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Overview
Have you imagined yourself being able to spend time away from the frantic pace of everyday life? Have you pictured yourself riding a horse into the sunset? Have you wondered how you would feel as you helped paddle a raft through a Grade 5 rapid?
Have you visualised yourself cruising down a beautiful river, surrounded by immense cliffs? Can you see yourself just relaxing by the river, a good book and glass of wine in hand? Do you hear the sound of the river, the cicadas chirruping in summer, native birds calling to each other in the dawn chorus, the harsh cry of a New Zealand falcon sliencing them all as it flys overhead? At the end of the day after being out adventuring, just how would you want to feel when you returned to River Valley Lodge? Would you want to enjoy freshly made tasty food?
A soak in the hot tub would be a great way to ease some worked muscles. A couple of drinks reliving the days experiences with friends and other adventurers is always fun. And at the end of the evening you can take yourself off to a king sized bed in one of our deluxe guest rooms.
At River Valley Lodge we major in traditional fresh country style cooking.
This means you can enjoy locally sourced meat at the evening meal accompanied with a mix of fresh seasonal vegetables, many from our own gardens. Entrees are normally soups, fresh salads, or selections of local cheeses and spreads. Dinner during the winter is set menu, and served at a fixed time (7.00pm). We cook lamb, beef, pork and chicken, with each meat alternating night to night. That is lamb one night, beef the next and so on.
Our chefs certainly know how to prepare extremely delicious desserts. Make sure to check out the dessert menu board, and prepare to indulge.
Our on site vegetable garden supplies many of our summer salad vegetables, ensuring freshness and taste.
Activities
Can you picture this?
Do you ever picture yourself on a horse at sunset, the landscape covered in a warm glow? Do you ever picture yourself in a raft floating beneath immense cliffs amid patches of native forest? The water warm, the sunlight sparkling on the many small rapids. Do you ever picture yourself with a look of excitement on your face, and the adrenaline in your body, as you ride a raft down a Grade 5 rapid? Have you ever had the slightly queasy feeling in your stomach, a mixture of fear and excitement, as you board the helicopter that is taking you on your next adventure? What say that at the end of each day you return to River Valley Lodge for great food, maybe a soak in the hot tub, some warm camaraderie with other guests and staff, a glass........or maybe two, of a good wine, and a comfortable bed.
Guest reviews
Veronica & Michael - October 2008
Hi Brian & Nicola! We just wanted to thank you for our great stay at River Valley a couple of weeks ago! Now we are back in Sweden, where it's raining a lot and getting cold. But the colors of fall are fantastic! We also have a very fat horse after 3 weeks of doing nothing, while we had the time of our lives in NZ! River Valley was definately one of the biggest highlights of our trip! Great hospitality and friendly staff in really beautiful surroundings. Starting out with rafting in the morning, horse trekking at sunset, and finally a great dinner! We had a great and exciting time! Thank you so much!
Pieter & Frina Albertyn - June 2008
The management and staff at River Valley Lodge. Please convey our thanks to all involved with our stay over there on Saturday night. We had made a booking for three of us to stay at the lodge over night. We then picked up our mom in Wellington earlier that day. We did not appreciate how limited her mobility had become, since last we had seen her. Mom now really struggles to walk. The staff was very accommodating and moved us into units 7 and 8. Doing this meant that Mom had only a short way to go in and out of the vehicle and she could get to the dining area without having to climb any staircases. We enjoyed our stay and will most definitely be back !
Rebecca Hawke 27th March 2009
On behalf of Cheal Consultants Ltd, I would heartily recommend River Valley Lodge as a corporate retreat. The stunning riverside setting not only offers tranquility and the opportunity to focus on your strategic planning session, but provides superb facilities whether you want a conference room or the opportunity to sit around the lounge for a more casual discussion. With a range of excellent accommodation options and food to die for, the staff of River Valley provided us with a discreet yet proactive service you don’t often see these days. Hats off and thumbs up for a great experience. We’ll certainly come back again.
Sheryl & Marc Khull 5th March 2009
We had a really great two days at River Valley. The horse riding trek was great thanks to Michelle (assisted by Chestnut & Gypsy). Tell Michelle the two Muppet characters she was trying to think of are Stadler & Waldorf. The highlight though was our rafting trip down the river ably guided by Liz. The scenery was awesome and the weather was kind. It was great we were able to go even though there was only the two of us and Liz worked hard, with only a little help from our paddles, to keep us off the rocks and out of trouble. Thank you all once again, we hope we will be able to come back some time, (may be for longer horse trek?).
