Kaikoura Accommodation - Wacky Stays Covered Wagon

Westward Ho!

Pippy McCurdy

http://www.unusualstays.com/
http://italyoffthebeatentrack.blogspot.co.nz/2016/01/italy-off-beaten-track.html


Choose the slow wagon for your accommodation when you travel near Kaikoura in the South Island of New Zealand and you will not be disappointed.

The covered wagon at Wacky Stays Farm Park is an amazing, custom built wagon - a tribute to craft, intricacy and skill. It is in every way an early settlers wagon. However the elongated wheel base and the touches of luxury are indications that your stay will be a good deal  more comfortable than the travels of the early American settlers who originally used wagons such as these.

The wagon is double skinned canvas. The bed linen is luxurious and comfortable. The facilities are within the wagon. There is wool insulation. There is double glazing. There is  a pot belly stove. There is underfloor heating. There are fabulous views of the Southern Alps.



Included with your overnight stay is entry to the farm park linked to your accommodation. You will see llamas, wallabies,  peacocks, donkeys ...   Sometimes the llamas hang out outside your wagon.

At the farm park there are other places to stay - a yurt. a train carriage, a tepee.  Wacky Stays have worked hard to create a unique and fascinating environment for your stay.
To one side of the wagon there is a camp kitchen to cook in. Almost complete is an outdoor bath to relax in. Wacky Stays is essentially a step back into the simple life but with no element of luxury missing. It is a fabulous place to stay. You should go there!

Guy's Boat House, Wanganui

Guy's Boat House

Pippy McCurdy: 

 http://www.unusualstays.com/
https://www.facebook.com/Stay-Somewhere-Strange-273777766054597/



If you are not into roughing it, unexpected transport to your overnight accommodation on the back of a quad bike can come as something of a surprise. For the uninitiated, the back of a quad bike over rough and steep ( and slippery and scary) terrain can be quite challenging. So there I was, unprepared, balancing a bag, food, alcohol, and myself while we bumped and skidded our way over a dirt track to Guy's Boat House.

But it was fun. There were only really a handful of times I thought we would not make it.

It was a great moment to bounce over the crest of a small hill and see before us the Valley of Tranquility in all its glory with its peaceful little lake as a centrepiece, and there in the distance the colourful little boat house.

All by itself it sat on the edge of the lake. A cook house was a short distance away on the top of a hill. The toilet was a semi-outdoor shelter on the opposite side of this hill, and there on the edge of the surrounding pine forest was the solar shower - nicely heated by the afternoon sun.

Guy's Boat House is small, but it's colourful, clean, comfortable, sunny and pleasant  The deck reaches out over the waters of the lake. Board walks take you to and from the lake edge.
If it 's peace you want, it 's peace you will certainly get at the boathouse. There is no popping down to the cafe for a latte from here...  As the quad bike disappeared into the distance an absolute silence filled the air, broken only by the call of birds and the rustle of the bushes. As the day comes to an end the gathering dusk sheds a gently fading light over the trees and lake. It is a magic moment of peace and serenity

In the morning the birds wake first and exchange greetings.  The multiplicity and extensive variety of trees gradually ease back into definition as the sun rises again. At the arranged time the sound of the bike can be heard in the far off distance, gradually coming closer for the pick up and the hair raising ride back to the real world. Guy's Boat House is a beautiful spot and in many ways it was a disappointment to leave.


By the way not everyone will be transported by quad bike. Most times apparently the path in is quite suited to four wheel drive which is the more usual way in and out. But I'm kind of glad my trip was on the bike.




And one last note; - Leave yourself some time to see the glorious Paloma Gardens. What a beautiful spot; -  so many species, so well kept, so much variety, plush lawns, sculptures, ornamental bridges,  glass house plants, exotic plants, native plants. Just a tapestry of colour and delight. What a work of love.