Many modern farmstays are as much about spas, swimming pools and luxury as they are about mustering sheep. Lee Atkinson outlines some options in NSW.
Not long ago, a farmstay holiday meant bunking down in disused shearers’ quarters with thin, lumpy mattresses, an outdoor dunny, cold showers and a lean-to kitchen. Okay for scout camps, school excursions and family clan gatherings, but not most people’s idea of a relaxing place to spend a holiday. I mean really, why would you want to stay where you have to battle drought one day, raging floods the next, snakes, bushfires and mad cows when you could be lazing in a deckchair beside a pool?
Well, if you haven’t travelled out bush for a while, you’re in for a big surprise. These days most farmstays are very comfortable — occasionally downright luxurious — country retreats where the animals are just part of the view from the spa.
But traditionalists need not despair. If you’re looking for a genuine down-on-the-farm-with-Old-Macdonald type of place, there are still plenty of those to be found. It’s just the beds will be better than you expect. That’s the great thing about this type of holiday — look hard enough and you’ll find there’s a place to suit everyone. Not convinced? Follow our city-slicker’s guide to farmstays.
If your kids answer, “The supermarket — where else would it come from?” then you need to broaden their horizons. Most traditional farmstays offer a range of farm activities mostly geared towards kids, such as petting and feeding animals. This is great news for parents who would rather not spend all day in gumboots.
Try Benbellen County Retreat at Moorland (near Taree) on mid-north coast New South Wales. Although it’s predominantly an alpaca farm, there are also Friesian heifers, guinea fowl, ducks, geese and dogs. A visit to a neighbouring dairy farm at milking time can be readily arranged, as well as the feeding of a tame kangaroo called Qantas.
Another good choice is Dairy Flat, a Friesian dairy farm near Kyogle on the far north coast, where you can take part in lots of dairy activities, like milking, bringing in the cows, mustering, branding and dipping. Or you could try Mowbray Park, near Picton, where the kids can go on pony rides or hayrides and check out the animal nursery. Parrabel Park, near Kempsey, offers fishing in the dam and canoeing.
Then you’re in luck — horse riding is one of the most popular activities on offer at farmstays.
Eaglereach Wilderness Resort in the Barringtons (near Gloucester) has long mountain riding trails, luxury residences with spas on the verandahs and views to die for, massages on request and a fabulous licensed restaurant.
If you really want to get serious, try Tirrintippin, a working sheep and cattle property on the Bulga Plateau, near Ellenborough Falls (mid-north coast) where you can join an overnight horse trail muster and sleep in a drover’s hut.
Oakhampton, near Tamworth, Reynella in the Snow Mountains and Millamolong Station in the Central West also offer horse riding for all levels.
A stay at Dag Sheep Station will answer this question. You’ll find 20,000 acres, 8,000 cattle, 6,000 sheep, 4,000 goats and lots of backpackers on this remote station near Nundle, in the New England region. Become a Jackaroo or Jillaroo, ride horses or take part in other guided tours and 4WD trips, go bush walking or mountain biking. An added inducement for backpackers is the offer of free board and keep when you roustabout. Accommodation is in rustic bunk-style shearer’s quarters.
Down south, try Hanericka Farmstay, between Wagga Wagga and Albury, where you can hang out in the shearing shed, watch a lamb or calf being born, or lend a hand droving stock on horseback.
If food and wine is your thing, then the best place to get it is straight from the source. Most farmstays that serve meals use their own freshly grown produce — they may even send you out to the garden or orchard to pick your dinner ingredients.
Hume’s Hovell is a luxury B&B with three suites, a swimming pool and tennis court set in the middle of a macadamia farm near Ballina. Free macadamias are supplied in all the rooms.
If you’re dreaming of holidays in a Tuscan olive grove try Peacock Grove instead — a B&B set on a 150-acre olive grove in the lower Hunter Valley. But if you prefer spending your days tasting wine, Starline Alpacas is set amongst the vineyards of Broke.
Looking for a weekend of five-star luxury and romance? One advantage of most farms is that your neighbours (and often your hosts) are miles away, so that means lots of privacy.
Clarendon Forest Retreat, also on the mid-north coast near Taree, has six luxury cottages scattered over 1,000 acres. As for the romance, if staying in the sandstone Honeymoon Cottage in the form of an old church complete with gothic stained-glass windows, four-poster bed, spa for two and a candlelit dinner doesn’t bring out the Valentino in you, nothing will!
Then head west to Bourke, Cobar or Broken Hill. Plenty of farms offer four-wheel-drive tours of their properties — after all it’s the only way to get around out there — but check before booking to find out whether you can drive yourself or whether you are confined to passenger-only status in one of the farm vehicles.
Closer to Sydney, Tugalong Station in the Southern Highlands includes 4WD tours in their list of activities.
Security for you and your family
If you plan to drive to your farmstay holiday, you can take a lot of the worry out of your journey by upgrading your NRMA Membership.
NRMA Plus gives you the reassurance of up to $2,000 extra cover when you are more than 100 km from home.
To upgrade to NRMA Plus or to find out more, call 13 11 22.
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