Emirates One&Only Wolgan Valley, Blue MountainsCredit: Emirates One&Only Wolgan Valley
Setting the scene for a picnic lunch at Emirates One&Only Wolgan Valley.
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If you’re hankering for a return to nature but fancy a more high-end experience than campgrounds and convenience foods, these lavish resorts, all within a couple of hours’ drive from Sydney, offer exceptional accommodation in spectacular settings and some of the finest dining in the state. Mountainside or coastline, north, south or west, indulge in a taste of the good life.
Emirates One&Only Wolgan Valley, Blue Mountains
If foraging and farm-to-plate are terms that warm your heart, make this your next out-of-town adventure. Acclaimed chef James Viles heads up the kitchen at the sublime Emirates One&Only Wolgan Valley resort, where his passion for locally sourced produce is well matched to the hotel’s sustainable ethos.The resort, a three-hour drive northwest of Sydney, is nestled in the wild beauty of the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Blue Mountains and features 40 freestanding villas, each with private pools, that embrace the splendour of the landscape. Two restaurants in the main homestead offer authentically Australian fare with a focus on seasonal and regional organic produce. Quality, flavour and a connection to nature are the stars, which shine extra bright in this blissfully secluded part of the world. Add to your diary sampling the resort’s own 1832 Wolgan Gin, featuring botanicals from the Wolgan Valley.
Jonah’s, Whale Beach
International guests sometimes arrive by seaplane for their stay at Jonah’s boutique hotel and restaurant, high on the cliffs at Whale Beach in Sydney’s dazzling Northern Beaches. But if you’re happy with a more conventional transit, it’s a mere one-hour drive from the city centre. There are 11 rooms, decked out with five-star extravagances and all with gape-worthy views, but it’s the award-wining restaurant that is often the main drawcard of this exclusive enclave. Chef Matteo Zamboni has worked in well-regarded Sydney Italian restaurants Ormeggio at the Spit and Pilu at Freshwater and brings a much-welcomed Italian influence to the menu.
Pretty Beach House, Bouddi Peninsula
There are just four villas, or pavilions, at Pretty Beach House, a refined coastal getaway 90 minutes north of Sydney on the spectacular Bouddi Peninsula of the NSW Central Coast. Surrounded by forest and secluded bays, the resort is tucked among gum tress and gives you a sense of visiting a secret hideaway. The stellar reputation of its restaurant, however, is no secret. Under head chef Dean Jones, who worked at London’s River Café, the simple, elegant fare is a reflection of place, with a Mediterranean-inspired, modern Australian focus. A stay at Pretty Beach House is extraordinary in itself, but even more so with the rare privilege of having a leading chef prepare food for you and only a handful of other guests in an intimate setting.
Pretty Beach House, Pretty Beach Credit: Anson Smart
Pretty Beach House, Pretty Beach.
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Pretty Beach House, Pretty Beach Credit: Anson Smart
Pretty Beach House, Pretty Beach.
Jonah's, Whale Beach Credit: Jonah's
Looking out over Whale Beach from Jonah’s.
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Jonah's, Whale Beach Credit: Jonah's
Looking out over Whale Beach from Jonah’s.
Bannisters Port Stephens
The seaside holiday area of Port Stephens, a 30-minute drive from Newcastle, or a 2.5-hour drive north of Sydney, is home to the second Rick Stein at Bannisters, the renowned seafood restaurant that first came to acclaim at the Bannisters by the Sea at Mollymook on the South Coast. Bannisters by the Sea’s sister hotel Bannisters Port Stephens is a vibrant renovation of a pre-existing retro motel, with the revamp inspired by its sister property: laid-back luxury with a Hamptons-style aesthetic. Surrounded by bushland and sea, it’s also set on a vast marine park, giving Stein access to top-notch seafood. It’s all freshly caught and perfectly prepared — settle in for a long, leisurely lunch or sunset dinner.
