In the know

Our favourite rooms: All of the hotel's spacious yet cosy cottage suites are built from local materials, harking back to rural farm-style, but come fully equipped with modern comforts. Interiors are calm and neutral, with arresting rustic details such as old tractor seats salvaged for a witty wall display above a bedhead. They also boast pinch-yourself views from private balconies of the beautiful surrounding grounds, golf course and Pacific Ocean. However, we recommend the secluded Ridge Suites (set on a skyline ridge to the south-west of the main lodge) as they're a little further away giving you more privacy. The Hilltop Suites, on a hill above the lodge, are further up for more elevated vistas – but don't have fireplaces which are a must for snuggling up on cold winter nights. If you're feeling flush, the secluded Owner's Cottage can be rented as a 2- or 4-bedroom house, and would be a great pad for a family or friends travelling in a group.
Packing tips: Hiking gear, binoculars and your bird-watching manual. The Farm offers Kiwi Discovery Walks as part of a local kiwi bird conservation project.
Also: For full-on pampering, the Farm's spa is up on the hillside above the lodge with serenity-boosting views across the valley toward the sea or over pine forest to snow-coated Mount Ruapehu. It offers three treatment rooms (including a couple's spa suite for relaxing a deux) where you can indulge in a range of massages, facials, pedicures, manicures or hair care remedies. All spa treatments last from 50 to 80 minutes and can be customised to suit your needs, or you can enjoy treatments in your own suite.

The Farm at Cape Kidnappers hotel, Hawkes Bay, New Zealand

Current offers

Smith card offer: NZ$50 spa credit

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The Farm at Cape Kidnappers

Hawkes Bay, New Zealand[view map]

Style: Modern rustic
Setting: Striking sheep farm by the sea

What do you get when you combine a 6,000-acre working sheep and cattle farm with jaw-dropping Pacific Ocean views, a glam golf course and soothing spa? Luxe boutique hotel The Farm at Cape Kidnappers, on New Zealand's dramatic Hawke Bay in the North Island.

Need to know

Rooms: 22 cottage suites (including four large Lodge Suites, eight Ridge Suites and 10 Hilltop Suites, two of which have optional interconnecting Hilltop Room second bedrooms) and the four-bedroom Owners Cottage.
Rates: NZ$1,160–NZ$2,380, including Continental and cooked breakfast, pre-dinner drinks and hors d'oeuvres, three-course dinner and use of lodge facilities (except golf/spa). Owners Cottage, NZ$3,500–NZ$5,500 a suite. Excludes tax at 12.5 per cent.
Check-out: 11am, but flexible (to guarantee a late check-out you'll have to pay for a full extra night). Earliest check-in, 2pm.
Facilities: CD/DVD/book library, free WiFi, gym, spa/treatment rooms, outdoor Jacuzzi, golf course, gardens. In rooms: flatscreen TV, CD/DVD players, iPod dock, free minibar (excludes wine/spirits), bath, shower, twin sinks, Evolu toiletries, private balcony.
Poolside: Dive into the stunning outdoor 50ft heated infinity pool, with its shady poolside cabana and minibar, and views out to the ocean horizon beyond. Or sample the Jacuzzi/spa.
Hotel closed: June.
Also: The lodge and guest rooms are all non-smoking. Wine buffs will love it here: wine tastings are held regularly with respected local connoisseurs, as Hawkes Bay is a major wine-producing region (the hotel even has its own vineyard).

Food & drink

Hotel restaurant: Chef Dale Gartland presides over the Farm's main dining room where the à la carte dinner menu of classical French and English dishes, influenced by fine seasonal New Zealand produce, changes nightly. Local ingredients, such as lamb and beef, get star billing, as well as fresh seafood from the area. Decor is restrained rustic with simple wooden chairs and tables brought bang up to date by crisp linen and a sophisticated palette (black and white with hits of yellow from the zingy graphic artwork which dominates the space, formed from roadside food sales signs. We love the overscaled black knife and fork on one wall too). By day it doesn't distract from the breathtaking ocean views; by night candlelight adds a romantic, intimate touch (try to catch a sunset at dusk too). Lunch at the lodge is more casual, ranging from sandwiches to a three-course affair. Aside from the main dining room, there's also an atmospheric wine-tasting cellar for private dining.
Dress code: During cocktails and dinner gentlemen are required to don a jacket, but luckily the Farm has some on hand to borrow at reception should you have left your best Paul Smith at home. Ladies should think glam too (rustic royal chic perhaps?).
Top table: Bag a table on the covered balcony, sheltered by floor-to-ceiling glass doors, for the best ocean views. Or opt for James Bond-glam with drinks or private dining in the circular Lounge snug, all wood walls, fur cushions, hide rugs and hot views.
Last orders: Lunch is served from noon till 3pm; dinner from 6.30pm till 9.30pm, after which room service is available on request. However, last orders are flexible so let staff know if you'd like a later drink or dinner and they'll try to arrange it.
Room service: A daily-changing room sevice menu is available from 7am till 10pm. Casual dining at the Pro Shop is also an option after hotel restaurant hours.
Hotel bar: The Farm doesn't have an official bar, as such, but holds a cocktail hour each night from 6.30pm in the main lounge. There's a wide range of free wine, spirits and beer, as well as hot and cold hors d'oeuvres to sample before you move on to dinner. At other times drinks are available throughout the main lodge, so just ask if you'd like one. We recommend curling up in the sophisticated Lounge snug by the open fire, where leather chairs, a circular banquette of beige couches and carved wood side tables make for a perfect martini moment.

Also worth knowing

Children: Welcome. The hotel can provide baby cots (free for kids up to two) and extra beds for older children, from NZ$320–NZ$500 a night, depending on the season. Babysitting with a local nanny can be arranged with 24 hours' notice, for NZ$35 an hour. More…
Weddings: This hotel is suitable for weddings. More…

Smith Members offer

NZ$50 spa credit

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