Situated in two and a half acres of beautiful gardens, Varuna is a friendly and relaxed residential retreat for writers. The main house has five separate bedrooms, each with a writing space attached or nearby; three bathrooms; homely living and dining rooms; an extensive library; and a spacious, well equipped kitchen and laundry. There is also a new separate accessible studio built in 2020. Both the house and the studios are fully heated.

Each of the six rooms at Varuna has its own unique charm. Please read below for info about the rooms and the house. If you’d like to chat further about the rooms or have specific requests regarding your accessibility or creative practice needs, please get in touch with jaala@varuna.com.au.

Bedrooms and writing rooms

Every bedroom at Varuna includes a separate writing space, in most cases attached to the bedroom itself, except for the Green / Sewing Room upstairs, wherein the private workspace is separate from the bedroom. Three of the four upstairs bedrooms share a common bathroom (Bear Room, Ladder Room & Green / Sewing Room), and the fourth room (Main Room) has its own ensuite. The downstairs bedroom (Eleanor’s Studio bedroom) has a separate bathroom. Each room has a patchwork quilt made originally by the Varuna Quilt Project.

Writing spaces

The writing workspaces each have a large wooden work table and adjustable office chair, a desk lamp, bookshelves and a window overlooking the garden. Internet is available throughout the house but can be patchy occasionally! There is ample mobile reception, so you can hotspot to your phone, just in case.

Eleanor Dark’s studio

Eleanor Dark's garden studio is for use by the writer who is allocated the small bedroom downstairs. The studio is a large room separate from the house, with an outlook across the garden. Writers in the studio are invited to leave a few pages of their work-in-progress in the manuscript drawers that Eleanor used to store her manuscripts in.

Living and dining rooms

Writers generally meet in the spacious, comfortable living room in the evenings. The living room has several comfortable sofas, a fantastic library of contemporary Australian literature, and a large open fireplace.

Kitchen and laundry

The kitchen is large and well-equipped (including a dishwasher). Writers help themselves to breakfast and lunch, and dinner is cooked each evening by Varuna's wonderful catering team. The laundry has a washing machine so that writers can do their own laundry. The house does not have a dryer, but the clothesline is next to the carpark, and each bedroom contains a standing/portable clothesline.

Accessible Studio

The new accessible Jerra studio is located to the north of the main Varuna house and is surrounded by heritage garden. The studio features a kitchenette, accessible bathroom, adjustable double bed, study area with lounge and adjustable desk.

Garden

All the rooms look out on a peaceful scene of the large and beautifully landscaped garden, which is maintained by Eleanor Dark's grandson, Rod Dark. The garden has many quiet places to sit, and includes an orchard, a small pond, hidden paths through the undergrowth and a rose garden.

You can view a video tour of the garden below.