News about the Hotel, Eastbourne and surrounding areas

Hotel in Eastbourne NZ

A South African couple's visit to New Zealand was to be the trip of a lifetime - a seaside hotel, a pier to stroll along and picturesque gardens to wander through.
All this to enjoy while they were attending matches in which the South African team were bidding to defend the trophy at the Rugby World Cup.
But there was just one little hiccup - Michael and Sunette Adendorff couldn't find the bayside Majestic Hotel - or even the street in the Eastbourne suburb of Wellington that it was supposed to be located in.
Convinced they had lost their way, or there was something wrong with the GPS system in their rental car, they wandered into a shop to ask for directions.
And it wasn't long before the truth dawned on them.
The hotel they had booked into online was the Majestic in Eastbourne, UK, not a Majestic in Eastbourne, Wellington.
'I booked into the right hotel, just in the wrong country,' Mr Adendorff said.
'The Kiwis made fun of us because of our silly mistake but it was very nice and they were very friendly,' he told the Dominion newspaper.
Keen rugby fans, the couple had decided to fly to New Zealand
They liked the website pictures of what they thought was the Majestic in Eastbourne, Wellington, but when they keyed in the booking, encouraged by the enticing description of the surroundings, they didn't realise they were looking at a hotel 12,000 miles away on England's south coast.
In fact the British hotel is called the Bay Majestic, promoting splendid views directly opposite the beach 'within a few minutes' walk of the bustling pier and picturesque Redoubt Gardens, and lying close to the heart of the town.'
Not realising the Majestic wasn't in Eastbourne, Wellington, the couple paid for their accommodation in advance for two nights.
They were a little puzzled why the payment was in pounds, but went ahead with the booking.
Unable to find Royal Parade when they arrived in Wellington and after driving around in circles the Adendorffs went into a chemist's shop in the Eastbourne suburb to ask directions.
Employee Linda Burke said that when they asked where the Majestic Hotel was she told them: 'Oh no, there's no hotel here.'
When she looked at the booking documents she broke the news: 'That's in the UK - that's in England.'
Miss Burke told the paper that she wasn't about to let them go without accommodation, so she offered to put them up in her own house for the night.
She also took them out on the town for beers and dinner at a pub, where the locals gave them some good-natured ribbing.
With their lost down-payment on the British hotel, the couple ended up about £200 out of pocket but they said Miss Burke's hospitality more than made up for the mix-up.
The couple have moved to the town of Picton for a few nights but will be back in Wellington next week to stay at the West Plaza Hotel - and they've double-checked that it is in the New Zealand capital and is not some far-away hotel on the English coast.