Travel Guide: Bombah Point Eco Cottages

The architecturally designed glass and timber eco cottages nestled into the Myall Lakes National Park at Bombah Point make for the perfect getaway. Get in touch with nature as the floor to ceiling windows give the feeling of living amongst the trees in your very own luxury treehouse. 

Wander down to the eco fruit and veggie gardens to gather fresh produce to prepare meals in your cottage's well equipped kitchen or for the barbecue on your balcony amongst the trees.

Whether you want to do it all, or you want to do nothing at all, the Bombah Point Retreat has got you covered.

My good friend Blauw and I stayed at Bombah Point for four nights during December to refuel before the Christmas rush.

GETTING THERE

The easiest way to get to Bombah Point is by car. Compile a playlist, pack some snacks and make the most of the 2.5-3 hour road trip north of Sydney.

The turn off is marked by a bunch of road signs in the small town of Buladelah, the most memorable a sign for Internet which can apparently be found 150 metres in the opposite direction. But don't worry, internet reception reached our cottage and WIFI is available in the group lounge and dining area. Take the right at Crawford Street then follow the dirt road for about 10 minutes until you see the Bombah Point property sign on the left.

ACCOMODATION  

Staying in the eco cottages at Bombah Point is like escaping to a luxury treehouse. The six eco cottages are spread out amongst the property, hidden in the trees. Look out of the floor to ceiling windows and hear nothing but nature and see nothing but trees..or if you're lucky you might see a rock wallaby nearby or a possum walking past. We had a friendly possum walk straight up to the front door and look through the window. I still maintain he wanted to come in and watch True Blood with us.

The cottages felt quite new and were thankfully clean. The retreat is big on recycling and composting and will explain the rubbish system on your arrival.

There are two bedrooms in each cottage. A large master bedroom with a queen bed and a reading nook by the window. The second, a large, light-filled loft with a double and single bed. The loft window was great to wake up to, watching kookaburras sitting in a nearby tree, although not so great if you need light blocked out to sleep in. Extra blankets are provided and often needed on the cool outback nights.

The spacious open-plan living area is cozy, furnished with a small couch, two chairs, a tv, coffee table and fireplace. A portable gas heater is also provided which we were thankful for on the second day of our trip which turned out to be a not so summery December day. Luckily I also brought a throw (just in case). When the cottage heats up there is no eco-unfriendly air-con, we cooled down the cottage by opening windows, closing blinds and using the ceiling fans. When it got too hot in the living area we retreated to read in the master bedroom which had blinds to block out the sun and went for a walk down to the pool. For this reason I'd suggest staying at the retreat during Autumn or Spring when it's not too hot but not too cold.

The kitchen is impressively well equipped. After unpacking the car on our arrival we checked out what we had to work with come dinner-time. The fridge and freezer are large enough to stock a weeks worth of food, or in our case, a few days worth of food and wine. The oven and gas stove were very capable and the barbecue on the balcony made for a nice afternoon feast. Cooking basics such as oil, salt, pepper, coffee, tea and sugar can all be found in the small pantry. And as far as cooking and serving goes, there didn't seem to be anything that hadn't been provided. There were even chopsticks! If you're missing something have a look in the communal kitchen, we found dipping bowls and platters when we needed them.

The bathroom is spacious with a huge rainwater spa bath surrounded by windows that open so wide you feel as though you're bathing outside. Don't be surprised if the bath water doesn't run clear. We were told the colour comes from the tea trees which colour the property's tank water. Towels and waffle bathrobes are provided for two. Is it just me or do waffle bathrobes really make you feel like you're on holiday?

The balcony wraps the whole way around the cottage. Enjoy your morning tea or coffee on the outdoor setting, read a book or take a nap in the balcony hammock and cook up a feast on the barbecue.

Bombah Point is wheelchair-friendly with one Easy Access Cottage on the property for those with mobility constraints.

Shared Facilities

Eco Gardens - Pick herbs and seasonal fruit and veg from the small garden surrounding the chook pen or the 7 tiered garden. Check the sign at reception for a list of what's in season.

Swimming Pool - Take a dip in the pool or lounge on the deck chairs.

Group lounge and dining area - A great dining or hangout spot for bigger groups.

Games Room - Pool table, DVDs, books, TV and puzzles.

Large group kitchen - If you're not a fan of the plunger coffee in your cottage, walk down to the group kitchen to make use of the coffee machine.

Read about Bombah Point's eco-objectives here.

FOOD

You will want to take advantage of the abundance of local fresh produce and the well equipped cottage kitchen and balcony barbecue. Did I mention the 7 tiered fruit and veggie garden?

Eating In

Gather fresh herbs, fruit and veggies from the small veggie garden surrounding the chook pen or the 7 tiered veggie garden not far from reception, visit the local produce markets or road-side stalls or make a quick trip to the IGA at Bulahdelah or the Coles at Tea Gardens to prepare a cottage cooked meal in your cottage's own kitchen or on the balcony barbecue.

Grab a basket from reception and check the notice board to see what's in season then walk down to the Eco Garden and 7 tiered fruit and veg garden and start picking. We collected rosemary, basil, mint, tomato, lemon, chilli, spiky cucumber, zucchini flower, shallots and Brazilian cherries.

