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A holiday detour off the beaten track nearly a decade ago took Peter and Christine Scoular past the shores of Lake Karapiro in the Waikato and ended up with them owning an award-winning small luxury hotel.
Maungatautari Lodge was completed in 2001 and this year won the region's Waipa Networks Supreme Business award, plus the Excellence in Tourism award.
With these accolades under their belts, the couple are now selling the property to concentrate on other interests, such as horse breeding, travelling and enjoying what they say will probably be a brief semi-retirement.
The property and the business are being put up for sale by Angela Davies and Theo de Leeuw, of Bayleys Waikato, and will be auctioned in Bayleys Hamilton office on September 13.
The lodge, which has a 5-star Qualmark rating, took five years to plan and execute and is now well established in a secluded location on 7ha of park-like land overlooking Lake Karapiro and the surrounding countryside .
The 2.5 hectares of landscaped grounds around the lodge buildings include formal gardens with a huge vegetable garden used for the lodge's organic cuisine, an infinity-style swimming pool, a petanque court and a chip-and-putt golf course.
Guests are accommodated in three buildings. The main lodge has five large guest suites upstairs, each with a substantial private balcony overlooking the gardens and the lake. Three separate guest villas are situated in the gardens. Resource consent has been obtained for two more villas and a substantial manager's residence.
At present, Davies says the boutique hotel can take seven couples but the increasing corporate business means more rooms will enable the operators to take larger groups for small conferences.
The lodge has a large, private library with contemplative corners, designed to cater for conferences of up to 20 people. It also contains a conservatory, dining room, sitting room, lounge and a private terrace that gives uninterrupted views to the north over the lake, against the backdrop of the Mt Maungatautari ecological reserve.
The library can also cater for functions of up to 50 people and has been a popular venue for small weddings because of the beautiful, secluded surroundings.
Internationally, the lodge is marketed through the Select Hotels and Resorts International and the Friars Guides.
Davies said the Scoulars, who established and operated the boutique Earls Court Motel opposite the Parnell Rose Gardens many years ago (on a site now boasting apartments), also owned Habitat Interior Design in Parnell, and used their design skills to stunning effect at the lodge.
Each guest suite is individually decorated and comes with air-conditioning, a super king-size or twin beds, a dressing room, sitting area, cable television and a desk with internet access.
All have en-suite bathrooms and a separate shower.
Christine Scoular says the area will become increasingly popular with domestic and international tourists who want to experience the native bird life now being cultivated on the mountain that gave the lodge its name.
The Mt Maungatautari ecological reserve, which is accessible to the public, has been predator-fenced on two sides and is now experiencing unprecedented growth in the number of kiwi, bellbirds, tui and other native fauna and flora. Scoular says bird numbers are rising so rapidly that it is predicted there will soon be about 6000 bellbirds and 12,000 tui breeding on the mountain.
Scoular and her husband set out to create a finely crafted, purpose-built, luxury hotel that breaks the conventional mould. She says they are selling to move on to other things, but they have never regretted their choice of location for their boutique hotel and the past 10 years have been rewarding.
"It was the best detour we have ever taken and possibly the most picturesque location we have ever lived in. It is just beautiful down here."
The lodge is one of several tourism properties and businesses featured in a special section in Bayleys' latest Total Property portfolio.
