We thoroughly enjoyed staying at the Kingsgate, Paihia. We stayed on the top floor in one of the sea facing apartments. It is a decent sized apartment with a bedroom, toilet, bathroom, kitchen, lounge and balcony. It is an easy 4 minute walk from the hotel to the pier and central Paihia which meant that we could literally park the car in the hotel parking and not touch it for 2 days. The apartments private balcony is great to sit on with some locally caught fish and chips and a beer in the evening as you watch the sun set and the world go by. The hotels salt water swimming pool catches all day sun and is also a nice asset to the pool. Included in the price of our room was a Buffett breakfast which set us up for the day ahead, my only niggle is that breakfast is served between 7.30am & 9.30am - 10am would be a little more friendly for people on holiday/long weekend (although once you are up you really do make the most of the sleepy Paihia retreat). The hotel also has a game room that houses a pool table, table tennis, foosball and an air hockey table - The games room is conveniently located by the swimming pool so if you have children (or are a big kid) then you are guaranteed some good entertainment. The Kingsgate also has bikes that guests of the hotel can make use of.
If you are looking for a nice, clean hotel with friendly staff in Paihia then consider the Kingsgate - Make sure you book a sea facing apartment though if you really want a touch of luxury, it is impossible to not wake up in a good mood when you have such a view!