*STAYZ AWARDS 2022 : Bootmakers Birregurra. Bronze Medal.
Rated the third best Australian Holiday Home for 2022*
*Kitchen featured in Australian Country Style Magazine 2021*
*Cottage and property featured in WONEN Land elijke Stijl Magazine. Netherlands and Belgium September 2022*
Bootmakers Cottage Birregurra, is a delightful heritage cottage, named in honour of bootmaker and saddler James Townsend who first built the simple dwelling along with a shop and stables around 1864. Like the township in which it proudly sits, Bootmakers Cottage is rich in history and character, and has been lovingly restored to evoke the simple and warm pleasures of Victoria's pioneering past.
Bootmakers Cottage offers the best of two worlds:
Step out the back door and you are in the country - a large red-brick courtyard set amongst a cottage garden with birches, a huge oak tree, box hedges, grape vine, olives, citrus and herbs, giving way to a huge half acre block perfect for those who travel with pets. It’s impossible to go past the outdoor bathroom and an old cast iron bathtub, and our guests love to indulge in a hot bubble bath under the stars at their very first opportunity. An outdoor hammock swings amongst the lavender and birches for lazy afternoons; a handmade wooden stage also doubles as an undercover sun lounge area, and as the sun drops and the cockatoos screech overhead, an outdoor barbeque or home-cooked meal around an alfresco dinner party table under festoon lights, followed by warm conversation beside a roaring fire in the central fire pit, completes a simple and timeless pleasure. The old stables and bootmakers workshop have been converted into a fabulous bar and retreat, well set up to occupy all members of the family, with darts, board games and toys, as well as a projector and screen with lots of DVD’s for authentic movie nights, served with the mandatory popcorn. Bootmakers is truly a country home outdoor living delight.
Step out the front door and you are right in the middle of Main Street - the historic commercial centre of Birregurra, an old mill town built on the banks of the Barwon River and beside a train line branch where the old "Tiger Trail" train once ran up to the mountains to bring back logs for milling. It's easy to imagine stepping back in time to the 1800’s and the stores being sadleries, grain stores, bakeries, tailors and blacksmiths. Today, cafes, a bakery, antique shops, and local wine and produce stores, and a great old pub complete the Main Street. Guests tell us they love daydreaming about living in this small country town both in yesteryear and also today. Buildings in the main street have been lovingly restored and the streetscape has hardly been changed in over 100 years. The town is idyllic, yet feels a little undiscovered. Don’t be surprised if you wake to the aroma of coffee and freshly baked bread drifting in from the Otway Artisan, literally next door.
Being just over 90 minutes from Melbourne, and 30 minutes to the stunning Great Ocean Road, Birregurra is perfectly positioned in the hinterland and foothills of The Otway Ranges - beautiful in all seasons with towering mountain ash and ferny understory. The area is well-known for its award-winning food and wine as well as pristine rainforests, abundant bird life and beaches just down the road.
