Need to know
Rooms
Twenty-nine, including seven log cabins and 10 luxury 'canvas cabin' tents
Check–Out
11am, but flexible if there’s availability. Earliest check-in, 4pm.
More details
Rates include all activities, meals and drinks; the 20 per cent ranch fee includes taxes, snacks, phone calls and WiFi.
Also
There’s a spa in the Granite Lodge, with jetted foot soaks and framed flowers on the walls; treatments include the aptly named Saddle Sore Soak, guaranteed to bathe away the day’s aches. There's also an ice rink for skating and games of ice hockey.
At the hotel
Rodeo grounds (for the weekly rodeo), cinema, the Buckle Barn event space, library, spa, bowling alley, hot tub, billiards table, stables, fishing ponds, WiFi throughout and 6,600 acres. In rooms, bathrobes and slippers, minibar and free bottled water. Some rooms have TVs, and some have a jetted jacuzzi or cedar soaking tub. Luxury homes also have full kitchens.
Our favourite rooms
Camping fans won’t know what’s hit them in a Luxury Canvas Cabin, where the toilet is inside the tent, and a private bath house is nearby. They line the banks of Rock Creek, and come with a rocking chair and porch out front. For sturdier lodgings, head inside to the Appaloosa Suite, with a four-poster white birch bed and wooden walls, or the masculine Loft, which has rafter ceilings and an elegant freestanding bath tub.
Poolside
The thousands of acres have room for a heated outdoor pool. Brave sorts can jump in the creek.
Spa
Wild-inspired treatments are the order of the day at the Spa at Rock Creek, a cosy cabin with a cedar sauna. Choose from CBD massages or hydration wraps; every treatment uses eco-friendly, naturally formulated products.
Packing tips
Checked shirts, jeans and cowboy hats – and if you don’t normally dress like you’re in a Western, stock up at the Mercantile, where you can buy genuine cowboy articles. The ranch has a whole storage room of sports equipment, so don’t worry about lugging your own.
Also
One bedroom in the Granite Lodge is suitable for wheelchair users.
Children
Very welcome; just remember that the area is remote and that a babysitter will need a fortnight’s notice. Cribs must be ordered in, so let the hotel know well in advance. Some rooms have pull-out beds for children.
Best for
Six plus, who are steady on their feet and like to run around.
Recommended rooms
Family Canvas Cabins and Luxury Cabins are family-friendly thanks to the space they offer.
Activities
Kids will be entertained for days with a range of outdoor educational activities hosted by the Flint's Forrest Rangers Kids Club. Little Smiths aged four to 12 can enjoy a tailored programme of horse riding, ranch exploration, treasure hunting, fire and shelter building, pool games, nature hikes and animal investigations guided by a team of trained staff.
Swimming pool
There’s a shallow end in the pool, and arm-bands and floats available to borrow.
Meals
Dinner is served from 6pm to 9pm and children are welcome to dine with grown-ups. They’ll have their own menu to pick from, and the restaurant has high chairs. Packed lunches can be ordered, too.
No need to pack
Monitoring equipment, play pens, prams and even car seats can be loaned out from the hotel.
