Strangest stays in Australia | Australian Traveller

In a world of increasing franchised flops and cookie-cutter hotels there are interesting and infinitely Instagrammable accommodation alternatives out there. Here are the strangest, yet strangely good places to stay In Australia. Ever considered staying…

1. On a pole

The Pole House has been one of the most photographed holiday homes in Australia since it was built back in 1978. Since then, the sleek Great Ocean Road one-bedder has had an extensive makeover with retractable floor-to-ceiling glass walls and a glass balcony balustrade added ensuring a view down at least Lorne on a clear day.

Life on top of the great pole, 40 metres above Fairhaven Beach, is warm all year round, thanks to a floating fireplace, the star of its seriously sexy interior.

2. In a cave

Jam B&B Coober Pedy — The surprisingly cool cave rooms at Coober Pedy’s Jam B&B.

When summer temperatures reach 50 degrees in the Opal-mining, Wild-West town Coober Pedy, don’t dare touch that air-con. There’s a broad range of partially or fully underground dug-outs (old/extended mines or custom dug) on offer that hover around 23 degrees all year around.

The town’s ‘shotel’, The Desert Cave , has 4-star Underground Rooms that aren’t as close-in-around-you as you might think, thanks to effective ventilation. For the claustrophobics in your group, there are some equivalent above-ground digs.

Stays such as the well-appointed and homely furnished Jam B&B give you more of an idea of how locals live, with self-contained 1, 2 and studio rooms available along with a generous shaded communal area complete with cactus nursery and BBQ.

3. In a lighthouse

You’d be surprised just how many people want to live out a lighthouse-keeper fantasy. Meeting this demand are an unexpected number of revamped lighthouses that have popped up as coastal accommodation options.

Perhaps the most delightfully remote of all is Cape Borda lighthouse on Kangaroo Island’s south-west coast. The charming self-contained stone cabin offers solitude and unparalleled wild Southern Ocean vistas.

More roomy is the windswept Montague Island lighthouse keepers’ cottage, nine kilometres off the NSW South Coast town of Narooma. Included are five bedrooms (circa 1881) and your (the island’s) own penguin colony.

More… 5 of Australia’s brightest lighthouse stays.

4. In a tree house

Love Cabins tree house Wollemi — Our kind of tree house: Love Cabins, Wollemi, NSW.

This interpretation of the word ‘tree house’ won’t necessarily tally with your childhood memories of a few pieces of wood dodgily nailed to a backyard tree.

We love the luxe Love Cabins treehouse above Wollemi in the New South Wales Hunter Valley for its fireplace, its kitchen and wall-to floor windows that reveal a beautifully bushy valley view below.

Plenty of exposed wood and rough-hewn floor boards and rafters totally add to the ‘living in a tree’ vibe. Also on the 600-acre property, are the mysteriously named ‘enchanted cave’ and ‘love tee-pee’.

5. In the Air(stream)

Notel Airstream hotel Melbourne — Trailer park chic: Melbourne’s Airstream-filled Notel.

Not to be out-Melbourned, Notel sees Jerome’s tents and raises them five sexy, sleek, super-shiny silver Airstreams in a kitschy trailer park that started life as a car park.

Each 31-foot caravan is surrounded by its own recycled pallet deck, with obligatory single cactus, overlooking abstract art splashed across high walls.

The interior’s ultra-clean white and coral pink lines are interrupted only for a queen-sized bed (with Aura linen) and minimalist but cool accouterments like well-stocked bar fridge and spacious, Malin-and-Goetz stocked ensuite.

You may appreciate the open-air spa after a night out in nearby Flinders Lane too.

7. With the animals

The Pole House, Fairhaven — An overnight safari in Sydney’s Taronga Zoo.

As a kid you must have dreamed of roaming around a zoo at night. Well, someone was listening, given the number of places offering sleepovers now. And we’re not just talking sleeping bags on the floor either.

Canberra’s Jamala Wildlife Lodge gives you in-the-face experience with cheetahs and lions from your room – separated by toughened glass, of course. Its 7-roomed African-themed uShaka Lodge comes complete with its own pool, spa, tropical gardens and a room-length shark tank.

Sydney’s Taronga Zoo claims perhaps the best city glamping views going currently; the harbour and cityscape unfurling before you (from some of the tents). It’s not quite five-star but certainly family-friendly; with wooden floors and comfy beds. The after-hours animal activities will be the fam’s fave.

