WAITOMO HOSTEL.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXX, Issue 5370, 4 January 1929, Page 1

WAITOMO HOSTEL.

NEW WING COMPLETED. ADEQUATE FOR TOURISTS. With the completion of the new wing of the hostel at the Waitomo Caves there will be sleeping accommodation for 95 visitors, and! the din-, ing room will be able to seat 130 people. Thus tourists who desire to visit these famous caves neqd have no apprehension that they will be unable to secure shelter or creature comforts. Provisjop. has now bejen trebled. The whole of the premises have bqjeix painted white, and on their, lofty site they present a striking picture with their background of. hill country and native bush. The new; wing, which is of two storeys., has a handsome portico at the entrance, while a wide balcony flanks the top storey. A Marseilles roof caps a most handsome building. No expense has. been spared! in making the accommodation as comfortable as possible, and it is doubtful if there is an hostel in New Zealand equipped with finer, appointments than those recently installed at the Waitomo Hostel. The new wing contains 15 bed-sitting rooms, and 19 single rooms on each floor. Entrance is given to the premises by a spacibus hall and Bft cojryidbrs give access to thq dining-tfoom, lounge, drawing-room, and the downstairs bedrooms. The floors axe covered w-ith beautiful carpets of the finest quality, while the sitting-rooms are furnished with dosy double-sprung chairs of the Chesterfield variety. The furnishings of the dining-iroom are delightful. Th©, chairs, are of Jacobean design, whiije the tables are equipped with the finest of English crockery and: silverware. A subdued light is shed through numerous cutgjasp glqbes pendent from the ceiling. All the rooms are

with a central heating system.* Hot and c,old water is provided in each room;, , Afl interhouse telephone sy"sitem gives communication from varin ous pants of the house with the Nearly all the double bedrooms are furnished;. With twin beds, while in each ..room, there is a comfortable chair,; hot and cold water basin, shavjrfg, mirror, luggage-carrier, and ■Wasiefpaper basket. -yiaitomo provides a wonderful demonstration of the many and varied 'Uses to which electricity can be put--Current is supplied by the Waitomo Power Board from the Horalhora hydro-electric station. The whole of the cavqs, the buildings, and the surrounding grounds and paths are illur minated with electricity; In itlhe laundry electricity is used! to Operate the washing plant, while it is also employed to work the refrigerator in the basepent of the hostel. In the kitchen it provides hot water, operates a potato-peeling machine, toasters, and the cookers. The laundry is furnished! on the most modern lines, being equipped with patent clothes-.washers, a watersoftener, a soap-dissolver, a hydroextractor., and drying apartments. A boiler provides steaan for the. central heatjng plant and hot water for, the bedrooms and kitchens. All the furniture was made in. New Zealand, while practically all thej plant is of English, make. The interior of the old hostel is being renovated. The dining-,room is being converted into a social room in which dances and concerts will he held.

Elaborate plans 1 have been prepared for the laying-out of, the grounds "in front of the hostel site, and when the work is completed the setting for the buildings should be very fine. A one-way drive, with footpaths flanking it, is being provided, and ini the c.entre well-designed lawns with gar-i dqns of trees, shrubs, and flowers will be laid down.

All that is required to make a visit to Waitomo an unalloyed joy is a good road from Hangatika to the hostel. For about half the distance the road is in good condition, but for about three males the, surface is extremely rough and uneven, it is to be hoped that before the holiday season is far advanced attention will be givgn to the road.