Your Hosts

After many years of travelling around the world, Eric and Karen met each other in Malawi, Africa in 1996.  They decided to continue their adventures and eventually, Karen moved to Seattle (Eric's home town) to see how things would go.  Not long afterwards they were married in their apartment with a small group of family and friends.  Almost thirty years later and after raising two beautiful children, they decided that it was time to move to Karen's home country, Aotearoa (New Zealand).   

Through the years, they had spoken about how they wanted to make a change regarding their careers.  Since they had both worked in Hospitality and Tourism they became interested in pursuing a future in the hospitality industry.  After much research and discussion, they came across an advert for the sale of Waipoua Lodge, which seemed perfectly suited to their backgrounds and aspirations. So, they planned a return trip back to New Zealand to see friends and family and embarked on a road trip around the North Island, making sure to drop by the Lodge and have a look around.  They met the prior owners of the Lodge, and after an invitation for a picnic at their favorite spot near a river, and learning more about the lodge, they decided they had found their next adventure and bought the lodge.

Eric’s career has been in Food and Beverage with a bachelor’s degree in hospitality.  He spent many years working in high end restaurants as an Executive Chef in the Seattle area before developing and directing Seattle's Amazon Food and Beverage program for several years.  More recently, he worked as an Inn Keeper at an historic lodge on Whidbey Island, a beautiful island in the San Juan Island chain north of Seattle. His passion is service and a love of creating special experiences for people by showing his love through food and drink.  He believes that real hospitality comes from anticipating needs and creating a custom experience for each guest.

Karen formerly worked in International Digital Marketing before joining the Travel Industry, where she worked for many years, creating custom high-end packages to New Zealand, Australia and the South Pacific.  She is known in the industry as one of the most experienced, knowledgeable and professional experts in her field and ascended to a position of managing other travel experts. This also meant many trips 'Down Under' to conduct research for exotic luxury resorts and hotels.  In all her travels, she has learned what it takes to create a transformational experience by learning about her clients and their preferences and using that information to create experiences that go above and beyond expectations.  

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Relax at Waipoua Lodge, explore the rugged Kauri Coast and see what you can spy,

We serve you fresh New Zealand food and beverages, and share our knowledge of the surrounding area.

When you choose to continue your travels, your load will be somewhat lighter,

There’s no weight to carry memories always, and they can make your life much brighter.

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