Willow's Retreat

Willow's Retreat With a strong emphasis on inclusion, conservation and sustainability, Willow's Retreat is a great place to get away from the city into nature.

Willow's Retreat is a secluded little valley, full of natural beauty and perfect for your next trip!
🏡rammed earth retreat sleeps 6
🏕️choice of private campsites
🏇bring your horse
🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️all welcome Let us show you why we love the Wollombi Valley so much on your next country getaway!

19/09/2026

There’s been plenty happening behind the scenes at Willow’s Retreat and Willow’s Leap.

This one has been two years in the making, but is finally ready for prime time! We’ve been working on safe paddocks, with automated drinkers and natural shade, which will finally allow us to start offering retirement agistment, as well as somewhere to holiday with your horses!

We’re also adding more to the amenities and aesthetic at the Retreat itself, while continuing with our mission to make your stay exactly what you need it to be.

Next on our list are upgrades to the kitchen and bathroom at the retreat, and a revitalising of jumps Willow's Leap Equestrian.

Each one brings us closer to the ideal place for you, with or without your horse, to stay and play.

What would you like to see us focus on next?

18/09/2026

Save this holiday home.

Some NSW escapes come with tour buses, crowded lookouts and a queue for the photo everyone else has already taken.

This one comes with private walking trails, enormous sandstone rocks, valley views and more than 80 recorded bird species.

By day, look for wedge-tailed eagles overhead, fairy-wrens in the undergrowth and wallabies moving through the paddocks.

After dark, the property belongs to wombats, possums, gliders and the occasional koala hiding above you.

Your accommodation is an off-grid rammed-earth lodge surrounded by 50 acres of bushland and pasture—and you won’t find another holiday house within sight or earshot.

Save this for the next time the usual weekend destinations feel far too busy.

Another beautiful review from one of our recent returning guests.Thank you for choosing Willow’s Retreat and taking the ...
17/09/2026

Another beautiful review from one of our recent returning guests.

Thank you for choosing Willow’s Retreat and taking the time to tell us about your stay.

Every review, recommendation and return visit means more to us than you know.

If this sounds like the kind of weekend someone in your life would love, share this post with your friends or family and start planning a stay together.

Comment “WILLOW” and we’ll send you the information.

16/09/2026

Meet the hosts; part two-

Now, this is part of an interview with lumae.visuals that embarrassingly has taken us over a year to post; but, if you’re interested, we can share more of our story here…
This one is all about why we started; the reason we continue? We love having such amazing guests here, keen to share our slice of paradise.

Maybe next time you’d like to know who Willow is?

15/09/2026

What nobody sees running a 50-acre retreat. 

We wear many hats…

Host. Cleaner. Groundskeeper. Wildlife treater. Problem-solver.

And occasionally, providing medical support and ‘behind the scenes’ photography for a horror movie being filmed onsite…

It’s rarely glamorous, never predictable and far more work than a peaceful Instagram Reel would suggest.

But when guests arrive and immediately look like they’ve entered another world, the work has done its job.

Which behind-the-scenes job would you like to see more of?

14/09/2026

The weekend we all need right now…

Just one weekend where your phone stays on flight mode, you drink your coffee hot while watching wallabies in the paddock and nobody asks, “What are we doing next?”

Willow’s Retreat is made for the person whose current idea of luxury is being left completely alone for a minute. But be careful - you might not want to leave…

Send this to someone who has earned a quiet weekend.

13/09/2026

Meanwhile …

Whilst another weekend disappears between errands, housework and saying, “We really should plan something soon”…

This is what’s happening at Willow’s Retreat.

You started the morning with your horse, enjoying the grass in her spacious yard. Then, you headed down to Willow's Leap Equestrian next door for a XC lesson with Lyndel, before a gentle cooldown trail ride through the bush.

As you rode along, the sounds of the birds in the trees around you were amazing - gang-gangs, kookaburras, pardalottes. Only to arrive home to a young wallaroo with joey in the pouch; right on your doorstep.

You finish the evening sitting outside around the fire pit. To begin with, the sky wasn’t that dramatic. But the longer you sit, and watch, without the disturbance of the light from the city, more and more (and more!) stars start to appear….

These are the experiences that make a stay at Willow’s Retreat different—and they could be part of your next weekend away.

Comment “WILLOW” and we’ll send you the information.

12/09/2026

The question sitting in our inbox more than any other:
“Is it really private?”
Well, you won’t have been to many places that feel completely shut off from the world, yet so close to Sydney, Newcastle or the Central Coast.
Yes, you might see the occasional horse ride past, and Alice will almost certainly look deep into your soul. But from breakfast in the garden, to wandering in the hills, then stargazing around the fire pit; there’s every chance you won’t see another person. Unless you brought them with you…

If there’s something else you’d like to know about staying at Willow’s Retreat, leave your question below.

11/09/2026

Is this one of NSW’s most underrated birdwatching escapes?

With no crowded lookout. No long-distance road trip.

No trying to hear birds over a hundred other people.

Just 50 acres of countryside and the possibility of spotting gang-gang and glossy black cockatoos, all manner of honeyeater, elusive eastern whipbirds, and so many more (we’ve photographed over 80 so far) without leaving the property.

Some appear regularly.

Others arrive unexpectedly and have everyone reaching for a camera.

That’s part of what makes birdwatching at Willows Retreat so special—you never quite know what will visit next.

And with the retreat located less than 90 minutes from Sydney, you don’t need to travel far to swap traffic noise for birdsong.

Save this for your next birdwatching escape or send it to someone who never goes anywhere without their binoculars or camera.

10/09/2026

POV: You arrive at Willow’s Retreat…

You drop your bags inside the off-grid rammed-earth lodge and head straight back outside because there’s far too much to explore.
Maybe you wander the private walking trails and keep count of how many birds you can spot—there have been more than 80 species recorded here.

Maybe you bring your horse along, book one of the weekend yards and spend the afternoon exploring together.

Or maybe you claim the hammock, open your book and remain there until someone mentions dinner.

As evening settles over the valley, keep an eye out for kangaroos and wallabies moving through the paddocks, then light the firepit and see what appears after dark.

Wombats. Possums. Gliders.

And, if you’re very lucky, even a koala hiding in the trees.

Then it’s inside to put another log on the fire and decide whether tomorrow calls for hiking through the hills—or another full day in the hammock.

Comment “WILLOW” and we’ll send you the information for planning your stay.

Address

Wollombi, NSW
2325

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