Our Stay at Dingleigh

When you arrive at Dingleigh it’s like entering an enchanted glade. Trees of all shapes and sizes sway in the breeze, surrounding the driveway which reveals the property piece by piece as you round the hill on which the main house sits. At the end of the drive, Dingleigh Cottage quietly sits. A white cottage with an old-world charm nestled between trees and ferns.

The warm and cozy interior is a mix of refined country style and worldly intrigue. Antiquities and oddities from around the globe fill the space with a sense of history and adventure, balanced with touches of luxury, warmth and comfort. It’s the type of place you could spend a day and it would feel like a week. Food and drink welcome you to settle in and relax, with a local deli platter and sparkling wine from the Yarra Valley.

Our first day was spent doing just this - enjoying the food by the fireplace, soaking in the bath with the bubbliest bubbles imaginable, wandering the cottage gardens of the property, and taking it all in by the outdoor fire. Dingleigh is a place for reflection, even on the shortest stay. Hot stone pizzas from the nearby Mad Raven and a bottle of local Six Acres Pinor Noir finished our night by the fire, and we sank into the cozy bed.

On the second day we stopped for a bite to eat at Proserpina Bakehouse just down the road: croissants and coffee to go. In the nearby shops we found locally made arts and crafts at Seven Pages, clothing and homewares at From Dust, and picked up some gifts for our nephew at Geppetto’s Workshop.

We then headed to the famous Alfred Nicholas Gardens, a few minutes away in Sherbrooke, where we wandered down through the gardens to the beautiful lake. It’s a magnificent place where you could spend an entire day taking in the abundant flowers, plants and trees. Next time we’ll pack a picnic and do just that.

A late lunch was delicious at Ripe Cafe back in Sassafras, and after that we decided to head back to the cottage to laze about some more. Another luxurious bath, reading on the couch and then a light dinner, wine and a movie. We can’t wait to come back to Dingleigh to relax and recharge in the hills.

-Jaccob & Sunshine