Mary made us feel very welcome and was most accommodating to our needs. The dogs also gave us a welcome chorus on our arrival. Unfortunately, I didn't sleep well as my imagination was running a bit wild... I think from the memory of too many horror movies in my youth! The situation of the summer house was lovely, in the daylight. I guess I now know glamping is not for me! My husband slept like a log in the coolness of the evening and the openness of the house to the night. Daylight was greeted with the song of the Bellbird, not something I've experienced before. It was enchanting. Breakfast was lovely and so was the hostess. Homemade muesli, stewed plums, finishing off with scrambled eggs from Marys chooks. All served in the beautiful conservatory with the morning light streaming in.

I wasn't aware that we were in a glamping situation of a stay. As in we were in a wee summer house at the bottom of the garden. No electricity, toilet or shower. These were all provided at the big house, and the light and front door were left on and unlocked all night. Were given a torch to use.

Breakfast was great

The location as it was hard to find it would be great if they had a detailed instructions on how to find the place. ----

lovely place. lovely owner.

Beautifully restored historic house with breathtaking views of Little Mount Peel set in secluded grounds

Nothing

Rustic appeal and quirky.

Needs a good clean. A bit dusty in the rooms. Trees and bushes need a trim, for car access

Beautiful old homestead and a lovely host.

Fairly clean and tidy

We arrived at 3pm (the instructed check in time), it requires a long muddy drive inside the farm (around 20mins) with confusing direction as Google will direct you drive pass the main entry. The house was clean and tidy with around 5-6 rooms to share 2 bathrooms (one upstairs and one downstairs). As the location is fairly remote and there was torrential rain, we decided to have dinner at the homestead. At 7pm, we joined dinner with other 5 guests, and were served a plate with boiled potatoes, some undressed salad and ham from supermarket. Dessert was a thin slice of lemon pound cake with ice cream. During the wait time (around 30-40mins after the instructed dinner time), we had some fruits (4 mandarins and a couple of grapes), which Mary said to eat as we wish. Before dinner, we asked whether we can do our laundry here, and agree the price of $10 a load. The next morning when we check out, we got to know the dinner was $55/ppl, which was surprisingly overcharged considering the poor ingredients and small portion. We’ve also been charged $15 for a glass of wine which came from $40 a bottle. Our laundry was half dried, yet we’ve been charged $20. Nonetheless we paid, as we still appreciated the host during Christmas Eve. I would never write this review if Mary didn’t message me today to ask us to pay $20 for the fruit we had (couple of mandarins and grapes. Not to mention there was zero communication, even implication, around the charge at the time we ask if we could have them. I will NOT tolerate to be treated as money bag and be robbed as you like because we are nice and polite Asians, not even mention Mary’s racist comments towards Asians. NOT RECOMMEND.

it was clean Mary was excellent host lovely surrounds & period house

1 shower for six rooms very poor selection of breakfast the walls are thin can hear everything

Absolutely charming experience

too many things to list. the property was private with gorgeous gardens. Mary was amazing. even served us hot chocolate at 1am whilst we got to enjoy the lunar eclipse. Her hospitality went above and beyond.

The house was built in 1880 using all native N Z timber and is in very good condition. It is situated deep in the countryside and you will find the driveway to the house is about 2km long so just keep going! The nearest eatery is a country pub about 30 km away. On returning in the dark we entered a wrong driveway and spent an hour driving around someone else's farm fields. Mary the owner/hostess was very helpfull with many details of the old farm as she personally served our breakfast. So if you are looking for 'old world charm' this is the place. Go for it! John ,n, Liz Young

A more prominent sign at the road would help!

An amazing house, with such history. Mary was a wonderful host, providing home cooked meals and two adorable (but pat-demanding!) vallhounds.

Beautiful historical homestead with an excellent hostess who made our stay especially memorable

mention of the gravel road would have been helpful

Thank you Mary for attending to our every need. We look forward to seeing you again, and Sharon can't wait to work her way round to staying in all the rooms😁. Give kisses to those beautiful dogs of yours, and take care till we see you again. Sharon and Ian in Maraetai

Mary is such a lovely host, and being welcomed with a pot of tea and fresh lemon cake was so lovely, especially as it started to snow outside. The fire in the study was wonderful. Breakfast in the conservatory the next day was lovely, with a pretty outlook. I loved the history of the house.

Unfortunately, the room I booked was not available, and my new room was very cold. Mary did provide a heater to take the chill off and the bed had electric blankets, which was great!

Very beautiful and authentic. Beautiful surroundings. A home from home.

Chilly in my room

This was such a beautiful homestead with lots of character and history! We felt at home instantly. Overall great value for money.

It was a little bit hard to find

Historic house on lovely grounds. Mary took good care of us with lemon cake, tea, and a great breakfast with homemade muesli and apricots and plenty of filter coffee...

The home stead was beautiful the hostess Mary was friendly and very accommodating,

Mary was an amazing hostess the property was magnificent and had so much stories to tell. Mary will gladly speak about the house. A must visit spot if you would like to experience a unique and wonderful homestead.

N.a