More… The ‘Big 5’ zoo sleepovers – roar and snores you can’t ignore

8. On a slow (or no-go) train

Glass House Eco Lodge train carriage — Sleeper: Glass House Eco Lodge’s Victorian train carriage.

Do you prefer you train sleepover moving or still? For the former, three nights on the Nullarbor-crossing Indian Pacific or a couple on The Ghan up the Red Centre should sate you.

For those who prefer to reflect on the Golden Age of Rail sitting still, check into the Glass House Mountains Eco Lodge’s cosy Victorian rail carriage. Its dark-stained wood and long-gone-green carpet, and separate library carriage, takes you steaming back to the age, while a practical kitchen, modern bathroom and air conditioning keeps you rooted in the 21st Century.

There are plenty of other options around the country; you can stay in a 1917 Caboose at Hanging Rock in Victoria’s High Country, which is set on five acres, perfect for unplugging.

9. On a paddle steamer

If archetypal Australian experiences are your thing, then a wood-fired paddle steamer trip down the Murray River will get your wheels turning. The proud PS Emmylou cruises down river from Echuca with overnight space for 18 guests.

While she looks very 19th century, Emmylou was actually built in the 1980s with most of the creature comforts you’d expect in a retro-steamer. Disembarking for a Murray-side campfire among the redgums is a highlight.

10. In a castle

It’s time to get medieval? Well, at least sleep in a medieval theme park. The kids will lose their stuff at Kryal Castle, a few kilometres east of Ballarat.

Naturally there are a number of royal-named rooms including queen and king suites, all reasonably self-contained with free wi-fi. There’s a medieval village within the castle’s walls, but our bet is the jousting tournaments and sword battle between the knights will keep the young ones’ attention the most.

One more you can’t resist… Sleep with the Foo Fighters’ Dave Grohl

Winding down in the Yarra Valley, where ‘work from home’ becomes ‘work from wine country’.

Steam from my morning coffee curls gently into the cool valley air, mist-veiled vineyards stretch out in neat rows below me. Magpies warble from trees, and the morning’s quiet carries the soft bleating of lambs from a nearby paddock. Midweek in the Yarra Valley has its own rhythm. It’s slower, quieter, with more empty tables at cafes and cellar doors, and walking trails I can claim all to myself. It’s as if the entire region takes a deep breath once the weekend crowd leaves.

walking trails in the Yarra Valley — You’ll find walking trails are less crowded during the week. (Image: Visit Victoria)

I haven’t come here for a holiday, but to do a little work somewhere other than my home office, where I spend too much time hunched over my desk. Deadlines still loom, meetings still happen, but with flexible work evolving from ‘work from home’ to ‘work from anywhere’, I’m swapping the view of my front yard to the vineyards.

A quiet afternoon at Yarra Valley Dairy

holding a glass of wine at Yarra Valley Dairy — Wine time at Yarra Valley Dairy, where you can enjoy a toastie or bagel in the cafe. (Image: Visit Victoria)

With the Yarra Valley just over an hour from the CBD, many Melburnians could drive here in their lunch break. I arrive late in the afternoon and am delighted to discover the Yarra Valley Dairy still open. On weekends, I’ve seen queues spilling out the door, but today there’s only one other couple inside. There’s no need to rush to secure a table; instead I browse the little store, shelves stacked with chutneys, spices, artisan biscuits and gorgeous crockery that would look right at home in my kitchen. It’s hard not to buy the lot.

a cheese tasting plate atYarra Valley Dairy — A cheese tasting plate at Yarra Valley Dairy.

I order a coffee and a small cheese platter, though the dairy has a full menu, and choose a wooden table with bentwood chairs by a wide window. The space feels part farm shed, part cosy café: corrugated iron ceiling, walls painted in muted tones and rustic furniture.

Outside, cows meander toward milking sheds. If pressed for time, there’s the option of quick cheese tastings – four samples for five dollars in five minutes – but today, I’m in no rush. I sip slowly, watching a grey sky settle over the paddock. Less than an hour ago I was hunched over my home-office desk, and now my racing mind has slowed to match the valley’s pace.

Checking in for vineyard views at Balgownie Estate

Restaurant 1309 at Balgownie Estate has views across the vines.

As my car rolls to a stop at Balgownie Estate , I’m quietly excited, and curious to see if my plan to work and play comes off. I’ve chosen a suite with a spacious living area and a separate bedroom so I can keep work away from a good night’s sleep. I could have booked a cosy cottage, complete with open fireplace, a comfy couch and a kettle for endless cups of tea, but as I am still here to get some work done, I opt for a place that takes care of everything. Dinner is served in Restaurant 1309, as is breakfast.

oysters at Restaurant 1309, Balgownie Estate — Oysters pair perfectly with a crisp white at Restaurant 1309.

