slower island.
slowly.
Phillip Island doesn't need much of a plan. Walk beside the water. Buy something grown nearby. Let lunch run late. Swim if the weather is kind — or if you're feeling brave. Come home before dark.
Inside these pages are a handful of the places, walks and small rituals we return to ourselves. Not everything to do on Phillip Island. Just a slower way to find your way around it.
Keep it close for your visit, or simply for the dreaming.
The island is best discovered on foot, with nowhere particular to be.
Lovers Walk
Follow the bay from Cowes along Lovers Walk and into town. An easy wander from Verandah, particularly lovely in the morning before the island properly wakes.
Cape Woolamai
For something wilder, head to Cape Woolamai. A proper coastal walk, with big skies, rugged cliffs and Bass Strait stretching out beside you.
The Nobbies
Go when the weather is doing something. The boardwalks take you out along the island's western edge, where the coast feels raw and wonderfully exposed.
You don't need to walk far. Just long enough to feel the island a little.
Some things are worth leaving the house for.
Coffee — G'Day Tiger
For good coffee, start at G'Day Tiger in Cowes. Pick one up before a morning walk, or sit for a while and let the day begin slowly.
Market — Churchill Island Farmers' Market
On the first Saturday of the month, take a basket to Churchill Island. Go hungry and see what the season is offering — good bread, vegetables, cheese, flowers, honey and things you hadn't planned on buying.
Long Lunch — Phillip Island Winery
Our pick for a lunch that quietly becomes the afternoon. Wine, something good to eat and, ideally, nowhere else you need to be.
Dinner — Anerie
An intimate French bistro in Cowes for a dinner worth making an occasion of. Dress up a little. Order something lovely. Linger.
Silverleaves General Store
A little neighbourhood favourite tucked away in Silverleaves. Lovely for something to eat, a coffee and the pleasure of finding yourself in one of the quieter corners of the island.
Eat well. Bring something home for later.
together.
Verandah is made for four-legged guests too. Start with a walk along the bay, then choose your beach and your pace according to the day.
Some mornings call for a long wander. Others are better suited to sandy paws, a quick swim and a slow walk home.
The best plan is often the simplest: water, lead, towel — and nowhere you need to rush back from.
come to you.
The house is part of the holiday. Walk down to the bay in the morning. Read on the daybed. Or wander ten minutes down the road to Wellbeing Elements for a sauna, then come home warm, slightly dazed and very relaxed.
As the afternoon stretches out, take a book to the verandah. Pour something cold. Put your feet up.
Spring at Verandah comes with a few good things. Everything is waiting for you to make a Negroni — pour it over ice, finish with orange and take it outside.
In the kitchen, a bottle of Little Pier olive oil is waiting too. Crafted by our friends especially for Verandah, it's our gift to pour over something good, tear bread into, cook with while you're here — or take home when you leave.
Open the doors while the afternoon is warm. Light the fire when the island air turns cool. Then let the evening come to you.
our way.
How we'd spend a day on the island
Walk beside the bay. Coffee. Buy something grown nearby.
Swim.
Let lunch run late.
Book a sauna. Come home before dark.
Something cold on the verandah. Dinner around the table. Bed.
No rushing required.
for next time.
The island changes with the seasons. Different things flower. The water warms and cools. Whales pass the coast. Markets fill with whatever is growing nearby. Fires are lit, then eventually the doors are thrown open again.
You don't need to see all of Phillip Island in one visit. In fact, we rather hope you don't.
at home.
Verandah is our beach house in Cowes, a few minutes from the bay and made for slow days on the island. The whole house is yours.
Discover Verandah →