A two-night girls’ getaway in Bathurst
Gather the girls and escape to Bathurst for a weekend where heritage comes with a little luxury. Long lunches, coffee windows, art and boutique shopping, stories etched into 200-year-old walls and evenings spent around the fire pit with a platter and a glass in hand.
This is a getaway made for slowing down, catching up and discovering some of Bathurst’s most beautiful places together.
Friday – Country Check-In & Dinner with History
3:00pm – Check into Lawson’s Estate on Macquarie Farm
Your weekend begins in the countryside at Lawson’s Estate on Macquarie Farm, a luxury heritage stay set on one of the most historically significant properties in the region. The estate combines its restored Georgian homestead and convict-built buildings with plenty of room for a group to settle in and make the place their own.
Unpack, claim your rooms and spend the afternoon exploring the grounds. Pour something sparkling, wander the property or simply find a sunny spot and enjoy the rare luxury of having nowhere else to be.
6:30pm – Host your own private dinner in the Convict Signature Hall
For the first night, don’t go out for dinner – make the setting part of the experience.
Host your own private dinner beneath the historic Barracks in Lawson’s Convict Signature Hall. Original convict signatures can still be seen etched into the handmade walls, giving the room an extraordinary sense of place and connection to the people who lived and worked here more than two centuries ago. Lawson’s lists the space specifically for private dinners and intimate celebrations.
Set a beautiful table, dim the lights and linger over dinner and local wine. It’s intimate, atmospheric and a memorable way to begin a Bathurst weekend.
Saturday — Coffee, Culture, Boutique Finds & a Long Lunch
8:30am — Coffee through the hole in the wall
Head into Bathurst and start the morning at Moubar Vintage, tucked inside the historic Brookemore Centre.
This little walk-up coffee window is just the kind of place you hope to stumble across on a weekend away. Grab coffees, fresh pastries and sourdough, then find a spot in the courtyard while everyone properly wakes up. Moubar currently opens from 7am on Saturdays.
9:30am — A slow wander through Machattie Park
Coffee in hand, make your way to Machattie Park and take yourselves on an easy self-guided wander.
Follow the pathways beneath its established historic trees, stop at the monuments and garden features and take some time to discover the layers of Bathurst history surrounding the park and nearby Kings Parade. In spring, the gardens add plenty of colour; in autumn, the changing foliage creates a completely different backdrop. The girls’ getaway guide highlights Machattie Park specifically for its historic trees and garden setting.
No timetable required – this part of the morning is made for walking, chatting and a few group photos.
10:30am — See what’s showing at BRAG
Continue to Bathurst Regional Art Gallery on Keppel Street and spend an hour exploring the latest exhibition.
From 29 August to 1 November 2026, BRAG presents Transformations: Image, Time & Landscape — Nicole Welch: A Mid-Career Survey, alongside Graham Lupp’s Five Decades: Studies in Realism. BRAG is currently in exhibition changeover from 17–28 August, so for an evergreen published itinerary I’d recommend describing this simply as “discover the latest exhibition at BRAG” and updating the exhibition title seasonally.
11:45am – A little boutique therapy at Dejorja
It wouldn’t be a girls’ weekend without a little shopping.
Wander down Keppel Street to Dejorja Boutique and browse its mix of fashion, florals, accessories and homewares. The getaway guide describes it as a natural stop for a girls’ weekend. Pop by Diversity Fashion a few doors up and check out the spring flair of these talented local designers.
Allow plenty of time for the inevitable “you need to try that on”.
1:00pm – Long lunch at Norma Joan
Next, settle in at Norma Joan for the kind of lunch that deserves an entire afternoon.
Order a selection of share beautiful plates for the table, add local wine and let lunch unfold slowly. Norma Joan’s courtyard and share-style dining make it particularly suited to a relaxed group catch-up rather than a rushed meal.
There’s no need to over-program the afternoon. After lunch, wander the CBD, stop for another coffee or make your way back to the estate for a few quiet hours before sunset.
6:00pm – Platters around the fire pit
Tonight is deliberately low-key.
Back at Lawson’s Estate, pull on something warm, assemble generous grazing platters and gather around the fire as the sun disappears over the countryside. Bonfires are among the on-property experiences promoted by Lawson’s, alongside walking trails, the outdoor spa and time spent exploring the farm.
Open a bottle, put on a playlist and stay there long after the platter has disappeared. Sometimes the best part of a girls’ weekend is the part with absolutely no reservation attached.
Sunday – Breakfast, Lavender & a Slow Goodbye
9:00am – Breakfast at The Hub
Check out and head back into town for one final long breakfast at The Hub.
Order another round of coffee – its Hub Blend is roasted with local Fish River Roasters – and linger over breakfast rather than rushing into the day.
10:30am – Wander White Rock Lavender Estate
Finish your getaway in the countryside at White Rock Lavender Estate.
Wander among the seasonal plantings, breathe in that unmistakable lavender scent and browse the estate’s farm-crafted lavender products, from oils and mists to body creams and skincare.
The experience changes with the seasons: spring brings new growth and budding lavender, summer is the season of long golden days and flourishing fields, autumn brings harvest activity, while winter has its own frost-covered quiet.
Pick up something fragrant to take home and call it the perfect Bathurst farewell.
Seasonal Add-Ons
Spring — Blossoms & High Tea
Time your stay for spring colour in Machattie Park, or add Strawberries & Cream at Abercrombie House, offered on Saturdays throughout spring according to the girls’ getaway guide. Selected high-tea experiences there also feature Celtic harp music in the heritage ballroom.
Summer — Lavender at its best
Give yourselves extra time at White Rock Lavender Estate when the fields are at their most abundant and Bathurst’s long summer evenings turn the countryside golden.
First weekend of the month — Bathurst Arts Trail
Add another dose of creativity when local artists open their private studios to visitors across the region on the first weekend of each month.
Fourth Saturday — Bathurst Farmers Market
If your dates align, squeeze in the Bathurst Farmers Market before Moubar and browse local honey, olives, sourdough, wine, gin and other regional produce. The market is listed for the fourth Saturday of each month from 8am–12pm.