On my first evening, instead of the usual walk about my neighbourhood, I stroll through the estate at an unhurried pace. There’s no need to rush – someone else is preparing my dinner after all. The walking trails offer beautiful sunsets, and it seems mobs of kangaroos enjoy the view, too. Many appear, grazing lazily on the hillside.

I wake to the call of birds and, after breakfast, with the mist still lingering over the vineyards, I watch two hot-air balloons silently drift above clouds. Perched on a hill, Balgownie Estate sits above the mist, leaving the valley below veiled white.

kangaroos in Yarra Valley — Spotting the locals on an evening walk. (Image: Visit Victoria)

Exploring the Yarra Valley on two wheels

the Yarra Valley vineyards — Swap your home office for a view of the vineyards. (Image: Visit Victoria/Cormac Hanrahan)

Perhaps because the Yarra Valley is relatively close to where I live, I’ve never considered exploring the area any way other than by car or on foot. And with a fear of heights, a hot-air balloon is firmly off the table. But when I discover I can hop on two wheels from the estate and cycle into Yarra Glen, I quickly realise it’s the perfect way to step away from my laptop and experience a different side of the region.

COG Bike offers pedal-assist e-bikes, and while the bike trail and paths into town aren’t particularly hilly, having an extra bit of ‘oomph’ means I can soak up the surroundings. Those lambs I heard calling early in the morning? I now find them at the paddock fence, sniffing my hands, perhaps hoping for food. Cows idle nearby, and at a fork in the bike path I turn left toward town.

It’s still morning, and the perfect time for a coffee break at The Vallie Store. If it were the afternoon, I’d likely turn right, in the direction of four wineries with cellar doors. The ride is about 15 kilometres return, but don’t let that put you off. Staying off the highway, the route takes you along quiet backroads where you catch glimpses of local life – farmers on tractors, weathered sheds, rows of vines and the kind of peaceful countryside you don’t see from the main road.

A detour to the Dandenong Ranges

legs hanging over the sides of the train, Puffing Billy Railway — The iconic Puffing Billy runs every day except Christmas Day.

The beauty of basing myself in the Yarra Valley is how close everything feels. In barely half an hour I’m in the Dandenong Ranges, swapping vineyards for towering mountain ash and fern-filled gullies. The small villages of Olinda and Sassafras burst with cosy teahouses, antique stores and boutiques selling clothing and handmade body care items.

I’m drawn to RJ Hamer Arboretum – Latin for ‘a place for trees’. Having grown up among tall trees, I’ve always taken comfort in their presence, so this visit feels like a return of sorts. A stroll along the trails offers a choice: wide open views across patchwork paddocks below, or shaded paths that lead you deeper into the quiet hush of the peaceful forest.

The following day, I settle into a quiet corner on the balcony of Paradise Valley Hotel in Clematis and soon hear Puffing Billy’s whistle and steady chuff as the steam train climbs towards town. Puffing Billy is one of Australia’s most beloved steam trains, running through the Dandenong Ranges on a narrow-gauge track. It’s famous for its open carriages where passengers can sit with their legs hanging over the sides as the train chugs through the forest. This is the perfect spot to wave to those on the train.

After my midweek break, I find my inbox still full and my to-do list not in the least shrunken, just shifted from one task to another. But I return to my home office feeling lighter, clearer and with a smug satisfaction I’d stolen back a little time for myself. A midweek wind-down made all the difference.

A traveller’s checklist

Staying there

Balgownie Estate offers everything from cellar door tastings to spa treatments and fine dining – all without leaving the property.

Playing there

the TarraWarra Museum of Art, Yarra Valley — Visit the TarraWarra Museum of Art. (Image: Visit Victoria)

Wander through Alowyn Gardens, including a stunning wisteria tunnel, then explore the collection of contemporary artworks at TarraWarra Museum of Art . Cycle the Yarra Valley with COG Bike to visit local wineries and cellar doors.

Eating and drinking there

Olinda Tea House offers an Asian-inspired high tea. Paradise Valley Hotel, Clematis has classic pub fare, while the iconic Yering Station offers wine tastings and a restaurant with seasonal dishes.

seasonal dishes at the restaurant inside Yering Station — The restaurant at Yering Station showcases the best produce of the Yarra Valley. (Image: Visit Victoria)

Strangest (and strangely good) stays in Australia