A freestanding bath tub in a hotel room immediately oozes luxury and indulgence. Extra points if there's a view, or if it's next to a roaring fireplace.
If there's a bath in my hotel, you can guarantee that I'll be rearranging my schedule to ensure I get a lengthy soak session in the tub.
It can be tricky to filter through all the beautiful hotels to determine which ones have suitable baths. So we've done the hard work for you and come up with this list of some of New Zealand's best hotels with a tub in the room.
Which one will you choose?
A clifftop bath at Pipinui Point, Wellington
"The bath, which technically falls under the bathroom category but in reality is something else altogether, is down a short wooden walkway leading off the deck, nestled among sheltering bushes, and overlooking the water. What's really great about the bath is that you can fill it remotely.
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"Our host, owner Tom Eastwick, tells us before he leaves that we can simply press a discreet silver button behind the TV in the house, and in about 40 minutes the bath will be ready. While it fills quite quickly, it takes some time to cool down to the right temperature, he says. It definitely feels like a luxury to walk out to the bath and find it already full. We had the bath ready to climb into just as the sun was setting over the sea. Perfection."
Old fashioned luxury charm at Otahuna Lodge, Canterbury
"I'm in awe not only at the number of armchairs that can fit into one bedroom suite, but also at the size of the bathroom with a large bath in the centre, sitting in front of one of the 15 fireplaces in the lodge and another armchair in the corner.
I imagine staying here in the middle of winter, soaking in the warm water in front of the fire, a glass of red wine in hand, with a soft robe hanging up on the wall for post-bathing comfort. An iPod sits on a dock on the bedside table with a playlist of light jazz and easy listening tunes including classics such as Danny Boy."
Ultimate indulgence at The Farm at Cape Kidnappers
"I cannot speak too highly, nor expansively, of the bath. So capacious, so rustic, so welcoming. Too welcoming! After getting in, I hardly got out, except for snacks and drinks from the complimentary minibar, and for cocktails, canapes, meals, massage, golf, multiple swims, relaxing walks, enormously long and deep sleeps, and a nighttime tour of the native bird sanctuary, during which we looked for wild kiwi using an incredible piece of apparatus that looked like a portable TV antenna.
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I first entered that bath, with a selection of excellent books, in the late afternoon of my first day. Arrayed around me on that bath at various times over the next two days, from either the lodge's kitchen or the complimentary minibar, were Four Stroke Pacific Pale Ale, Proper Potato Crisps, sparkling mineral water, sweet and salty popcorn, homemade fresh baked cookies, petit fours, croissants, Whittaker's chocolate sante bars (milk and dark) and a flat white made by the lodge's profoundly gifted German barista. Sometimes I would have three or four of these items lined up simultaneously, allowing me to choose between sweet, salt, savoury or booze, like an introverted Roman emperor."
Nature views at Nightsky cottage in Ruapehu
"One of Night Sky's brightest stars is the bathroom. It includes two side-by-side freestanding baths with trays where you can place a candle and a beverage. It overlooks the bush, but thanks to its location, is totally private. My 17-year-old daughter and I travelled with friends, so everyone brought togs to enjoy tandem soaks.
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"A walk-in shower, double vanities and gorgeous pōhutukawa print wallpaper round out this generous space. New Zealand-made natural soaps, oils, bath bombs and lotion add to the luxurious experience. The cucumber mint hand cream smells and feels fresh and clean."
A bath in the bedroom at Sudima, Auckland
"Yes, that is a bath in the bedroom. The toilet and shower are safely behind a separate door, but there's something ridiculously luxurious about a short swoon from a double-sized hot bath to queen-sized comfy bed. The latter's more centrally located than normal but you forget that once you sink into the pillows and point the remote at the enormous, Chromecast-capable telly.
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"A usefully long desk includes a few fun extras like an Amazon Echo (Alexa: Play popular 1980s music. Alexa: Please tell my boyfriend why George Michael matters) and a gratitude journal. The room was surprisingly quiet given the insanely traffic-busy street below, and the floor-to-ceiling view came alive at night - all Sky Tower and British artist Martin Creed's giant neon "Whatever" sculpture."
