Duneira Estate
Duneira Estate
4.5
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4.5
8 reviews
Excellent
5
Very good
3
Average
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Terrible
0
Mount Macedon Tours
Mount Macedon, Australia5 contributions
Oct 2023 • Business
Stunning garden and house! We loved seeing the bluebells at the bluebell festival, the whole estate was beautiful. The house tour was wonderful and we really enjoyed viewing the art collection. We will be back for next years Bluebell Festival !
Written 3 March 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
John G
Melbourne, Australia26 contributions
Apr 2019 • Friends
My wife & I went with friends to the open garden day on Sunday 14th April. The gardens are huge and pleasant to walk around but we were rather disappointed at the lack of flowers. The gardens are mostly trees and lawn. I'm sure that, in the spring, the rhododendrons and azaleas will be spectacular.
Written 18 April 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lawrence B
Greater Melbourne, Australia51 contributions
Apr 2017 • Friends
Duneira is a very pleasant late 19th century country house full of books, interesting furniture and lovely rooms with outlook on to beautiful gardens, situated near the summit of Mt. Macedon. The house is situated in a large and very beautiful Englsh style estate with sequences of walled gardens and enormous trees around pleasant rolling lawns. It is worth visiting just to explore the gardens but there is an annual program of fine concerts and lectures held in the drawing room so that a visit to a concert may be able to be combined with exploration of the gardens.
Written 4 May 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Traveller88Melbourne
Melbourne705 contributions
Nov 2016 • Friends
You'd be forgiven if you thought you stumbled thru the looking glass & ended up in an English garden...
Majestic long driveway lined with towering Elms, bluebells & forget me nots, holly hedges, expansive lawns, lilac bushes, chestnuts, oaks to name a few. Your eyes are drawn to abundant roses, camellias, azaleas & rhododendrons in flower & other annuals not in bloom. Trees - both decidudous, evergreen & indigenous incl. some exotic species. The flowering dogwoods in the central terrace lawn is a sight to behold. Photograhers haven!
To add to the intrigue is a "secret" garden bordered by high vicious holly hedges (designed to keep roos out but got caught in my rear - so beware!)
The sprawling gardens captured my imagination in a way that Cruden farm never did nor Rippon Lea for that matter. I have visited a lot of gardens & I loved this one for the way it all came together beautifully without the home being dwarfed by it.
Duneira itself reeks English country house layout (info sheet says Italianate villa exterior) - turn of 19th century country retreat that is compact but has a functional interior. We did the official tour - the gardens open up vistas from the front rooms. There are collection of artworks by famous painters/sculptors & the persian carpets are pretty. Definitely worth seeing.
Bring a picnic lunch & spend at least 3 hours to do it justice. Verandah has tables & chairs if weather is inclement. Recent Sun visit - booked online for morning tea (tea + choice of two sweets ), very brief piano recital & guided tour of house for $18. The Director gives a talk on the history of the ownership & how the garden was established & does the tour.
Separate entry fee of $8 for the gardens or $20 for guided tour of gardens with brief live music at the end. Only open at specific times during the year - book online. There are other music recitals & events.
No city views - this garden runs along the main road to Mt Macedon memorial park but is hidden. Pretty noisy with the weekend traffic & beware of speeding cyclists on the roads!
Majestic long driveway lined with towering Elms, bluebells & forget me nots, holly hedges, expansive lawns, lilac bushes, chestnuts, oaks to name a few. Your eyes are drawn to abundant roses, camellias, azaleas & rhododendrons in flower & other annuals not in bloom. Trees - both decidudous, evergreen & indigenous incl. some exotic species. The flowering dogwoods in the central terrace lawn is a sight to behold. Photograhers haven!
To add to the intrigue is a "secret" garden bordered by high vicious holly hedges (designed to keep roos out but got caught in my rear - so beware!)
The sprawling gardens captured my imagination in a way that Cruden farm never did nor Rippon Lea for that matter. I have visited a lot of gardens & I loved this one for the way it all came together beautifully without the home being dwarfed by it.
