Hotels Archives - The Roxborogh Report

See Inside The Rock Star-Worthy Chairman Suite Of NZ’s Largest Hotel, The Cordis

Location: On the corner of Karangahape Rd and Symonds Street on the fringe of the Auckland CBD, overlooking the historic Symonds Street Cemetery and the forested slopes of Grafton Gully. What’s new at the Cordis? An entire 17-storey tower, that’s what! The just opened, 244 room Pinnacle Tower now sees the Cordis with a whopping…

A Luxury, Historic Villa High Above The Dunedin CBD – Airbnb Review

I love Dunedin, but I’m embarrassed to say I didn’t always know this was the case. As I wrote in the New Zealand Herald back in July last year, my apology to the “Edinburgh Of The South” was a long time coming, owing to the fact I’ve been a regular visitor ever since my parents…

The Carolinas Come To The Coromandel – The Barn At Lonely Bay, Cooks Beach

I thought I knew Coromandel. I’ve certainly been there enough times and for good reason too: if you’re a North Islander and summer is your season, then Coromandel will have never not been on your radar. When the warmer months roll around, either you’re going to Coromandel or someone you know or are related to,…

You Can Now Stay At The “Tuscany Of The South Pacific” – Mudbrick On Waiheke Island

Mudbrick was one of those places that as soon as I’d heard they’d added accommodation, I knew I had to stay there. This is, of course, liberal interpretation of what “had to” means, but if you know Mudbrick, then you know that the only conceivable thing better than a day-trip visiting this “Tuscany of the…

The Outrageous Views & Suites Of Auckland’s New Park Hyatt

Location: Some of the best real estate in all of Auckland, right on the water at Wynyard Quarter on the site of the former Team New Zealand base, overlooking the ever-grown-up skyline of New Zealand’s largest city. How many rooms? 195 guest rooms across seven-storeys, including six spectacular suites. How spectacular are those suites? Well,…

The Hotel Buried Deep Inside Taranaki’s “Goblin Forest” – Dawson Falls Mountain Lodge

Most people can never believe it’s a year since any significant event in their lives took place. When have you ever heard someone say, “yes indeed, it feels like a year since that happened!” That’s right, probably never. So yes, I can’t believe it’s a year since me, my wife Aimee and our (then) baby…

Why The Hotel Britomart Is Auckland’s Most New York Hotel

I never thought an Auckland balcony could remind me of the time I stayed on the 22nd floor of a hotel overlooking Madison Square Garden in New York, but then again, I never counted on The Hotel Britomart. New Zealand’s first ‘5 Green Star’ certified hotel is simultaneously the most Manhattan-recalling property in Auckland, as…

A Rainforest Retreat & A Historic Firestation – 2 Unforgettable West Coast Hotels

When it comes to Covid and tourism, there are two stats I’m certain I’ll never forget: The West Coast of New Zealand’s South Island – a densely forested, sparsely populated, mountainous slice of world-beating scenery – has seen a whopping 16-percent of all businesses close since the beginning of the global Covid-19 pandemic. 16-percent. That’s…

Stewart Island’s Unique, Boutique, Must-Visit Eco-Lodge

Stewart Island surprised me in so many ways. New Zealand’s third largest land mass may be two-thirds of the way to Antartica, but as I recently wrote in the New Zealand Herald, “forget notions this is some barren, unforgiving land”. Anything but. You realise this before you’ve even landed, provided you’ve been looking out the…

The Ultimate Bay Of Plenty Beachside Escape – The 5-Star, Barn-Style Luxury Of Paradise Beach

There are some places you really like but you don’t really have any real inclination to go back to. And then there are places like Paradise Beach in Papamoa. But twice in eight months? Even that felt too long between stays because after our first Paradise Beach experience back in March 2020, my wife and…

Is This The Most Beautiful Place In New Zealand? My Top 40 Fiordland Photos + My Latest NZ Herald Article

A couple of weeks ago the New Zealand Herald published an article of mine about Milford Sound in Fiordland – a place so naturally beautiful that none other than Mr Jungle Book himself, literary giant Rudyard Kipling, once described it as the 8th wonder of the world. And I wasn’t about to argue with Rudyard….