Christie King and family - October 2008
Firstly thank you for a wonderful stay on Monday night, it was really wonderful and you are all so lovely! We were just blown away by the atmosphere and beauty of River Valley Lodge – even though the weather wasn’t the best. We are hoping to come back as a family each year or two as a family over summer time, as it just seems like a wonderful place to make some lasting family traditions and memories. Jason and I are also very keen to come back in December (without the kids) for a night close to our wedding anniversary. We would probably look at coming up on Friday or Saturday and doing the “double trouble” package. We would also have a chance then to have a hot spa, massage and a rafting trip the next day. How are you guys placed for bookings at the moment on about the 5th or 6th of december? Thank you again we had a wonderful time and will be recommending you to our friends and family,
Danna & Bill March 2009
River Valley. Incredible location. Wonderful accommodations – a rustic feel but all the necessities in our room. Great food – wonderfully prepared using fresh vegetables from their garden. Staff – gracious, helpful, engaging. Fly Fishing – Bill has his own guide who was excellent; knowledgeable, patient, helpful and an interesting person as well. Bill caught a rainbow trout fly fishing but did switch to a spinning rod later in the day. Horseback ride – It was supposed to be 2 hours but it turned into more like 3 ½. The guide was wonderful, experienced and did an excellent job of matching rider and horse. Small group (7 including guide). We rode over several farms with incredible views. A chance to run if I wanted, which I did. I was pleased to discover I remembered how to ride and I wasn’t sore the next day. With the day lost because of travel complications we didn’t get to go rafting, which we would have enjoyed. Did get to hike the canyon wall and back. Highly recommend this resort – can’t say enough positive about our time here.
Rooms & Accommodation
Deluxe Guest Rooms (7)
Deluxe Guest Rooms (7)
Sleeps: 2 Cost: from NZD 169-175 per room
Enjoy a high standard of comfort after your day of adventure! Our newest addition to accommodation options at River Valley are guest rooms with private bathrooms. These rooms, situated either in the gardens or by the river, are comfortable and stylish.
Each room features it's own unique decor. Each bathroom is tiled in a own distinctive pattern reflecting the local environment. All bathrooms have under floor heating.
Each of the seven guest rooms, Paua, Native, Burgundy, Blue, Classic, Harmony and Funky, have King size beds. Each room also has tea and coffee making facilities. Paua and native in addition have a single bed meaning the room can also be used a treble. All our guest rooms with private bathrooms (ensuited), are within our wireless hotspot range.
Double rooms
Double rooms
Sleeps: 2 Cost: from NZD 65-75 per room
Within the main Lodge we have a number of comfortable double and twin rooms. Each room opens on to an outside balcony, with views of the river and bush.
Get at one with nature by opening your outside door on to your balcony and feeling the ambience of New Zealand native bush and the Rangitikei River.
Bunk rooms
Bunk rooms
Sleeps: 6 Cost: from NZD 30 per person
Built in 1997, and called the Terrace Block, this was the first major building project undertaken at River Valley since the main Lodge in 1986/87.
Our local builder, and superb craftsman, Ray Wesselson, undertook this project, with a little help from us. I feel sure that the project took a little longer than necessary, but it was a very pleasant summer.
The aim was to create a number of comfortable rooms supplying standard backpacker style accommodation. Built with a connecting balcony, the Terrace Block has a customer kitchen, toilets, 4 bunk rooms; Green Meadows, Blue Skies, Lava and Seaglow, 3 ensuited rooms, Paua and Native, and an ensuited family room.. This block provides ideal accommodation for independent backpackers and travelers.
The bunk rooms each sleep 6, and are provided fully supplied with linen and duvets. This is where we prefer to place independents who want backpacker style accommodation.
The view out each rooms front door is stunning, with native forest, the Rangitikei River, and opposite, a waterfall that cascades several hundred feet. This really is New Zealand the way you imagined it would be.
Camping
Camping
Cost: from NZD 15 per person
Waking to the sound of the River, and the early morning bird chorus.
