Known for everything from its outdoor adventure culture to the rolling green hills and dramatic fjords that served as the backdrop of the epic film series “Lord Of The Rings,” the island nation of New Zealand often tops the list in various surveys on “dream destinations” for travelers.
An isolated location in the South Pacific Ocean that is many thousands of miles away from many other parts of the world is what keeps it at the “dream” stage for many.
While the most common accommodations for visitors to New Zealand are regular hotels, motels, and apartment-hotels, those who do make it this far will now have a new option to stay in extra-luxurious accommodations: the 21-room Earnscleugh Castle mansion built in the 1920s by local sheep farmer and canned rabbit meat entrepreneur Stephen Spain.
Spain earned his fortune at the start of the century by turning the rabbits that were swarming the nearby Earnscleugh Station into canned rabbit meat that became an invaluable export abroad to British soldiers during World War II, reported Otago Daily Times.
Historic Earnscleugh Castle opens as New Zealand luxury lodge after renovation
The wealth earned through the canned-meat empire enabled Spain to hire prominent Kiwi architect Edmund Anscombe to build a Jacobethean-style grand manor with a red facade and a balcony that he envisioned as a refuge should diseases like the 1918 influenza spread through the South Island of the country.
Earnscleugh Castle is located in a fairly remote location near the historic gold mining town of Clyde in the Central Otago region. Christchurch, which is the largest city on the South Island, is a five-hour drive away.
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The Great Depression and the post-WWI drop in the need for canned rabbit meat left Spain short on funds and a large section of the manor unfinished. Between the unfinished state and the entrepreneur’s eccentric vision and fears of disease, the estate became known locally as “Spain’s Folly” and was eventually officially registered as a historic estate by Heritage New Zealand in 1997.
Due to its remote nature and high upkeep, the property eventually grew derelict when it was purchased by Auckland couple Ryan Sanders and Marco Creemers in 2022.
Earnscleugh Castle
Earnscleugh Castle opens to visitors to New Zealand’s South Island
Following a NZ$11 million (approximately $6.29 million) renovation over the last four years, Sanders and Creemers have opened Earnscleugh Castle as a luxury adults-only lodge earlier this month.
The renovation brought Spain’s longtime project to a final close more than a century later with the addition of a formal dining room, library and ballroom in keeping with the historic style of the era.
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Amenities to entice guests include a swimming pool, sauna, spa, and ice bath, as well as croquet on the garden grounds to get fully into the spirit of a different time.
A classic room in the 106-year-old property starts at NZ$899 NZD ($514) during the low season and can go up to more than $15,000 for a full buyout that the new owners expect to be another option for filming, corporate retreats, and other high-end events.
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