Optional Breakfast Basket - For $17 per person, pre-order a breakfast basket generously filled with local produce.

Eating Out

If you do want to venture out for a feed, the Tea Gardens Boatshed is the most popular spot and is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I was pretty stoked to find that they offer almond milk!

Tea Gardens -  Tea Gardens Boatshed, Myall Shopping Centre (supermarket, bakery, newsagent etc), we scored really cheap petrol at the petrol station across the road from Myall Shopping Centre.

Buladelah - Myalla Magic, IGA, Plough Inn Hotel

Hawks Nest

Since the aim of our trip was to spend 4 days in a Cottage Coma stupor the food we made had to meet 3 requirements..

Quick

Easy

Delicious

We brought most of our food up from Sydney then wandered down to the fruit and veggie garden on our first morning. A few days in we needed to make a trip into town to re-stock on wine.

In case you'd like some ideas for what to make in your cottage, here is what we came up with.. 

Potato & Carrot Rosti with tomato, basil and chilli salsa topped with pesto and avocado 

Blauw came up with this idea on the first morning. It was so easy to prep and tasted like something you would find at a nice cafe. Simply grate potato and carrots, mix with olive oil and season with salt, pepper and whatever herbs you find down in the eco garden then pop it into the oven until golden brown. While you're waiting for the roost, mix up a salsa from fresh tomato, basil leaves and chilli. Serve with pesto sauce (we used Botanical Cuisine - yum!) and avocado.

Melon Salad

Self explanatory really. We used watermelon and rockmelon. Make a flavour explosion by adding lime juice and mint. Bam!

One-Pot Pasta Salad

GF spiral pasta from Energy Scoop, spinach leaves, artichokes (The Best artichokes from Blauw's deli in Cherrybrook, so good!), fresh grape tomatoes, zucchini and chilli and lime dressing. This meal ticks all the boxes - it's made in under 20 minutes, it's all made in the one-pot so it's super easy to clean as well as make and is too delicious. We made a massive pot so we could make the most of leftovers.

The Ultimate Veggie BBQ

- Corn on the cob.

- Sliced zucchini.

- Field mushrooms.

- Sliced potato.

- Chilli sausages from Suzy Spoon's Vegetarian Butcher.

- Don't forget to BYO sauce!

Dumplings & Salad

On the night we arrived we needed the ultimate lazy meal. We boiled up some dumplings, made some spinach and avocado salad and enjoyed a few glasses of vino. 

Burgers

A great way to use up BBQ leftovers.

- Schnitzel Burger 

Suzy Spoon's Veggie Schnitzel, avocado, spinach leaves, Tofutti American Cheese Slice (vegan), tomato sauce, mustard and vegan kewpie mayonnaise. 

- Chilli Sausage Burger 

Suzy Spoon's chilli sausage, spinach leaves, Tofutti American Cheese Slice (vegan), tomato sauce, mustard and vegan kewpie mayonnaise.

Snackage

Mangoes, Bananas, lentil chips, brown rice chips, original potato chips, Peace Love & Vegetables Cashew Cheese Dip, Lemon Protein Balls from Hatch, dark chocolate covered macadamias, dark raspberry chocolate, Loving Earth Salted Caramel Chocolate.

Drinks

Brown Brothers Moscato, Brown Brothers Cienna, Twisted Sister Apple Cider, dandelion tea, coffee, Inside Out Almond Milk, sparkling water and still water. You might want to bring still water if you're not into making drinkable water from the tank water that runs through the taps.

The Grounds coffee cups were a bit of an in joke with Hatch (where we get our coffee hit 2-3 times a day in Sydney). We didn't know how we'd survive without our Hatch coffee every morning so we were given takeaway cups so it didn't feel like a complete withdrawal. We grabbed a few Hatch lemon protein balls to take with us too.

ACTIVITIES

- Local Markets.

- Bushwalking.

- Swimming, surfing, snorkelling and diving.

- Kayaking, boating, canoeing.

- Bike riding.

- Whale and Dolphin watching from May to October.

- Bird watching.

- The Buladelah Show (see website for dates).

- The Wild Side Festival (September).

Or feel free to embrace the art of doing nothing. We may have made quick trips to the veggie garden, Bulahdelah (for wine), Tea Gardens (for coffee) and gone on a half hour bush walk around the property but most of our time was spent in a Cottage Coma. Naps were taken, food was snacked on and 2 seasons of True Blood and a few movies were accomplished from the comfort of the lounge and rug.

Do you prefer relaxed or adventurous holidays? What would you cook in your own cottage kitchen? Are you a just-in-case packer?

Overview

Best time to visit | Autumn or Spring

Must do | Get in touch with nature - go for a walk, drink your tea or coffee on the balcony, have a spa bath amongst the trees with a glass of wine.

Value | 5/5

Service | 5/5

Rating | 5/5

Details

Address | 969 Bombay Point Road, Myall Lakes National Park, Bombay Point, NSW, Australia 2423

Telephone | (02) 4997 4401

Email | info@bombah.com.au

Website | http://www.bombah.com.au

Facebook | Bombay Point Eco Cottages

Instagram | @myalllakes