About this hotel
General information
Wharekauhau Country Estate spreads across 3,000 acres of pasture, native bush and wild coastline above Palliser Bay, at the southern tip of the North Island. It remains a working sheep station: sheep have been farmed here since the 1840s, the estate ranks among New Zealand’s oldest Romney studs, and Romney sheep and Black Angus cattle still graze its hills. The Shaw family, who farmed the land from the late 1970s, were the first to open their home to travellers, and that farm stay gradually grew into today’s grand lodge and cottages. The estate is now owned by Bill and Carol Foley, whose family also owns several New Zealand wineries, and the lodge is a member of Relais & Châteaux.
The Edwardian-style lodge sits high on the hillside facing the ocean, furnished with antiques and warmed by large fireplaces, with bright lounges, quiet corners, a formal dining room that opens into a country kitchen and sunlit conservatory, and a private courtyard garden. There are just seventeen places to stay — sixteen cottage suites and a three-bedroom villa — and stays include pre-dinner drinks with canapés, a multi-course dinner and a full country breakfast.
Location
On the shore of Palliser Bay in the Wairarapa, between the Remutaka Range to the west and the ocean to the south, close to the wine village of Martinborough. Wellington Airport is about 1.5 hours away by car or 10 minutes by helicopter, and the flight from Wellington’s city heliport takes 12 minutes. The lodge arranges private drivers, helicopter transfers and private jet charters.
Spa
The Wellness Barn brings together a heated 22 m indoor lap pool, a sauna, a hot tub, a cold plunge and a fitness studio with cardio and resistance equipment. Treatments are given on site or in the suite, guided by the Māori idea of balance between physical, mental, social and spiritual well-being, and range from massages and facials to body treatments, a signature wrap and the Foley Vine Body & Soul ritual.
Sports & leisure
Some pursuits are complimentary and need no booking: croquet on the lawn, a multi-use court for tennis, pickleball and basketball, walking and cycling trails across the estate, and gear for surfcasting. Others are arranged by the lodge:
- a three-hour 4WD tour of the working farm with sheepdogs and a shearing demonstration, and two-hour guided quad-bike rides over black-sand beaches, riverbeds and pasture
- sporting clay shooting above a rocky gorge, archery with static and walk-up 3D targets, and an e-bike ride along the coast to secluded Muka Muka Bay for a picnic
- an hour of private stargazing with an astronomer on the cottage terrace, under the Wairarapa’s certified dark skies
- guided wine tours and self-guided e-bike days among the Martinborough vineyards, sommelier tastings in the lodge cellar, tastings of Lighthouse Gin, made with the estate’s spring water, and of whisky, and cooking classes
- the Signature Foley Wine Flight by helicopter to Foley family vineyards in Martinborough and Marlborough, a day trip to the lighthouse and fur seal colony at Cape Palliser, and golf at Royal Wellington Golf Club, a 10-minute helicopter hop away
For children
Neighbouring cottage suites interconnect, which makes the estate easy for families and groups of friends; archery is suitable for families, and the lodge offers ready-made family itineraries.
Restaurants & bars
There is no formal restaurant: guests dine in the Dining Room much as they would in a private house. Evenings begin with drinks and canapés by the fire, followed by a four-course seasonal menu and petits fours, with a simpler farmhouse bistro menu for relaxed nights. Breakfast is served in the Country Kitchen, with house-made preserves and dishes built on estate produce. The kitchen draws on its own vegetable gardens and orchard, eggs from the estate hens, wasabi and watercress grown in its streams, sea salt, and pāua, seaweed and fish from the coast. The wine list centres on Martinborough pinot noir and chardonnay, with rare back vintages in the cellar, and from November to April a Chef in the Wild lunch or an estate picnic can be arranged.
Swimming
The heated indoor saltwater pool is open all year, and Foley Villa has its own heated infinity pool. The estate runs down to the black-sand beaches of Palliser Bay, used for surfcasting and quad-bike rides.
Rooms
Sixteen 70 m² cottage suites and the three-bedroom Foley Villa. The cottages were designed by New Zealand designer Virginia Fischer — clay tiles, pebble mosaics, hand-plastered walls and wool carpets — and each faces the ocean no more than 150 m from the lodge.
Each suite has a super king bed, a gas fireplace, a double spa bath, underfloor heating and heated towel rails, a walk-in wardrobe, an ocean-view terrace, a minibar (wine and spirits excluded), a safe, a hairdryer, an iron, satellite television, Wi-Fi and home-baked cookies.
Foley Villa
A three-bedroom, three-bathroom villa for six guests a short walk from the lodge, looking over Palliser Bay and the Remutaka Range; the bright Hamptons-style interiors are by Kurio Design, each bedroom has a king bed, a gas fireplace and a claw-foot bath, and the master adds a private courtyard with an outdoor shower. It has a lounge with a log fire, a fully equipped kitchen and a patio with a heated infinity pool, an outdoor fireplace and its own helicopter landing.
Cottage Suite
A one-bedroom suite with a super king bed, a sitting area with a gas fireplace and an ocean-view terrace; neighbouring suites interconnect for families or groups. Sleeps up to three.
Photos are for illustrative purposes only. Actual room layout, furnishings, décor, views and amenities may differ from those shown and may vary between rooms of the same category. Hotel and room descriptions are based on information provided by the property and are believed to be accurate at the time of publication, but are not guaranteed. The hotel may renovate or change its rooms, facilities, restaurants and services at any time without notice. The final details of your stay are confirmed at the time of booking. See our Terms of Use.