These are the sounds and the mood of the River Valley camping area. The camping area is conveniently located adjacent to the Lodge, set amongst gardens and trees.
Campers are able to use the customer kitchen to cook for themselves, or join us in the restaurant of the main Lodge.
All other Lodge facilities are available for your use, including laundry facilities, email, and telephone.
We welcome both tenters and campervans, but please note that there are no powered sites. Our camping area is primarily for the use of guests who are overnighting with us in order to take part in one of our adventures.
River Valley Lodge is nestled in a pristine natural environment alongside the Rangitikei River, Staff and owners feel privileged to share this with you, along with the exciting activities we have to offer such as rafting and horse trekking.
River Valley lodge wishes to operate in an eco-friendly manner in order to preserve the unique environment in which we operate.
To this effect we are working to reduce our carbon footprint, by taking conservation measures and having a waste management program in place.
We encourage guests to help us help our environment by-
Saving water - replacing towels on towel racks if they are happy to keep using them, only those on the floor will be washed
Saving energy- turning lights off when not in rooms to conserve power, with many outside lights on sensors
Recycling- bins are displayed for customer use in the main lodge and customer kitchen
Toilet Systems- placing sanitary items in the bins provided so they do not enter the sewage treatment system
Rubbish – being prepared to take rubbish back with you when out on walking tracks there will not be any bins
Current Initiatives guests may notice around the lodge-
• We use energy saving light bulbs and natural lighting where possible around the lodge • Toilet systems use a natural filtration process, water is reused to irrigate native tree plantings • Composting systems are used to recycle raw vegetables, other food scraps go to pigs • A herb and vegetable garden is maintained onsite for use in our kitchen • We participate in various community activities in our local district • Hot-water is maintained by a wood fired boiler system which also disposes of cardboard and paper waste • A native plant regeneration site is being prepared above the golf course
Over the last few years River Valley Lodge has reduced electricity use by 20%, and reduced its overall carbon footprint by 10%.
Our Trusted Partner's Responsible and Sustainable Travel Policy
To preserve and enhance our physical environment, making it better than the way we found it.
River Valley operates beside the Rangitikei River , one of the worlds' most beautiful places. Our visitors have a huge amount of appreciation of the unspoiled and unpolluted landscape. River Valley is committed to minimising and mitigating the impact of our operations on this environment.
We have introduced a comprehensive environmental plan, through our involvement with ebex21. We will also encourage our business partners and clients to embrace our environmental vision.
We have developed some, and will develop further systems to minimise our environmental footprint. These may extend beyond the recycling and tree planting programmes we already have in place.
To this end we are currently working through a participation programme with carboNZero. The carboNZero programme is either a participation or certification process to recognise organisations for reducing their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and neutralising their remaining unavoidable emissions. The carboNZero programme is administered by Landcare Research and is the result of over 5 years of credible research.
Environmental results and achievements to date include:
* Commissioning of a state of the art sewage treatment plant that treats our water waste to an extremely high standard and then disperses it to our areas of native plant regeneration. * Meeting of our goals to plant a minimum of 200 square metres of native trees and shrubs per annum - in addition most of these plants are transplanted seedlings grown at River Valley within our gardens and transplanted. * Ongoing opossum control. While the results of this are anecdotal, there appears to be an explosion in the native bird population around the Lodge.
Social
To effectively communicate our values, to stakeholders and local community. To be a catalyst for positive change in our community.
We recognise that we have a profound social effect on the rural community in which we operate. We aim to ensure that we provide a positive interface to our local community that will enhance and improve the relationship between them and the tourism industry.
We aim to have staff that are motivated, happy in their work, and realising their potential. We will provide some of the means for this to be achieved.
About our Trusted Partner
Since 1982, when a white water rafting operation was started by Nicola's Megaw's parents, Brian and Robin Sage, we have taken many thousands of people down different sections of the Rangitikei River in the central North Island of New Zealand. From 1987 they have also been able to stay at River Valley Lodge. Shortly after the Lodge opened a horse trekking operation was also added to our variety of activities.
Nicola and I have now been directly involved with River Valley for 23 years. Our two oldest daughters, Janey and Melissa also have important roles within the company.
