Four-star One MICHELIN Key Off State Highway 50, inland Hawke’s Bay, Hawke’s Bay
The Manse
A villa of 1910, moved by traction engine to a rise above the Ngaruroro River, with two suites, two hosts and a farm that grows most of what you eat.
Opens the hotel's own website. We have no arrangement with the hotel.
- MICHELIN
- One Key, new in 2026
- Suites
- Two, in a private wing
- Built
- 1910
- From the airport
- 28 km from Hawke's Bay Airport
The hotel
A minister's house on a sheep station.
Douglas Maclean, a former Cabinet minister, built the house in 1910 on the Maraekakaho sheep station for the Presbyterian minister Robert Catherwood. When the station was broken up in 1930, the villa was hauled by traction engines to the higher ground where it stands today, looking over the Ngaruroro River towards the Ruahine and Kaweka ranges. The house has four bedrooms and stands on about three hectares, with a pool, vegetable gardens and a small wetland.
Gary Grootelaar and Dietske van Kessel came from the Netherlands in 2012 and run it as a lodge for no more than four guests. The house was renovated in 2007 and 2012 and filled with European antiques. Around it lie gardens, an orchard and a small farm that the hosts say supplies most of the kitchen. The vineyards of the Gimblett Gravels and Ngatarawa begin close by.
- Paddock to plate Gary cooks a menu for each guest every day, with eggs, fruit, bread and jam from the property.
- On the river Guided fly-fishing on the Ngaruroro, below the house.
- The whole house The lodge can be taken for exclusive use, which with two suites turns it into a private house for up to two couples.
Good to know
Before you go.
- Arrival Check-out by 11 am. Sources differ on check-in: the MICHELIN Guide says 3 pm, the regional tourism board 2 pm. We confirm with the hosts.
- Age Adults only. The MICHELIN Guide gives a minimum age of 21; New Zealand's tourism site says 16. We confirm with the hosts before booking.
- Pets Not accepted.
Getting there
Flying to Hawke’s Bay.
Hawke's Bay Airport at Napier, with Air New Zealand flights from Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, is 28 kilometres away, about half an hour by car by our estimate. Private jets use the same runway; international arrivals need prior permission 24 hours ahead. Havelock North and Hastings are both about 18 kilometres away.
- Wellington 40 min
- Auckland 45 min
- Queenstown 1 h 30
- Sydney 3 h 25
- Melbourne 4 h 00
Questions
What guests ask first.
- How many MICHELIN Keys does The Manse have?
- One, awarded in the 2026 New Zealand selection.
- Can children stay at The Manse?
- No. The lodge is for adults only, and the MICHELIN Guide sets the minimum age at 21.
- How many guests does The Manse take?
- Two suites, so no more than four guests at a time. The lodge can also be booked for exclusive use.
- Can SkyCourtage arrange the flight to Hawke's Bay?
- Yes. We arrange Business and First Class seats on scheduled airlines and private jet charter to Hawke's Bay, with one final price, our margin included. The hotel is booked with the hotel or through our booking partner.
Also in Hawke’s Bay
Other hotels worth the trip.
- Rosewood Cape Kidnappers Suites on a working sheep station above the bay, with a golf course by Tom Doak and two MICHELIN Keys.
- Craggy Range Luxury Vineyard Retreat Seven cottages and lodges with terraces over the vines, beside the winery and its restaurant facing Te Mata Peak.
- Porters Boutique Hotel Forty-two rooms and suites in the village centre, many with views of Te Mata Peak.
- Scenic Hotel Te Pania A hundred and nine rooms and suites on the seafront, two minutes’ walk from the Art Deco centre.
- The Crown Hotel Thirty-nine rooms and suites in the waterfront village of Ahuriri, the heritage suites in the original hotel of 1932.
Staying at The Manse?
Book the room, then the flight.
Rates and availability come from the hotel itself. For the journey to Hawke’s Bay, a Business or First Class seat or an aircraft of your own: tell us the date and we come back with one final price, our margin included.
Opens the hotel's own website. We have no arrangement with the hotel.