Best Warrnambool accommodation for an escape to country and sea

Conveniently located just a kilometre from Warrnambool’s activity-packed city centre are the Coastal Vibe Apartments. These five self-contained apartments, designed in a modern take on 60s style, offer guests an independent base for cruising through the cool coastal city. In your swish space, get inspired by your open-plan granite kitchen and bright living areas to toss together a charcuterie board or platter of finger foods.

Hardwood floors and retro furnishings complement bright but neutral décor, creating a chilled out space where you can kick back in fully air-conditioned comfort and binge on Netflix in front of your flatscreen. Your swanky pad comes stocked with tea and coffee for lazy mornings, not to mention a barbecue in the shared courtyard for grilling up prawns and veg skewers when the sun goes down.

A five-minute drive will take you to the dramatic sweep of the bay, with its daring surf and fine white sand, which you can access via a shoes-off, sand-covered boardwalk. If fresh water and facilities are more your thing, herd the kids onto a boat across Lake Pertobe to careen down giant slides at the year-round Adventure Playground. You can try for a hole-in-one at Warrnambool Golf Club for a more adult activity overlooking the bay, or take a tranquil stroll under towering Bunya-Bunya trees in verdant botanical gardens.

For a chance to stay in the Warrnambool of the past, you’ll want to book into the historic Merton Manor B&B. Set in enchanting country gardens, this quiet, rural estate is removed from the bustle of the ‘bool. From your casual seat on the house’s wide porch, you’ll forget that the city centre is less than two kilometres.

Start your day off with a home-cooked breakfast of eggs your way, sizzling sausages and freshly brewed coffee, all set on a grand oak table in the palatial dining room in front of the marble fireplace. Rooms are similarly elegant, with the charming drapery of yesteryear and handsome, old wood furnishings. After an easy morning, head down to the lesser-known cove of Shelly Beach for a relaxing walk along the headland with migrating birds, or visit Warrnambool Lighthouse Theatre for family-friendly, local entertainment.

If you’d rather chill out, there’s pampering on tap at the B&B’s own spa and wellness centre – you can spend the day soaking in your own Jacuzzi or steaming up in the sauna. When you’ve aligned those chakras and are ready for something to snack on, saunter onto the estate’s rose-clad sun terrace and fire up the outdoor grill overlooking peaceful gardens.

If history and extra space pique your interest, you’ll want to fully indulge in Quamby Homestead, a Warrnambool hotel settled in 1888 across three private acres of pure Australian gardens. Nestled in the bush are five individual mews, all furnished in homely, rustic décor.

A leafy stroll through the gardens takes lovers to their lodgings in the Old School House, featuring Victorian vaulted ceilings, tall sash windows and a contemporary ensuite with a rainfall shower big enough for two. Larger parties can check out the recently renovated, self-catering Carriage House. You’ll soon be sharing laughs and stories as you prepare a group meal in your fully fitted, farm-style kitchen and cosy living room with wood-burning stove. Slip on your thongs and head through French doors onto rolling fields, where you might be greeted by friendly kangaroos, koalas and wallabies.

When you want to explore nearby sights like the Belfast Coastal Reserve or Port Fairy’s Griffith’s Island, the Great Ocean Road is just a 25-minute drive from the estate. The homestead’s welcoming owners will be more than happy to greet your return with a warming evening bevvie and homemade snacks before you bunk down for the night. The dining at the Homestead might just convince you to stay put, though, with options like picnics for two prepared by your in-house chef.

Just off the Great Ocean Road, breaking waves can be heard from your own private balcony and the fresh sea breeze felt on your face in the rejuvenating rooms at Deep Blue Hotel & Hot Springs. Just 850 metres from the bracing Breakwater Rock Pier, accommodation here is as maritime as it gets.

With the hotel built on ancient geothermal natural pools, you’ll have complimentary access to the healing springs and attached spa. Here, therapeutic waters bubble up through prehistoric rock to bone-warming temperatures of up to 45°C. Indulge in an extra treatment like a detoxifying mud cocoon wrap, or emerge radiant from a nourishing, plant-based facial just in time for dinner at the hotel restaurant. At the on-site eatery, the Water Table, you can tuck into a daily fisherman’s catch alongside specialties like local mussels in a coconut spiced broth or fresh calamari with homemade aioli.

After your meal, you can retire to rooms flooded with natural light from the ocean view and take a flying leap onto plush pillow-top mattresses. Or you can opt for self-catering accommodation in a modern, independent studios. Flick on the flatscreen for a film after throwing together a bowl of popcorn in your slick granite-topped kitchenette for a lush, post-spa night in.

For something simple but still drenched in Warrnambool’s mixed pastoral-coastal vibe, sweep the family off to out-of-the-way High View Family Cottages. Like the name says, these self-contained units sit atop a grassy hill with panoramic views of the coastal reserve. Set in a rolling 29-acre horse farm, kids will delight in the chance to spot equestrian friends frolicking from their window.

You’ll relish the crisp sea air from your south-facing veranda after a day out at Killarney Lagoon or Logans Beach Whale Watching Platform, both only a 15-minute drive away. Dinner could be pub classics and steak at Proudfoots Boathouse, or freshly caught fish in the beer garden of Simon’s Waterfront.

Inside your timber cottage, snuggle into deep cushioned sofas and play classic board games after dinner with the whole family. You’ll also have a fully fitted wood kitchen at your disposal, with an oven, microwave, fridge and long dining tables to make staying in easy. After a day in the great outdoors, tumble into a high framed double bed for some shuteye after tucking the kids into bunk beds that peek out onto the pasture.

Known to most as the cuter sister of Warrnambool, Port Fairy is home to the colonial Clonmara Country House and Cottages. Just a 10-minute drive from the city centre, Clonmara, literally meaning ‘meadow by the sea’, offers a peaceful slice of a bygone era in lush green surroundings. Peace-seeking couples can check into stone cottages scattered prettily throughout the property, or you can opt for the main country house for a larger family break.

Start your day accompanying a band of five friendly alpacas on a stroll beneath lemon-scented gum trees, or head off the grounds for a brisk excursion through nearby Russell Clark Reserve and Belfast Lough. You can sit down for a bite in central Port Fairy, where locally acclaimed Blakes Restaurant serves Portland sea bream alongside fresh blue swimmer crab and Tasmania’s best oysters.

Back at your Port Fairy accommodation, a step across the faux flagstone threshold feels like a step into the past – but with all the mod-cons of today. Enjoy the juxtaposition as you heap pillows onto antique rugs for an evening of films on your own smart TV in front of an open fire. After whipping together a meal in your fully stocked chef’s kitchen, sink into the corner spa bath in your green boutique green bathroom before wrapping yourself in an indulgent goose-down quilt for a relaxing night.