Reviewed By:
Lyndon O'Grady
Travel Date:
December 2003
In December 2003 myself, my partner and our 9 month old son travelled to
Norfolk Island for 7 days on a package organised through the Travel Centre on
Norfolk.
The flight from Sydney was relatively short at 2.5 hours which was just as
well for the other passengers.
We stayed at Whispering Pines on Mt Pitt Rd in a 2 br self contained cottage
(no 4), we had our own access road and no nearby neighbours or other houses etc
in view. The valley was basically all ours, although you couldn’t see the sea.
A cot was supplied and the cottage was excellent apart from the dodgy sliding
door. We had full cooking facilities.
Whispering Pines is a bit too far to walk into ‘town’ and is opposite the
botanic gardens. There are some nice walks in the gardens but you will not be
able to push a pram around. We saw nobody from management or staff the whole
time we were there which made our stay even better.
We had a hire car organised with our package at Borrys, the carseat was an
extra $3 per day. Insurance was extra at $7 per day. We had an almost new
Pulsar. You will need a hire car to get around Norfolk as it’s deceptively
large.
The little one especially liked splashing at Emily Bay where the water is
very calm and clean (and cool).
The walk down to Anson Bay was also another highlight. We had the beach to
ourselves the whole afternoon as it’s a bit of a hike down and up! The sand is
beautiful but the surf is too dangerous for swimming. You will need a baby
backpack for that one.
There are plenty of places to eat. We tried the RSL which was ok, the pizza
shop adequate but we found the Leagues Club best for our tastes. There are
plenty of fancy restaurants at the various motels. During the day we made
sandwiches or ate at various cafes in Burnt Pine.
The supermarket is well stocked for bbq’s and self catering. Don’t bother
bringing any food with you. Phone calls to Australia are satellite phone only so are very expensive.
All in all a no stress holiday that was certainly different to any we had
before. Norfolk is like a slice of a suburb of Sydney with all it’s café & shops
plonked on a beautiful island. People are friendly but drive like lunatics with
generally no road rules evident.
The travel agent was very good and followed it up after our return home to
see how we went (and sent us some souvenirs).
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