A Bermagui accommodation has recently received recognition for its high-quality service.
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Bellbird Cottage B&B was awarded silver in the 2014 South Coast Regional Tourism Awards in the Hosted Accommodation category.
Owned by Gretel Bodiam and Tony Oldfield, the B&B sits in a quiet location surrounded by spotted gums along Nutley’s Creek Rd, Bermagui.
Ms Bodiam said it was just “fabulous” when they found out they had received the award last week and she had been living in a “happy bubble” ever since.
“I think it really validates what we do here,” she said.
“It’s not so much just for us either, I think it’s great as it does send a message to people who are part of the Shire and who are visiting the Shire, that this area has attractions that are really high standard.”
This is the first award Bellbird Cottage has entered in, as Ms Bodiam said they hadn’t been interested in the awards arena before but guests and other businesses had said they should try for one.
Ms Bodiam and Mr Oldfield moved from Canberra to buy the property, on which she estimates the original house to have been built in the 1950s, and began to renovate the building five years ago.
“Part of it is one of the really old cottages of Bermagui, integrated with a more modern style,” she said.
“But we still wanted it to look like a little rambling cottage in the woodland.
“We decided having Bellbird was about having what we love, so we made it everything that we love about B&Bs.
“It’s not just about ‘bums on beds’ as they call it in the industry – getting people in and out as quickly as possible.
“I’ve always wanted to have a B&B so for me it’s much more a passion than it is a business.”
Ms Bodiam and Mr Oldfield also own Art on Hart, a holiday home which can be used in a B&B style.