At the table
A shared meal at Stormhaven is the counterweight to a long lunch or a day spent out in the region.
Hepburn Springs & Daylesford
Explore Hepburn Springs & Daylesford
A forest escape, with spa country close by. Stormhaven offers the feeling of being tucked away in the Victorian forest, while placing the experiences of Hepburn Springs and Daylesford within easy reach.
a forest escape, with spa country close by
Two worlds, one unhurried stay.
Spend the morning soaking in mineral waters, wander a country market, settle in for a long lunch, explore galleries and boutiques — or simply return to the quiet of the forest and spend the afternoon by the fire.
Stormhaven gives you access to both worlds, without having to stay amongst it all. Begin with our Hepburn Springs guide, continue towards Daylesford, then return to the Lodge when the day has said enough.
Between outings
The forest begins at the Lodge, making it easy to leave the itinerary open around the edges.
A slower afternoon
Some of the best hours are the ones spent back amongst the trees, with nowhere else to be.
Back for the evening
Bring home local produce, settle in outside, and let the day end at your own pace.
Take the waters
Hepburn Bathhouse & Spa
Hepburn Springs is known for its natural mineral springs and the spa culture that has grown around them. Hepburn Bathhouse & Spa is one of the region’s best-known experiences, within the Hepburn Mineral Springs Reserve and within easy reach of Stormhaven.
A visit can become the centre of a spa weekend in Victoria: start the morning in the mineral waters, make time for a treatment, wander through the reserve and find lunch in Hepburn Springs before returning to the forest.
For guests looking for accommodation near Hepburn Bathhouse & Spa, Stormhaven offers the other half of the day — a quiet house amongst the trees, ready when you are.
Morning
Mineral waters
MiddayReserve and lunch
LaterForest and fire
The village
Things to do in Hepburn Springs
Begin with the Hepburn Mineral Springs Reserve, where natural mineral springs, surrounding bushland and the area’s spa and wellness culture meet. The village invites a slower kind of wandering: coffee, a meal, a walk and a little attention to the regional history held in the landscape.
Stormhaven is a considered base for exploring Hepburn Springs accommodation and the experiences around it. Spend the morning nearby, then return to the house for the part of the day that belongs only to you.
Explore our Hepburn Springs guideJust beyond the forest
Things to do in Daylesford
Stormhaven is in Hepburn Springs, near Daylesford. A day in town might mean cafés and restaurants, independent galleries, boutiques, vintage and antiques, or simply taking in the country streets and architecture without a strict plan.
Lake Daylesford and Wombat Hill Botanic Gardens offer two different ways to slow down, while the town’s makers and food culture give a food-focused weekend its shape. Return to the forest whenever you have had enough of being out.
Continue to our Daylesford guideA slow morning
Lake Daylesford
Lake Daylesford is an easy place to make a little room in the day: walk beside the water, find coffee or lunch, and take the slower route before exploring the town. It works as a gentle beginning, a pause between destinations, or a reason not to hurry back to the car.
Local produce · makers · vintage finds
Markets around Daylesford & Hepburn Springs
Sunday market mornings can make a natural centrepiece for a Stormhaven weekend. The Daylesford Sunday Market at Daylesford Spa Country Railway gives the morning a simple rhythm: market, coffee, browse Daylesford, lunch, then a forest afternoon back at Stormhaven.
Further markets and events take place across the wider region, including around Trentham, Creswick and Hepburn Shire. They are a good way to see the region through its produce, makers and second-hand finds rather than through a checklist of attractions.
Market dates and schedules can change — check with organisers before visiting.
Wander without a plan
Art, antiques & things worth finding
Some of the pleasure of Daylesford is leaving an afternoon open. Wander past independent galleries, boutiques, vintage stores and local makers; notice a window, turn down a side street, and let the town reveal itself slowly.
The Convent Daylesford and The Amazing Mill Markets are among the places visitors may come across while exploring the area. They are mentioned here as part of the wider destination, not as affiliated partners or recommendations from Stormhaven.
Make lunch the day’s main event
Food & wine around Daylesford
Daylesford and Hepburn Springs are places for cafés, long lunches, restaurants, local produce, wineries and country pubs. The best shape for a food-focused weekend is often the one that leaves room between meals — time to walk, browse and decide what sounds good next.
Or pick up local produce, return to Stormhaven, cook, light the fire and stay home for the evening. The kitchen and living spaces are there for the days when the forest feels like the better table.
A little further out
Lavandula Swiss Italian Farm
Lavandula Swiss Italian Farm is one of the distinctive attractions around the region, with a connection to the Swiss-Italian heritage that has shaped parts of the Central Highlands. It offers another way to read the landscape: through its stories, gardens and working rural character.
Step outside
Walks, forests & the outdoors
Close to Stormhaven, the bushland and Hepburn Mineral Springs Reserve offer local ways to step outside. Further through the region, places such as Hepburn Regional Park, Lake Daylesford and Wombat Hill Botanic Gardens bring different kinds of walking and open space.
Some destinations are better treated as a short trip by car: Jubilee Lake, Tipperary Track, Sailors Falls, Mount Franklin and Trentham Falls each belong to the wider regional map rather than the immediate doorstep. And when you’ve had enough exploring, there’s always the forest waiting back at Stormhaven.
A weekend in spa country
48 hours at Stormhaven
A loose itinerary for guests who want to see the region without giving the whole weekend away.
Friday
Arrive & disappear
Leave Melbourne behind and arrive at Stormhaven. Unpack. Open the wine. Light the fire. You don’t need to go anywhere tonight.
Saturday
Take the waters
Slow morning at Stormhaven → Hepburn Springs → Hepburn Bathhouse & Spa → Mineral Springs Reserve → lunch → Daylesford → lake, galleries or boutiques → return to Stormhaven.
Fire on. Dinner in. Phones away.
Sunday
Market morning
Daylesford Sunday Market → coffee → browse → local produce → lunch or a walk → return towards Melbourne.
Or stay another night.
Stay awhile
There is more here than you can fit into a weekend.
That’s part of the point. Stormhaven isn’t somewhere you need to fill every hour. Hepburn Springs, Daylesford, mineral bathing, markets, galleries, wineries, restaurants and walking trails are there when you want them.
And the forest is there when you don’t.
Your Hepburn Springs escape starts here.