Indoor spa tub

Reviews of Dunes - elegant beach villa with huge swim spa

4 out of 5
Dunes - elegant beach villa with huge swim spa
5 Thistle Place, Port Fairy, VIC

Reviews

9.0

Wonderful

Rating 10 - Excellent. 68 out of 107 reviews" "
Rating 8 - Good. 26 out of 107 reviews" "
Rating 6 - Okay. 8 out of 107 reviews" "
Rating 4 - Poor. 3 out of 107 reviews" "
Rating 2 - Terrible. 2 out of 107 reviews" "

9.2/10

Cleanliness

8.4/10

Staff & service

9.0/10

Amenities

8.8/10

Property conditions & facilities

10/10

Eco-friendliness

Reviews

10/10 Excellent

Natasha

Liked: Cleanliness
Stayed 3 nights in Jan 2024

10/10 Excellent

Leigh

Liked: Cleanliness, room comfort
Highly recommend this property
This property was fantastic...comfortable, very clean and the swim spa is amazing. We'll be back
Stayed 3 nights in Nov 2023

10/10 Excellent

Casper

Travelled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Swim spa was amazing! Very nice cottage that is very well and thoughtfully appointed, which made for a very comfortable stay
Stayed 3 nights in Jun 2023

10/10 Excellent

Tom

Liked: Cleanliness, room comfort
Stayed 4 nights in Apr 2023

10/10 Excellent

David

Travelled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Very nice large accomodation with a huge spa
Stayed 2 nights in Mar 2023

10/10 Excellent

Amanda

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, room comfort
Good Communiation, Excellent Location
Stayed 2 nights in Nov 2020
Response from Belfast Cottages on 30 Nov 2020
Thank you for your review. Glad to hear you enjoyed your stay with us.

10/10 Excellent

Julie, Lara, vic

Travelled with group
Liked: Cleanliness, amenities, property conditions & facilities
The place was awesome, clean, well supplied, felt so comy, great spa, could say nothing negative about the place
Stayed 1 night in Oct 2020
Response from Belfast Cottages on 23 Oct 2020
Hi Julie, thank you for your excellent review. We are thrilled to hear you had a great stay with us and loved everything about your cottage.

10/10 Excellent

Patricia

Liked: Cleanliness, room comfort
Stayed 1 night in Mar 2020
Response from Belfast Cottages on 21 Mar 2020
Thank you for your excellent review of your stay with us. Please ensure you come back again in the future!

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 1 night in Feb 2020
Response from Belfast Cottages on 27 Feb 2020
Thank you for your review

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Travelled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Unique, little cottage on a large open area of land. Well equipped unit.
Stayed 1 night in Feb 2020
Response from Belfast Cottages on 10 Feb 2020
Thank you for your excellent review, we are thrilled to hear you enjoyed your stay with us.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
property was well maintained and its a perfect place to spend with family & friends!!
Stayed 2 nights in Jan 2020
Response from Belfast Cottages on 28 Jan 2020
Thank you for your excellent review, we are thrilled to hear you enjoyed your stay with us and loved our property.

10/10 Excellent

Lynda-Maree

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Road Trip Stop
Great family stay coming from the Great Ocean Road on our way to Adelaide. Fantastic location to break up your trip and have a lovely nights rest
Stayed 1 night in Dec 2019
Response from Belfast Cottages on 22 Dec 2019
Hi Lynda, thank you for your excellent review. We are glad to hear you enjoyed your stay with us for your road trip stop!

10/10 Excellent

Kenneth

Travelled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
I liked the automated check in service using the touch screen. Only suggestion would be to add an instruction to "turn" the open key box button. Not easy to see the turn arrow on the black button.
Stayed 1 night in Nov 2019
Response from Belfast Cottages on 22 Nov 2019
Hi Kenneth, thank you for your excellent review, glad to hear you liked our check-in facility.

