Weemilah Bed & Breakfast Willunga review | SA’s Great Travel Planner

From the outside, Weemilah looks like a log cabin, with a veranda providing the ideal spot to sit and take in the breathtaking views.

As we sat in our car at the bottom of the driveway waiting for a call back from one of the owners of Weemilah Bed & Breakfast about how to open the solar-powered gate, it occurred to me that it may have been easier flying to the property by helicopter.

After all, there is a helipad on site and Aldinga Airfield is only three minutes away.

But we didn’t have to wait long for Mei Ling Beck to contact us, and point out the now obvious button on the end of a long stick.

The gate swung open and we were on our way up the long, steep, dirt driveway to our home away from home in the Willunga hills for a couple of days.

Mei Ling, who lives further up the track with her husband Paul, was waiting for us at the cottage, which, she explains, was named by previous owners after the Aboriginal word for “good view”. It’s an understatement.

The view over bushland to the coast is breathtaking.

The view from Weemilah is breathtaking. Picture: Graham Lamonby

From the outside, Weemilah looks like a log cabin, with a veranda providing the ideal spot to sit and take in that view and the nearby nesting boxes and frying pan full of water, which is a magnet for native birds.

Inside, the kingsize bed at the far end of the open-plan design dominates the tastefully decorated room. To the right of the entrance is a dining setting for four. It’s next to a galley kitchen which overlooks the lounge area with two couches and a coffee table.

A giant flat-screen TV on a swivel arm allows for watching from the lounge or in bed. A sliding door off the kitchen leads to the bathroom with a shower run on rainwater.

A well-stocked mini bar contains a breakfast feast of bacon, eggs, yoghurt, milk, butter and oranges to squeeze for fresh juice. A selection of cereals is in canisters on the shelf above the oven, as well as spreads for toast. It’s enough for more than the two days we are staying.

Maps of the area have thoughtfully been left on the kitchen bench and brochures of things to do and see are located on a bench to the left of the entry. We peruse the offerings and decide to try our luck booking dinner at the nearby Victory Hotel.

We’ve heard good reports and even though it’s a Thursday, they can only squeeze us in if we eat early. No problem. We unpack our few belongings and head to Sellicks Hill.

Dinner lives up to expectations and we waddle out and head “home”. I try to stay awake to watch the big soccer match on TV but the bed is too comfortable and I don’t make it past half-time.

Rustic charm at Weemilah.

The galley kitchen at Weemilah.

The next morning after a big breakfast we head back to Sellicks Hill to check out the giant Buddha statue, which is an architectural wonder, before driving along the coastline and indulging in some geocaching.

By midafternoon our breakfast has worn off and we head in to Aldinga where I’ve heard Home Grain Bakery is worth a visit. It is, especially for their vanilla slice! We also pop in next door to Maxwell’s Grocery for some cheese and crackers (to have later with a glass of wine), and head over the road to check out the sale at Miss Gladys on Sea.

Back at Weemilah, we wander around the 21ha of natural bushland and are sitting by the helipad admiring the setting sun when the Becks drive up. The power has gone off and they’re delivering candles and switching the water over to the mains as it could be midnight before it comes back on. There is a selection of board games and packs of cards at the cottage to while away the evening by candlelight.

The power is back on in the morning and after another huge breakfast, we reluctantly pack up the car and head back to Adelaide via the Willunga markets, our own batteries recharged from the relaxing time away.

Reviews are unannounced and paid for by SAWeekend

This review was first published in July 2016 and details were updated in March 2021. Weemilah is being renovated and is due to be available again in winter 2021.

• 187 Delabole Rd, Willunga
• 0434 647 969

• LOCATION About 45 minutes south of Adelaide
• ACCOMMODATION Fully self-contained cottage, two bedroom, each room with its own ensuites.
• FACILITIES Kingsize bed with electric blanket, lounge, four -person dining setting, bar fridge, breakfast provisions, flat screen TV, picnic basket and rug, reverse-cycle airconditioning, fan, pot belly stove, gas BBQ
• PRICE from $490 per couple per night