Image: DOC
Small wooden building by trees.
Waikuku Lodge

Located in Aorangi Forest Park in the Wairarapa region

Waikuku Lodge is a converted farmhouse at the northern end of the Aorangi Forest Park that sleeps 24 people.

Features

Located 32 km southeast of Martinborough, at the northern end of Aorangi Forest Park, Waikuku Lodge was formerly a farmhouse, situated in reverting grassland surrounded by hills. The house was built in 1921 from locally milled timber.

Facilities

  • Sleeps 24 in three communal bunkrooms
  • Hot showers x3
  • Norski containment toilets x2
  • Wood fires x2
  • Gas stove x1
  • Fridge/freezer x1
  • Large equipped kitchen with basic pots, pans, cooking utensils, crockery and cutlery provided
  • Basic cleaning supplies provided

Bedding is not supplied. Bring your own sheets, blankets or sleeping bags and pillows.

Firewood is provided. You'll need to split the wood with tools provided outside the shed.

The power at the lodge is supplied by a stand alone, solar panel system. Use power wisely. A back up generator will come on automatically if supply is low.

Clean and tidy the lodge before your departure. 

Fees

$127 per night for up to 24 people.

Bookings

Bookings for the 2026/27 season open at 12 noon on Tuesday 12 May 2026.  

  • If no availability shows online for your dates, the lodge is fully booked.
  • No spaces are kept for visitors arriving without a booking.
  • Phone and in‑person bookings made at a visitor centre incur a $10 service fee.
  • Same‑day bookings are available online until 8 pm if spaces remain.

Book Waikuku Lodge online

Turn off Lake Ferry Rd at the Awhea-White Rock signpost 1 km south of Martinborough. Continue for 8 km and turn right into Ruakokoputuna Rd which changes its name after a few kilometres to Haurangi Rd.

Follow Haurangi Rd virtually to its end, passing through a gate about 3 km from the lodge.

The access road to Waikuku Lodge from the start of Ruakokoputuna Road turnoff is a country gravel road that becomes winding 2 kms in.

It is particularly winding and narrow in some parts from about 6 km onwards. Some areas of this road have drop-offs on one side of the road as you climb some hillsides.