Governors Lodge, Norfolk Island, Australia
I am chasing my great uncle's world travel record, and it's quite a task to visit everywhere. While I was in Australia, I was checking out the 4 territories that are part of the official list. Of all of them, only Norfolk Island was reasonable in cost at the time.So, I needed a place to stay, and actually searched for quite a while, going between apartment style (or actual apartments) to individual lodge properties. The deciding factor was availability of food onsite. It was considered "off season", so I learned things in town could be not open.
The Governor's Lodge ended up with the win on all categories.
Arrival
I got a flight from Sydney to Burnt Pine on Norfolk island, and then, following the tourist info, walked out to get a taxi that was stated would be available. They were not available. Lesson to the wise, pre-arrange the shuttle bus or a taxi ahead of time, or be ready for a long walk (Or rent a car, that's an option too).Luckily one of the hotel shuttle services had room and was waiting for other people on my flight. I was still in Australia there was no immigration check to go through (but there was in Sydney on my way back, this is weird). I just got my bags and out to a bus and off to the hotel!
The Lodge
Basically every lodge building is similar, only variant is distance from the main building, which... will impact your ability to connect to wifi. It's only available in and around the lobby.The lodge was what I expected from a vacation property/resort town. A kitchen, modest dining area, larger living room, great sized bedroom and a functional bathroom.
Virtual room tour, use your mouse or fingers to move around and see other rooms.
Facilities & Grounds
There is a pool and hot tub, but it was 65F for the high, and 30F for the low, so... I wasn't swimming at this time. The laundry was nice though, helping me extend my clothing usage through my month in Oceania. The library I didn't use, nor the movie theater.Dining
Now, the actual deciding point that had me staying here, was that there were multiple dining options that were open for the off season. And a dinner restaurant which was so on my want list. Every location to eat has a bar too, because... hey I don't need your approval.
The lobby, cafe and movie theatre are here
Yeah, nice, but too cold
Wide open spaces, plenty of free car parking
Never discount the value of a quality wash and dry
The theater where... Mutiny on the Bounty is played a lot
The options, hidden partially behind a palm
The best dining here
Intimate and clean
The bar at Baileys, where I sat alone waiting for dinner time
And wow, tasty well-prepared food
The Lounge cafe, with food, coffee and drinks
The breakfast and lunch spot, Boathouse
A tent, but it was warmed nicely for breakfast
Hey, it's never too early for a good drink
Breakfast menu, here we are
French toast and real meat sausage
The 'Full English', which prepared me for my day
Summary
This is not a luxury full-service place, but nothing on Norfolk Island is. This is a really comfortable, quiet, geared for couples and families, with good dining and lots of bars.Centrally located on the island, which is advantageous even though it's only a few miles across.