School camp accommodation & meals
On a school camp at Sunnystones, your group has the whole property to itself: a stone homestead on 50 acres beside the Long Forest Nature Conservation Reserve, 45 minutes from Melbourne. It sleeps 90, and our own kitchen team cooks every meal on site.
Nine dormitories, all under one roof
Nine dormitories with bathrooms inside the homestead — everything under one roof, no toilet blocks. Nobody crosses the property in the dark to find a toilet, and teachers can supervise the whole group from inside one building.
Every room has bunk beds, with trundles in some rooms. The homestead is built of stone, and many of the bunks sit right against the stone walls — part of its character.
East wing and west wing. The east wing holds rooms 1 to 6, opening off the main living areas. The west wing holds rooms 7, 8 and 9 — one downstairs and two upstairs — across an open courtyard about 15 metres wide. The courtyard isn’t covered, which is worth knowing when you plan night supervision.
The floor plan shows every room’s beds and bathrooms, and the room allocation sheet lets you plan who sleeps where. Room allocations go into the online portal at least two weeks before camp.
Bedding: what we provide and what to bring
Every bed is made up with a fitted sheet and a pillow with a pillowcase. Students bring:
- a sleeping bag, doona or blanket
- a fitted single sheet to go over ours
- a pillowcase (optional)
- a small towel for showers, and toiletries
Heating and cooling
The bedrooms generally aren’t heated. The heating is in the main living areas the bedrooms open off: wood fires in the pit area, sunroom and games room, plus split systems. For a winter camp, a warm sleeping bag and warm layers make all the difference.
In the warmer months the stone homestead holds a steady temperature when it’s kept closed up through the day, and ceiling fans keep air moving in the dining hall.
Places to gather
The dining hall seats the whole group. There’s a sunken conversation pit with a wood fire, a games room with game tables and a pool table, and a sunroom.
Meals cooked on site
Our own chef and kitchen team cook every meal in the homestead’s commercial kitchen. Students eat together in the dining hall, and student duty groups help set and clear the tables. Teachers eat in the same room at their own table — close enough to supervise, with a moment to themselves.
If a child won’t eat what’s on offer, the kitchen will do everything it can to find something they like.
Drinking water comes from every tap, and there’s a refill station on the front lawn that students can use any time, so pack a reusable water bottle.
What’s on the menu
The order of meals can change from camp to camp, so here’s what you can expect across a stay.
| Breakfast | Continental: cereals, toast and spreads, peaches and yoghurt, orange or apple juice. On campout mornings, an egg, bacon and cheese roll. |
|---|---|
| Morning and afternoon tea | Chocolate cake, Saladas with cheese and tomato, damper and billy tea, white chocolate and raspberry muffins, cheese and bacon rolls, and bush cooking. Out on activities, a pack-out snack of a muesli bar, popcorn and fruit. |
| Lunch | Build-your-own bread rolls with a choice of meat and salad fillings; barbecue chicken with potato salad and garden salad; a barbecue with sausages for students, and vegie burgers or hamburgers for teachers. Icy poles and a big fruit platter. |
| Dinner | Homemade pasta bolognaise with garlic bread, chicken taco bowls, baked potatoes and pizzas. |
| Dessert | Chocolate mousse with raspberries and ice cream, apple and cinnamon crumble with ice cream, warm butterscotch pudding with ice cream, fruit salad and sorbet, and paddle pops. |
Most schools start camp with our walk-in, so on arrival day students bring their own morning tea and lunch in a day pack and eat it on the walk through the Long Forest. See a sample program.
Meals, allergies and dietary requirements
Our allergen-free menu matches the standard menu dish for dish, so a student with allergies eats the same meal as everyone else. It’s free from nuts, gluten, wheat, egg, dairy, soy, sesame and shellfish, cooked with its own red equipment, and served first. We also cater for vegetarian, vegan and halal, and allergen-free meals cost nothing extra.
Common questions
How many does the homestead sleep?
Are the bathrooms inside?
Are the bedrooms heated?
What bedding do students bring?
Do you cater for allergies and dietary requirements?
Let’s plan your camp
Tell us your year level, group size and preferred term, and we’ll reply with availability, a sample program, a menu and a quote.
Enquire about a school camp
Tell us about your year level, group size and preferred term, and our team will be in touch within one business day.