3 Best Hotels in Whanganui National Park, North Island's West Coast

This stylish, purpose-built lodge is set on Blue Duck Station, a multiuse tourism, farming, and conservation venture beside the Whanganui River. Built according to strict environmental standards with extra-thick insulation and glazing, the super king and twin en suite rooms share a fully equipped kitchen and outdoor BBQ. Remote Blue Duck Station is a destination in its own right; you can head to the river for jet boating or canoeing, explore the farm on horseback, or find out more about conservation efforts to protect rare blue duck and kiwi that live around here on an ATV bush safari. There’s a café, too, and The Chef's Table Restaurant with dramatic views. Other lodges on the property cater to large groups.

Roughly 30 miles upriver from Pipiriki, this private farm enclave can only be reached by jet boat or kayak. The remote location rewards with magnificent river and forest vistas. Accommodations range from fully catered lodge rooms to self-catering bunkrooms and cabins. Lodge owner Jo also runs jet boat tours upriver to the Bridge to Nowhere and provides jet boat shuttle services for hikers and mountain bikers within the national park. Canoe trips and rentals are also available.

Even just arriving here is an exceptional experience—whether by boat or the namesake Flying Fox, a cable car that carries you across to the remote, west bank of the Whanganui Rive; once here, you can choose between two-bedroom cottages, an off-grid tiny house, Treetops studio, or a glamping tent. The cottages were hand-built using salvaged materials; inside, rug-covered floors, tie-dye throws, carved screens, and wood-burning stoves create a warm, cozy ambience. Distinctly eco-friendly, facilities here include wood- and gas-fired showers and solar lighting; moreover, the entire property is certified organic. Both self-catering and bed-and-breakfast options are available, and other meals can be provided (ask in advance). Glamping and camping facilities are available in the summer months. A little store carries a few products as well as home-grown produce. You can get to the Flying Fox from Whanganui on the Whanganui River Road Mail Tour; if you're driving, there's secure parking on the road side of the river.