Forgandenny House bed and breakfast in Mudgee has been named one of the top 25 bed and breakfasts (B&B) in Australia.
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Leading online travel site TravelAdvisor has ranked Forgandenny House 23rd in its list of best B&B, based on reviews from travellers.
The leading B&Bs were chosen on the basis of remarkable service, quality and value.
Owners Robbie and Errol Holdaway said Forgandenny has been listed among the top 25 guest houses in the Mudgee region for the past four years.
The national recognition for Forgandenny House not only promotes the business, but also the Mudgee region, they said.
Mr Holdaway said reviews such as a recent comment which described Forgandenny House as a “Mudgee gem” inspired them to keep doing what they do.
“At the end of the day, it’s part of everybody’s efforts to make Mudgee a place people will visit and a rich, historical tourist town,” he said.
Forgandenny House is ranked ahead of Bishops Court Estate Boutique Court Hotel in Bathurst in the top 25, which also includes properties from Byron Bay, Leura, Noosa, Bright, Broome, Busseltown and Mt Macedon.
“I think that’s why people are interested in coming to Mudgee and the town responds.”
The Holdaways bought the historical Short Street home in 2000, achieving a lifelong ambition for Mrs Holdaway, who is the great-granddaughter of its former owner, Dr Charles Lester.
Dr Lester built the house as a residence and doctor’s surgery. Although it was sold in 1925, it continued to be used as a surgery until 1997.
To many long-time Mudgee residents, it is still known as “the doctor’s house”.
“Even when I was a little girl, I used to say ‘how come we don’t own it anymore,” Mrs Holdaway said. “When it came up for sale unexpectedly, we said ‘it’s now or never’.”
The Holdaways were able to bring back some of Forgandenny House’s original furniture, which had remained in the family’s ownership.
Mr and Mrs Holdaway applied their customer service experience as former airline cabin staff to ensuring Forgandenny House is a place that visitors will want to return to again and again.
The Holdaways have seen Mudgee grow as a tourist destination over the past 16 years, while at the same time internet sites such as TravelAdvisor, have transformed travel and the tourism industry.
But it’s still the attention to detail in the historic home and garden which brings five-star reviews for Forgandenny.
“A lot of people in the city are looking for a different lifestyle,” Mr Holdaway said.
“I think that’s why people are interested in coming to Mudgee and the town responds.”