Duneira itself reeks English country house layout (info sheet says Italianate villa exterior) - turn of 19th century country retreat that is compact but has a functional interior. We did the official tour - the gardens open up vistas from the front rooms. There are collection of artworks by famous painters/sculptors & the persian carpets are pretty. Definitely worth seeing.
Bring a picnic lunch & spend at least 3 hours to do it justice. Verandah has tables & chairs if weather is inclement. Recent Sun visit - booked online for morning tea (tea + choice of two sweets ), very brief piano recital & guided tour of house for $18. The Director gives a talk on the history of the ownership & how the garden was established & does the tour.
Separate entry fee of $8 for the gardens or $20 for guided tour of gardens with brief live music at the end. Only open at specific times during the year - book online. There are other music recitals & events.
No city views - this garden runs along the main road to Mt Macedon memorial park but is hidden. Pretty noisy with the weekend traffic & beware of speeding cyclists on the roads!
Written 10 November 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ursula K
Melbourne, Australia425 contributions
Nov 2016 • Friends
We attended an $18 house tour with morning tea served in beautiful Royal Albert china, with sweet treats made locally. It was most informative and it was a unique experience to see the art collection and poke around the elegant house to witness how a line of prestigious owners added character features to this historical property. Friends followed up with a garden tour that discussed all the woods used to make musical instruments showcasing the European botanical species in the fine garden. After our BYO picnic lunch using the plastic chairs and tables provided on the house verandah, overlooking the sweeping lawn and spectacularly flowering, pink Dogwood, another in our group wanted to join the author talk and book club event. The calendar of events scheduled at Duneira is the best reason to visit the property. [See the website]. The Spring garden was attractive with some of the most towering and voluminous rhododendrons I have ever seen in a Victorian garden. We attended on their November open day and expected busy crowds - not so. Had we come only for the open day, the short walk around the garden was not a good justification for the $10 entry fee - not that much to see or do. Forest Glades nearby ($8 entry) had more meandering paths and decorative statues to capture the walker's attention. Heaps of on-site car parking - an advantage not provided by Forest Glades or Tieve Tara.
Written 8 November 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ivysreviews
Perth, Australia111 contributions
Mar 2016 • Couples
Did a house and the garden tours and we really enjoyed it. The house has a very interesting history behind it and our guide was very passionate and knowledgeable about it and keen to share it. The gardens are beautifully manicured, and some plants are very rare and interesting for those with an interest in horticulture. Highly recommended!
Written 15 April 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Julieanne A
Gisborne, Australia10 contributions
I recently attended a wedding in the gardens of Duneira, what a beautiful location the gardens are magnificent. The wedding was held in the meadow in front of the manner house. I would highly recommend this venue to any prospective brides as a place to consider for a garden wedding
Written 24 April 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Drew D
Melbourne, Australia13 contributions
Nov 2013 • Friends
The generousity of Castlemaine businesman and collector Stuart R. Stoneman is amazing.The well preserved 1875 Italianate style hill station is one of only four hill station residences at Mount Macedon believed to have been built in the 1870s that survived the devastating 1983 bushfires.
The homestead is full of his collection of art, furniture and books. Tours of the house, art collection and garden are available. Bookings are essential.
There is also a diverse and interesting programme of literary and musical events.
The extensive garden is also of great interest for its rare and historically important botanical specimens and notable avenues of trees. The southern area of the 15.4 hectare site has a park-like landscape with an informal planting scheme, and includes many significant conifers, broad-leaved deciduous trees, rhododendrons and other cool climate plants. The northern half of the property contains orchards of fruit and chestnut trees and paddocks for stock.
The homestead is full of his collection of art, furniture and books. Tours of the house, art collection and garden are available. Bookings are essential.
There is also a diverse and interesting programme of literary and musical events.
The extensive garden is also of great interest for its rare and historically important botanical specimens and notable avenues of trees. The southern area of the 15.4 hectare site has a park-like landscape with an informal planting scheme, and includes many significant conifers, broad-leaved deciduous trees, rhododendrons and other cool climate plants. The northern half of the property contains orchards of fruit and chestnut trees and paddocks for stock.
Written 16 January 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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