We spent 2 days over Christmas at River Birches. Nestled in a quiet area surrounded by beautiful gardens. Our host Anthea was delightful and her cooking suited our dietry requests perfectly. Anthea was also very good at suggesting local tramps that were off the beaten track so we spent Christmas day tramping with very few others there. We stayed in... More

Two of my friends and I stayed at the River Birches Cottage for two nights in November 2011. We were in the region for the Tongariro Alpine Crossing day walk and the River Birches location was perfect for this activity. When we arrived, we were planning to go out for dinner but seeing the well equipped and beautiful kitchen we... More

Six fishing enthusiasts stayed in the cottage and found it to be perfect for us. It was quality accommodation, with excellent and friendly service and local advice. Our four nights finished far too soon. More

We spent two nights here in October 2011 while waiting for the weather to improve to allow us to do the Tongariro Crossing walk (which luckily it did on the last day!). There are three suites, which looked relatively similar (apart from one having a hot tub), and we stayed in the Major's Room. There is a large main house... More

Late in August I stayed at River Birches Cottage (That was to my pleasure and also my first mistake.) I should have gone with my lovely wife instead of my fishing mate. Telling her where we stayed was the second mistake ...because she checked it out. My wife loves it when we stay at luxury accomodation in the Taupo region.... More

This is the second time staying at the River Birches Cottage, this time with two fishing buddies instead of the kids. First of all the fishing was great, everyone caught plenty of wild Rainbows and even a Tongariro Brown trout was landed. But this isn’t a fish report... Every one enjoyed our stay at the cottage. Comfortable and well appointed,... More

Visited a long lost friend in Auckland, we made a road trip down to Lake Taupo just to get away from big cities. We were recommended River Birches for accommodation. Checking online and saw great reviews so we decided to stay there for 2 nights. The place is GORGEOUS, luxury, and worth every penny. The bed was comfy, the food... More

My husband and I stayed at the River Birches Cottage with our two girls (age 3,5) in late July. We chose this location over Taupo due to its closer proximity to the Mt Ruapehu ski areas and I am so glad we did. Turangi is a lovely town right on the Tongariro River. It is small but has all the... More

There is a Wow here. Once we walked in there was a nice relaxing wow feeling. We came to do the Tongariro crossing and some fishing while on our honeymoon. Stayed two nights. First night we ate out because we did not want to commit in advance to eating it. Eating out was a disappointment. Expensive and not great. Second... More