#26338 Premium
Comfortable Family Home in Hawkes Bay
House • Hastings New Zealand
Exchange types accepted
Hospitality Description: Happy to host you for a meal and a night or two during your travels. This is our main home but we do go for short local trips, and we do also have a cabin on site to host a small family/couple/single traveller for a night or two.
We can also park a caravan or RV on our property for a few days, to provide you with a home base during your travels.
Statistics
Listed December 2023
Views 389
General overview
Set back from the road, our house has a big yard filled with flowers and fruit trees, and animals galore to make you feel at home (or like you're visiting a petting zoo!)
Our house is lived in and homely, with individual quirks.
Perfect for the traveling family, our home is great home based without worrying about your kids marking the walls or spilling anything on the carpet.
The space
Note we are currently renovating the house so photos are unlikely to be a representation of how it will look when we are ready to exchange. I will update as it progresses.
Our living room flows into our kitchen and dining area, making the area bright and open, easy to communicate with or watch the family while you're cooking.
The living room has a couch big enough for the whole family, and has board games for use, as well as a large TV and sound bar for movies, as well as at least one subscription service and high speed internet.
A large desk is available for use for those working remotely.
The bedrooms are tucked away behind the kitchen keeping the areas separate. We have two single rooms with single beds, and a master room with a queen sized bed.
We also have an outside room with a queen bed for extra guests.
There is one bathroom with a shower and full sized bath and separate toilet. Our laundry room has a front loading washing machine and dryer, with an exterior door to the washing line.
Ducted air conditioning and heating flows into each of the bedrooms keeping the house warm in winter and cool in summer. It also has ventilation keeping the house nice and dry.
A large lawn makes a great open space for lawn games and the kids. We have a swingset, trampoline and play house with slide. Fruit trees and bushes are spaced around the property, along with flower gardens and a vege patch. You would be welcome to help yourself to any produce and there is no expectation to care for the garden if you didn't want to, we can arrange someone to do this.
The house is situated on a back property, down a long gravel driveway, and the property has a gate to corral kids and our free range chickens.
Guest access
There are two steps up to each of the doors in the house and would be difficult for wheelchair users to access easily, however is possible.
Notes
We have 4 cats who happily do their own thing but will often join you on the bed at night if you let them.
We have chickens that free range in our backyard providing fresh eggs every morning.
We have an umbrella stroller available for use, and can access a portacot or carseats if required.
We could also leave booster seats for older children - in New Zealand children must be in an approved car seat or booster until at least 8 years old. Both our cars are isofix capable and have 7-8 seats, if we agree on a car swap.
Features
Washer
Dishwasher
Clothes dryer
Oven
Microwave
Fridge
Iron
Hair dryer
Heating
Air conditioning
TV
WiFi
High Speed Internet
Bathtub
First aid kit
Smoke alarms
Fire extinguisher
Bed sheets
Towels
Workspace
Toys
BBQ
Garden / yard
Covered porch / verandah
Travel Styles
Long term
Budget
Family
Sport and leisure
Relaxing
Village
Culture
Last minute
House rules
Suitable for infants under 2
Suitable for children ages 2-12
Pets welcome
No smoking
Allergens
Smoke free
Dates of Availability
Click on availability periods to see exchange types and descriptions.
Available
Neighbourhood
Perfect for a family set up, our house is walking distance to a large park with a playground and duck pond, as well as takeaways (pizza, fish and chips and chinese), pharmacy and op shop within walking distance. There is a dairy (corner store) 2 minutes away that sells necessities, with major supermarkets only 10 minutes away.
The river is a ten minute drive, with two big towns 5-15 minutes away, as is a drive into the country.
Hastings City is home to Splash Planet, New Zealand's only water park, as well as a regional watersports park with an Olympic grade swimming pool. Cafes and restaurants are readily available to visit, as well as plenty of fruit fresh from the Orchards and side of the road stalls. Wineries are plentiful, and beautiful beaches less than an hour away.
For those with a young family, there are parks and playgrounds aplenty, a skate park, trampoline park, laser tag and recreational swimming pools.
Napier City is only 20 minutes away, home to Art Deco buildings and our National Aquarium. Rocky beaches line the seashore, great for crab hunting. More award winning wineries and restaurants populate the area. There is a great museum with free entry, detailing the great Napier Earthquake of 1931 as well as changing exhibits. Boutique shops and art galleries are dotted along the main streets, along with more affordable shops and souvenir shops, bakeries and cafes. Walking tours explore the art deco buildings in more depth, but are easily viewed as you stroll through town. Big cruise ships frequently dock in Napier, flooding the town with eager visitors and different cultures. At the top of Bluff Hill is a lookout where you can watch these ships go in and out, as well as admire the view over Napier and out to both Cape Kidnappers and Mahia.
Two to three hours drive in either direction will take you to the coastal town of Gisborne, the lakeside town of Taupo or inland to Palmerston North. Keep going South and you'll find yourself in our capital city, Wellington, visiting several little towns along the way.
In summer our temperatures can get to 34°c during the day, and in winter down to -2 at night, but usually sits around 10°c on a winters day. Layers are your friend!
Getting to my home
Our house is a 20 minute drive from Napier Airport, straight down the motorway with few turns.
Nearest airport
Napier airport is a 20 minute drive. Auckland International is 6 hours away, Wellington is around 4 hours.
Getting around
Local bus routes come close to our house, and we have shops within walking distance, however you would need a car to explore our region.
Map of Approximate Location
People Like Us Local Guide
Happy to meet up for a coffee or meal and to recommend local hot spots and offer advice
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Premium
Natalie
Family of 5 with 2 daughters currently 9 and 11, and a 15 year old son. My husband works in largr equipment rental and I work as a sterilization technician at the hospital. We are new to home exchanging, however experienced at staying at air bnbs.
We are quite a creative family, our girls love to create. I do a lot of reading, and sewing and dabble in other crafts. I enjoy travelling and visiting new places, and have a travel wishlist a mile long.
My husband enjoys tinkering in the shed building things and we both enjoy renovating our house.
We are clean and tidy, both non smokers and non drinkers. Our kids are of an age where they are respectful of other people's houses and belongings.
We would like to spend a month or so in England in 2025, in the Manchester area.
Ideally we would like to come in December or January as I'd like to experience a snowy winter (my husband tells me it's overrated) and to fit with our summer holidays but this is open for negotiation.
Travelling group
Desired Destinations
Open to any destination
Can travel at any time
Dates flexible
"South Brisbane"
Dates flexible
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