Kaimata Retreat

"We stayed for 2 nights at Kaimata Retreat and loved every second. We stayed in the main bedroom which was luxurious and comfortable with a great sized bed. Everything was pristine and the place nice and warm for our arrival. The open fire added lovely winter ambience and the kitchen so spacious to cook in. I've saved the best till last... the views and location! It most certainly felt like we were at a retreat and looked at nothing but the ocean and green rolling hills. It was very special and we enjoyed the short walk to the water front. Thank you for having us - would highly recommend!"

"An amazing location."

"Most beautiful place on earth. I had the good fortune of spending my 50th birthday there. Bliss!"

"Very disappointing. A detour in the road from Dunedin made an otherwise very difficult route horrible. No one warned us of the detour, not our travel agency or Kaimata, even though both were aware of our arrival day and Kaimata the detour. After the long, treacherous, partial-dirt road arrival, we found what was billed as a luxury retreat. Far from it. Tiny little room with a ladder and four hangers (see photo) for a closet, barely enough room to negotiate around the bed because of your mandatorily unpacked bags, no view from our room, and no true ensuite bathroom (the bathroom, which had no lock, was in a passageway between the kitchen and room). Make sure, if you do go to Kaimata Retreat, that you avoid the room behind the kitchen, where we stayed. Every word from the kitchen/dining area could be heard. I'm not sure what caused it, but every time someone opened a door or something else to change the air pressure something in the room vibrated loudly enough to keep you awake, but not long enough to find. Perhaps it was the (generously-termed) artwork. A trash-strewn path down to the water had the ambiance of a back alley. That's enough time spent on this place. We stayed in six hotels/ inns/lodges/retreats in NZ. This was hands down easily the worst by a mile (check out my write-ups of Mollie's, Solitaire Lodge, Greenhill Lodge, Oliver's, Silverpine Lodge and Eichardt's Private Hotel). We have stayed in dozens of small, luxury accommodations around the world, as well as larger hotels. This is the very first one we have walked out of, as we were scheduled for three nights and stayed one. AVOID."

"Beautiful rooms and great views."