Bangalay Luxury Villas, Shoalhaven Heads
For Sydney-dwelling gourmands, the Shoalhaven region of the South Coast is a heavenly escape a mere two hour’s drive from the city centre. Popular for its pristine beaches and pretty native bushland, it’s also home to passionate food producers and food lovers. Bangalay Dining, the signature restaurant of Bangalay Luxury Villas in Shoalhaven Heads, plays to that advantage with its emphasis on premium native ingredients and a paddock-to-plate ethos. Bangalay Dining’s innovative modern Australian fare showcases the region’s best produce, and with the likes of kangaroo with wattleseed, muntries and hazelnuts on offer, it’s a chance to expand your palate in elevated bush tucker style. After a memorable meal, it’s a few steps to one of the resort’s 16 spacious, light-filled private villas, each a showcase of chic coastal style with golf course and garden views.
Bendooley Estate, Berrima
Set in 80 hectares of magnificent gardens with a romantic vineyard, the grand Bendooley Estate in Berrima, a 90-minute drive southwest of Sydney in the Southern Highlands, will fulfil all your dreams of being lord or lady of the manor. Book one of the rustic-chic cottages – complete with tranquil views, blissfully deep baths and heated tiles – and, after browsing through the resident Berkelouw bookstore The Book Barn, settle in for some serious feasting at Bendooley Estate’s lunch-only restaurant. The Australian contemporary menu has something for everyone, with woodfired pizzas a favourite. If you’re keen to throw some pots around in your own fully functioning cottage kitchen, swing by the Bendooley Larder, a 10-minute drive away in Bowral, which offers an abundance of the wine region’s meats, cheeses, seasonal produce and goodies. After tastings at Bendooley’s cellar door, you’re sure to have the drop to match.
Rick Stein, Bannisters Port Stephens Credit: Lydia Napoli
Rick Stein's Singapore Chilli Crab at Bannisters Port Stephens
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Rick Stein, Bannisters Port Stephens Credit: Lydia Napoli
Rick Stein's Singapore Chilli Crab at Bannisters Port Stephens
Bangalay Dining, Shoalhaven Heads Credit: Destination NSW
Dish made from local and native ingredients available from the menu at Bangalay Dining, Shoalhaven Heads.
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Bangalay Dining, Shoalhaven Heads Credit: Destination NSW
Dish made from local and native ingredients available from the menu at Bangalay Dining, Shoalhaven Heads.
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Auriga Spa Credit: Timothy Kaye
Auriga Spa Capella Sydney
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Set aside some time for self-care and feel the tension melt from your body as you’re pampered from head to toe in opulent surroundings in one of the many luxury day spas in Sydney. Whether you want an indulgent treatment in a five-star hotel spa or detoxify in a specialist salon, you’ll find a range of incredible treatments across the city.
Soak up the calm in the city
Revel in the exclusive spaces of the hotel’s guest-only Auriga Spa when you stay at Capella Sydney, one of the most recent additions to the city’s luxury hotel offering. The grand proportions of the former Department of Education sandstone building carry through to the stunning spa, with contemporary cubes inserted into the heritage space to form a series of treatment rooms, and a serene swimming pool flooded with natural light from banked skylights. Auriga’s signature two-hour New Moon Renewal and Reflection treatment features a scent journey and somatic intention setting ritual before a body polish and peel wrap, and a massage with bioenergetic oil.
Step inside QT Sydney’s SpaQ and you’ll feel like you’re a world away from the busy retail precinct in the city streets below. Spoil yourself with the Metamorphosis package, which includes around six hours of pampering, including lunch, that will leave you feeling transformed, renewed and ready to take on the world.
Surrender to the serene underground sanctuary of The Day Spa by Chuan, available to guests and visitors at The Langham, Sydney hotel in the city centre. Sense your busy mind calming as you enter the Roman-style heated pool space, and feel stress leave your body as the highly qualified team provides holistic treatments featuring luxe Babor skincare products. Go all out with the Champagne & Gold Indulgence, a 4.5-hour top-to-toe pampering experience that starts with a full-body massage, followed by a 90-minute facial, deluxe manicure and pedicure, a light lunch and a glass of champagne.
