We've really enjoyed our stay in the Bay of Islands at Robin and Rick's apartment. The area around Russell was beautiful (definitely nicer than Paihia on the other side of the bay) and the apartment was quite nice too. It was clean, had all the basics in the kitchen (including some breakfast essentials in the fridge) and the bathroom was modern with a spacious shower. The surroundings were very peaceful which made it great to relax on the deck. It was a fairly easy 10-15 min walk into town, although I admit I wasn't too sure about doing it at night as it involves walking directly on the road on a section, luckily traffic is quite limited. Robin and Rick were very welcoming and intent on making our stay comfortable.