Wilderness Lodge Lake Moeraki

We have done a number of “touring” holidays. We have tended to book accommodation in relatively mid-market motels, because they’re comfortable enough and how much time do you spend in you room anyway, but we always tend to book one place that’s a bit special. On our 2025 trip to New Zealand, Wilderness Lodge was that special place. My wife came across it while looking for wildlife-focussed activities. The lodge is situated in one of the few (the only?) valleys on South Island’s West Coast that is still unspoilt, original, temperate rainforest -Te Wahipounamu the South West New Zealand World Heritage Area. It’s simply stunning. Our room had a view of the Moeraki River. ||New Zealanders are very welcoming and hospitable in our experience but the staff at Wilderness Lodge take it to a new level. The welcome we received from Meg when we arrived made us feel very special. During our short stay we had very informative tours with Jack and Isla. All the bar staff, whose names I didn’t get, were also great. All in all, a wonderful experience.

Dear Sir or Madam at Wilderness Lodge Moeraki, First of all, I would like to say that we felt very comfortable staying with you. The lodge is in a truly special location and the grounds are very well maintained. The staff and service were also very good overall. The included services (even though we did not use them) justify the relatively high price. However, we would like to say that the food does not fit in with the overall picture at all. Of course, we don't know if you have ever tried the dinner yourself. We tried the food on two evenings, but it just didn't taste good. On the last evening, we decided to eat out instead! The breakfast was okay, but ultimately did not meet our expectations either. Finally, we would like to mention that we did not see any room service. But that's the least of our concerns!?! Our tip to you: you'd better check what is being delivered from the kitchen! We are only writing to you today because we wanted to be sure that we were expressing ourselves correctly. (Unfortunately, our English is somewhat limited.) Kind regards, Marianne and Manfred Krespach

One word…Tranquility! The location was amazing with beautiful bush walks and kayaking on the back doorstep. Staff were all extremely polite, bubbly and helpful. Food (Dinner & Breakfast) were included and were of a very high standard. Even though on the pricey side, you get what you pay for and I couldn’t fault this place. Well done!

This was our favorite lodging during our two week New Zealand trip. Beyond beautiful, quiet, and delicious food. Also free laundry! Definitely do the Monro Beach Walk (also my favorite of our trip). Breathtaking scenery! And book the penguin discovery tour with Jack and Isla. They were incredible and friendly guides. Picture yourself sitting on rocks along the beach, sipping hot chocolate, having great conversation, and marveling as PENGUINS waddle by you. Amazing!

The lodge is lovely and the food is excellent. The free hikes in the beautiful natural setting, with guides, were wonderful as well; through the rain forest to feed the eels was very interesting. Beware, however, of two things. 1) The sand flies are relentless; great insect repellant is a must as the bites itch and last for weeks. 2) There is no guarantee that the guides will be able to take you to the penguin colony if there is a lot of rain - and, unfortunately for us, there was a deluge so the penguin walk was cancelled. Take rain jackets for sure (they supply gumboots). However, to see the penguins, you can take a chance and walk through the rainforest to Munro beach to catch a glimpse of a smaller colony of fiordland penguins before low tide. We went 2 hours before low tide and saw several penguins. We had to stand on a tall rock because the waves crashing in were huge. The self-serve laundry is a great asset especially when you come back wet from Munro beach.

Couple, early 70s. We could not have asked for a better stay. The staff were helpful in every way and the facilities and dining options were excellent. One of our party had particular dietary requests and this was catered for better than anywhere else she had encountered. We experienced some pretty atrocious weather at times and the management re-arranged the schedules flexibly to afford us an optimal experience. Very well done!

This was such a grand place, and we really appreciated the nature walk over suspension bridges. At one point, the surf from the Tasman could be heard in the distance. Our stay was way back on January 30, 2007, and the fond remembrances motivated me to include it in my science fiction novel, "Tripping Incarnate."

Great get away from it all location, with opportunity to see penguins and primary rainforest. Really nice people. Just found it a tad pricey.