Time Out Australia Travel Awards 2026: Best Holiday Home Nominees

Dairy Flat is located on a 38-hectare regenerative farm in Musk, just a ten-minute drive from the township of Daylesford. It’s owned and operated by the Wolf-Tasker family, best known for establishing the nearby Lake House and firmly putting the region on the culinary map. While Dairy Flat officially opened in late 2019, they've been continuously developing the property to create what is now, undoubtedly, one of the state’s premier country escapes. The homestead itself can accommodate up to 12 guests across six spacious individual suites, and it’s available for exclusive use – hello, multi-generational holiday. There’s also a communal lounge, kitchen and dining area, stocked with books, board games and a stack of fresh pastries you can help yourself to. 

Light the fire, dim the lights and cue “Lumiere, darling”. In fact, play Ed Sheeran on repeat because those words echo through the walls at Lumierè Lodge, a beautiful Victorian-style homestead in the leafy foothills of West Hobart. Rich in colour and character, this three-bedroom lodge is a perfect escape from big city life – yet it’s only a five-minute drive from Hobart’s city centre. Cancel all your plans though, because after checking in, you simply won’t want (or need) to leave.

Hidden just up the hill from Binalong Bay – a sleepy seaside hamlet famed for its pristine white sand, turquoise water and orange lichen-covered boulders – Sabi Stays is a breath of fresh air in more ways than one. This luxuriously cosy cabin is the result of a two-year labour of love by Jess and Frank Eggleston, who lovingly handcrafted the gingerbread-style structure from stone and timber, creating something that looks like straight from the pages of a storybook. Inside, it’s all earthy tones, raw textures and natural materials designed to ground you – and yet, it couldn’t feel more warm or snug.

You’ll feel your heart rate slow the moment you arrive at Simpson Cottage – letting the white gate shut behind you and taking in the timeless splendour of the heritage-listed cottage set against the idyllic garden and the sparkling stretch of estuary beyond. Built by convicts back in 1864 as a holiday escape for a British-born market gardener by the name of George Simpson, Simpson Cottage is arguably one of the most historic holiday cottages in NSW. And though the interiors have experienced a major glow-up, there’s a timeless energy to the place that feels like the echo of decades of happy memories – an intimate history shared by those lucky enough to have holidayed here. 

The biggest drawcard of this wildly remote, adults-only escape is its total seclusion, set amid the peaceful landscapes of the Abercrombie River, just a 2.5-hour drive from Canberra or 3.5 hours from Sydney. The night skies here are spectacular, boasting a number two rating on the Bortle Scale – the global standard for measuring darkness and light pollution. That means you’re under some of the clearest, most pristine skies in the world, as untouched as being in the middle of the ocean, free from virtually any light (and noise, for that matter).

Tucked away on the ‘edge of the world’ is Tunnel Tasmania, a luxury off-grid escape set on six acres of waterfront land on Bruny Island. It’s perhaps the most architecturally beautiful property you'll ever come across, featuring everything from dancing rainbow lights and a cosy outdoor firepit to sweeping floor-to-ceiling windows and an ocean-facing bath. In many ways, the bath captures exactly what the designers were trying to achieve with Tunnel as an off-grid escape – a place to switch off in nature, with front-row views of Tasmania’s wild terrain and coastline, and not another soul in sight.