One look at the nightly weather report and you’d be forgiven for thinking that Stanthorpe was not in Queensland. The cold winter temperatures are a reminder to us why we left the south. This quirky fact about one of Queensland’s best kept secrets makes Stanthorpe ideal for growing the apples, berries and grapes it turns into an exquisite range of jams, chutneys, preserves and local Queensland wine.

Nestled deep within the Granite Belt, Stanthorpe is a little over three hours’ drive west of the Gold Coast via Nerang, Beaudesert, Boonah and Cunningham’s Gap. It’s just south of Warwick off the New England Highway. If you’re a native Queenslander and have never seen snow, chances are you will during a Stanthorpe winter. We didn’t, because we visited there during November and the temperature was pleasant.

Stanthorpe offers its visitors the promise of a sublime weekend getaway with good food and a variety of accommodation choices to suit everyone.

Several caravan parks allow for caravanners and cabin dwellers but if you want to sleep under the stars, pack the tent and the telescope and head for the Sommerville Valley Tourist Park on the Storm King Dam for that truly rural experience.

If you’re looking for a romantic retreat, there are B&Bs on offer, some attached to boutique wineries with restaurants on-site. We actually headed for the motel, being sans caravan this time, and were pleasantly surprised when The Vines Motel and Cottages offered us two nights at a really good rate in one of their fully self-contained cottages next door. Staying there was a friendly trip down memory lane to the ’fifties - the house was fully furnished with plenty of bedrooms, a fully equipped kitchen and even a BBQ under cover in the spacious back yard. One could almost hear the sound of cricket ball contacting bat during a friendly summer holidays game in the back yard with the local kids from the street. Ah, the memories...

Part 2 of 3

After a peaceful sleep without the sounds of city traffic, we ventured out and walked the short walk to town via the beautifully kept Apex Park on Quart Pot Creek. Ladies, if you enjoy quaint drapery stores that sell anything from lace and linen to well-priced quality jewellery or hippy tie-dies, crystals and incense, take a meander through the shops at Stanthorpe. We stopped at Woolworths to stock up the fridge with fresh produce so we could eat in that night and their deli provided plenty of anti-pasta for our picnic at the dam the next day.

For lunch why not try the Southern Queensland Institute of TAFE where the trainees do an excellent presentation of restaurant quality food served with wine they produce from vines on the premises. This is the jewel of Stanthorpe, in my opinion. They even catered for my gluten-free requirements with a smile on their faces!

There’s no shortage of good places to eat in this region and there are boutique wineries where you can sample the local vintages. It’s worth stopping by the Granite Belt Wine and Tourism information booth near the motel where the staff can offer you a range of things to do – bush walks in the national parks for those who are fit, or scenic drives to dams, peaks and wineries for the more faint-hearted, plus they offer for sale all the range of jams produced in the region. I bought several. They make great Christmas presents for food connoisseurs.