We are a family who loves our planet.

Both originally from New Zealand (Papakura and Bluff) we met in London where our three kids were born.

After living overseas for 20 years, and seeing many amazing places and cultures we decided to return to New Zealand to create an experience for people who love to travel yet reduce their impact on the world in which we live.

Or even reverse some of it.

We have become far more interested and concerned in the state of our planet and have recently been studying Permaculture, Solar Power, Organic gardening and Bee-keeping - and want to implement our little knowledge and gain a lot more.

This is the beginning of a new journey for us and we welcome you to come and spend time with us in this special corner of the Earth.

Duan and Elizabeth

Between us we have been very lucky to travel to many amazing countries including Lebanon, Libya, Viet-Nam, Nepal, Cuba, Ethiopia, Japan and Namibia and have always been inspired by the cultures but equally the places that we have stayed at and the people we have stayed with.

We have long dreamt of creating an experience that we shape based on all of these different places we have seen - and started looking for a suitable property in the last few years.

From old farms in Morocco to in-need-of-love Lodges in Spain and Boutique Vineyards the search eventually brought us all the way back home and Ao Marama more than fulfilled our criteria as a starting point and we now want to build upon the amazing effort by former owners and occupants.

From the stunning regenerating bush setting, the absolutely stunning view across the Bay and the indescribable vibe of the place - it was very quickly apparent that this place had something different from anything else we had seen.

We want everyone to arrive excited and leave rested and inspired and hopefully ever so slightly enriched.

And now the journey begins...

Whether you seek a peaceful retreat, a base to go Hiking Biking, Sailing or Paddling in the stunning environment that is Golden Bay, or you want share stories and ideas, get close to nature, enjoy organic food or just stare at the stars.

- Our own Bush track leads you right down to Collingwood beach
- You can walk into Collingwood village along a country road
- Stay with a passionate Kiwi family who will be as accommodating to your needs as possible - if you want help we'll be there - if you want peace we'll be elsewhere.
- We are motivated by creating an experience that is in harmony with nature and not against it
- we are absolute novices and want to learn as much as possible to make this happen
- Next steps is installing a complete solar system to power our house and the cabins
- Free Range Chickens laying eggs you can have for breakfast
- Eventually we want to introduce organic dining options - with food predominantly grown in our gardens