Awesome period accommodation - But NOT in Warrnambool!
Samantha's homestead is a delightful restored period property with the schoolhouse house being a cute and simple 19th century outbuilding that was private and cosy.
One thing to be acutely aware of though is despite the airbnb listing implying this is located right in the heart of Warrnambool, it is in fact over 30 kilometres north past another small town (Woolthorpe). This is fine if you're driving and can factor that in for evening plans, but we were booked on the train to Warrnambool with plans of a lazy weekend with the station, accommodation and Warrnambool night life all within walking distance. At the last minute when we got the confirmation e-mail and address we then discovered that the property is in fact at least a $90 taxi ride from Warrnambool station in each direction! A hasty cancellation of train tickets and arranging a car instead saved this weekend but it was frustrating, especially as we tried 4 times over 24 hours to contact and confirm this was the case and advise of changes to our ETA as a result.
Also for the price there's some small things that could make it all the better;
- A wifi range extender as the hotspot can't be detected by phones inside
- Better attention to cleanliness; there was a dirty glass on the mantle on arrival, 2 of the clean champagne glasses had lipstick and 2 of the other glasses had visible dust buildup. If you were OCD with cleanliness I'm sure things like the bug build up in the bath and dust on lesser used surfaces might also put you off.
All up this was a lovely place with a very friendly owner (once we could get in touch with them) that with a corrected listing and few tweaks would make it a perfect place to stay.