Guest Comments

A beautiful garden setting looking out onto Lake Taupo.  The host Gary looked after us royally with trip tips, a super breakfast canapés and a glass of wine at dusk. The room was first class opening out onto the garden and the pond - lovingly maintained by the host.

14th February 2024

This is one of the most perfect places we've ever stayed. The view and location is magnificent, the house, gardens and rooms have a beautiful design.  The food by Chris was incredible. Gary's hospitality was as good as it could ever be. We loved to hear his amazing tales from his business and life adventures. This was a magical few days and will remain a treasured life experience for us.

24th October 2024

Can't miss place to stay on New Zealand's North Island
This Frank Lloyd Wright-style lodge was impressive from the start. The attention to detail - the food, music and beautifully appointed rooms made this our favorite place to stay on the North Island. The view of the gardens and lake from our room was wonderful.

20th January 2024

It was a great memory of New Zealand!
It was a homely and warm lodge. The breakfast was delicious and they responded to all our requests. They introduced us to two places for dinner, and they were very good. The beautiful garden is well-maintained and it was fun to walk around. The starry sky was very beautiful. For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, the Southern Cross and the upside-down constellation Orion were new to us. We could also see the Milky Way. thank you.

18th January 2024

The hotel impressed me with its breathtaking view of the lake, which gave the stay a special touch. The friendliness of the hosts made the stay particularly pleasant. The room was impressed with its generous size and high-quality furnishings. The beautifully landscaped garden completed the overall experience and I can highly recommend this hotel.

17th January 2024

"What a beautiful place to stay- we loved everything. Would love to come back one day. Thank you for all your hospitality."

29th October 2023

“Very delightful experience and amazingly hospitable crew. Thoroughly enjoyed our time. Thank you Gary & Shirley, Chris, Komal and Niki. Will definitely come back.

23^rd October 2023

“Much appreciation for your hospitality for the past 2 days. Food, gardens and company was memorable."

20^th October 2023

“Thank you for a wonderful stay. The second time we visited, was as perfect as it was the first!"

12^th October 2023

“Memories made forever in these magnificent, magical surroundings. You both are the perfect hosts and showed us hospitality above and beyond. A huge thank you."

9^th October 2023

“This wonderful place will always stay in our hearts!! We relaxed, enjoyed and had the best breakfast in NZ! Hope to come back soon! Thanks a lot!"

1^st September 2023

"We recently spent the weekend with Gary and Shirley at Lake Taupo Lodge. Where do I start? Their property is absolutely amazing and first class from the architecture to the artwork, the furnishings, the crockery, the ambience, the chef, the food, the spectacular gardens, their dogs Baxter and Zoe, the local tips and their gorgeous company. Thank you Gary and Shirley, we had the most amazing time with you both and loved getting to know you! We can’t wait to come back and we thank you for looking after us so beautifully! Warmest Regards, Kelly and Mark xxx"

July 2023

"A lovely two day stay at Lake Taupo Lodge with Gary and Shirley who provided exceptional service and hospitality . From the breakfast to canapes in the evening ( with wine by the fire ) this two day visit to Taupo was relaxing and special.
The large guest bedroom was well appointed with everything we needed with a comfortable king sized bed. Views over the lake were amazing , it seemed so close. We would like to return for another visit in the near future and recommend this lovely lodge and hosts to other travellers." Warmest Regards. Ian and Wendy.

July 2023

"Excellent and very friendly owner. Very happy with their services and have a wonderful accommodation experience. It has a beautiful garden and gave me a nice breakfast in the morning. Enjoy the lake view from the lounge."

July 2023

“We have absolutely loved our three days with you and a huge thank you to Gary, Shirley and Chris, and all the staff, for making the Lodge such a wonderful place to stay. Your passion to host and make people feel at home is very engaging, and the family feel of home is so special. We hope to be back for a longer stay in the future, so many thanks again and all our best wishes. Wikkor and Carol x”

“A huge thank you to Gary, Shirley and Chris for making our stay at Lake Taupo Lodge so memorable. Everything about our stay (whilst too brief) was perfect, and we really enjoyed our drink at the bar with you Gary (and Alan and Shirley) talking about all of your sailing adventures. Take care. Charlie and Charlotte x”

Wow! What an incredible place. Felt like home the minute we walked in.

"Gary, what a magical interlude we’ve enjoyed at your lake retreat.  You and Shirley are such warm hosts and Chris is a wizard in the kitchen.  We especially loved what Chris did with Gary’s trout and we can’t forget Baxter and Zoe, fluffy companions to those 3 lovely felines."

"Thank you for fêteing us at your palace of trout!"

"My son and I enjoyed several days here – using the venue as a base camp (a luxury base camp that is) for hiking and trekking in the Lake Taupo area. Staff (i.e. chef Chris) and hosts (Gary and Shirley) made every moment enjoyable. We would return!"

"You made our stay memorable with warm hospitality, eye for detail. Lake Taupo Lodge is truly a special place. Joe caught 25 rainbow trout in one day over 20inches. Stories will be told on stellafong.com"

"What a thrill to stay at such a beautifully designed Frank Lloyd Wright inspired house in such a beautiful garden.. Gary’s hospitality was also wonderful!"

"I so enjoyed sharing my time and art with you, let’s do it again!"

"Thank you so much for a cosmic stay. All the best."

"I will never be able to thank you enough for all your kindness and warmth both you and your staff gave to me while guesting in your lodge. You made me feel as if it was partly my home too. I shall always feel that way."

"The Perfect Stay!!!  Great attention to the smallest detail and all the big things - Food, Comfort, Relaxation, absolutely top of the league.

Thanks to you all!! I'm a new man, who was once "

"A wonderful weekend of rest amid the madness of filming. Great R&R, great food and great people, thanks, until next time"

“Thank you so much, Gary and Shirley – the most wonderful few days – so relaxing, so comfortable and such wonderful food and wine.  We really appreciate your superb hospitality.”

“Our thanks to the world’s finest host.  Our second visit was even more fun than our first, and we can’t wait until our third.”