Bundaberg, Hervey Bay and surrounds

We planned a long weekend getaway with the Lockharts for the Anzac Day weekend. As we were unsure about how things were going with COVID shutdowns etc we decided to stay within Queensland. I had been wanting to visit a beautiful house in Bundaberg for a long time and Faye had been wanting to see Hervey Bay. So we decided to visit Bundaberg, Hervey Bay and surrounds.

The Lockharts run their own business like us so getting away for long periods of time is often difficult. When there are long weekends we try to take advantage of that time by taking a day either side of the weekend. Thankfully we were able to organise that for this weekend. That gave us four nights away so we decided to do two nights in Bundaberg and two nights by the beach in Hervey Bay. Sadly though Ray ended up sick before we left and was unable to make the trip. So it was Tony and his two wives 😂😂😂

SOME NOTES ON TRIP PLANNING for BUNDABERG, HERVEY BAY AND SURROUNDS

Whenever we travel anyway there is always a lot of research done before we leave. There is nothing worse than having a restaurant or tour you really want to visit booked out for your entire trip! Faye and I always work together to ensure that there are places on our list that we will all enjoy. Doing this research will also let you plan your days to incorporate opening times etc. We find this particularly important in these smaller places where businesses can close at lunch time on Saturday. You will notice on this trip we had to do a bit of doubling back to get to some places.

Something we also try and do is have a short list of “maybes”. These are places we like that have been left off the itinerary in favour of other things. We often find on a trip that we have a few hours where we have nothing to do or we need a meal that we haven’t planned for so we look at our list and choose something. I find it very stressful, particularly in a group, if you’re trying to find something last minute in an area you don’t know. We never have any problems or wasted time now we just consult our list!!

Friday

Our first stop on Friday was Maryborough which was nearly four hours drive from home. We stopped for lunch at a place called Happy Days Diner. Tony and I are lovers of the 50’s, especially the music. Happy Days Diner served classic American food like burgers and hotdogs and everything was very fresh and delicious. In these times of COVID I have to say it was immaculately clean too. The position of the diner is not very special and its easy to miss but well worth a visit. The owners were also very friendly.

Next stop in Maryborough was Another Life Furniture for a little antique shopping. It was a beautiful shop and both Faye and I found some little treasures.

Maryborough Military Museum

It was then on to the Military Museum. Now Faye and I organised this mostly for the boys so it wasn’t all about antiques 🤣. I have to say though that we all really enjoyed it. It was so beautifully put together and the building alone was worth a visit. The museum, amongst other things, holds:-

• 1 Victoria Cross, 2 Cross of Valours and many other significant medals;
• More Australian soldiers are represented for gallantry at Gallipoli, than any other museum in the world;
• More Australian officers are represented, who died as a result of service at Gallipoli, than any other museum in the world;
• Uniforms and period costumes, historic vehicles and scale models
• Personal letters and much much more

Bundaberg Accomodation

Finally it was time to check in to our Bundaberg Accomodation. I have wanted to stay at Goodwin Rest for a long time and it didn’t disappoint. The house was gorgeous and very comfortable. You instantly knew a lot of hard work and love had gone into the renovation and the styling. The beds were great and we really enjoyed our stay here. The property was also in a great position and we found it easy to navigate our way around Bundaberg from here. We also entertained some guests that night and picked up fish and chips from GP Witts which was not far from the house.

Saturday

Bundaberg Rum Distillery

First up Saturday morning was a tour of the Bundaberg Rum Distillery. Now we are not rum drinkers and I really thought it would be an enjoyable tour but nothing fantastic. I was wrong! I highly recommend this tour, it was funny and educational and very professionally done. You need to book your tour beforehand or you will miss out. It’s also necessary to arrive about an hour before your allocated tour time. This is because there is a small museum to look at prior to your tour – with a lot of reading. You can take pictures in the museum however they will not allow you to take any photos on the tour as you cannot take anything with a battery through to the distillery. What impressed me the most about the Rum Distillery is their commitment to the Bundaberg community.

After the Rum Distillery we visited a local shop called New Vintage. Faye and I purchased a few goodies here and it was well worth a visit. We then went to That Furniture Shop which is full of amazing oldwares. Needless to say we continued to support the local economy with a few more purchases 😂.

Hinkler Hall of Aviation

We had lunch at the cafe within the Bundaberg Botanical Gardens and were actually impressed by the food. It was nothing fancy but everything was really tasty. The Hall of Aviation was small but interesting and hands on. We were also able to look through Hinkler House which was relocated from England to Bundaberg brick by brick.

