The Mother of all Baby Grands

By Charlie Scott, Trufflepig Travel Inc, Toronto.

Even in a country as small as New Zealand, a three room hotel (for lack of a better word) is considered tiny. And yet, somehow there's something about Edenhouse, in the Nelson/Abel Tasman area of the South Island, that isn't little at all.
Like any masterpiece Edenhouse plays the scales beautifully, twisting large and small together. Take the main house, for instance. As you approach the property, it seems fairly modest in size-a spot of cream architecture dropped on the rich green hills of the Orinoco Valley. And then, standing in the gardens directly in front of the house, it starts to feel quite grand-a big breath of classical proportion. The paradox continues inside, where the two guest rooms (the third is in a separate cottage) are actually vast suites-acreage as much as accommodation. I remember a hockey coach once telling me that it's not the size of the man in the fight, but the size of the heart of the man in the fight. And therein lies the secret to the success of Edenhouse: Peter and Bobbie Martin. Big-hearted owners and phenomenally gracious hosts, the Martins baked Edenhouse from scratch. They picked the plum spot, designed and decorated the house, and cultivated acres of garden and orchard. In this age of ultra luxe and patterned service, it's refreshing to stay somewhere that stands out for the simple reason that it's real and the owners really care.