Waihōanga Riverside Lodge and Retreat is a group lodge in the Ōtaki Gorge, at 32 Waihōanga Road, on the Kāpiti Coast. It is about an hour's drive from Wellington and Palmerston North, and is used for retreats, workshops, conferences, hui, family reunions and weddings, as well as yoga, meditation and singing retreats. The main lodge sleeps up to 22 people in three rooms. There are also two chicken and rooster huts with bunk beds, and two cabins, the Kākāpō and the Kiwi, each with a double bed and sleeping up to two. The website describes private, self-contained accommodation with neighbours nearby. The site has four indoor trestle tables for non-food use. Weekend bookings need a two-night minimum, Friday and Saturday, and standard times are arrival at 3 pm and departure at 10 am on weekdays, or 2 pm on Sundays. Early arrival from 9.30 am on Tuesdays to Fridays and late departure can be requested. Community and school discounts are available, and custom quotes are given for events.
The lodge is reached by car, or by train to Waikanae or Ōtaki, with a 15-minute taxi or pick-up. A bus stop in Ōtaki is 20 minutes away. A charging station for electric cars is on site, and the lodge sits a few kilometres downstream from Ōtaki Forks on the river. A returning guest says the lodge has warmth, beauty and character, and that they have been to weddings, workshops and weekend retreats there. For a group wanting a retreat or event in a river setting near Wellington, the lodge has the rooms and spaces for it.