About Us

Piwaka Lodge & Backpackers is Picton's newest hostel accommodation, yet also one of Picton's oldest being a guest house from 1947 until the 1970s. It was then a resthome for many years before being refurbished in 2016.

It is now a work in progress to bring back the original vision and feel that Harvey Bateman Esq had for the building back in 1947, a perfect fit for Nicci's passion for the town she has called home for 22 years.

Nicci is following in her family's hospitality footsteps.

Her Grandma owned a guesthouse on the West Coast of New Zealand in the 1940's and her parents welcomed hundreds of visitors over the years at their farm in the Marlborough Sounds.

Piwaka Lodge & Backpackers is situated in the heart of town, on High Street. It is ideally positioned to take advantage of the myriad of local offerings, whether it be activity-based such as kayaking, cycling, hiking, dolphin swimming or more laid back options such as cafes, restaurants, art galleries, wine tours to name only a few.

There is easy access to the ferries that travel between Picton and Wellington, either the Bluebridge or the Interislander.

Nicci Fitzgerald and her daughter Caitlin, your hosts, welcome you to the heart of the Marlborough Sounds, Picton and to Piwaka Lodge & Backpackers.

Nicci was born in Christchurch and moved to Picton in 1996. Over the last 22 years, she has raised her 3 sons and her daughter as a single mum. Nicci has worked in many and varied areas in the tourism industry locally, from feeding eels at the aquarium to driving buses on wine tours and for cruise ship visitors.

For the last 3 years, she has been co-managing a neighbouring hostel and in December 2018 seized the opportunity to follow her own dream and open Piwaka Lodge. Nicci is passionate about creating a space where her guests can feel at home away from home... a place where they feel like family and not visitors.

Her knowledge of the area and local activities are priceless and her hospitality beyond compare.

The Pīwakawaka (Maori name for the New Zealand fantail) is Nicci's favorite native bird. As stated on the website of the DOC, "known for its friendly 'cheet cheet' call and energetic flying antics, the aptly named fantail is one of the most common and widely distributed native birds on the New Zealand mainland."

The Piwakawaka or Piwaka, as it is fondly called, has many meanings to different people.

Nicci has always believed this special little bird to be a kaitiaki (guardian) or messenger, turning up when least expected but most needed to brighten her day. She knew from the beginning that the piwaka was symbolic of her journey with building the dream of opening her own accommodation place and welcoming visitors into her home and heart. Hence the name "Piwaka Lodge".