10/10 Excellent

Kristin

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
A lovely separate cottage with privacy with all the amenities you need for a stopover.
Stayed 1 night in Oct 2019
Response from Belfast Cottages on 13 Oct 2019
Hi Kristin, thank you for your excellent review, we are thrilled to hear you enjoyed your stay with us for a quick stopover.

8/10 Good

Julie

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2019
Response from Belfast Cottages on 8 Sept 2019
Hi Julie, thank you for your review. Glad to hear you enjoyed your stay with us.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 1 night in Apr 2019
Response from Belfast Cottages on 18 Apr 2019
Thank you for your excellent review. We are glad to hear you enjoyed your stay with us.

4/10 Poor

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Disliked: Property conditions & facilities
Property was very clean and comfortable. Self check in did not work. Shower rose in the one shower in the cottage was rusted and broken making it impossible to have a proper shower.
Stayed 2 nights in Feb 2019
Response from Belfast Cottages on 8 Mar 2019
Thank you for your review. On day you arrived it was a 40 degree day and therefore the touch screen monitor was too hot and slow to respond. We do have a message to contact us and had you done this we could have just checked you in over the phone. We have looked at the shower head and replaced it with another. We hope you enjoyed your stay with us.

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Travelled with partner
Property was a bit tired. Bed was comfortable. Not much around the property. Good for one night.
Stayed 1 night in Feb 2019
Response from Belfast Cottages on 6 Mar 2019
Thank you for your review. Glad to hear you had a good nights stay.

6/10 Okay

Mr R Cook

Liked: Cleanliness, room comfort
Spa bath check to see it’s working before you book
We booked this accommodation because to had a payable spa pool. When we arrived it was not working. It looked as though it had been out of order for some time. Can you ensure that those wishing to book this accommodation are informed BEFORE they book. Accommodation needs updating internally but we note it is up for sale.
Stayed 2 nights in Feb 2019
Response from Belfast Cottages on 13 Feb 2019
This guest has been unreasonable since they arrived. Unfortunately the swim spa had a maintenance issue that morning of Mr Cooks arrival which caused the swim spa to be shut down. To get to the part on the swim spa, the panel had to be pulled off. Not sure how this makes it look like it has been off for some time when a panel is screwed on and off in 2 minutes? How else do you attend to maintenance and how rude to make false assumptions and accusations when we explained directly that it had just happened that morning? Mr Cook was contacted on several occasions and advised of this and rather than understand it was out of our control (as the swim spa was not part of his accommodation cost), he is now targeting that cottages need updating. If a restaurant of a motel burnt down in a tragedy which caused the motel not being able to serve dinner, would one not understand and complain and write a shaming review? A shame we can’t live in a more understanding world where we remember that we are all human and sometimes things happen beyond our control.

8/10 Good

Richard

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 2 nights in Jan 2019
Response from Belfast Cottages on 3 Feb 2019
Hi Richard, glad to hear you enjoyed your stay with us and you had a peaceful relaxing stay

8/10 Good

Daniel

Liked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
The location is great as it is quiet and very relaxing. Our stay was short but thoroughly enjoyed it.
Stayed 2 nights in Nov 2018
Response from Belfast Cottages on 17 Nov 2018
Hi Daniel, thank you for your review on your stay with us. Hopefully you can return again in the future for longer.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 1 night in Oct 2018
Response from Belfast Cottages on 14 Nov 2018
Thank you for excellent review on your stay with us, we are glad to hear you enjoyed your stay.

10/10 Excellent

Wayne, Alberta, Canada

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
We really enjoyed our stay at Belfast cottages. Our grand children really enjoyed the playground right outside our cottage. Our only concerns were a lack of dish towels as there is a sign asking for lodgers to wash and dry dishes after use. The only towels we could find were in the dryer in the laundry. We took one and used it but thought there should have been some in the room.
Stayed 1 night in Oct 2018
Response from Belfast Cottages on 20 Oct 2018
Hi Wayne, thank you for your excellent review and glad to hear you enjoyed your stay with us. As communicated with you since you left, there were 2 x tea towels provided in your cottage (picture sent identifying location in kitchen) which you admitted you did not see. Hope you can come visit one day again in the future.

