From $130
Studio Unit
Tastefully decorated, full kitchen, air-conditioning, hair dryer, iron and ironing board, 32″ LED television with SKY, and a generous shower.
Whanganui · New Zealand
Recently refurbished · 10 roomsTen rooms, fully rebuilt — new carpet, double glazing, SKY, recliners, 32″ LEDs. From $100 a night, two minutes from the river.
The Gateway
Gateway MotorLodge is not trying to be a resort. It is trying to be the easiest, quietest, best-kept bed in Whanganui — and for a long time, it wasn’t.
That has changed. Every room was taken back to the frame and rebuilt: new carpet throughout, new double glazing in every window, recliner chairs that actually recline, 32″ LED televisions with SKY. Nothing was patched. The result is a strip of motorway accommodation that does something quietly difficult — it feels considered, not merely functional.
In every room
Free Wi-Fi. SKY television. New carpet. New double glazing. Recliner chairs. A 32″ LED television. On-site parking. Full kitchens.
Not one of these is a surprise. All of them are the reason the rooms feel the way they do — and the reason people book the same room twice.
Accommodation
Seven studio units, one new one-bedroom apartment and two two-bedroom apartments with their own lounges. Every one refurbished, air-conditioned and connected to free wireless internet.
Every unit reclines, settles and silences.
The quiet
Heads Road runs close to the motorway. Every window in the motel has since been replaced with new double glazing — a real barrier to traffic noise, not a film over old glass. The rooms are lovely and quiet.
New glazing in every window, and new sills to match. You feel it in the silence, not in the specification.
Every floor was replaced rather than cleaned, which is the kind of upgrade you feel before you notice it.
Two recliners in every studio, and a 32″ LED television with SKY to finish the evening.
Sleeping
Seven studio units carry a queen; some add a single in the same room. The two two-bedroom apartments divide into a queen in the main bedroom and two singles in the second.
2 Bedroom · second bedroom
Every unit
Every room
Full kitchens in the apartments.
Kitchenettes in the studios.
Kitchen
The studios carry a kitchenette: electric jug, toaster, fridge, microwave. The apartments have full kitchen facilities — oven, hob, sink, everything.
Connected
Free wireless internet throughout, a 32″ LED television and SKY in every room. Next to the hospital, five minutes from the airport, a minute from the motorway — which is precisely why so many guests are here on business.
Room to work
Coffee before the city wakes
Warm light, considered details
Crisp linen, every change
Location
59 Heads Road: next to Whanganui Base Hospital, a minute off the motorway, five from the airport. Cross the Cobham Bridge and you are in the centre, with the river at the end of it.
Across the river and on to the cycle bridge — two minutes from the motel.
Things to do
Whanganui is a beautiful, friendly community with the river running straight through the middle of it — and we are two minutes away. These are the places our guests go first; the two best starting points for everything else are whanganuionline.com and whanganuinz.co.nz.
Waterfront
The Whanganui River
The river that runs through the centre of the city — and past the motel itself.
The centre
Town Bridge & the city
Cross the bridge and the shops, cafés and river walk are two minutes away.
Whanganui, 1908
Outdoors
River trails & the Cycle Bridge
Walks, climbs and the ride out to the Upokongaro cycle bridge.
On the water
Riverboat Wairua
A piece of working river history, tied up on the Whanganui.
The region
Country & the ranges
A friendly city ringed by open farmland, with the ranges close behind it.
The view
The river from above
The settlement of Kaiwhaiki on the river road, west of the city.
Whanganui, 1908
One of the country’s finest small galleries, and home to a serious collection.
Regional history, on the river, in the old Riverboat Centre.
New Zealand glass and studio craft, made in the city.
Produce, craft and street food on the riverfront.
Swimming, playgrounds and space for the kids to run.
Two sites have the town properly covered, and both are worth bookmarking before you arrive — especially if you are here for the market, the gallery or a walk.
Book direct
Check live availability and book at any hour. Or ring Yan on 06 345 8164 / 027 306 5586 — someone will pick up — and we will answer an email the same working day.
From $100 / night
See tonight’s rates