Hapuku Lodge & Tree Houses

The tree houses sit ten meters off the ground, clad in copper shingles and raw local timber, with an indoor-outdoor shower that makes a strong case for never leaving. This small luxury lodge near Kaikoura pairs genuinely modern design, the work of an architect-builder family, with custom beds, organic communal dinners, and views that would make a sleeping bag feel like an upgrade. A two-and-a-half-hour drive from Christchurch, and conspicuously easier on the wallet than its peers.