Kauri Lodge Karapiro — Hotel in North Island

We stayed at Kauri Lodge in Karapiro after our snow trip, using it as a base for Hobbiton — which is just 15 minutes down the road. The scenery around the area is absolutely stunning, and the peaceful rural setting was just what we needed to unwind.

A quick note: Google Maps will take you slightly off course. There are three clearly marked signs leading to the lodge — ignore the pin, keep driving, and turn right at the third sign.

Originally, we had separate accommodation booked, but my parents (who had already booked Kauri Lodge) insisted we all stay together. We weren’t sure where our original property was located, but they suggested we cancel ours and just pay a small fee directly to the hosts. This was no trouble at all — I was welcomed into the owners’ home, gave them my card, and the lovely lady processed everything on the spot while confirming the transaction both with me and on her end. Quick, easy, and very accommodating.

The owners themselves are a lovely older couple who made us — my wife, child, grandparents and niece — feel very welcome. They’d set us up with breakfast items for our two-night stay and explained all the house details clearly.

The rules are very “grandparent-style” — shoes off inside, conserve water, quiet hours in the evening, limited wifi (so no streaming or heavy downloads), etc. All totally reasonable given the location.

As others have mentioned, this is their actual home. You’re in a private section separated by a door (locked on both sides) that they open only when guests leave for cleaning. I’ll admit I’m not usually the most comfortable in shared arrangements, and I know some won’t be either, but they gave us space and kept to themselves, so it didn’t bother me beyond being something I was aware of.

The house was spotless — especially impressive given it’s on a working farm. It sleeps seven comfortably, with a shared bathroom and toilet, which worked fine for our group but is something to keep in mind if you’re a larger group.

The kitchen is fully equipped if you’re cooking in, but they also provide recommendations for local restaurants, cafés and takeaway places. There’s Sky on the TV, and even a few toys for younger kids to keep them occupied.

Only minor gripe was the mention of a washer/dryer — it’s actually the owners’ machine, and they offer to do your laundry for a fee. We weren’t too keen on someone else handling our clothes, so we chose to wait until our next stop, but honestly, it’s a minor thing and not worth docking a star over.

Beautiful animals roam the property and add to the charm. All up, a warm, cosy, and genuinely welcoming stay with thoughtful hosts. Would...

Please be aware: they do not refund the deposit in case of cancellation. We recently booked our stay at Kauri lodge for the month of November. Unfortunately only a couple of days later we realised we could not stop in that area on that day. Therefore we cancelled it via the SMART system they use. We also had payed a deposit. Despite it was only a couple of days after we had made the booking the owners still would not return the deposit. I had to write to them several email before they eventually replied that according to the SMART system they are not obliged to refund the deposit. True, by reading the SMART policy: (Any refund of a deposit paid is entirely at the discretion of The Property, which is under absolutely no obligation to provide one). But still we would have expected some flexibility, we are still over 2 months away from the date. Think twice before ...

It's so lucky for us to find the lovely place via TripAdvisor. The reviews are true! This place is what Kiwi hospitality at its best. Jim and Libby were wonderful hosts. ||The room and beds are comfortable and clean. It's very quiet at night. ||The view from this lodge is amazing.You can see morning mist arising from Wakato river miles away. ||Libby also took us (parents with two kids) to see her beautiful farm in the next morning. My kids loved the horse riding and feeding cows with the lovely hosts. Oh, they also enjoy playing with their friendly black Labrador Retriever Gary.||Thank you Libby.||(One small thing: we found about 5 flies, and one honeybee in our studio, but I thought it's...