Abel Tasman Lodging
 

Dear Fodorites,

We just tweaked our itinerary to add 2 nights in the Abel Tasman area. In the event Ocean View Chalets, or Maple Cottages, or Larchwood (all recommended on this site) are not available, might any of you have a suggestion as to where to stay? We are not fixed on any one area as long as it is not too far (40 km?) from Nelson and Abel Tasman (we have a car). We are not on a tight budget. Thank you for any suggestions you may have.

In fsct, there is a studio available at ocesn view chalets (everything else taken), Larchwood is available and Maple Grove may also be available. All these places soound great (except studio may be too small but not sure)so it is simply a matter of location. Any suggestions would be most appreciated.

Strictly from a location standpoint, Ocean View Chalets is ideal, right at the entrance to the park. I've not stayed in their units, but I certainly would.

I've stayed in Maple Grove Cottages, which was an ideal location for us - easy access to Abel Tasman and the wine country between Nelson and Motueka. As I recall, it took us about 15-20 minutes to drive from the cottage to Kaiteriteri for our water taxi pick up. Lovely owners, peaceful country setting.

I'm not familiar with the exact location of Larchwood, atlhough I've heard the name.

You can't go wrong with either Ocean View or Maple Grove, so it will probably come down to convenience, space, etc (Maple Grove is bigger than a studio unit I'd imagine).

If you have 2 nights, that would be ideal to stay in the National Park at Wilsons Abel Tasman's beachfront Lodges, Meadowbank Homestead - Awaroa or Torrent Bay Lodge.

Larchwood is one of our all time favorite stays in NZ - we even arranged our itinerary to go there again on our second trip. Lovely stay, lovely hosts. It is a bit of a drive to Abel Tasman, but one that we did twice without a thought.

We stayed at Abel Tasman Stables. Simple, comfortable cabins/B&B and a very nice owner who helped us rent kayaks for the day. Location was perfect for us -- less than a 5 minute walk to the park entrance, the one bar/restaurant and a good burger stand.