We spent almost three weeks at Russell and Karen’s place, and we enjoyed our stay in the Bay of Islands immensely. The house was a great base to explore Northland and was close to all that Paihia has to offer. There’s also a good café and fish and chip shop down at the Opua wharf. Russell was a pleasure to deal with, and the day on their boat that came with the booking of their house was simply amazing. An unforgettable experience. Like an earlier guest, we did experience some road noise while we were staying at the house when windows and doors are open, but you do get used to it. Great to have the hot tub to enjoy, and we had some lovely meals out on the deck amongst the trees. The deck also has a great overhang so that you can stay dry and warm outside even if the fickle Northland summer weather throws in a bit of rain.