Millbrook Resort

If I could rate Millbrook six out of five, I would. It’s that great. My friend and I were in 208, a two bed suite overlooking the course. Each of our bathrooms were huge. Underfloor heating. Wonderful showers. I loved the shuttle service to and from Queenstown and Arrowtown. All I had to do was call and ask for a ride back and we didn’t have to wait long. The staff are highly attentive. The buffet breakfast is fantastic with some of the best sausages I ever had and the chia pudding was divine! This is without doubt the best place I’ve ever stayed in.

We spent ten days in New Zealand in January 2026, starting in Wellington before heading down to Christchurch and finishing with three nights at Millbrook. We had a 2 bedroom suite, which was the ideal set up for our family of two adults and one teen. I had requested an upstairs suite in advance, and am very grateful that this request could be fulfilled. Millbrook is now right up there as one of our family’s top 3 places to stay in the world, in large part due to the fabulous staff. From our initial enquiries by email, to the warm welcome at reception, the golf team, waitstaff, housekeeping, shuttle bus drivers, health centre staff, coffee caravan barista - every single person we encountered was friendly and helpful, and helped make our stay a real treat. The accommodation was beautifully laid out and spotlessly clean, with comfy beds, spacious bathrooms and living area, two balconies, and a very well equipped kitchen. Very handy to have a washer and dryer too, and I liked the fact it was on the enclosed porch rather than in the suite itself. The views and resort grounds - wow, not just words can do them justice. We enjoyed a couple of walks, as well as a lot of time on the balcony relaxing and enjoying the sights. The free shuttles to Arrowtown and Queenstown were fantastic and we made good use of them. We also made use of the health centre, and enjoyed both the lap pool and the hot pools. We had all three breakfasts at the resort, as well as a couple of lunches, and one dinner at Millhouse. All three were good - although at breakfast it would be nice to have a couple of cook-to-order options in addition to the buffet, and while the lunches we had were delicious, I think if we’d been staying longer we might have got a bit tired of it because it’s quite a limited menu. If we were going to make any suggestions for improvement, it would be around the food availability. But dinner was excellent and we would love to try Kobe if we are lucky enough to come back again. All in all an absolute delight, and it’s going to be tough to re-enter reality and the world of work after our lovely time at Millbrook! We are all very pleased we opted to stay there rather than in Queenstown itself, and hope we can make a return visit very soon.

Having stayed at the Gibbston Valley winery resort prior to coming to Millbrook we were interested to see how the two properties compared given their similar pricing. On arrival we were surprised by how large the resort is. The main drive into reception through the property is via a beautiful tree lined boulevard. Check in was fast and we were taken to our room (a refurbished one-bedroom suite) on a golf buggy. The room was spacious with a lounge/dining area, kitchen separate bedroom and ensuite bathroom. It was clear that the room has been refurbished and we were impressed with the full kitchen facilities including an oven and microwave. The bedroom in our room was very spacious and had a really comfortable bed for our 4 night stay. The bathroom was also spacious with a bath and separate shower. The shower felt a little cramped however and given the size of the bathroom should have been bigger. The room was on the top floor with in a semi-detached configuration with a room next door sharing a common covered entrance area. There is a washing machine and dryer available (free of charge with free laundry detergent) just outside in the entrance area which is shared between the two adjacent rooms. This was a really good feature. The main issue with the room for us was the complete lack of soundproofing in the main lounge/dining area. Fortunately for the first night the room adjacent was empty but when occupied were could hear the conversations and TV from the next room despite the normal noise levels. This is really poor for such an expensive property. In addition, there was no sofa and only 2 rattan chairs to sit on which were really uncomfortable. The room had a small balcony which overlooked the golf course which had a great view. Unfortunately, there was no roof on the balcony unlike the other balconies we could see. Given the weather was so poor (rain and cold in December) we were unable to use it and enjoy the view. Parking was very limited for the rooms in the area we stayed which meant either parking outside the designated spaces or face the alternative of parking at the clubhouse instead. We dined in both the Millhouse and Kobe restaurants which were both disappointing. Although the food in Kobe was excellent, the wait for food was excruciatingly slow. We watched in the open kitchen as they struggled to get dishes out whilst dealing with room service orders as a priority. The Millhouse was a complete mess. We booked a table months in advance and were given what appeared to be the worst table right by the entrance door which was blasted with cold air every time someone opened it. This was rectified after we asked to be moved. Again, the service was painfully slow and we almost gave up after waiting over 45 minutes for our food. We were charged $120 for a T-Bone which was quoted by the waitress at the time of ordering as $85! It was also a poor cut of meat with no flavour. We had spent enough of our night in the restaurant so just paid and departed. The resort feels like a golf course with a real estate business on the side. The gardens are beautiful and the location is perfect for walks to Lake Hayes and Arrowtown. Most of the support staff are seasonal workers and it shows. The rooms weren’t cleaned very well and the restaurant service is a shambles. We didn’t get a great vibe from this property. The room and grounds were nice but it just felt uninviting and we were not really relaxed during out stay. Yes, there are onsite facilities such as a tennis court and pool but we really wanted a nice bar and evening dining experience but paid a lot of money for a very stressful experience. Management need to seriously rethink the dining offering.

We were pleasantly surprised by our stay at Millbrook; exceeding our expectations based on the website. Had well equipped quiet cottage. Very friendly and helpful staff. Free transfers to arrowtown and Queenstown were great. Beautiful surroundings with stunning scenery. Enjoyed relaxing drink by the pond at the bar. The resort catered well for coeliac. Great base for exploring the area.

We are currently staying at Milbrook for four nights. We have come for a relaxing time away. Milbrook markets themselves as an exclusive high end resort set in the peace and quiet of a golf course, The room rates are very high which is fine if the quality is ok. It’s our first night and we have a wedding going on that is incredibly loud and the music is blaring across the whole resort and into our room. No sleep for us,. It’s playing till after midnight and also a dj is on the mic. Talk about giving the finger to all the paid up guests who have booked to stay here. What appallingly bad management.