Hawkdun Rise Vineyard & Accommodation

A beautiful vineyard with wonderful owners. We stayed for one night, and everything was perfect—warm, clean, and beautiful. From the moment we arrived, Suzanne and John welcomed us with such warmth, making our stay even more special. Breakfast was delicious, too! Tip: book for more than one night—you’ll want to stay longer!

The accommodations at Hawkdun Rise are very good as was the breakfast, but it was not the experience we were hoping for. Suzanne and John were welcoming hosts, and have a lovely property and cute dogs and puppies. Although they offer their guests one glass of their wine before dinner, (in the hopes that you will then want to buy a bottle), we were expecting to really learn more about their vineyard during our stay. Apparently they grow their grapes, pick them with help from friends and then ship them off to another facility that handles the rest of the process. Besides that, they really were not inclined to talk about their vineyard. We were also excited to share a meal with them at dinner, but soon learned that they would not be eating with us. Suzanne served us as we ate alone while another guest drank his wine in the adjacent living room waiting to go out to dinner with friends. The dinner, an entree and dessert, included fresh vegetables from their garden, but we thought it was overpriced at $65 per person. We ate a much better 3 course meal at the Rees Hotel in Queenstown for the same money. We didn't expect a comparable meal since Suzanne is not a professional chef, but we did hope for some friendly conversation since the meal was a simple one. We have traveled extensively and often stay at bed and breakfasts. When dinner was offered, we never sat alone at a table but were either joined by other guests or by the owners themselves who always participated in a discussion.

We spent just one night with Suzanne and John. We slept very well, awoke to a gorgeous view and enjoyed a delicious breakfast. As others have commented, much of the produce was home grown and we loved the raspberries which had been picked that morning. John and Suzanne have three Maltese terriers, we have one too, so we were delighted. They don't interfere with the guests, but are just little white clouds who occasionally appear. Would thoroughly recommend a stay at Hawkdun Rise.