Where do you stay when you’re planning a road trip with an incentive group and want to take your dogs with you? More and more hotels are meeting pet-lovers’ needs, The Siteseer discovered. Here are some New South Wales suggestions.
The Grove at Clifton Grove, near Orange
Heather Dunn and her husband Terry (below), who’ve lived in Orange, four hours’ drive west of Sydney, for many years, can cater for groups of up to five at their leafy property on the outskirts of the rural New South Wales town – eight kilometres’ drive from the Orange Post Office. Not only do visitors get an effusive welcome from their little dog, Lancelot, when they arrive, they discover that their own canines are welcomed equally enthusiastically.
“Ozzie just came and had a cuddle with us,” said Heather one winter afternoon after I’d checked in to their snug B&B, The Grove, for a couple of days. “Then she came with us for a walk when we went to feed the rabbits, and has had a marvellous time.”
While the extent of their tolerance for having dogs to stay and roaming their property may be unusual, demand for such pet-friendly service is growing, says Heather. “We’re getting more and more people interested in doing so,” she says.
In addition to people holidaying with their pets, travelling to the area to sample local food and wine, many clients are temporarily in town because they’re picking up puppies or new dogs from country properties nearby, Heather adds. “Since the lockdowns began, school holidays have been really busy. I think the fact that we’re pet-friendly gives families the peace of mind that comes with having their loved dogs with them.”
Rooms here, featuring beds with electric blankets, are AUD170 per night, with breakfast included.
For more info, click here.
Email: heatherbdunn@bigpond.com
Oasis Motel, Peak Hill
The managers of this discreet property in the small town of Peak Hill, set on the main road between Dubbo and Parkes, allow dogs to be brought into some rooms, which are all ground-floor with easy access to a grassy area, barbecue facilities and swimming pool.
The rooms are small and compact with the conveniences guests need in summer or winter: aircon, microwave, toaster, fridge and so forth.
The town has several shops and cafés, and an ex-services and citizens’ club with a good Chinese restaurant, a great Australian country tradition.
Among the local attractions are walking tracks, fishing and an defunct open gold mine, legacy of a gold rush at the end of the nineteenth century.
Rooms here are AUD90 per night.
For more information, click here.
Email: oasismotelpeakhill@gmail.com
Moonraker Motor Inn, Parkes
At the edge of the pretty town of Parkes, five hours west of Sydney, the Moonraker Motor Inn welcomes dogs and is in the process of renovating its 24 rooms to do so more effectively.
“We’re half-way through the renovations,” explains General Manager Vaseem (Vas) Ahmed. “The pet-friendly rooms will be the best in the motel once we’ve completed [the work].”
The rooms here are significantly bigger than those in standard motels and have easy access to a large grassed area, security-lit at night, where hounds can exercise. The licensed restaurant, Clarinda, does a brisk trade with a traditional Aussie menu with such staples as crumbed chops and mash, steaks and salads. The property is a couple of minutes’ drive from the town centre.
A well-known local attraction for incentive groups is the giant Parkes radio telescope, 20 minutes away, which is still operating and was one of the antennae used to receive live pictures of the Apollo moon landing. The staff in the facility’s shop allow dogs to be brought onto the premises.
Also nearby, at the airport, is the Parkes Aviation Museum whose exhibits include a variety of commercial and military aircraft. Visitors can enter the planes and look around at their leisure; admission is free.
Rooms at the Moonraker start at AUD 100 per night.
For more information, click here.
Email: info@moonrakermotorinn.com.au
Bathurst Explorers Motel
With a marketing tag of ‘spend a night not a fortune,’ this double-storey property in the city of Bathurst, three hours’ west of Sydney, welcomes dogs in its ground-floor rooms and is clean and comfortable, with a number of room configurations. The dining room represents great value for money, with continental breakfasts for $5 and a full breakfast plus coffee costing me $12. Electric blankets are a welcome feature in Bathurst’s notoriously chilly winters.
Rooms at the Bathurst Explorers Motel are AUD100 per night.
For more information, click here.
Email: info@bathurstexplorersmotel.com