Relax down by the water
Feel like you’re on top of the world when you arrive for your treatment at the luxurious Crown Spa at the Crown Towers Sydney, which anchors one end of the Barangaroo waterfront precinct on the fringe of the city centre. Lean into La Prairie facials and Subtle Energies treatments, or indulge in a three-hour Restoration treatment, which begins with an invigorating body exfoliation and Crown’s signature marma massage before an age-defying facial leaves you feeling radiant and revitalised.
Float over to the other side of Darling Harbour to discover Sofitel Sydney Darling Harbour’s calming Sofitel SPA Darling Harbour, which has seven spacious treatment rooms, including a suite featuring a large freestanding tub overlooking the water. Alongside bespoke facials and body therapies, the spa also offers a five-hour wellness journey adapted to the season.
Reconnect body, mind and soul at The Darling Spa at The Star Sydney in nearby Pyrmont. Linger in the spa’s Moroccan hammam chamber, steam room and Jacuzzi before blissing out with a Dihlbi facial, which features age-defying serums incorporating ancient Aboriginal knowledge of native botanicals by Australian brand Li’Tya.
Auriga Spa Credit: Timothy Kaye
Auriga Spa Capella Sydney
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Auriga Spa Credit: Timothy Kaye
Auriga Spa Capella Sydney
The Darling Spa Credit: The Darling
A couples treatment room at The Darling Spa in Pyrmont.
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The Darling Spa Credit: The Darling
A couples treatment room at The Darling Spa in Pyrmont.
Bliss out in a boutique salon
Sense a calming energy from the moment you enter the astonishing space at Venustus, a 10-minute drive east of the city centre in leafy Paddington, where owner Jeannie Bourke has laid a grid of healing crystals beneath the floor. Embrace the cocooning vibe in one of the tall egg-shaped treatment pods and surrender to a replenishing treatment using a range of luscious aromatherapy-based products.
Arrive early at Sol Spa Vaucluse, a luxe salon offering facials, massage and body treatments to nourish the mind and body in the inner-eastern suburb of Vaucluse, to relax with a cup of herbal tea and look out over the spa’s lush garden. Rejuvenate with a Native Botanical facial using Indigenous Australian botanicals, or stretch out with a five-hour Ultimate Sol Spa Signature Package that includes a nourishing meal and a glass of champagne.
Take a deep breath of salt air before stepping into an immune-boosting infrared sauna at one of several salons around the beachside suburbs in Sydney’s east. Emerge calm and detoxified after an infrared sauna at Self by The Parlour Room in Clovelly, which also offers a range of bespoke facials and indulgent body treatments, or at Slow House at Bondi Beach, which has both small and large infrared sauna rooms to soak up the heat in private or with a friend.
Go west to be pampered
Bond with your partner during an Urban Release couples ritual at the Inglis Day Spa, on the top level of The William Inglis Hotel in Warwick Farm, a 40-minute drive southwest of the city centre. Soak up the equine theme of the spectacular hotel, which celebrates Warwick Farm’s horseracing history (there’s a racecourse right next door), before sequestering in a modern spa suite and relaxing in a cabana facing the rooftop pool. Or come alone for a pampering 150-minute Crystal Healing treatment, which includes a muscle-melting hot-stone massage, rejuvenating facial and soothing head massage.
Sofitel Sydney Darling Harbour Spa Credit: Sofitel Sydney Darling Harbour
Sofitel Sydney Darling Harbour Spa
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Sofitel Sydney Darling Harbour Spa Credit: Sofitel Sydney Darling Harbour
Sofitel Sydney Darling Harbour Spa
QT Sydney, Sydney Credit: QT Sydney
The spaQ at QT Sydney
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QT Sydney, Sydney Credit: QT Sydney
The spaQ at QT Sydney