Yes, Bunjaree Cottages is still here, and we’re accepting new bookings!
Greater Sydney Guests: If you are travelling within the Greater Sydney region, we can accept bookings from October 11, 2021.
Guests from outside Greater Sydney: We’re awaiting word from the NSW State Government, but in the meantime we will accept bookings for dates after January 1, 2022. If the health orders change, we will be glad to accept bookings from those travelling from beyond the Greater Sydney Region in line with the new rules.
Refunds: If a Covid-19 lockdown prevents guests from travelling here, we will either refund their deposit in full, or hold the deposit against a postponed booking.
Category Archives: General
Restrictions are easing!
We’re thrilled to welcome the easing of travel restrictions within NSW (and here’s hoping we can welcome visitors from interstate as soon as it’s safe).
While you’re here at Bunjaree Cottages, you’re in your own self-contained cottage that’s at least 50 metres from any other cottage – so there’s no risk of guests putting other guests at risk!
We’re more than happy to welcome guests again, and you’ll find that Blue Mountains villages will also be glad to see anyone who maintains social distancing. So – make the trip and visit the lovely Blue Mountains again!
Covid-19 Update: Bunjaree remains open
Friends – having looked over the NSW Government’s “lockdown” regulations, Bunjaree Cottages is able to remain open, at least for now. We will, of course, be watchful for any changes to this situation.
The isolation of our cottages means guests don’t need to interact with others while on the property, and we will of course ensure the safety of our guests in our cleaning practices.
While we would encouraging you to respect the government’s request that NSW citizens avoid unnecessary travel, we are happy to continue receiving inquiries about cottage availability.
Easter 2020 special: flat rate offer!
To celebrate the safe end to the 2020 “Black Summer” bushfires, Richard and Trudi are offering a low-rate special for Easter 2020.
Family Cottages: Waratah Cottage and Banksia Cottage are on offer from Thursday night (April 9, 2020) to Sunday night (April 12, 2020) for $540, for up to six guests per cottage.
Small Cottages: Tea Tree Cottage and Wattle Cottage are available from Thursday night to Sunday night for $480.
Thanks to the NSW RFS!
With all in our community, Richard and Trudi at Bunjaree Cottages are extremely grateful to the brave personnel of the NSW RFS, who kept our beloved Blue Mountains safe from the triple threat of the Ruined Castle fire, the Grose Valley fire, and the Erskine Creek fire. Through their efforts, we are delighted to say to the world that the Blue Mountains is open for business!
The recent rain has given a respite we all hope will last until the next fire season. To celebrate, we have a special low flat-rate offer for Easter 2020!
Bunjaree wildlife news: We have quolls! (Well: one, at least)
We’re very excited to be able to confirm something we’d suspected, but couldn’t prove: Bunjaree Cottages is home to at least one spotted-tail quoll!
The quolls aren’t endangered in NSW, but habitat loss has made them rare. Since they’re also nocturnal, sightings are even more uncommon.
Our first hint that there are quolls came in October, when a guest texted us to say “we had the pleasure of sighting a spotted-tail quoll just outside the entrance to Wattle Cottage! Ho took off fairly quickly when we opened the door … but I saw the hind and tail as he fled into the bush. Pretty amazing seeing one in the wild!”
A report is nowhere near as good as a photo, but a few days ago, a house-guest in Rosella Cottage (our residence) caught exactly that:
Spotted-tailed quoll, by Stilgherrian
Thanks to @stilgherrian on Twitter for catching and posting the photograph.
The spotted-tail quoll is the largest marsupial carnivore on the mainland, and throughout Australia it’s second only to the Tasmanian Devil. They often climb trees in search of prey – often possums or birds.
We’re so happy to be able to share this news with Bunjaree Cottages’s friends and guests.
More than 50 bird species confirmed at Bunjaree Cottages
Bunjaree Cottages’ nearly-virgin bushland means there’s lots of birds year-round, but of course some of our birds are seasonal. Others we see but don’t identify, and that’s where it’s lovely to have guests that know more than we do!
Courtesy of a guest who was a keen bird-watcher, we have been able to add eleven new confirmed sightings to the Bunjaree bird list. Many thanks to Peter for his help and his keen eye! We’ll provide more information about each species in the coming months.
Image Credit: Duncan McKaskill, CC 2.0 license
Buff-rumped Thornbill – a small flock was seen on the driveway, which is their usual feeding habit.
Image credit: “Bilby” under CC 3.0 licence
Channel-billed Cuckoo – sorry if you don’t like their habit of night-calling, but it is currently their mating season. They’re the largest brood predator in the world, according to Wikipedia.
Image Credit: “Fankzed” under CC 2.0 licence
Crested Shrike-tit – sighted on the Tea-Tree Cottage driveway.
Image Credit: JJ Harrison, CC 3.0 licence https://www.jjharrison.com.au
Fan-tailed Cuckoo – A daily visitor at the moment.
Image Credit: Toby Hudson, CC 3.0 licence
Little Raven – Which we really should have listed ourselves; it’s funny how the things you see everyday escape your notice when you try to make a list!
Image Credit: Glenn Fergus, CC 2.5 licence
Noisy Friarbird – Expertise from others is wonderful: we have never spotted this at all, and now we’re on the lookout!
Image Credit: JJ Harrison, CC 3.0 licence, https://www.jjharrison.com.au
Silvereye – Another bird it should have occurred to us to look for!
Image Credit: “Russav”, CC 2.0 licence
Southern Boobook – We were very pleased to have this identification. While Boobooks aren’t rare, we’re no good at identifying night-birds!
Image Credit: “Mdekool”, CC 3.0 licence
Striated Thornbill – Another one of the wonderful collection of small birds at Bunjaree. One reason they’re so hard to identify is that they don’t sit still that much, which means you have to know their calls as well.
Image Credit: “Aviceda”, CC 3.0 licence
Varied Sittella – Again: small, fast, and hard to follow!
Image Credit: James Niland, CC 2.0 licence
Variegated Fairy-wren – A genuine beauty of the Australian bush, nearly as superb as the Superb Fairy-wren.
We’ve updated the Bunjaree Bird list with the new additions in the next few days. We’d also recommend the iPod app our guest used: Australian Birds, by Michael Morcombe.
Updated bird species list
With thanks to our friend Carol Probets, there are now 40 entries on the Bunjaree Cottages list of bird species, here.
It is one of our great joys that we have so many avian residents and visitors, from tiny wrens to the Superb Lyrebird. And we hope that our guests agree!
We were particularly thrilled to have yet another sighting of the Gang gang cockatoo early this summer.
Thank you RFS!
Bunjaree Cottages would like to thank the RFS volunteers, along with all the emergency services personnel and interstate volunteers, for their wonderful work during the recent bushfires.
Without their dedication and effort, the devastation from the three huge fires that threatened the mountains could have been so much worse.
Our hearts go out to those who have lost their homes, and we would like to direct your attention to the Blue Mountains Mayoral Relief Fund, which you can find here.
Bird of the Week: Red-Browed Finch
Many thanks to our friend Stilgherrian for this photo of one of Bunjaree Cottages’ more difficult-to-capture friends, the Red-Browed Finch (also known as the Red-Browed Firetail).
Red-browed finch. Photo by Stilgherrian
These are grass-feeders that like to stay near dense undergrowth so they can hide from danger. They live mostly east of the Great Dividing Range, but their territory reaches all the way around to South Australia.
They’re mostly sedentary, so there’s the chance to spot them all year around – and to hear their short, very high-pitched whistling calls.