First impressions: Even if you\u2019re not among the most-watched people in the history of television, it\u2019s easy to see why The Hoff was so taken by On The Point. That first impression of driving up to the manor with its pillars and shielded porte-cochere reminded me \u2013 in the best possible way \u2013 of the excitement I had staying at the Chateau Tongariro for the first time. Add to that the immaculate gardens and a small farm that slopes down to the lake\u2019s edge with the views beyond,and it\u2019s clear this is no ordinary property.<\/p>\n
The room: We were in the two-bedroom villa apartment found at On The Point\u2019s highest elevation with a grand vantage point across the lake. Our bed was so wide you could easily lay three large pillows across it (if you\u2019re so inclined), while the children delighted in having their own bedroom on the other side from the living and kitchen area. Perhaps best of all, we were right on the tennis court, which didn\u2019t just result in an unbeatable location for father-daughter tennis lessons with me and 6-year-old Riley but acted as a kind of gigantic playpen for two-year-old Austin.<\/p>\n
Mokoia Island. Photo \/ Tim Roxborogh<\/p>\n
Bathroom: Two marble-and-tile ensuites, with the master ensuite coming complete with a jetted bathtub in case the spa outside isn\u2019t enough. The master also has a washing machine and dryer, which is such a plus for families. Toiletries were reusable and non-branded.<\/p>\n
Facilities: With one of the more scenic tennis courts I\u2019ve played, there\u2019s also a gym tucked in behind the main office. There\u2019s a boathouse on the waterfront perfect for picnics, a gorgeous chapel with some serious acoustics, and Riley and Austin want it to be known that the very swanky two-storey playhouse is just about the coolest you could ever dream of.<\/p>\n
Tennis with Austin. Photo \/ Tim Roxborogh<\/p>\n
Food and Drink: The Mains Restaurant is the focal point of the manor\u2019s ground floor and is fine dining that sources as much food as possible from On The Point\u2019s own vegetables, herbs, fruit trees and happy hens. Breakfast was a delight, with a continental spread, plus a la carte options like scrambled eggs, sausages, rosti, sourdough and mushrooms, which I treated myself to both mornings.<\/p>\n
Lake Tikitapu. Photo \/ Tim Roxborogh<\/p>\n
In the Neighbourhood: Other than being close to the Skyline Gondola and Luge, where Riley and Austin paired off with a parent each for some downhill thrills, you\u2019re just 10 minutes from the central city and attractions like the famed therapeutic waters of the Polynesian Spa. And from there, it\u2019s only five minutes to the internationally-acclaimed Redwoods Treewalk, where the combination of Californian redwoods, oversized native ferns, suspension-bridges and lit-up sculptures creates a magical, family-friendly eco-experience.<\/p>\n
Or for a free Rotorua must-do, we recommend driving another five minutes to Lake Tikitapu (aka \u201cThe Blue Lake\u201d) where the six-kilometre perimeter bush walk is one of the easiest and best loop tracks in the North Island.<\/p>\n
Family friendly: With farm animals (donkeys, horses, sheep, chickens), a tennis court, a two-storey playhouse filled with toys, and babysitters available on request, On The Point is a luxury lodge where you don\u2019t feel like you\u2019re an imposition by bringing the children.<\/p>\n
The Best Bit: A toss-up between the sunrise\/sunset views of Mokoia Island and of course, those adorable, friendly donkeys who greet you with a little head nuzzle.<\/p>\n
Giraffe chandelier. Photo \/ Tim Roxborogh<\/p>\n
Room for Improvement: When it\u2019s this Hoff-worthy, it\u2019s hard to find fault.<\/p>\n
Sustainability: Our villa had reusable water bottles as well as the toiletries, and around the tennis court, we could see where the restaurant\u2019s vegetables are grown. On The Point\u2019s chickens also make their home in a fittingly luxurious pen on one side of the court.<\/p>\n
Accessibility: On The Point is wheelchair-friendly with ground-level rooms, and a slanting path to see the animals.<\/p>\n
Price: Ranging from $400 to over $1538 per night.<\/p>\n
Contact: onthepoint.co.nz<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"First impressions: Even if you\u2019re not among the most-watched people in the history of television, it\u2019s easy to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":515013,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[17248,696,430,9349,2841,6284,2837,156,22397,151713,255798,255799,173,111,139,69,90,423,762,1327,255800,2069,1361,223,9863,14036,4276,80],"class_list":["post-515012","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-celebrities","tag-17248","tag-announced","tag-celebrities","tag-checks","tag-country","tag-david","tag-during","tag-entertainment","tag-favourite","tag-hasselhoff","tag-hasselhoffs","tag-hoff","tag-lodge","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-on","tag-point","tag-review","tag-rotorua","tag-roxborogh","tag-stay","tag-that","tag-the","tag-visit","tag-whole","tag-why","tag-zealand"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/515012","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=515012"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/515012\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/515013"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=515012"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=515012"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=515012"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}