And exhale. We roadtested Willinga Park’s luxe conference retreat and found much-needed headspace
Posted on
Conferences and corporate retreats…two events synonymous with grey meeting rooms, dry finger food and forced networking in cold cavernous spaces.
Not anymore. Or at least, not when your venue is an architecturally designed coastal sanctuary, complete with purpose-built on-site luxury accommodation, state-of-the-art event features, wellness facilities and endless natural beauty.
Welcome to Willinga Park, where 2,300 acres of tranquil private property makes your corporate event feel like a holiday. How would I know? Because we recently held our own HerCanberra planning retreat there – and we didn’t want to come home.
The first thing you notice about Willinga Park on arrival (well, after the impressive entrance gates, the sculptures dotted on manicured hillsides and the dozens of horses happily grazing in their paddocks) is the quiet. Tucked in coastal hinterland five minutes from the beach in Bawley Point – a two-and-a-half-hour drive from Canberra – Willinga Park serves as both an award-winning equestrian centre that regularly hosts landmark events – in fact, Australian dressage rider Jayden Brown was recently selected for the 2024 Australian Olympic team on Willinga Park-owned horse Quincy B. – and a function centre.
But as this is private property, your guests will be the only visitors, which meant our team of four and Willinga Park’s friendly staff were the only faces to be seen during our stay. Cue a relaxed exhale.
Willinga Park’s Conference Centre.
The innate sense of privacy and serenity extends to Willinga Park’s stunning Conference Centre, which can host up to 250 people for a conference, corporate event or retreat as well as functions and expos across a large function room, stunning 230sqm balcony with mountain views, private bar and restaurant, and cleverly appointed break out spaces.
There’s also The Boardroom, a stately, wood-panelled space with full video conferencing facilities where we held our retreat, beaming in team members from Canberra who couldn’t make the trip while enjoying generous and delicious on-site catering and barista coffee.
The Boardroom.
After an afternoon of strategy and forward planning we checked into our Pavilions – striking two-bedroom self-contained accommodation built at the top of a hill and boasting sweeping views across the lawns. Sleek and modern, the Pavilions have been built with corporate visitors in mind, with spacious common areas and lockable bedrooms poised on opposite ends of the space, each with a large ensuite. Never mind the awkwardness that might come with sharing a hotel room or suite with a colleague – in the Pavilions everyone has space and privacy to stretch out.
The Pavilions.
Before dinner, we indulged in a Campfire Experience, one of the tailored experiences on offer for corporate bookings. Stretching out next to the heated swimming pool around a roaring campfire we were served a platter groaning with charcuterie and cheeses and a selection of premium wines from Willinga Park’s extensive list. As the sun went down, we sipped our wine, watched the flames and listened to the cicadas, the smell of the ocean drifting to us on the breeze.
This emphasis on quiet luxury makes sense when you learn that Willinga Park is the brainchild of Terry Snow, the recently-retired businessman, philanthropist and equestrian enthusiast whose Canberra Airport Group is well-known for balancing form and function with art and design – just look at the plethora of sculptures on display at Canberra International Airport or around Denman Prospect.
The Grand Prix Lounge.
Willinga Park is a seamless extension of this design philosophy, with soaring architectural shapes married with striking materials like copper, steel and glass and a love of art apparent everywhere – nowhere more so than in the Grand Prix Lounge, which feels more like the reception room of a luxurious mansion than an event space.
With triple-height ceilings and the appearance of a gallery, The Grand Prix Lounge’s long dining table is bookended by a lounge with an open fireplace (for your pre-dinner wine, of course) and a hidden kitchen where a private chef will prepare your three-course meal, with staff ready to drive you back to your Pavilion once you’re finished. Did we mention it was about 10 degrees warmer than Canberra? If it sounds like heaven, that’s because it was.
The Grand Prix Lounge.
The next day I woke up in time for a sunrise swim in the pool joined by the entire HerCanberra team (just kidding, I was alone). If the pool isn’t for you, you can also check out Willinga Park’s full gym facilities, book a yoga session on the beach or even a local guide to lead a mountain hike nearby. Bawley Point’s cafes and beaches are a five-minute drive away and the Willinga Park team are ready and waiting to tailor a range of enrichment and wellness experiences for your corporate function – just ask.
The Conference Centre.
After a morning planning session back in The Boardroom we toured Willinga Park’s Botanic Gardens – there is, in fact, 10 hectares of the property that have been carefully landscaped to showcase stunning Australian natural beauty – then poured our relaxed bodies back into the car, ready to head home.
Corporate retreats boring? Says who?
