Get Away with Dre – un-brrr-liveable winter getaways
The Antaractic blast is hitting parts of Australia at the moment and we can definately feel it in the mornings! If you’re not one to like the cold, hopefully these winter getaways or activity ideas will change your mind. So rug up and lets go!
Husky Sledding
The only place that allows dog sledding is in the state of Victoria. Howling Huskys offer private dog sledding tours in Mt. Baw Baw, Dinner Plain and Mt. Hotham.
They take a max weight of 160kgs in total, so be aware of that when booking. The experience itself is pretty amazing, however don’t come in with the need for speed. The dogs are powerful and can keep going on, but they are not meant for racing.
You can watch dog sled racing in Dinner Plain in August, with the annual 2024 Dinner Plain Sled Dog Sprint. It’s been running for over 25 years, and it’s free to watch.
Chill out in a thermal pool
Who doesn’t love a hot bath? It’s definately the best thing to do when it’s cold outside. If you search “thermal pools” or “hot pools” online a whole heap come up, so you’ll have plenty to choose from all across the country.
In Victoria, Alba is a hot spring oasis in Mornington Peninsula. It has a mix of 22 private & public pools all ranging from 26 – 41 degrees celcius – including one cold plunge pool and a salt pool.
In NSW, north-west from Coffs Harbour the Lightning Ridge Bore Baths is a free open air Artesian Bath that opened in 1962. The water in the baths is approximately 2 million years old! But don’t worry, that doesn’t mean it’s dirty water. It’s actually an artesian bore where water underground is naturally pushed to the surface and kept at a temperature of 41.5 degrees celcius.
It’s closed for cleaning on Mon, Wed & Fri between 10am – 12pm, and did I mention it’s free of charge?
Go ice-fishing
Very much a Tassie activity in the winter months and definately not as popular as fishing in the summer. Arthurs Lake is a popular spot for trout fishing and when the lake freezes over people flock there for some ice fishing. It involves smashing your way through the ice, by boat or by physically getting in the water knee-deep. People say its calming and therapeutic.
Arthurs Lake is a high altitude and exposed location so check the weather before you go and prep yourself for a cold fishing sesh.
Stay in a Hyped ome or Igloo
In Victoria at Mt. Hotham lies an eco-dome in an eco village where you can snow glamp in either a Hydedome or Igloo (make from real snow).
What are Hypedomes, you ask? Dome-shaped lodgings made with the combination of seamless transparent and reflective hexagonal panels pieced together with the use of clever angle orientation, giving you full privacy – no one can see in – but uninterrupted views of the sky and your surroundings when you’re inside. Because of its location, you get alpine views over the Dargo valley. Each domes sleeps up to four people.
The eco-village is set up in a way where everything can be carried in and out and powered to reduced impact on the alpine environment. You will be completely off-grid – but you won’t be roughing it – it’s a powered site with 4G, charging stations, toilets, kitchen, showers and woodfire heaters in every dome
The experience comes with a guided snowshoe tour, a glass of mulled wine, 3-course dinner, brekkie the next day, and you can add a skimobile tour and outdoor hot-tub experience to top it all off.
