Yallingup – Travels with Ali

Meanderings through Margaret River, Western Australia

Margaret River is in the South Western area of WA and a popular tourist spot Nationwide and Worldwide. The beaches are great for surfing and swimming. It’s a wonderful place to visit in the winter and we generally try to get down once a year for a short break. So after Pemberton we drove back up to enjoy a two night stay. Margaret River is home to many wineries and restaurants, it’s hard to know where to go when you only have a couple of days.

We stayed at our usual hotel Margarets Beach Resort and had a small unit with a balcony. I had asked for a partial seaview and that’s what we got. Although it was a fair way in the distance. This hotel is actually located in Gnarrabup and ten minute drive from the town itself. Very peaceful.

That night we drove into town to a South American Tapas restaurant, El Toro. We had quite a few plates between us. It was a fantastic restaurant, the food and service were wonderful and I definitely enjoyed my mojito listening to latin music.

The next morning we walked down to the local cafe, White Elephant, for breakfast. This cafe sits practically on the beach. It was a bit chilly but we sat outside so we could enjoy the beautiful view.

We were lucky to have such a glorious day to sit and take in this gorgeous view.

A bit later we drove to Eagle Bay to Wise Winery for lunch. It’s one of our favourites and never disappoints.

A lightish lunch! A creamy Chicken Liver Parfait, Spicy Green Beans and Duck Confit with a wood sorrel sauce.

Of course you can’t go to a winery and not have a glass of wine

Wise Winery has stunning views overlooking the Indian Ocean

We definitely needed a walk after this lunch, so drove to Yallingup and walked down to the beach from the carpark at Caves House and back.

There were a few whales out there in the distance.

I was determined to see the sunset back at Margaret River that evening, so around 5.30 pm we walked back to the White Elephant Cafe and sat and watched a magnificent sunset.

😎It Doesn’t Get Better Than This😎

Caves House, Yallingup, WA For An Overnight Stay

by Alison August 18, 2020

Midweek break in Yallingup

by Alison April 30, 2018January 27, 2019

Caves House, Yallingup, WA For An Overnight Stay

After saying goodbye in Pemberton to our friends Cheryl and Vaughan we drove onto Yallingup for our overnight stay at Caves House. Although we had previously had dinner here we had never stayed. Spending the night is always something I have wanted to do. The inside of Caves House is wonderfully well kept and has some fabulous artwork on the walls. Not only that but there are lovely art deco ornaments decorating tables and fireplaces. The ceilings are adorned with many kinds of light fittings all unusual in their own way.

Reception and Lobby Area

The Wyadup Room

A cosy lounge to relax, mixing the old and new. Where you can sit and enjoy a cocktail or nightcap in front of the roaring fire.

Indijup Room

A casual dining room for larger parties with an open fire, with art deco ornaments on top of the fireplace. A beautiful stained glass parrot light decorates the ceiling.

The Nigligi Room

A wonderful black and white tiled dining room with a 1950’s feel complete with photos of Marilyn Monroe on the walls. Open for breakfast and lunch.

The Yallingup Room

A beautiful dining room decorated with white cane chairs and modern summer themed art on the walls. Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

We had dinner at the hotel and had to eat in the lobby area as the Yallingup Room was fully booked. Food is ordered at the counter at the front where there is a casual/sports bar. It is pub food with a variation, as in Curry/Pasta/Fish of the day or otherwise steaks, pizzas and burgers.

Breakfast used to be a buffet but with the outbreak of Covid 19 it is just off the menu.

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Accommodation

We stayed in a Heritage Double room complete with small sitting room and an amazing bathroom. The bed even had a dual fitted electric blanket, great for me who likes a warm bed and hubby who likes it cold!

Coming down for breakfast after a very good night’s sleep

Before setting off back to Perth we had a walk down to Yallingup Beach through the gardens of Caves House.

Changing into his walking shoes sitting in the “boot” of his car

Caves House is a great place to hold a wedding or any kind of reception because of the large rooms for entertaining. Also if you have a special birthday or anniversary. I enjoyed my stay there, it has a friendly and relaxed atmosphere and is within walking distance to a beautiful beach. All in all a five star stay.

An apt quote for me and hubby, he loves roads and I love to travel!

Midweek break in Yallingup

Yallingup is in the South Western region of Western Australia. Its a great spot to visit for a short break especially from Perth. The drive takes just under three hours.
With so many places to stay it was so difficult to decide, we eventually chose the Sienna Lodge and it did not disappoint! Situated in between Barnyard Winery and Cafe Lavender on Caves Road, it was just a short drive into Yallingup and around 10k from Dunsborough. Its owned and managed by a very friendly Lithuanian couple – Raminta & Egis Rusilas, they also own the beautiful “Barnyard Vineyard”.

Sienna Lodge

Freerange as you can get!

Arriving just after 4pm we dropped our bags in our room and headed over to take a look at the beach and then happy hour at the iconic Caves Hotel. A few snaps of the wild coastline of South West WA.

Dinner that night was at the gastronomic restaurant of Lamonts and as it was so busy Kate Lamont was waiting tables herself. Always a good idea to book ahead as this place is nearly always full.

Next morning as the Barnyard cafe only opens for breakfast on weekends we headed into Dunsborough for our freerange poached eggs on sourdough toast with coffee and freshly squeezed orange juice. Back to Sienna to decide where to have our next feast but first a stop in the Barnyard cafe for a midmorning glass of wine and a little look around.

Testing the local vintage

As there are so many wineries, we again had the difficult task of choosing where to go for lunch. We wanted to try something new so we headed over to the Brookwood Estate.

The menu had some tasty tapas options which was perfect for lunch.

Starters — prosciutto wrapped fillet mignon and grilled prawns with chill and coriander aoli

Dinner that night was in Caves Hotel as it was just down the road from us, also many places were fully booked due to the school holidays. Caves is always a good choice as it has such a great atmosphere, you can be casual and eat outside or dress up and eat inside. Food is always good and portions so large that one dish is enough for two. We had a chef’s platter to start, and sticky ribs to share. There were leftovers!

Some sculptures that caught my eye

Skateboarding chick

Stuffed Jeans to go!

The late afternoon sun shining on these trees at Caves Hotel

By the next day it was already time to check out. Time fly’s when you’re having fun, theres only so much you can eat and drink in two days! We drove into Yallingup and had an excellent breakfast in the general store which is also the Post Office, just by Caves House. Its not that well advertised that they even do breakfast. On the drive back we were recommended to drop by the Bunbury Farmers Market. Its a great place to stock up on fresh local produce. We even bought some lunch here and stopped at Heron Point to eat it.