10/10 Excellent

RONALD

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Amazing setup.most enjoyable
Stayed 1 night in Sep 2018
Response from Belfast Cottages on 16 Sept 2018
Hi Ronald, thank you for your excellent review. Glad to hear you enjoyed your stay with us and liked.

8/10 Good

Kong, Malaysia

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities
Nice and cosy cottages, with children playground area and BBQ pit.
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2018
Response from Belfast Cottages on 2 Sept 2018
Thank you for your review, glad to hear you liked our cottages and property and enjoyed your stay with us.

8/10 Good

Jennifer

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
comfy as home
comfortable and well appointed, well fitted for self catering.
Response from Belfast Cottages on 25 Apr 2018
Hi Jennifer, thank you for your kind review on our property. Glad to hear you enjoyed your stay with us.

10/10 Excellent

Yitka, Calgary

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Our favorite stay on GOR
It was our favourite stay on the GOR! We were met by a very friendly and personable owner who showed us to our magical cottage. We immediately felt that we stepped back in time. It looked like something out of fairy tale. The lovely cottages are set in a picturesque surroundings of a green fields. Interior is very tastefully decorated and sparkling clean. The cottage is well appointed with full cooking facilities, plenty of storage, roomy bathroom and very comfortable bed. As a bonus you can watch sunset from the property. Our only regret was not being able to stay longer!
Stayed 1 night in Mar 2018
Response from Belfast Cottages on 3 Apr 2018
Thank you for your excellent review of our property. We are glad to hear you enjoyed your stay with us and loved all that the cottages have to offer. We hope you can come back again soon for longer!

8/10 Good

Alison, Penrith NSW

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Cute cottage
Great little cottage. Everything is there for your use. Comfortable stay
Stayed 1 night in Feb 2018
Response from Belfast Cottages on 24 Feb 2018
Hi Alison, glad to hear you enjoyed your stay with us. Thank you for your kind feedback on our cottages.

10/10 Excellent

Patrick

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great little cottage everything you need in a cosy place. Quiet location easy check in and out. Laundry was a bonus for travellers
Stayed 2 nights in Jan 2018
Response from Belfast Cottages on 4 Feb 2018
Hi Patrick, thank you for your review and kind words. Glad you enjoyed your stay with us :)

10/10 Excellent

Lee, Ararat

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Excellent place to stay!
We found Belfast cottages a perfect place to stay for our family. It was spacious and quiet and the cottages are fabulous and beautiful and clean. The kids playground was great and our 3 kids loved it! We will be back!
Stayed 1 night in Dec 2017
Response from Belfast Cottages on 28 Dec 2017
Hi Lee, thank you for your kind words and taking the time to write feedback. We are glad to hear you enjoyed your stay with us. We look forward to you coming back in the future to stay with us again!

6/10 Okay

sean, singapore

Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities
a so so home stay
fortunately we only stay a day there. the laundry is sapareted from the cottage. its have to drive to close restaurents and convinience shop.
Stayed 1 night in Nov 2017
Response from Belfast Cottages on 7 Dec 2017
Hi, thank you for your rating and feedback. We hope you enjoyed your stay with us.

6/10 Okay

Blanca

Liked: Cleanliness
stop over
Stop over
Stayed 1 night in Nov 2017
Response from Belfast Management on 5 Dec 2017
Hi Blanca, thank you for your rating and feedback. We hope you enjoyed your stay with us.

10/10 Excellent

Deep, Adelaide

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
The cottages seem to be out from a fairy tale
To put it simply it was great. A lot of thought put in minor details.
Stayed 1 night in Nov 2017
Response from Belfast Cottages on 19 Nov 2017
Thank you for kind words and feedback on your stay with us. We take great pride in adding little extra touches to make your stay more enjoyable.

