We found Sophie and Greg very welcoming and the cottage we stayed in, the couples cottage, was beautiful and very secluded. Everything you need was supplied, including fresh coffee, and as we had been staying in a campervan for a few weeks, the cottage gave us some much needed luxury for a night.

Scenery is simply stunning, and we both spent most of our time gazing up at the mountains from the spacious deck. Visited by a friendly kookaburra who sat on the electric bbq and observed us at dusk. Amazing birdlife all around.

Be warned that town is a good distance away, so highly recommend taking your own food and drink - kitchen is well equipped to make most things. Loved Bellingen, it still has its own community despite being very popular with tourists.

A small suggestion for improvement - It might be better if there was a pool somewhere in the spacious grounds - we found the Never Never Creek which was the nearest place to swim very busy.

I finally got around to writing this review...but I haven't stopped thinking about The Promised Land Cottages even though it was two years ago that I last visited. When you can't stop thinking about a location one has visited it must mean it's special! If only it wasn't a 22 hour flight away! But, I might be back in spite of that!

I stayed that Promised Land Cottages for 5 days....it wasn't enough. After touring the east coast of Australia, it's the only place I wanted to return to.

There is something special about this property. Lush rolling hills surround the property which is located on farmland about a 15 minute drive from the little town of Bellingen. The fresh produce, the wine, the horses that came up to your cottage to say "hello." The landscape was the most beautiful I think I've ever seen. So charming and magical.

The Cottage was well maintained, private, clean and lovely. Spacious, and comfortable. There are three cottages altogether and all are perched on spots with gorgeous views. This is probably one of the best properties in the area.

There's plenty to do here. Walks, biking, swimming, tennis or drive into town and check out the little shops, grab a cafe or some local blueberries which are the best I've ever had. There's also a National Park nearby.

Would I recommend? A 1000 yes's! Particularly for R&R, romantic getaways.

http://www.promisedlandcottages.com.au/

OVERVIEW:

Simply beautiful. Don’t even think about visiting this part of Australia without spending at least two nights here!

Three beautiful little wooden cottages perched on top of a hill overlooking beautiful countryside. It is a sanctuary from the outside world and is ideal for a romantic getaway or active weekend break.

THE COTTAGE:

We stayed in the more remote of the two bedroom cottages as the couple’s cottage was already booked. The cottage itself is really cute. Oldly worldy on the outside, modern on the inside. The two well furnished bedrooms and a lovely big bathroom (complete with corner spa bath), lead off the modern, well furnished, open plan living area which comprises of kitchen, dining and sitting area. Floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall glass doors lead out on to a deck area which is well equipped with table, chairs and an electric BBQ.

The views are just beautiful. And whatever you do, make sure you are up in time to see the sunrise, at least one morning during your stay. You really won’t regret it!

FOOD & DRINK:

We stopped at one of the supermarkets in the nearby town and stocked-up food and drink to keep us going for a couple of days. It was great fun to BBQ our own food and eat breakfast out on the deck whilst enjoying the superb views.

On the Saturday evening we ventured in to Bellingen (about 12kms away) and enjoyed a superb Indian meal at a lovely little local restaurant.

OTHER FACILITIES:

One of outbuildings houses a games room (with billiard table and table tennis table) and a library of DVDs (mainly old 1980 and 1990s movies). There is also a laundry room which is equipped with a washing machine and tumble dryer.

One of the barns houses a collection of mountain bikes and helmets. Simply help yourself!

ACTIVITIES:

The owners have provided a great little folder of information on local attractions / activities including a lovely 23km cycle route complete with river crossings and swimming holes.


SUGGESTIONS FOR IMPROVEMENT:
The cottages would benefit from the addition of a dishwasher, a docking station for an ipod / iphone / MP3 player and flat screen TVs (the cottage we stayed in had an older CRT models). But don’t let this put you off. You don’t come to a place like this to watch TV! The cottages are really very well furnished and the location is absolutely stunning.

OUTSTANDING VALUE:

At AUD 110 per person per night The Promised Land Cottages are excellent value for money. Realistically I think teh location alone is worth a lot more. I would highly recommend The Promised Land for an active walking or cycling holiday or as a base for exploring the nearby coast.


OUR COMPLETE ITINERARY:

Sydney: Park Hyatt (H)
Blue Mountains: Lilianfels (H)
Blue Mountains: Trek with Life's an Adventure (O)
Nelsons Bay : Amarana Beach Resort (A)
Port Macquarie: Quality Inn HW Boutique (H)
Coffs Harbour: Promised Land Cottages (A)
Byron: Byron at Byron (H)
Gold Coast: Palazzo Versace (H)
Airlie Beach: The Peninsula (A)
Whitsunday Islands: Coral Trekker (O)
Hamilton Island: Qualia (H)
Darwin: Sky City (H)
Litchfield National Park: Adventure Tours (O)
Kakadu National Park: Adventure Tours (O)
Ayers Rock (Uluru) & The Olgars (Kata Tjuta) National Park: Longitude 131° (H)
Perth: The Richardson (H)

(H) = Hotel (A) = Apartment (O) = Other

The cottages are situated within a lush, very peaceful countryside, with cows and kookaburras near your front doorstep. The living room is bright, airy and very comfortable and the kitchen is well stocked with equipment and a few essential. Guests are free to use the 'games room', which includes a billiard table, table tennis table, and quite a good range of dvds, which is a terrific idea for rainy days.

The cottages are a 10-15 minute drive from the main street of Bellingen (which was nice enough, but after reading rave reviews about Bellingen, we were a little puzzled as to how it was any different from any other small country town, and would probably not return here).

We felt the property could benefit from including a minibar, since it is certainly not in walking distance of shops, especially at night. Also, block-out curtains would be terrific since we were often woken as soon as it became lighter (not to mention by the many laughing kookaburras!). A shelf or cupboard in the bathroom would also be handy, to put your toiletries.

Overall, we very much enjoyed our relaxing stay at the cottages, and would recommend to others. The hosts are lovely as well.