We stayed for 3 nights in the Admiral's View Lodge. It was just the start of the season in Paihia so things were a little quiet.

It's a small family run place that feels very relaxed. The owners were very nice and offered lots of good advice on what to do and where to eat.

We had an upstairs room that had a beautiful view across the town and the bay. The room was a good size with everything you'd expect, it was very clean and obviously well maintained.

The location is good but its a 10 minute walk to the center of Paihia. It didn't bother us in the least as the Bay of Islands is very much an outdoor activity area. There's a couple of bars down the road, one of them, The Beach House, served up great burgers and music.

I'd recommend this place to anyone visiting Paihia.

We drove up to Paihia from Auckland, and spent two nights at the Admiral's View Lodge. My mom and I took one of the deluxe rooms (private balcony, huge spa jacuzzi tub) and my daughter and boyfriend shared the other. These two rooms look out over the Bay of Islands, and share a balcony. We were surprised to find full kitchen facilities, so my daughter cooked us up a nice dinner one night and we joined together in their room to enjoy it. We only ate out once during our stay. The lodge is within walking distance of the main part of town, and there are bikes available free of charge for guests. That was great fun since we hadn't biked in some time. I used the computer downstairs to check emails and my mom was able to do her laundry on our last morning. The hosts were friendly and helpful. I biked over to the local video store to rent a movie, but sadly they didn't have the one I wanted. No matter....we enjoyed music and regular television and each other's company. There are a few buildings between the lodge and the water front, but the view is still nice from the upstairs units. We paid $190 NZ for each room. It was a splurge, but that was the point. It was worth the price in this case. It is very well kept, and everything was in excellent working order. Large spacious rooms. A great place to relax.

I stayed in 8 different motels/lodges during my 3 week visit to NZ and the Admiral's View was by far the best accommodation. It was very clean and bright and the staff were really friendly. The lodge is set back from the water (about a 5 minute walk), but the view from our balcony was great. I felt very comfortable there and would not hesitate to recommend the Admiral's View to anyone.

Arrived in the evening to find somewhere and came across Admirals View - set back a bit from the beach in Paihia but with lovely views out across the bay. The family run lodge was well appointed and the room we picked was one on the front, and was a deluxe room for NZ$185. It was worth this as we had a king size bed, great shower, jacuzzi bath and a kitchenette, so this was one of the most comfortable rooms we stayed in. Paihia was a lovely small town - we recommend dinner at La Scala.