ROOM CHECK
Rosalie Willis stays at Kokomea in Kāpiti, the newest cabin in Purepod's collection
Location: Te Horo, an hour north of Wellington City
Style: A deluxe eco-cabin
Price: From $590 per night
Review: Luxury glamping escape Kokomea Purepod, Kāpiti Coast
Kokomea PurePod, Kapiti. Photo / Rosalie Willis
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Perfect for: A dreamy night away to reconnect
First impressions: "But what are you supposed to do there?" I keep being asked. "Nothing," I reply. That's the point.
Kokomea is a luxury eco-cabin, overlooking Kāpiti Island. Newly built and opened under the PurePod brand, it's the seventh PurePod, the only one in the North Island.
After taking a 10-minute walk from the secure carpark, down a small valley and up the other side to a secluded field, the glass cabin is nestled next to a line of olive trees with nothing else around to distract you.
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The walk is intentional. It takes you away from prying eyes and noise, to a peaceful place of silence and solitude. Surrounded by nothing but nature, the PurePod offers you an opportunity to connect with the natural world.
In a world so connected by technology, the PurePod concept is all about taking you away from distractions to a place where you're surrounded by natural beauty.
Rooms: The one-bedroom cabin manages to feel spacious because every wall is glass. With 360-degree views from the bed and the glass walls also doubling as doors, the cabin is designed to blend into the environment and provide as minimal distraction from the setting as possible.
The beauty of staying at a PurePod is that heading inside doesn't mean the party is over. With the pod made completely from glass, including the ceiling, you can stargaze from bed. The cabin is far from the noise of traffic - you will instead be woken up by a chorus of birdsong and the glow of the sunrise.
Bathroom: Have you ever showered with a view overlooking farm hills, a vineyard and the ocean, all at the same time? This is what you can expect here. When you get over the thoughts of 'what if someone sees me', the shower is a spot you won't want to leave.
Food and drink: A food hamper is available featuring Kāpiti's famous cheeses for afternoon tea (or hummus and pesto if you opt for the dairy-free version as we did). Dinner is a selection of vegetables cut and seasoned for you, ready to go on the barbecue alongside either marinated chicken, steak, beef or lamb and potatoes.
With everything prepared for you, this is a deluxe version of a heat-and-eat meal. Fresh fruit rounds off every meal, with breakfast featuring an especially delicious homemade granola.
If you don't opt for the food hamper, Waikanae has plenty of options, including Long Beach and The Front Room Coastal Eatery for dinner. Or check out the Bus Stop Cafe for a coffee in Te Horo if you're staying over the weekend.
Facilities: The beauty of Kokomea PurePod is that there is nothing here to connect you with the outside world – well nothing to connect you to people anyway. No Netflix, no Wi-Fi, no television.
Devices here include a telescope and star map. Unfortunately for us, although we were lucky enough to watch a sparkling sunset setting between the clouds next to Kāpiti Island, the clouds which had been threatening to cover the sky all day were now above us, providing cloud cover as darkness fell.
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There's something about nature which makes you think big. Perhaps it's all the trees around providing my brain with more oxygen, or perhaps it's the wide-open spaces that make all the worries seem small, but either way, the PurePod takes you away from the worries of life and provides you with a place to dream. Huddled beneath a blanket, we stayed outside on the deck for hours, talking and dreaming in the open air.
By the time we head inside for bed, the clouds are starting to thin out. As more and more twinkling stars begin to pop their heads between the clouds, enough come out convincing me to stay awake and use the telescope to see what other stars are in the neighbourhood.
Looking through the telescope at the craters on the moon while lying in bed, the experience was well worth the late night.
In the neighbourhood: For those adventurous souls, book a trip to Kāpiti Island and for those active ones, head to the prestigious Paraparaumu Beach Golf Club for a round of golf.
If you're after boutique shopping, Raumati Village is your place to go, and don't forget the beach right down the road in Te Horo. Outlet shopping in Ōtaki is also just 10 minutes up the road.
Family friendly: This is not the place to take your children; it's best for a romantic getaway.
Accessibility: The PurePod is accessible to anyone who can walk on uneven ground for 10 minutes. Although it is a bit of a hike to get there, the good thing is that you should need to do it only once because after you arrive you won't want to leave.
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Sustainability: Created to showcase the natural landscape surrounding it, the PurePod could not be built without incorporating a sustainable energy source.
Running off solar power and using local water, the pod is also backed up by a gas califont to ensure heating is plentiful year-round regardless of how much sunshine hits the solar panels.
Ecostore products and refillable dispensers in the shower for shower gel, shampoo and conditioner add to the minimalisation of plastic use.
Although designed to provide minimal disruption to the environment, PurePods also support The Cacophony Project, a not-for-profit venture that aims to help make New Zealand predator-free by bringing back the "cacophony" of bird song.
Contact: purepods.com
For more travel inspiration, go to newzealand.com/nz.
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Check traffic light settings and Ministry of Health advice before travel at covid19.govt.nz
