The Mews Apartments, Bathurst review: A few gentle laps around town

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This was published 13 years ago

The Mews Apartments, Bathurst review: A few gentle laps around town

The people's pub ... the refurbished Royal Hotel in Bathurst is home to the Royal Apartments.

The people's pub ... the refurbished Royal Hotel in Bathurst is home to the Royal Apartments.Credit: Zenio Lapka

After exploring the bustling heart of Bathurst, Christine Sams puts her feet up to enjoy the surprising silence.

Just as Los Angeles has its famed Hollywood sign, Bathurst boasts its own hilltop greeting with "Mount Panorama" written in large white letters. We have a clear view of it, straight out of the bedroom window in the upper level of our apartment at The Mews, with the spires of St Stanislaus' College in the foreground.

On the lower-level of our two-bedroom apartment is a panorama of a different kind - a sweeping view towards the mountains, showing off a large and impressive sky and the changing colours of this beautiful city in the central west.

The apartment's owner has already assured us that if we sit on the chairs on the balcony (with its high wall) we will see only the view of the mountains and not the industrial rooftops of the bustling centre of Bathurst, which is close by.

But we like the combination - taking in the whole spectrum and knowing we are only a very short walk to the shops including the newly opened Bathurst City Centre. This is a great location, particularly for exploring the town.

The Mews apartments are part of a modern complex, built as an addition to the Royal Hotel - once an iconic part of Bathurst hotel life, with stars such as Dame Nellie Melba staying in the hotel's apartments when she performed in town.

A refurbishment brought the Royal Apartments back to life and there has also been an attempt to also give The Mews a sense of history and artistic flair.

Our two-bedder is in the newer complex, dedicated to the artistic side of Bathurst, recognising the region's status as a long-time artists' colony, with local paintings and drawings dotted throughout the rooms.

It must be said, it is particularly the little drawings, placed above baths and sinks and in other innocuous places, that do bring a sense of delight.

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I find myself smiling every time I see a cheeky little ink drawing of a court jester pushing a lawn mower, with leaves flying up around him - it makes no sense in practice but, as art, it makes me grin every time.

We are told by the owner that the furnishings are French-inspired, including the tapestries that hang on walls, the pale blue brocade of the bed covers and the 19th-century french bed downstairs.

While the touches are often really lovely - the beds are soft and inviting - it is a little hard to reconcile a boudoir feel with the modernity of a tiled floor downstairs.

There is also a standard kitchen, brown in colour, which is stocked with cutlery and crockery and cooking utensils.

Buoyed by our location, we take a walk down into the main street - a genuinely busy retail heart, with a great array of shops - and wander back past the beautiful park in the centre of town, which boasts a carillon with 35 bells, initially built in the early 1930s to honour

World War I veterans. It's a beautiful structure in its own right, enhanced by daily lunchtime bell ringing.

Later, we stroll down the street again to dinner - there are so many options for dedicated foodies and we choose an iconic Bathurst restaurant, The Acropole, which has been on the same corner since 1958, with its family booths and generous servings. The baked New York cheesecake is a standout.

We're so much in the centre of town, it's easy to wonder whether noise may be a factor at night.

But once we're settled into the upstairs bedroom - easily the favourite with its wide, blue-covered bed, matching heavy drapes and lovely bedside lamps, we realise it is incredibly peaceful at night, with barely a sound.

TRIP NOTES

WHERE The Mews Apartments, 108 William Street, Bathurst. Phone 6332 4920, see bathurstheritage.com.au/the-mews.html.

HOW MUCH Weekend rates from $374 (one bedroom) to $572 (two bedrooms). Weekly rates available.

BEST THING There is plenty of space in the apartments — and the artwork by local artists is a nice touch.

WORST THING Arriving via the downstairs car park, then using the jerky lift, doesn't exactly give a great first impression.

LOCAL SECRET Expect pink booths and a disco ball when you visit Annie's Old Fashioned Ice Cream Parlour, on George Street (just across the park). The flavours are divine, made even more fun by the retro setting.

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