I enjoyed my time at 'Villa Dare' and would happily stay again.
The bedroom is large, with a comfy bed, a desk, and even a small fridge stocked with a few goodies. The bathroom is also a good size with a powerful shower and comes off the bedroom such that it is unconnected to the rest of the house, making it particularly private. The house is in a quiet residential area, up a driveway and therefore away from the road. It's close to a supermarket, some decent places to eat, and Cornwall Park, Auckland's best open space, as well as being near public transport and major road links. It's a fairly typical Auckland detached house, in that there are many other houses nearby but it feels cut off from them once you are inside. There's a spacious open plan lounge/diner/kitchen downstairs and Jenny encouraged me to spend time here and use the facilites if I wanted to. There were a couple of other people staying but I saw them only briefly and it felt more like I had the place to myself. Jenny is an excellent and characterful host - she is a can-do and has-done sort of person with plenty of interesting anecdotes and views to share if you are interested and have the time but she would also be happy to leave you to yourself if that is what you prefer. In short, she's a relaxed, engaging, and generous host with a well-presented and comfortable house.