Bella Vista - beautiful view. Well, there is no view. Palmerston North is flat and the only vista is a carpark.

The Bella Vista is a chain in NZ. Most of their hotels are very similar layouts. The rooms are small, very small. Clean and tidy but the linen is old and the bedspreads tired. It's a cheaper option so I'll cut them some slack but you really couldn't swing a cat in their rooms.

The bathrooms are clean and there is good shower pressure. The hotel is close to the CBD and restaurants. Palmerston North is a student city and my visits are for business. This place does not feature on any tourist itineraries and rightly so.

My advice? Book elsewhere but only if you have to go to Palmerston North. more