Our focus is on being able to provide guests with not only uplifting adventure experiences, but experiences that are also fun, and that does not have to mean a Grade 5 rafting trip. It could also have them enjoying a beautifully cooked country style meal, with much of the produce coming from our own gardens, a glass of wine overlooking the river, or picking up their camera or paint brush and taking part in one of our Art or Photography workshops. Our Sauna and Spa development is part of our desire to create a more holistic experience for our guests that incorporates adventure, local food and wine, deep relaxation and a degree of comfort.
We have also developed a business relationship with our local Maori Iwi (tribe). This has lead to the development of a guided walk on the sacred mountain, Aorangi. This walk, or hikoi in Maori, is not only rich in scenery and flora and fauna, but our Maori guides also give the participants an insight into Maori lore associated with the mountain, and its natural inhabitants.
Our future plans involve a greater emphasis on encouraging guests to stay longer and giving them more opportunity to immerse themselves in our unique environment, providing them with a more meaningful experience. With changes we are presently implementing in our overall operation, this will see us reducing the number of people who can stay overnight at River Valley Lodge itself.
Situated in an exclusive setting beside the Rangitikei River is River Valley Lodge : River Valley Lodge at www.NatureandKind.com (THE.NATURAL.CHOICE)
Situated in an exclusive setting beside the Rangitikei River is River Valley Lodge
The Grade (Class5) section of the Rangitikei River : River Valley Lodge at www.NatureandKind.com (THE.NATURAL.CHOICE)
The Grade (Class5) section of the Rangitikei River
Fly Fishing success at River Valley Lodge : River Valley Lodge at www.NatureandKind.com (THE.NATURAL.CHOICE)
Fly Fishing success at River Valley Lodge
Horse back riding over the magnificent Rangitikei hill country with River Valley Stables : River Valley Lodge at www.NatureandKind.com (THE.NATURAL.CHOICE)
Horse back riding over the magnificent Rangitikei hill country with River Valley Stables
The views from a relaxed walk near River Valley Lodge : River Valley Lodge at www.NatureandKind.com (THE.NATURAL.CHOICE)
The views from a relaxed walk near River Valley Lodge
The sacred mountain, Aorangi, home of our guided hikes : River Valley Lodge at www.NatureandKind.com (THE.NATURAL.CHOICE)
The sacred mountain, Aorangi, home of our guided hikes
Relaxing in the wood fired traditional sauna at the River Valley Spa : River Valley Lodge at www.NatureandKind.com (THE.NATURAL.CHOICE)
Relaxing in the wood fired traditional sauna at the River Valley Spa
Grade 5 action on the Rangitikei River, New Zealand : River Valley Lodge at www.NatureandKind.com (THE.NATURAL.CHOICE)
Grade 5 action on the Rangitikei River, New Zealand
Summer holiday fun on the Rangitikei River : River Valley Lodge at www.NatureandKind.com (THE.NATURAL.CHOICE)
Summer holiday fun on the Rangitikei River
Horse back riding at sunset with River Valley Stables : River Valley Lodge at www.NatureandKind.com (THE.NATURAL.CHOICE)
Horse back riding at sunset with River Valley Stables
The mighty volcano Ruapehu is seen from a heli hike : River Valley Lodge at www.NatureandKind.com (THE.NATURAL.CHOICE)
The mighty volcano Ruapehu is seen from a heli hike
A Corporate Expedition into the Headwaters of the Rangitikei River : River Valley Lodge at www.NatureandKind.com (THE.NATURAL.CHOICE)
A Corporate Expedition into the Headwaters of the Rangitikei River
In order to use the Send to a Friend facility you must be logged in.
Please either log in above, or register if you are not already a friend of Nature & Kind.
In 2003 River Valley entered the Centreport Business Awards for our region, the Rangitikei. We were named not only as the winners of the Wanganui UCOL Excellence in Marketing Award, but we also took out the Supreme Business Award for all business in the Rangitikei in 2003.
2006 Supreme Winner, Rangitikei Business Awards
In November 2006, at a presentation in Marton, River Valley was awarded not only the Best Hospitality Business Award, but also the Supreme Award for the top business of all types within the Rangitikei District.
NZ Tourism Award - Small Operator of the Year 2004
The Judges recognised the company's dedication in awarding it the Small Tourism Business Operator Award, saying: "Brian and the team are incredibly committed - they are a great example of a business meeting the challenges of a remote location."
