of being Queenstown’s first bar, having opened back in 1859.

The bar, a smaller space, embodies a blend of old and new, with sofas and elegant furnishings balancing the innovative cocktails for which the bar is known. Dimly lit in the evenings, the bar’s space creates a warm and inviting atmosphere for all.

Eichardt’s Private Hotel – Other Facilities

Despite being a small boutique property, the hotel has a couple of noteworthy amenities. On the second floor, the Vault Room that once secured gold, has been transformed into a small tranquil space for spa treatments.

Perhaps the most standout feature of the property is its Parlour Room. It is a public space in which guests can socialize, play a game, or enjoy a book while sampling a selection of complimentary liquors.

Every evening from 5:30–6:30pm, the hotel also serves a complimentary pre-dinner drink in this room.

Although there is no fitness centre on-site, complimentary passes to the Queenstown Gym – located a few minutes away from the hotel – are available at the check-in desk.

Conclusion

I thoroughly enjoyed my stay at Eichardt’s Private Hotel. The property is well situated in Queenstown and has a unique charm. While it has been modernized to suit today’s clientele, it also still retains its historical roots.

In the past, when the Small Luxury Hotels brand was part of Hyatt’s portfolio, it was more difficult for Canadians to redeem points for a stay here as we didn’t have an easy way to earn Hyatt points. However, with the brand having completed its move to the Hilton portfolio, this barrier has now been lifted.

In fact, the property has become a highly sought-after redemption option for Hilton Honors members, so be sure to book early to avoid disappointment. Even if you need to purchase points to cover your stay, it’s likely still worth it.

And, if you find yourself in the tough situation of not being able to find award space, you should definitely consider booking a Small Luxury Hotels withIN rate through Prince Collection.