Oneroa Estate, a property on ThirdHome. Photo / Peter Rees
Newly launched in Aotearoa, ThirdHome is branded as an ‘Airbnb for millionaires’, so what’s it like at a property? Sarah Pollok heads to Waiheke to see.
Standing on the giant patio wrapped around the equally large hilltop estate, it’s challenging to imagine how one could tire of this, how one could ever want to trade their cinematic spot on Waiheke’s Oneroa ridgeline for anything else.
Flopping onto the long outdoor daybed, I drink in the quilt of vivid blues that stretches out to the horizon on the left and meets the rocky coastline and sandy shore to the right, where several pristine white yachts bob just beyond the shallows. One ocean view would be enough — yet just to the right is Huriri Bay, and behind the property, Owhanake Bay edges into view.
However, we’re here because of novelty and familiarity and excitement, and how they alchemise. Because even the most breathtaking places can lose a little shine over time, and we start to hunger for something different. This is one of travel’s greatest appeals: the chance to substitute the familiar delights for, not something necessarily better, but novel and thus delightful in a unique way.
It’s also, in my eyes, one of the greatest appeals of a company like ThirdHome, which brands itself as Airbnb for millionaires. Recently launched in Aotearoa, the concept is simple: list your luxury holiday home (if it meets the high-class standards) and earn points you use to stay in one of the 19,000 other luxury homes worldwide.
So, while I can stand on the patio and enjoy the million-dollar view ($10 million to be precise), and think owners insane for ever leaving this Edenic two-winged mansion, the softening of familiarity and sparkle of novelty will always have us eventually look to shake things up elsewhere.
I’ve had it myself, as someone fortunate enough to spend childhood summers at a bach in the Coromandel. It’s simply the beach or the bach or the ocean sunset until a newcomer arrives and I can piggyback on their awe, seeing it all for the first time. Today, my husband and I are the newcomers staying one night at this Oneroa ThirdHome property, and we’re aptly giddy at the novelty.
That’s not to say that this place is simply nice because it’s different. It’s valued around $10m, and you can feel every cent, from the patio hot tub and lap pool to the television room draped with sumptuous throws, surround sound system or marble slab kitchen seemingly torn from a page of Architecture Digest, equipped with everything from Nespresso pods to cast-iron pans. Sleeping 14, the place seems designed for large family gatherings with two distinct wings, one either side of the kitchen and living room, each with a four-bed bunk room and a master super king bedroom with an ensuite.
The style leans hard into classy coastal with an abundance of sky blue, tan and white, among wooden furniture and shells.
Like the kitchen, the rooms are the perfect blend of opulence and functional comfort, and it feels like every desire has been considered. There are multiple places to nestle up with a book plucked from the large bookcase, and the outward-facing kitchen makes the most of the view, while my mother would delight at the number of bathrooms (three) and giant linen closet. Spaces are pristine but feel used, because they are, likely by the big, smiling family framed on the wall. All to say, you don’t feel nervous about sitting on a couch or using a towel.
Arriving at the end of an incredibly, but not unusually, busy week, we step through the conservatory entrance and I am instantly validated in my decision to not plan any activities and instead enjoy the property. It’s a place where you want to do nothing but laze around and we do exactly that after a comprehensive but brief walk around by the property manager, who gives a few recommendations, then promptly leaves us to it.
Given the beautiful interiors, we would’ve been perfectly content had Auckland done its classic thing and torrentially poured. Fortunately, we are treated to blue skies, fluffy clouds and 17°C heat, a true gift this late in the year. Books in hand, we settle on the deck for hours, rising only to fetch ice-cold drinks and gourmet bites provided by local organic deli, Island Grocer.
By 4pm, it’s time to explore and we drive down through the property vineyards to Oneroa, a little township seven minutes away. In proper holiday fashion, we lazily browse the boutiques and little galleries. Of course, no Waiheke trip is complete without seeing at least one vineyard, and after swapping denim shorts for proper pants, we hightail it to Tantalus. Between the vineyard-coated hills, villa-inspired stone building, and final, rich rays of sunshine, the place feels like a European dream.
Eager to make the most of the final sunny moments, we grab a table outside and meet Linda Jones, the cellar door manager who takes us through a tasting. Deeply passionate, Jones talks affectionately about each wine on offer and we happily take her lead as she pours us a lineup of our favourites. There’s a perfectly balanced méthode traditionnelle and sweet chardonnay, a luscious Écluse Reserve 2014 and a Merlot-dominant Évoque Reserve 2015. Each visit, she deposits a little more of her wisdom about the soils and tasting profiles, Tantalus’ history and the value of French oak.
At some point, a plate of freshly baked focaccia and whipped butter arrives, and we tell Linda our silly fantasy of starting a restaurant that serves only butter and bread. “Don’t move,” she grins, dashing to the kitchen to get a slice of honeycomb made of butter, the tiny hexagons filled with black garlic sauce and fermented honey. It’s as good as it sounds.
Unwilling to let the night end, we let ourselves be tempted downstairs to the Alibi Brewing for a tasting paddle. The industrial little room, lined with clay brick and candle-lit, feels like the perfect winter nook to enjoy a drink and nibble. And of course, while dozens of equally charming bars await back home, none come with quite the same sparkle of somewhere new.
ThirdHome | exchange.thirdhome.com
Tantalus Estate | tantalus.co.nz
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