Don't stay here,the owner is a nut job. We had booked online, when we arrived he was so rude and told us we hadn't booked as we hadn't paid before we arrived!!! Never heard of this before. They didn't have a room for us. I became very upset, he just got ruder and ruder, demanding that we left the property. He forcefully pushed my 70year old husband off the stairs narrowly missing a nasty fall. We were so upset we made a complaint to the police. We've never done that before, but he was a nasty bully of man that really shouldn't be dealing with the public.
Booked for two night: stayed for one. Damp dark cold and dirty. Pillows smelled of men’s sweat, dishes and cooker had dried food, pot had to be washed before using. Asked for refund, manager became agro “ can’t believe you would go to these lengths for a refund.” Thought about getting photos: wished I had. I stay in a lot of budget accommodation: never like this.
My partner and I were visiting our family in Auckland and decided to rent a van and drive up through Northland, stopping in at this town along the way… Given it was off-peak season, I called the owner ahead of time clarifying if there was space for a powered camper van site as on the website it said there was no space…. I also clarified the time the place shut… owner said 8pm which gave us a few hours before we would need to be there so we hiked up a Mountain prior. Come 6pm, we arrived and rang the bell… there was no one present within 10 minutes which is okay as it was late, however I did call to confirm that they were open until 8pm. Since no one came to the door, I rang and kindly let the owner know we were here. She was out within a minute and my partner spoke with her to pay for our site… The owner was not welcoming at all and did not say Hello upon our arrival. When we arrived at our site we could see 2 other vehicles in the campground. For a powered site we paid $43NZD which is on par with others that we have stayed on our trip… However to have a shower (even a cold one!) you have to pay 50c and only get 5 minutes. The bathrooms are in pretty good condition and were nice and clean. There were kitchen facilities which were good. Electric stove was free to use and they had plenty of utensils we could use. When paying for the ground there was no mention of a check-out time and since it was off-peak with plenty of other spots we wanted to enjoy our breakfast and coffee and it was raining so we were yet to plan our activities for the day. At 11am, the owner came down to our site and stood near our van as we were getting ready and tapped on her watch indicating that it was past 10am and we would have to pay $25 if we didn’t leave at that point… we found this really odd as there were no other sites occupied that we could see and there was no need for her to be rude when she had not told us a time to be out when we paid. Overall, it was a lovely site and has potential to be 5/5 if the owner was actually polite.…
Lovely spot right on the waterfront. Peaceful and pretty. Lots of potential. Close enough to Whangarei township to shop for supplies, but also not far to drive to the glorious ocean beaches. The camp’s access is quite tight for large vehicles. Amenities are basic but adequate. The bins were overflowing however, and remained so even after a couple of days, which detracted from the experience. Overall, the could do with a bit of investment and more TLC.
I can’t believe how harsh other reviews are, this is a low cost campground... our stay was exactly what we expected. The Blue Heron is your typical NZ campgrounds, if you find things substandard I suggest you try a motel as camping possibly isn’t for you. • We didn’t come for the WiFi, we came for a break. • We didn’t come for flash facilities, we came to relax. The Blue Heron is in a fantastic spot, and being small you’re guaranteed it’s not going to be overcrowded. While cheap and cheerful it’s tidy and has everything you need from a small campground including seaside powered sites. A lot of the sites are dirt/dust but if you come prepared it’s no biggie and the team at Blue Heron have done their best to minimise the issue. The kitchen/dining area has great views, the staff were super friendly and helpful. …
We were a bit weary after other reviews but we couldn’t have been happier! Our trip made up of four families started off with a friendly greeting and even lollipops for the kids. We had the large 3 bedroom house which suited us perfectly. Room 1: A queen bed and seperate little room attached with bunk beds lots of space Room 2: A bunk bed (double on the bottom) and another single Room 3: A queen bed and plenty of space all around for a portable cot A large lounge area with plenty of seating A kitchen with everything you need with a large fridge freezer and round dining table with plenty of seats Outside a deck overlooking the camp ground and fenced area with a clothing line. The bathroom is being redone so the brand new shower was excellent, not the best pressure but nice and clean. Everything we needed for a stay with 6 adults and 4 kids and all bedrooms separated at each end of the house so plenty of room. A very kiwi camp ground (no it’s not new) but everything you could need and very clean. The owners made us feel very welcome and we can’t wait to go back again soon. …
We stayed for two nights in December. The campground is quite small but the sites are a good size and if you are in the bottom section you are right by the sea which is just lovely. In the lower camp there are only two toilets and two showers - given the camp was full we gave up waiting as they were always busy. They are 50c for 5min if you lucky enough not to have a queue. The bathrooms are pretty tired but clean enough - old school concrete block. Great that can take dogs.
the campground is nicely situated (its a way out of town) but its getting old and the facilities need maintenance and upgrading (some work being undertaken when we were there). Trees around the campsite are a bit low if you have a 3M plus high van
We had a fabulous time visiting Whangarei heads and staying at this campsite. The site is not very big but it's intimate with good vibes. All facilities are near by. Toilets and showers were clean, and we didn't have trouble using the facilities even during peak time. The kitchen was clean and bonus with fridge, BBQ, and a few small appliances. The hot plate though, desperately needing an update. But we weren't too bothered since we brought our own gas cooker. Most sites have nice sea views while the beach is literally down the road. Ocean beach, Mt Manaia, Bream Head, Smugglers Bay etc are all within 15 mins drive from the site. A bit of a tip though, some grounds on this camp site are quite hare and dry, so if you are pitching a tent, make sure you being a hammer or something to hammer the pegs in. Overall we enjoyed our stay.…
The advertised pictures make this site look idyllic, but the reality is far from that unfortunately. 2 working toilets and showers for the whole camp and everything just needs a good revamp, including the female owner’s customer service skills.
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