Afternoon Activities

After a busy morning we took a drive to Tinaberries Ice Cream which was a beautiful spot to relax in the garden and enjoy a delicious strawberry ice cream. The next stop was Amandine Lavender Farm. Unfortunately it wasn’t lavender season but it was still worth the visit. We found some lovely products made in the local area. This was the end of a big day so we headed back to Goodwin Rest to relax with a drink on the front porch until dinner.

Dinner was at Sabrosa Steakhouse in Bundaberg. It was an amazing meal and great value. A booking is necessary, it was very busy and obviously very popular with locals.

After leaving the restaurant we spotted a newsagency across the road called Chippindalls and thought why not!!!!. It was open until 9pm and had just about everything and definitely worth a visit. The homewares were beautiful and they had all the stationery you could want. We were there until closing!!!

Sunday – Heading to Hervey Bay

Faye and I really wanted to visit a place in Maryborough called Lily’s Antiques which was only opened every second weekend. Thankfully it was opened that weekend. Unfortunately this meant heading back to Maryborough on the way to Hervey Bay.

On the way to Maryborough we decided to call in to Childers to visit the old Paragon Theatre for a hot chocolate.

We found a lot of nice things to take home from Lily’s Antiques so it was well worth the detour.

We headed to Hervey Bay for lunch by the beach at The Bayswater Hotel which was next door to where we were staying.

Unfortunately we were still too early for checkin and our apartments weren’t ready so we headed off to the Historical Village. This museum was a highlight of the trip. It was a huge space with 21 buildings to explore. They also have demonstrations of blacksmith, corn shelling, rope making and wood turning.

Our Hervey Bay Accomodation

We stayed right on the water in Hervey Bay in the Santalina Holiday Apartments. The position of the apartments was perfect, we had a view of the water and the jetty. The apartments had two bedrooms, one bathroom and a kitchen. The apartments are very old so were in need of an update which I believe is currently underway. The decor was sparse and a bit old fashioned. It’s also important to note that there is no elevator. We stayed on the third floor so it was a hike with the luggage but doable and worth it for the view. The price was also very reasonable.

Black Bear Restaurant

For dinner on Sunday night we had booked a table at Black Bear, which was lucky because it was really busy. The food served at Black Bear is Canadian style so we were really looking forward to trying it. I cannot rave enough about how much we enjoyed the food. The meals were a good size and definitely good value for money. You really do need to come hungry though as they say on their website!!! The three of us shared Classic Poutine and Perogies as starters and they were both really delicious.

Tony had Pork Bacon and Maple sausages for main and they were really good (this comes from someone who isn’t a massive fan of sausages!!!). Faye and I shared a pizza which is not listed on their online menu. Instead of tomato base it had a white sauce and was topped with camembert, bacon and caramelised onion. It was then served with fresh apple and rocket. Utterly delicious! We did have to take a few pieces home with us though.

We also had dessert because Faye and I really wanted to try the pumpkin cheesecake with maple ice cream and candied pecans. OMG!!! it was so good. Tony had the Justin Beaver Tails which were ok. The ice cream and other toppings were great but the pastry tail was a bit chewy and huge so he didn’t finish it even with our help.

Monday

We started the day with a lovely walk along the foreshore in Hervey Bay. It was a gorgeous morning.

Next on our itinerary was to head back to Maryborough to visit the Mary Poppins Museum. This was a real highlight for us. The museum was housed in the old bank building where PL Travers was born. Her father was the Bank Manager and they lived upstairs. She was born in one of the bedrooms. All three of us thoroughly enjoyed the hands on nature of the exhibits. If you have the opportunity to visit this museum definitely take it. They also have a little treasure hunt for the kids (or us 🤣) where you had to locate some little painted mice throughout the building. It was tough, we missed one of each level!!!😂

After the museum we walked the military trail on the riverfront in Maryborough. This was very well done. A word of warning though if you visit Maryborough on a public holiday like we did there will be nothing open. We could not find anywhere to have lunch or even buy a drink. It ended up being a trip to Woolworths to grab some water and a pie – not ideal!.

We headed back to Hervey Bay to sit out on the balcony and have a rest before packing up ready to leave in the morning. If you are looking for a fun long weekend you can’t go past Bundaberg, Hervey Bay and surrounds.

Visiting little towns like Bundaberg is a great way to get out and about at the moment. Seeing places that, without COVID we probably wouldn’t have visited, has opened my eyes to the beauty we have here in Australia. Last year we visited Toowoomba which was also amazing and you can read all about it here.