Otway Retreats

We (5 adults and 1 child) had a lovely New Years retreat at Moore Beach Days. The property and facilities were exactly as described and shown in the photos, the communication was timely, clear and thorough, and the property was spotless and in great condition. The location was perfect for Apollo Bay (a quick walk to the main strip of shops and beach), and our two elderly dogs were welcome (with a $50 in total pet fee) and absolutely loved exploring the backyard! We highly recommend Otway Retreats, and the Moore Beach Days property in Apollo Bay.

Really nice house, felt homely and plenty of space for the family. Clean, well maintained with no issues. Good location, quiet and not far from the beach or shops. We brought our little dog who enjoyed the backyard, fully fenced. Would recommend :)

Lovely house that was clean and well stocked with everything we needed for our stay. We had great communication with the hosts and a smooth check in and out. The location in Apollo bay was idea for exploring the Otway forest and enjoying the beach.

Beachykeen was a lovely holiday stay. Perfect for walking to the shopping strip and beach. We went cycling up at Forrest. Communication was clear. Just great for a long weekend

We recently stayed in Apollo bay in a holiday home managed by Otway retreats. The experience was the best we have had yet. After holidaying in Apollo bay for several years we found the service we received from Otway retreats to be second to none, the concierge was a great feature for us as we ordered platters on arrival which were lovely and full of local produce and treats. The house was spotlessly clean and the entire experience was fantastic. We will be sure to book with Otway Retreats again when we return!

We recently had a winter escape at Apollo Bay at a property managed by Otway Retreats. The staff could not have been more accommodating and responsive and the property was beautifully presented with the most magnificent views. Would recommend Otway Retreats.

Recently booked to stay at one of Otway Retreats rentals - Ananda in Skenes Creek North. Booking process etc was great with Otways Retreat Staff. Only thing i would recommend is to stop leasing Ananda as our stay was increased price during a peak period, and the house itself was not great. TV doesn't work, No coffee Pod machine as advertised, gardens very overgrown and Bikes available to use but flat tires so cant use. Otways retreat were understanding, although the owner of the property not so. So just a flag to use these guys for other properties, but do not book Ananda at Skenes Creek.

We stayed at one of the holiday houses that Otway Retreat manages called “Bimbadeen on Busty”. And I have written this review here for Otway retreats because of their dishonest comment on my review in Airbnb after our stay in Bimbadeen. Below is my review in Airbnb:

“Amazing location with stunning views but unfortunately with a HORRIBLE CUSTOMER SERVICE . After we checked in we found a damp bath math hanging on the bathroom door. There was a towel with black stains folded on the bed. The toilet pan was dirty with some “dry brown stuff”. Shower screen had dried filth on it. Dead insects in the house on the window frames and the inside door mat had lots of dirt and dust under it.
There was no fire wood in the house, no lighter, no kindling. No shampoo and a bottle of used almost empty body wash. We contacted the host and raised the issue and raised our concern mainly about cleanliness and Covid safety. We were really concerned about Covid safety as there was so many clues that the house was not cleaned properly. The host responded that the house has been clean and told us these are “minor” problems and the cleaner might forgot to remove the towel from bathroom! Also they told us they are not responsible for providing the kindling and lighter and any toiletries such as shampoo and body body wash so if they dont provide shampoo and body wash, can I assume that the almost empty body wash was a left over body wash from the previous guest??! And in terms of fire wood, they said this is guest responsibility to carry the fire wood from a shed approx 100m away from the house! And the guest must bring their own fire lighter, kindling and fire starter!! They also told me if the folded towel on our bed is not clean we can just use another towel! After so many back and forth messages they told us repeatedly if we are unhappy we can leave and they refund fully or we stay and they refund 100 cleaning fees but we still have to pay 90$ for the sheets!! Anyway, it was 5:30 pm and we didnt have any other place to go and I told them we cant leave and if they send a cleaner there would be no problem but they said it is too late and they cant do anything else and they repeated again we can leave if we are unhappy!! After we realised that the host is not helpful and we have no option we drove to town to buy fire lighter and fire starter to at least heat up the place as it was freezing and then we started cleaning ourself. Long story short they just dont care about the customer, they dont know how to solve a problem and they only repeat the same thing over and over again until you give up. Their only concern is to save 10$ by all kind of cheap initiatives like not providing a $2 fire lighter, $3 fire starter, $5shampoo and body wash and charge you heaps of money without providing a good value for money service.
The worst experience We have ever had in any accommodation. They did their best to ruin our first night.”

They commented that I was not fair and implied that I have not stated the truth. They claimed that they had provided a box of fire wood at entry and lighter and the house was cleaned based on Covid safety procedures!!! However, on my arrival there was no bag of fire wood at the entry and no lighter. I messages them and specifically raised this issue and they clearly replied that it is not their responsibility to provide gas lighter and if I need woodfire , I have to bring it from the shed. Also I sent all the photos of dirty toilet pan, shower screen, dead insects, and dirt and dust in the house and they replied that the house has been cleaned and these are minor issues!
So I think it is very unethical to provide a poor customer service and then blame the customer and comment dishonestly that the guest is not telling the truth… Everything about your attitude is wrong and unbelievable.