Your Essential Guide to the Perfect Girls’ Weekend on the Mornington Peninsula
There’s nothing quite like the restorative power of a girls’ weekend away. A mini break and quality time together is always a welcome reprieve from the humdrum of everyday life.
Here, we’ve curated the perfect three-day itinerary for a winter escape on the Mornington Peninsula with your gal pals. Just 90 minutes from Melbourne, it’s close enough for a quick getaway, but far enough to feel like you’ve been away for a week.
Friday
Get the gang together, pack the car and and head out of town mid-afternoon, stopping along the way at the newly opened, Banksia Wine Room on the shores of McCrae Beach. Settle in with a glass from their ever-changing wine list of classic and contemporary drops from Australia, France and Italy and pair with a nibble from their menu of snack-sized dishes featuring local, seasonal produce.
After this little pit-stop, continue on to Camillo House, your seaside escape for the weekend. Settle in for a night by the fireplace with our complimentary Camillo Negronis and let the laughter and catch ups begin! So you can spend your time making memories, not meals, we can even sort dinner for you and have Blakeaway ready-and-waiting. Finish with star-gazing, hot chocolates and toasted marshmallows by the fire pit on our lower terrace and fall asleep the sound of crashing waves.
Saturday
Grab a coffee from our fave, Penni Ave Distillery, and head to Alba Thermal Springs & Spa for a slow morning of soaking or an indulgent treatment and massage. While you’re there, enjoy brunch at Thyme, Alba’s beautiful restaurant which features a menu created by Karen Martini. As an Alba partner, let us know if you plan on visiting this very special wellness sanctuary and we can arrange a complimentary wine, coffee, tea or juice for you while you’re there!
After a morning of relaxation, make the most of more than 50 cellar doors on the Mornington Peninsula, and head to three very different wineries. First stop, get to know Avani, a family-owned winery that is taking a really exciting, minimal-intervention approach to their premium cool-climate wines. Continue on to Pt Leo Estate which combines world-class wines with sweeping views of Westernport Bay and an impressive sculpture park. Stop into Red Hill Cellar and Pantry and grab a couple of cheeses to take to your final stop, Kerri Greens, a very different, and very cool, cellar door that encourages you to BYO picnic while you sip their wines.
A special weekend away, calls for a special meal. So, head back to Camillo and get ready for dinner at Audrey’s, Scott Pickett’s fine dining homage to his grandmother.
Sunday
Rug up and start your day with a walk along the spectacular dunes on Camillo’s doorstep. Fronting onto the Peninsula Coastal Walk, a 35km track along the south side of the Peninsula, Camillo is the perfect starting point for a short, leisurely stroll or more longer hike. Return for breakfast on the deck and enjoy the hamper of local goodies we leave for our guests.
Make the most of your journey back to Melbourne, by stopping along the way at Torello Farm and picking up Peninsula grown, grazed and gathered produce for the week ahead. After lunch at Many Little in Red Hill, finish your weekend with a visit to Tyaab Packing House Antiques, a 5000 square metre treasure-trove of retro and vintage finds.
Book your girls weekend away at Camillo and enjoy our special Winter rates.
Photography: Jane Fitzgerald