Margaret River Retreat — Hotel in Forest Grove

Our family of four loved our stay at Margaret River Retreat. We stayed over the Easter long weekend and you wouldn't even know that the region was packed with tourists - the site was peaceful and we loved the location just a short drive south of Witchcliffe. We stayed in The Barn which was very spacious and had everything we needed for our young family. It had a full kitchen with oven, microwave, full size fridge/freezer, and there was a washing machine in the shower room so we could wash our kids' muddy clothes. The master bedroom had the most comfortable king bed with a view to the back paddock, and the second bedroom had two queen beds with a view towards the central facilities. We had an indoor dining table but also enjoyed eating outside by the BBQ. Confession - There are no TVs so we brought a portable mini projector with us and put on a movie for the kids every evening in our spacious sitting area. The on-site cafe was an added bonus and we loved getting coffees and breakfast there each morning - the coffee was excellent quality too! As an extra special touch the team put on an Easter Egg hunt on Easter Sunday so it was a delight to see all the kids who stayed at the site helping each other hunt, and sharing their eggs. In a region saturated with holiday rentals it was a pleasure to stay here hosted by old school hospitality with a sustainability focus. Our family...

We were told in the email that reception is not attended and just to call a specific number when we arrive which was fine with us. We called several times but no answer. I checked the website and there was a different number there so tried that and finally someone answered and came to meet us. Maybe a box with digital lock would be helpful to leave check in instructions would be great. It’s just a weird feeling to arrive at a property with nobody to welcome you and having to call several times. The place was very quiet too it felt kind of an abandoned place when we arrived 😅 ||We stayed in a glamping tent which was nice, spacious and comfortable and is exactly as pictured on their website. It rained when we were staying there but the tent was so secure, no leaks inside. Beds were comfortable. Access to power point to charge phones. Shared toilets and bathroom were clean and tidy enough ||No pictures of the outdoor kitchen on the website so thought I’d share here. Kitchen is important to us as I prefer cooking for the family rather than going out for dinners. The kitchen was well equipped but exposed to the elements. It was right outside the toilets which was a bit icky. Might work for others but not for us so based on this we won’t...

We decided to pay for an upgrade to make our stay easier, while we prepared for the wedding. I'm sure we can agree that the upgraded features we paid for were not provided, which forced us to cut out stay short from the previously planned 4 days. ||To list a few, the water and electricity weren't turned on when we arrived, (luckily we were able to find the switch and tap ourselves). ||The gas bottle was empty and not checked prior to our stay. This wasn't rectified until after mid day on Saturday 4th. The hot water was not able to be used throughout the stay. The fridge also had mould growing throughout, and had an old, warm carton of milk. There were also multiple spiders present throughout the property, and the woman's communal bathrooms had mostly empty soap and shampoo bottles. The few which had substance in them were watered down. |Management was horrific in attending to these, would not compensate, blamed the whole thing on having prescribed burns two weeks prior and that, and I quote, "we ASSUMED everything was working" so hadn't laid an eye on the apartment. Totally negligent. Don't ruin your trip down south and pay $50 less to stay at a fully functioning town house down the road with air-conditioning...