Recently stayed at The Retreat whilst on a touring holiday in North Island. This is a perfect place for relaxing with amazing views especially as our unit, at the top of the site, was spacious & quiet with a big deck for sitting and watching the boats on the bay. There was also a deck on the other side of the unit which made it perfect for chasing the sun, or avoiding it if it became too hot on the main deck. The owners were very friendly and helpful. The only downsides were that The Retreat is too far out of Paihia to walk so if you want to eat out in the evening you do need to go by car and New Zealand drivers do tend to drive very close to the car in front so plenty of warning needs to be given when turning into the narrow drive up to the Retreat. I should thoroughly recommend this place to anyone who wants to chill out whilst they are on holiday.

This was the perfect place to start our holiday! After a busy lead up to our holiday, then the long flight we were more than ready to relax at The Retreat. We stayed in the cabin at the top of the hill -it is in a beautiful setting with amazing views from the long patio. With windows on both sides you can always catch the sun - morning or evening. The cabin was very well equipped and perfectly clean. It was wonderful to be able to prepare breakfast and dinner and to sit outside sipping wine watching the boats and yachts sail past. We didn't even try to connect to the internet - the information said to leave behind the phone and listen to the tuis and that is exactly what we did. Wonderful!

We where a bit concerned after we had read some of the reviews but this was quickly dismissed once we got there. The Host and Hostess were very agreeable and helped out when ever we needed assistance. We stayed in a cabin that overlooked the bay towards Russel and the views truly are a spectacular. Indeed my wife was taken ill for a day or two and I never seemed to get bored with the changing activities and sunsets I was able to view. As I mentioned we stayed in a unit that over looked the bay and consider this to be the best spot on that site. That Bungalow is divided into 2 units, a single bed unit and the other has 2 bedrooms. The dividing wall is a bit thin between the units so one can sometimes hear the clatter of pots and pans but this shouldn't be seen as a show stopper for staying there.

This is a particularly nice part of the North Island to stay and does give the general tourist a great spot to locate and explore the area. Be careful of the speed cameras in Kaikohe though !

One review mentioned about leaving pretty quickly and a sobbing wife in toe, well I can only assume they arrived there on spec and took the last unit next to the office which should be avoided if you want to be left alone.

When we go back there again we will try to stay there again, which given one of our other reviews ( Diamond Harbor Hideaway) does give it a 2 thumbs up vote of confidence

A friend and I stayed here in mid March of 2011 for three days and loved every minute of it. The cabins all seem to have wonderful views of the bay, clear and unobstructed views of the sky at night, and the place itself was both quiet and restful thus truly making it a retreat as it's name implies.

We were greeted by one of the owners who promptly showed us to our room in a shared cabin. Our neighbors were a middle aged couple from the UK and so noise wasn't a problem for us at all. Our living and sleeping areas were neat and tidy. I have seen some comments about this place looking dated, I didn't see anything of the sort as the linens were fresh, the furniture appeared to be recent (within a decade old), the appliances and fixtures appeared to be up to date too and so this wasn't a problem for me at all. There were many windows in all of the rooms and so catching a nice sea breeze wasn't difficult at all.

The few problems I had here were relatively minor ones. As the name implies, The Retreat is set back a ways from the urban area and so you will either need a car or cash on hand for a taxi. Rides to and from central Paihia seemed to range from $17-$20 NZ dollars per trip. Also, the entrance to the driveway can take one by surprise on the road if they're driving here, thankfully, Google Maps street view shows the entrance and so a well prepared visitor can familiarize themself with the entrance prior to their visit. Also, while wireless internet access is available here, the range doesn't completely cover all of the property as our cabin at the top of the hill could not get a signal at all. Instead of an inconvenience, I saw this as a chance to move about and get to know some of my fellow guests and the owners while I sat near the main building to briefly check my email and facebook. But to be fair, this place trumps those entirely and I wouldn't have bothered to check either had I not have needed to for my work.

Bottom line: if you truly want to get away from it all for a few days, or enjoy your trip away from an urban area and don't mind a few VERY minor inconveniences, then this place is definitely for you and you will not be disappointed. If you simply *must* have an ultra modern hotel with all of the amenities or cannot stay too far out of an urban area, then you may want to find a different place to stay. I have a lot of fond memories of this place and the staff was very gracious to my friend and I as they took us on a tour of some of the other local attractions which aren't always on the tourbus routes and I consider myself indebted to them for their kindness and hospitality. It isn't everyday that one finds a place like this and I would gladly saw off my right arm just to come back here again.