4/10 Poor

zan, Canberra

Liked: Cleanliness, room comfort
Disliked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities
The cottages were quaint and comfortable
The cabin was quaint, clean, comfortable and kitchen was well stocked. However... shower did not work properly and bath towels should be replaced. The self check in was fine but felt for the price per night the use of the spa should be included. (Like most other hotels!) Disappointing as this was the most expensive night of our 6 day trip.
Stayed 1 night in Oct 2017
Response from Management - Belfast Cottages on 22 Oct 2017
Thank you for your feedback. We note you tried to cancel you booking 2 days prior to arrival and we hope this review does not reflect your frustration that you were unable to cancel at such short notice. We have checked the shower and had it tested and were advised it worked perfectly fine. We’ve also asked guests for their feedback on several mornings after your stay and none had any comments of any problems with the shower. A towel may have been overlooked, apologies if it was (maybe from older stock) but most of our towels are now replaced new. As for our new swim spa feature, you were sent details of costs etc prior to your stay. Upon arrival we spoke to you and you advised us that everything was lovely and we mentioned to you should you need anything at all during your stay to contact us day or night. Had you spoken to us, we would happily have checked the shower for you and offered you a discount for the spa for you and your family should that have been something you really wanted to experience. Our pool and spa feature is not like other accommodation pools. It’s not open to everyone at once and you get to book it privately with many features and benefits. It is an optional extra for a fee, such as breakfast. As far as your comment to being the most expensive, we would like to point out that our rates are one of the most affordable in Port Fairy and the whole Great Ocean for the self-contained stand-alone style of accommodation we offer for a family of four.

10/10 Excellent

garry, sydney

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
We were made to feel so welcome. The cottage was everything that we hoped for.
Stayed 2 nights in Aug 2017
Response from Donna on 26 Aug 2017
Hi Garry, we are please you enjoyed your stay with us. Thank you for your kind words, we appreciate your feedback.

10/10 Excellent

Adam

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Fantastic stay!
Fantastic stay! Cottage was lovely, clean and homely. Donna turned the heater on for us before we arrived, so we had a warm cottage to arrive to! The location is peaceful and close to all the key sights and shops/cafes. Thoroughly enjoyed the stay and will definitely be back! Highly recommend.
Stayed 2 nights in Aug 2017
Response from Belfast Management on 26 Aug 2017
Hi Adam, we are please you enjoyed your stay with us. Thank you for your kind words, we appreciate your feedback and look forward to you returning again in the future.

6/10 Okay

Warren

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Pay for Spa!!!!
Spa is not free it cost $25 per hour and $10 per extra person, this is a rip off you should not have to pay for a spa, we stayed on a windy night and something banging against window kept us awake not sure if tree branch or window shutter, There is not enough lighting down driveway to reception as another guest knocked on our door wanting to check in, I pointed her in the right direction, The accommodation overall was ok probably won't stay there again.
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2017
Response from Belfast Management on 13 Aug 2017
Hi Warren, thank you for your feedback. In your instant feedback review you mention we are “quiet location, nice bed, clean, easy parking and quick”, however it seems your experience was tainted due to the extra fee applicable to our brand new swim spa/pool feature. This luxury indoor feature was specially built as an extra for guests so they could book a private session which requires bookings to ensure that you get to enjoy your experience of the swim spa/pool all to yourselves in private with special features such as Bluetooth so you can play your own music through the spa and turn on the led lights whilst enjoying all the features of the swim spa/pool. Our prices for accommodation are one of the lowest in Port Fairy and you are getting a standalone self-contained cottage and not a motel room. For those that want to spoil themselves further and pay a little bit extra, our swim spa/pool feature is an optional luxury extra that the guest can either choose to use or not. We believe our price is reasonable especially as if you were to go to the local day spa which is full of other people it would cost the same, but ours is private with bonus features we mentioned above and also onsite so you only have to walk back to your cottage. As a gesture, we would be more than happy to offer you a free one hour swim spa session for 2 people should you wish to book directly with us in future.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Beautiful. Quiet and comfortable. The little extras were appreciated.
Stayed 2 nights in Jul 2017
Response from Belfast Cottages on 6 Aug 2017
Hi We are please you enjoyed your stay with us. Thank you for your kind words, we appreciate your feedback.

