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Set on three acres in the majestic Port Stephens, at the south-east edge of Tomaree National Park, The Batch is a charming bed and breakfast perfect for a weekend getaway for two. Nestled at the end of a quiet street, but off a busy main road, this warm home-style oasis lies almost hidden amongst the array of activity in the port, radiating a sense of old-world charm and seclusion.
Boasting beautifully manicured gardens, a salt-chlorinated pool and backing onto a block of bush land, geese and ducks wander about, you may spot a koala or two clinging to trees nearby, and the proud resident peacock often loves to show off his exotic fan of colourful, metallic-fringed feathers.
The Donga
The standout choice would have to be The Donga, perfect for a romantic getaway. It’s your answer to a private ‘adults only’ flee from everyday life. Nestled in its own garden at the back of the property away from the main house, The Donga features its own jacuzzi, an outdoor shower for starry night-sky views, and a fully self-contained bush kitchen including cook top, microwave, fridge and BBQ facilities.
Also boasting an air-conditioned queen-size bedroom and expansive wooden decks to relax on, you could easily hide away for days, if you please, without ever leaving. The flat screen TV and DVD player may be tempting, but the nature at your doorstep is so much more inviting. Relax on the deck at night, bubbly in hand, and hear the surf pounding the shores in the distance.
Grevillea Room & Upstairs Wing
Back at The Batch, the expansive two-level cedar house, there are two other cosy accommodation options. The Grevillea room, on the bottom level, is ideal for nature lovers with direct access onto the verandah.
The Upstairs Wing offers two rooms, a queen-size master bedroom and a single bedroom (an additional room can be used as another single or for storage). Spread over two levels, downstairs has its own lounge/dining room with enclosed verandah and a private entrance.
Recommendation: whilst all options are great – indulge, go for The Donga!
Robert Connell Close, One Mile Beach 5, Anna Bay, Australia
Contact tel: +61 2 4981 9918, fax: +61 2 4981 9874, e-mail:This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
You haven’t truly been to the Blue Mountains unless you’ve viewed the spectacular landscape sights from a cable car at Scenic World. Or ridden in Scenic World’s steep rainforest railway; descending from the top of a rocky mountainside down a slow drop to the bottom of thick lush rainforest.
The Blue Mountains are a short two-hour drive from the city of Sydney, and well worth the day trip. Famous for the rock formations known as The Three Sisters, the Blue Mountains are also a great place to go for fresh air, relaxation, and especially winter festivals. The arty, crafty villages will charm your thermal socks off, and are all close to each other atop the mountain area making a village-hopping drive-by very easy.
You’ll find Scenic World well signposted with lots of parking. Scenic World is mainly a divine walking track looping through forest with a ‘choose your own adventure’ option on which path you take. Everyone will start off at the check-in. Take the steep railway to the bottom of the rainforest, and then pick a path to walk around the lush raised walking tracks through tall trees and flowing creeks. There’s a cable car to take from one side of the rocks, over the rainforest to the other, in super close view of the tumbling waterfall and three sisters.
The best way to experience Scenic World is with a guided tour. My tour guide was Murray, who grew up in the Blue Mountains, and whose grandfather was an original Scenic World railway engineer driver. Murray tells interesting stories of the land’s history of the great coal mining days, points out the tools & machinery left behind so camouflaged I wouldn’t spot it, and describe interesting facts about the fauna and flora which you will walk through. A tour guide is also brilliant because instead of iphone-googling for answers to all your hundreds of questions that pop to mind like ‘how can you tell how many billion years old that dicksonia Antarctica fern really is?’ Murray will tell you – count the rings. Murray even holds the talk on Carnivorous plants. Kids love it. I’ve seen Little Shop of Horrors - think I would too!
A quintessential day trip to the Blue Mountains of Australia is best made in the winter months of June through to August, when the local townsfolk are embracing cold season temperatures with mountain winter festivals and hot delicious chocolate.
You’ll find the Blue Mountains just 2 hours drive inland from Sydney’s coast, an unmissable lush high mountain range radiantly glowing of a beautiful blue-gum haze. Most famous in the Blue Mountains are the hiking and bushwalking tracks with views of beautiful rock formations called the Three Sisters. The Three Sisters consist of three enormous sized peaks on the highest rocky mountainside, beside a gully of never-ending rainforest. This is a spectacular view, having inspiring many artists and writers for centuries. Close by to the Three Sisters is Orphan rock, standing along, hence the name, and also sitting by the never-ending gully of trees and wildlife.
There are several viewing points to take advantage of these sights, with Sublime lookout definitely worth a short walk to see the Three Sisters. Often clouds will form around the height of the rocks, making for the most photographic sight (and ‘selfies’ opp) you’ll see.
Website for more info: www.bluemts.com.au