A cliff-top room with a view
Relaxing in the luxurious, quiet and stunningly picturesque Cliff House, Mary de Ruyter is o’ercome with poetic joy.
The Cliff House is a luxury four-bedroom house at Whanga¯rei Heads that lives up to its name, with spectacular coastal views.
The place
It is a four-bedroom, three-bathroom house set on 10 hectares of private land. It’s one of five properties run by Ara Roa Villas and Boutique Lodgings, which really delivers on its promises of ‘‘beautiful’’ and ‘‘secluded’’.
Other offerings include the top-end couple’s option, The Glasshouse (from $1250 a night) to the more affordable Te Huia (from $350 a night). All offer contemporary style, lush linens, and the kind of views that give monsters green eyes.
Location
Getting there involves driving along increasingly remote roads. Privacy is pretty much assured. We didn’t see another soul during our stay (except one visitor, our chef, but more on that later). And anyway, we were too busy admiring the rocky coastline, drifting clouds and the Poor Knights Islands. The nearest shops are at Parua Bay village, 10 minutes away, and it’s 35-40 minutes to Whanga¯rei.
The space
I hate to agree with marketing spiels, but as the accommodation’s website predicted, I was blown away by the view. I’d seen it in photos, but being there was another matter. Maybe it was the relief of stepping away from the noise of everyday life.
You can gaze at nature, beautiful in its strength and simplicity, as far as the eye can see. Plus, the indoor-outdoor flow is superb.
The two sleeping wings are separated by the living area and kitchen – so if you’ve nabbed the master bedroom, you can ignore whatever the riffraff are doing and continue with your highly civilised game of pentanque. (Yes, the master bedroom opens on to a pentanque court.)
There’s a full kitchen with induction cooktop, oils, vinegars, herbs, spices, and tea and coffee.
The decor is modern and inviting, though the corrugated iron on the kitchen island seemed a little out of place – a homage to traditional Kiwi baches, perhaps.
There were many contenders for best lounging spot. The living room’s leather couches were an early front runner for watching Sky TV or streaming music. When it was warm outside, beanbags and loungers on the deck were the place to watch pı¯wakawaka flitting from tree to tree.
But the winner at the end of the day (and almost every other time of day), was the master bedroom. Whatever witchcraft someone performed to make our bed so absurdly comfortable, I want to learn it. Plus, the floor-to-ceiling windows, endless sea and sky, gnarled po¯hutukawa peeping over the cliff edge made it a luxuriously Kiwi idyll.
Stepping out
Land around The Cliff House was once bare paddock. Now, there are two kilometres of walking paths amid an ongoing planting project.
The ancient volcanoes of Whanga¯rei Heads offer walks that reward strong thighs: the all-day Bream Head/Te Whara Track, two-hour Mt Aubrey, or 11⁄ Mt Manaia track. The Busby Head loop is an
2 easier coastal track.
There’s an impressive roll call of beaches: Smugglers Bay, Pa¯taua South (and North, across the footbridge), Taiharuru/McGregors Bay. The stretch along Kauri Mountain Beach to Ocean Beach is part of Te Araroa, and the property managers can organise a pick-up service. There’s also golf, as well as horse treks and kayaking.
The food
An antipasti platter, milk and orange juice were waiting in the fridge. The aforementioned kitchen staples enabled us to whip up dinner on the first night and, on our second night, we tried the in-house chef service. Whanga¯rei-based chef
Brad O’Connell turned up to prepare a threecourse meal while we lounged around wrapped in alpaca wool throws and quizzed him on restaurant recommendations. It was all rather delicious, especially the mushroom risotto, and he did a great job of making my sorbet and fruit salad – so often the default option for a lactose-free dessert – look pretty special.
The Parua Bay shops contain a Four Square, liquor store, bakery, cafe, and Smith & Local, a hip yet cosy cafe, artisan bakery and pizzeria that’s licensed from midday. A few kilometres away, the Parua Bay Tavern serves pub food on expansive decks and a lawn that runs to the water’s edge.
Highlight
And silence, like a poultice, comes to heal the blows of sound. Bear with me. These lines, from the Oliver Wendell Holmes poem The Music-Grinders, were in a book I read while at The Cliff House, and they hit the nail on the head. It wasn’t completely silent – gulls cawed, waves crashed on rocks – but the peace was immense. We read, watched swells roll in from the sea, and laughed at rotund quail scurrying across the lawn. Take me back. Please.
Lowlight
There was no bookcase. I’m a sucker for noseying at other people’s book collections, or at least what people imagine others would like to read on holiday.
Essentials
The Cliff House’s four bedrooms accommodate eight quite comfortably. Off-season rates start at $750 a night for two people, and $50 per extra guest.
Visit araroa.nz for information about The Cliff House and other properties.
The writer and partner stayed at The Cliff House as a guest of Ara Roa.