BIG4 Castlemaine Gardens Holiday Park

The first thing you notice as you head towards the entry to the BIG4 Castlemaine Gardens Holiday Park are the beautiful trees lining the road. Then you reach the lovely old cottage that houses the reception area.  This park is in a lovely setting alongside the Castlemaine Botanical Gardens – in fact it was once part of the gardens and the original greenhouse sits beside the reception.

Some of the old buildings that were originally part of the Botanical Gardens have been renovated and given another purpose. One such building is now called 'The Hut' - an old stone building that has been transformed into a camp kitchen with stainless steel bench, open fire, fridge etc. This open plan room has been decorated with memorabilia from yesteryear and furnished with wooden tables and benches. A basket of wood is supplied each evening for guests to enjoy a cosy fire. Recycled timber and pressed metal have been used in the cupboard door fronts and one fireplace cleverly changed into a bookshelf - what a great space with a lovely feel and a very popular place for meeting fellow campers (especially in winter) . 

Outside the camp kitchen is a huge covered seating area with barbeques and outdoor sinks – just beautiful. Plans in the future include a pizza oven near the barbeques.

Another building in the park that has been re-purposed is an old amenities block that was gutted, windows added and now holds a wonderful games room – complete with play stations along one wall mounted on a lovely wooden bench. This room has a sink and tap for convenience in a bench on one wall and again beautiful cupboards to keep the older feel. There is a huge flat screen TV and during the holidays Claire (the owner) conducts movie nights. This room can also be transformed with trestle tables for large groups or family gatherings. The space around the games room/building currently holds a couple of tables with bench seats but will soon be extended to house an outdoor children’s playground.

The main amenities block has also been refurbished with new tiles, toilets, showers and basins but very cleverly kept the original partitions between cubicles and they look great.  In the centre of this building is one of the most amazing family bathrooms I have seen on our travels. It is huge with change table, bathtub, shower and toilet – enough room for the whole family.  Claire has even made sure there are toys for the little ones and a non-slip mat on the bottom of the bath. This bathroom has also been equipped to meet the standards for a disabled bathroom with fold out seats, rails and an open shower.

A jumping pillow sits at the rear of the park surrounded by sand – complete with a sand toys for younger children to use while older ones bounce about on the jumping pillow.  This has been built using retaining walls that can be utilised as seating for parents to keep an eye on the kids at play.

Claire has negotiated discounts around town for BIG4 members and provides a list of outlets on the park map for guests. These discounts offer some very generous savings.

Our caravan site was a very good size, flat and overlooked Barkers Creek running past the Botanical Gardens. The powered and unpowered sites vary in size so make sure you let reception know the size of your caravan or motorhome.

The BIG4 Castlemaine Gardens Holiday Park is walking distance to the Bridge Hotel, and The MIll complex which houses a brewery, great cafe, fresh fruit and vegetable shop, plus an amazing Bazaar selling a huge range of old wares. 

We very much enjoyed our stay at this welcoming BIG4 caravan park - sometimes the staff (and owner) make all the difference.