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Nice comfy cottage, very clean and well equipped.
No beach access or view from the cottage was a surprise though.
Stayed 2 nights in Jun 2017
Response from Belfast Cottages on 6 Aug 2017
Hi We are please you enjoyed your stay with us. Thank you for your kind words, we appreciate your feedback.

10/10 Excellent

Rolfe

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
A fantastic place to stay in Port Fairy
Belfast Cottages were delightful. The cottage was very comfortable and well appointed and we were greeted warmly by the owner. Automated check in means no dramas regarding arrival time.
Stayed 3 nights in Jun 2017
Response from Belfast Management on 6 Aug 2017
Hi Rolfe We are please you enjoyed your stay with us. Thank you for your kind words, we appreciate your feedback.

8/10 Good

Barbara, Perth WA

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Quiet stay in peaceful surroundings
Lovely setting and helpful host Only had 1 night so not really enough time to relax and enjoy the surroundings

10/10 Excellent

Brian

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
You won't be disappointed..
What a wonderful place. We only booked 1 night as our time was limited on the Great Ocean Road, but wished we had another day just to spend at Belfast Cottages. Highly recommended. You won't be disappointed.

10/10 Excellent

William Paul

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Beyond our expectations
Exceptionally well equipped cottage ideal for an extended stay.

10/10 Excellent

Steve

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great value
Great little house,couldnt ask for more,excellent for the nightly rate

10/10 Excellent

Roaming Yank, California, USA

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Lovely spot for a relaxing and peaceful stop over
From the moment you arrive to the moment you check out this lovely hideaway sheds the stress away. Just a short hop from historic main street Port Fairy, the Belfast Cottages are the ideal getaway for couples or families. Appointments within the cottages are well thought out and provider everything one could need to enjoy their time there. Best yet, the caretakers, Donna and Rob, will happily try to accommodate or provide suggestions for special requests. In addition, the Cottages provide privacy you won't find in a hotel and allow both couples and families to feel at home and be themselves without worrying about annoying other guests. Whether travelling alone or with family, I recommend taking advantage of the spacious, well manicured grounds and barbecue.

6/10 Okay

Barry, Coffs Harbour, Aust.

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Quiet, cosy and comfortable cottage.
A lovely place to stay, very peaceful and relaxing with only a short drive into town. The kitchen is well appointed for preparing your own food and block out curtains make for a good nights sleep. Just the lack of water pressure in the shower and old sound/stereo system (who uses video tapes anymore) were dissapointing for the cost of the accomodation.

10/10 Excellent

She-She, Adeliade S.A. Australia

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Jazz Weekend
Belfast cottage, 'BAXA' was exactly what we booked a beautiful little cottage with every thing we needed. The grounds were delightful. Checking in was a self serve, it was a bit difficult, but OK in the end. We would most certainly recommend the cottages to our friends.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great place
Excellent house. Great place Had a great time had a great time had a great time had a great time

10/10 Excellent

Hui Chin

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Clean and well-equipped kitchenette
It was a very intelligent self check-in and check-out system and suited for travellers who may arrive beyond the check-in time.

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Convenient stay close to Port Fairy
Belfast Cottages are an excellent choice for anyone looking to stay in Port Fairy. A stones throw from the main street but secluded enough to get away from it all. Plenty of space for boats, trailers and caravans as well as room for kids to play in a safe enclosed environment. Highly recommend.