In the know

Our favourite rooms: All accommodation at Bells is set away from the Manor House through pretty English gardens, quietly secluded from the gastronomic hustle and bustle of the restaurant. The two Deluxe Spa Villas make you feel even more independent, with their upstairs bedrooms, double spa baths and French-windowed balconies. Get a north-west-facing one for sleeping off lunch in the late afternoon sun. Or opt for the only King Suite with a spa bath. In all rooms, nautical blues, strong fabric flourishes and designer rattan are the signature statements of interior designer Chrissie Jeffery.
Packing tips: Marcos-loads of shoes: loafers for lunch, flipflops for the beach, walking shoes for the National Park trails.
Also: The beautiful woven blankets are made exclusively for Chrissie Jeffery in India and are available to purchase through her Sydney interiors treasure trove, No Chintz, which has two store outlets.

Bells at Killcare, Central Coast, Australia

Current offers

Smith card offer: A complimentary Bellini cocktail in the bar between 5pm and 6pm

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Bells at Killcare

Central Coast, Australia[view map]

Style: Bold classy coastal
Setting: Graceful English gardens

Bells at Killcare takes the best of country, coastal and city chic to make a boutique bouillabaisse which is part hotel, part chef's-hatted-restaurant, part private retreat. Stefano Manfredi brings New Italian heartiness to the kitchen, while classic Australia awaits on the surf beaches and walking trails of the surrounding Bouddi National Park, just 90 minutes north of Sydney.

Need to know

Rooms: 11, including nine suites and two villas.
Rates: AU$250–AU$550, including breakfast hamper and tax at 10 per cent.
Check-out: 11am, but can be extended for AU$100. Earliest check-in, 2pm.
Facilities: Gardens, free WiFi in the main house, CD, DVD and book library. In rooms: pre-loaded iPod and dock, flatscreen TV, CD/DVD players, Aveda toiletries and air conditioning.
Poolside: There is no pool, but bring your surf board and head to the nearby beach.
Eco-friendly: Food waste is recycled for the 50 chickens that call Bells home; there's an organic kitchen garden that services the restaurant and tank water is used outside.
Also: Stainless-steel Tucker barbecues grace private furnished verandas; the perfect opportunity for Mr Smith to hone his cooked-breakfast skills. If Mrs Smith fancies some pampering, beauty and spa treatments can be arranged in your room.

Food & drink

Hotel restaurant: The grand wide expanse of the Main Dining Room, overlooking the gardens, is the spiritual heart of the Bells at Killcare experience. Vivid blues, strong stripes and subtle shell motifs create a relaxed coastal feel, smartened by bright white linens and stylishly unpholstered banquettes. The veranda is generous and great for larger parties while two private dining rooms – The Wine Room and The Garden Room – offer more secluded spaces for Smiths and their friends inside. But you'd be happy eating Stefano Manfredi's food anywhere – robust duck and pork ragùs, pan-fried veal and provolone involtini, home-made gelati and antipasto plates that would feed a family. Italian heritage is overlaid with rigorous local and organic product sourcing; the restaurant is particularly proud of its Hawkesbury River oysters and Wagyu beef from Gundooee.
Dress code: T M Lewin shirts and R M Williams moleskins for lunch; stretch pants for after.
Top table: Pick a power table on the veranda, but any of the windowside tables for two will do if it's too hot or too cold to be outside.
Room service: The antipasto platters for your room can be ordered in advance.
Hotel bar: As well as a super-extensive Italian wine list, Bells pays meticulous attention to many of the best regional wines, reflecting host Brian Barry's long association with the wineries of the Hunter Valley (check out the wonderful photographic recreation of The Last Supper tucked away in the entrance hall, toasting the retirement of one of the local winemakers). The glass-walled, temperature-controlled Wine Cellar is a key feature of the restaurant area, but quaff the stuff in the leather-chesterfielded Bar or more comfy, book-lined library, where an intricate replica of a First Fleet rigger takes pride of place. Suitably, Bellinis are the house cocktail.

Also worth knowing

Children: This hotel is better suited to couples - leave the children at home!
Weddings: This hotel is suitable for weddings. More…

Smith Members offer

A complimentary Bellini cocktail in the bar between 5pm and 6pm

If you're a member of Mr & Mrs Smith, you can get special privileges at every Smith hotel you book through us. Just show your Smith card at check-in to claim the offer featured on every hotel page (like the one above).

Click here to become a Mr & Mrs Smith member

Book this hotel

To book this hotel please click here, or contact our travel team on 1 866 610 3867.