8 Great Country Style Bed and Breakfasts

But you can actually get a dose of it all at one of these beautiful Bed and Breakfasts or Guesthouses in the Margaret River Region. The area is hiding a wonderful number of historical properties.

Here we have uncovered old convents, tea houses and manor houses (two!) And for the newer additions, there are recurrent themes of romantic gardens teeming with flowers and birds, fireplaces, home cooking, privacy and meticulous hospitality.

Before Air BnB there were B&Bs. And the difference between these styles of accommodation is palpable.

“In the words of one couple that were normally Air BnB customers: when they arrived in the middle of winter there was no heater on, no lights on, no one to welcome them,” said Karri House owner Tracey Tyler. “Here, there is someone to welcome you. The house is warm. I actually offer a full concierge service. I ask what you want to get out of the region. When guests stay here they get a map and I help plan their day.”

Tracey used to be a flight attendant and says she is pretty well trained at looking after people. She has had customers drop their relatives off, knowing they will be well looked after from start to finish, even with someone to drive them around should they want it.

She started Karri House at the encouragement of her friends who used to stay with her from Perth and told her she should start a bed and breakfast. One day she just thought “why not?”

“One couple said they’d never come across a 5-star semi-farm stay”, Tracey said. Tracey’s guests love interacting with her animals (chooks, alpacas, sheep and a horse!) often offering a carrot or two after enjoying their own breakfast.

Margaret River Guest House owners Lisa and Keiran have lived in the Margaret River Region for 28 years, and when the opportunity arose to take over stewardship of this historic property they jumped at the chance.

Kieran is a chef and prepares a beautiful breakfast each morning, featuring the freshest local produce from the region. In the afternoons a scrumptious home baked afternoon tea is served, best enjoyed in one of the comfortable chairs overlooking the lush gardens.

Lisa has worked in the hospitality industry for many decades and is the perfect host, ensuring that guests are warmly welcomed and have everything they need for a comfortable stay.

In-room pod coffee machines, 5 star bathroom amenities and Bluetooth speakers are just some of the extra little touches that elevate the experience.

There is often native wildlife also enjoying the extensive grounds. “Bird watching from our balconies is a guest favourite pastime. And when its time to venture down town, it’s a 2 minute stroll away,” said Lisa.

A large estate of opulent rooms, suites and sprawling grounds is the luxurious Basildene Manor, built in 1912 by English immigrant Percy Willmott. He was Chief Lighthouse Keeper at Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse in Augusta, before setting the foundations for Basildene Farmhouse, as it was then called, on his family property. His descendants were raised at Basildene and remained there until the 70s.

At the front of the manor is a huge oak tree, planted around 1910 with an acorn acquired from Buckingham Palace.

This list of Bed and Breakfasts and Guesthouses should inspire you to scratch below the surface of the Margaret River Region into (sometimes literally) the homes of your warm hosts, and their proud rural heritage.

A real-life historical manor! With 19 rooms! And a hit list of features like a “conservatory”, “fireside reading room”, sundeck, tennis court, manicured gardens, pool and lakeside pergola! Be still our Bridgerton-loving hearts! The luxurious Basildene Manor is a treasured and iconic heritage building in Margaret River, first built in 1912. Granite rocks were quarried on the property to build its magnificent walls, and local jarrah timber has been used for the staircases, balustrades and flooring. The Manor is classified with the National Trust of Australia as having significant heritage value. There is also an underground stone wine cellar, continental a la carte breakfast and views over the meticulously-kept lawn and garden to the native forest beyond.

Once an old convent for the settlement of Margaret River, this 1920s property has had its historic spaces – like the chapel, and Mother Superior’s bedroom and office – converted for guests. Totalling seven rooms with king beds, hospitality dream team Lisa and Keiran Glossop offer a hotel experience but with the warmth and comfort of staying in their lovely home. A fully cooked breakfast buffet is offered daily, and the guest lounge has a roaring log fire in the winter. The multi-award-winning stay is only a two-minute walk from Margaret River’s town centre.

Let us paint a picture: an award-winning, luxury B&B with a turret, creeping wisteria, farm-fresh food including famous hot waffles, statuette birdbath set in a lush garden, and optional tours in a 1956 Rolls Royce. Add in the convenient location on Wallcliffe Road, and your idyllic stay at Rosewood Guesthouse means that you can walk into town or drive a short distance to Margaret River’s beaches or the famous Caves Road tourist drive. Perfect.

Tucked away in Margaret River is the elegant Karri House, set on a rare gem of land; two acres of rural property right near the heart of town. An intimate hosted experience, Karri House is very private with three guest rooms, a formal lounge and communal living area with a fireplace, gardens, lawn and sprawling verandas from which to enjoy the surroundings. The grounds provide some special treats for guests, including a beautiful covered day bed, bocce court, chook house and animal friends including a horse, alpacas Alan and Annie, and sheep Sally and Daph. As owner Tracey Tyler recommends, meet the “girls” who lay your breakfast egg, or pick your own fresh fruit and citrus from the orchard. Tracey offers a concierge service of pick-ups, drop-offs or day touring by arrangement.

One of the only guesthouses centrally located in Cowaramup; meaning that it’s quieter than the hub of Margaret River, but actually closer to a lot of wineries, food producers and activities. The colonial-style Noble Grape boasts six rooms that open onto a beautiful cottage garden, bursting with English roses, bulb flowers and native birds. Brekkie consists of cereals, local yoghurts, bread, juice, tea and muffins.

Lying just off the famous and picturesque Caves Road drive is this secluded bed and breakfast, deep within the pristine native forest on nine acres of land. The four private rooms each have their own veranda and jacuzzi and front onto lawn and bushland, making for a true escape among nature. The vast common room has multiple cosy seating and dining options and huge floor-to-ceiling glass windows to flood the area in light. The walls here are decorated like a gallery, with works from Western Australian artists available to purchase.

Jacaranda Guesthouse is a known landmark in Busselton’s city centre for its historic cottages and flowered English garden. Close to shops, eateries and the ocean, the seven rooms here were used as a tea house in the 1940s after first construction in the 1920s. Continental breakfast is offered daily.

Known in semi-recent times as Villa Carlotta, the old Ithaca Manor is a towering and striking red brick and timber property on the beautiful Adelaide Street of Busselton, with a picturesque turret marking the architectural drama and elegance of a bygone era. Extensions were undertaken in 1904 when the building became a convent after its sale to the Catholic Church. It served as a school from 1922, and was turned into a private hotel in 1952. Now housing 8 guest rooms for affordable accommodation, the whole house can be rented for conferences, weddings or parties.